23 skidoo (or 23 skiddoo) may refer to:
- 23 skidoo (phrase), an American slang phrase from the 1920s
- 23 Skidoo (band), a British post-punk, ethnic fusion and industrial music band
- "23 Skidoo" (film), a 1964 short experimental film by Julian Biggs
- "23 Skidoo" (poem), a 1912 poem from Aleister Crowley's Book of Lies
- Secret Agent 23 Skidoo, a Kid-Hop musician from Asheville, NC
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23 skidoo (phrase)
23 skidoo (sometimes 23 skiddoo) is an American slang phrase popularized during the early 20th century. It generally refers to leaving quickly, being forced to leave quickly by someone else, or taking advantage of a propitious opportunity to leave, that is, "getting [out] while the getting's good." The exact origin of the phrase is uncertain.
23 skidoo has been described as "perhaps the first truly national fad expression and one of the most popular fad expressions to appear in the U.S," to the extent that "Pennants and arm-bands at shore resorts, parks, and county fairs bore either [23] or the word 'Skiddoo'."
"23 skidoo," first attested in 1906, combines two earlier expressions, "twenty-three" (1899) and "skidoo" (1901), both of which, independently and separately, referred to leaving, being kicked out, or the end of something. "23 skidoo" quickly became a popular catch-phrase after its first appearance in early 1906.
Origin
Although there are a number of stories suggesting the possible origin of the phrase, none has been universally accepted.
23 Skidoo (band)
23 Skidoo are a British band playing a fusion of industrial, post-punk, alternative dance, rock, and world music. The group was named after an early 20th-century American slang phrase that later made appearances in the works of Aleister Crowley, William S. Burroughs, Robert Anton Wilson, and filmmaker Julian Biggs.
History
Formed in 1979 by Fritz Catlin, Johnny Turnbull and Sam Mills, and later augmented by Alex Turnbull and Tom Heslop, 23 Skidoo had interests in martial arts, Burundi and Kodo drumming, Fela Kuti, The Last Poets, William S. Burroughs, as well as the emerging confluence of industrial, post-punk and funk, heard in artists such as A Certain Ratio, Throbbing Gristle, Cabaret Voltaire, The Pop Group and This Heat.
