Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Liar Liar

Perhaps the best known taunt of them all has several different second lines:

Liar, liar, pants on fire
sitting on a telephone wire


ALternate second lines include:

Hang them on a telephone wire
and
Nose as long as a telephone wire.

All go back to at least the early 1940s. I suspect that "nose as long as a telephone wire" is the "original," if only because it makes the most sense.

12 comments:

  1. liar liar, pants on fire
    hair sticking up like a telephone wire

    Newcastle, UK
    1980-90's

    ReplyDelete
  2. Liar, Liar, pants on fire
    Hang your britches on a wire
    Hang them high
    Hang them low
    Hang them in a britches show

    ReplyDelete
  3. Liar, Liar, pants on fire
    Tail as long as a telephone wire

    South Africa (late 1960s and 1970s)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Canada, early 2000

    Liar, liar, pants on fire
    hanging on a silver wire.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Liar, Liar, pants on fire
    Hanging on a telephone wire
    Might be pink
    Might be blue
    Might be full of doggy-doo!

    California 1960's

    ReplyDelete
  6. liar liar pants on fire hanging from a telephone wire<when your there cut your hair and shove down your underwear.canada 1980

    ReplyDelete
  7. Liar, liar, pants on fire! Bet you can't jump over a telephone wire! (Indiana, USA late 1970's/early 1980's)

    ReplyDelete
  8. Liar liar pants on fire
    i like cats
    meow

    ReplyDelete
  9. Liar liar pants on fire
    Hang your britches on a wire
    Hang em high, hang em low
    Hang em on your teacher's nose!

    (Florida/Georgia 1970s-1980s)

    ReplyDelete
  10. My cousins came home singing
    " liar liar pants on fire
    Throw your mother into the fire"
    What do you say to that

    (Bakersfield California 2014-2015

    ReplyDelete
  11. liar liar knickers on fire, your tits got caught on the telephone wire. yorkshire, uk (circa 1977)

    ReplyDelete
  12. Liar liar pants on fire
    Show your butt to Canadian Tire
    Canada (2011ish is the furthest back I could find to 2015 when my kid is in school)

    ReplyDelete

PLEASE tell us where and when you heard your version (ie, "Chicago, early 1950s). And please be aware that the information may end up in a book sooner or later. Comments are screened; too much spam.