26 April 2017
spear carrier or spear-carrier
noun
1. a supernumerary in a theatrical or operatic production, as one of a group of soldiers or a member of a crowd; extra.
2. any minor member of a group, profession, political party, etc.; subordinate; underling.
Origin of spear carrier
1950-1955
Dictionary.com
spear carrier
noun phrase
An unimportant participant; supernumerary : What helped me most was having been a catcher and a ”spear carrier” definitely not a star/ like last-minute walk-ons in the closing scene, spear-carriers in Valhalla
[1960+; fr the persons who appear on stage, esp in operas, as soldiers in the background]
The Dictionary of American Slang, Fourth Edition by Barbara Ann Kipfer, PhD. and Robert L. Chapman, Ph.D.
Copyright (C) 2007 by HarperCollins Publishers.
Anagram
Racer Repairs
Today’s quote
To the wise, life is a problem; to the fool, a solution.
– Marcus Aurelius
On this day
26 April 121AD – birth of Marcus Aurelius, Roman emperor. Died 17 March 180AD.
26 April 1865 – Union troopers corner and shoot dead John Wilkes Booth, the man who fired the fatal bullet on 14 April 1865 that assassinated President Abraham Lincoln.
26 April 1894 – birth of Rudolf Hess. Prominent Nazi politician who served as Deputy Fuhrer under Adolf Hitler. In 1941, Hess flew solo to Scotland in an effort to negotiate peace after being ignored by Hitler in various plans associated with the war. The flight was not sanctioned by Hitler. Hess was taken prisoner and charged with crimes against peace. He served a life sentence and remained in prison until his death. Died 17 August 1987.
26 April 1945 – birth of Dick Johnson, Australian racing car legend. Five-time Australian Touring Car Champion, three-time winner of the Bathurst 1000, inducted into the V8 Supercar Hall of Fame in 2001.
26 April 1986 – the Chernobyl nuclear disaster when an explosion and fire at the No 4 reactor in the Chernobyl nuclear plant, Ukraine, releases radioactive gas across Northern Europe. It is estimated to have killed up to 1 million people from radioactive related cancers.
26 April 1989 – the deadliest tornado in world history strikes Central Bangladesh, killing more than 1300, injuring 12,000 and leaving up to 80,000 homeless.