New York minute (time)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A New York minute is an informal term used to mean a very short period of time. The term refers to the common perception that the people in New York City are hurried and impatient.

Johnny Carson once described a New York Minute as being the time it takes "From the (traffic) lights to turn green, till the guy behind you starts honking his horn". During the late 1980s crime wave, David Letterman defined a New York Minute as the length of time it took to be mugged in New York City.

A New York minute may be compared to the idea of Internet time, and contrasted with that of a country mile.

There is also a song titled "In A New York Minute" by U.S lyricist Fran Landesman and U.K. composer Simon Wallace, also sung by Don Henley of the Eagles.

Use of the term in New York betrays the speaker as being from out of town.

[edit] External links

• New York Minute/New York Nanosecond "New York Minute" from New York word researcher Barry Popik.
• World Wide Words Suggests "New York minute" may have originated in Texas