How now brown cow
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"How now brown cow" is a phrase used in elocution teaching to demonstrate rounded vowel sounds.
[edit] References in popular culture
In the movie Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, Ron Burgundy, played by Will Ferrell, recites "How now, brown cow" before he goes on live television. It is also used in The Avengers where Emma Peel played by Uma Thurman when she speaks to Mother (who is actually a cow). During a recent episode of WWE RAW, the phrase is uttered. The phrase is also uttered by Charlie Brown in the second verse of "Scenario" by A Tribe Called Quest. The Original words came from a nursery rhyme from the 19th century.
In addition, in one episode of The Simpsons, Homer imagines himself dropping a miniature atomic bomb on a group of beatniks from an airplane and riding the bomb, like in Dr. Strangelove. It briefly shows a beatnik reading part of a poem, with the words "How now, brown beaurocrat?" which is a play on the phrase.