Talk:Sidekick

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I think that it should also mention the famous sidekicks in talk show hosts, like Kevin Eubanks on Jay Leno for example.

I agree; I think that this page needs to be a disambiguation page leading to Sidekick (fiction) and Sidekick (entertainment) at the least. There are other products that have been named "Sidekick" that should be disambiguated as well. Telestylo 08:19, 3 November 2005 (UTC)

Would it be fair to describe Gabrielle as Xena's sidekick? I've seen very little of the show, unfortunately. Of course we don't really need more, there are plenty already. Tualha 23:20, 12 Dec 2003 (UTC)

Contents

[edit] etymology

It would seem that an older version of the OED may have had that origin of side kick (From an O. Henry story) however there is now not any definition or definitive etymology for "sidekick" in the OED. However several word sites have featured the word. And in OED, the work "kick" defines as a pocket.Sbwoodside 03:40, 19 August 2005 (UTC)

Can anybody supply any other documentation on sidekick being used in reference to pick-pockets and kick being "the front side pocket of pair of trousers?" This origin seems counter-intuitive to the way sidekick has been used in this article.

Since language grows metaphorically out of the human condition I would like to offer some intuitions on sidekick. Sidekick was the term used for a close horse riding companion; close enough to kick the side of the other horse, sometimes causing the horse to vault. Sidekick moved into vaudeville where a lead stage actor "kicked" a companion actor for comic relief.

The jump into or from other forms of entertainment / literature seems to originate from a deeper human relationship that predates "pockets and trousers." Could Eve (out of Adam's side) have been the first sidekick and what a "kick" she gave to Adam!

I am very interested in the word sidekick and would appreciate any info grounding its origin in the written word. Where did the factual trail begin?

Thank you. --Pudgala2 23:52, 6 June 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Changes to the page

  • I've moved the list of sidekicks to a subpage - since it was bound to grow forever, as every Harry Potter and Pokemon fan in the universe added to it (though I did attempt to make it clear that it was a list of notable sidekicks).
  • I've created a disambig page for sidekick - since there are probably more uses for the term out there.
  • I think it's worth keeping the fictional and real sidekick pages together - since the root of the term is the same (and so is the essential meaning).

If anyone feels strongly that it's the wrong thing - please at least explain why before reverting. Thanks. Megapixie 07:39, 2 January 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Gay sidekick

While true that gay sidekicks can be used to emphasize the fact that the hero is masculine, this is not always right, nor correct, and should perhaps be expressed in a different manner.

Pro primo, gay is not the counterpoint to masculine, feminine is. Many times, the "flamingly open gay" is not homosexual (nor happy) at all, but instead, perceived as such by a heterosexually normative mind. Of course, the manners and the temper of the character is meant to emphasize the masculinity of the hero.

Pro secondo, when it is explicitly said that the sidekick character is homosexual, the hero is perceived as more straight, not more masculine.

--Hakeliha 09:45, 21 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Disputing the etymology

I was trying to find some reliable etymology on the term, and most sources say of unknown origin, and date the term to around 1906, with an earlier reference in 1903 from O. Henry. There are three links given in the article, of which I personally only trust one (The Word Detective).

I've dug up a few additional references, and will merge/re-write the Origins heading (into an Etymology heading), unless there is some serious disagreement. Bare URLS: [1], already mentioned in the article; [2], from the Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology; [3], the Online Etymology Dictionary (which I personally trust, but I am not sure how it would stand up to community scrutiny at WP:RS). [4] The American Heritage College Thesaurus, no etymology. [5], very questionable WP:RS, no real etymology, mostly a curiosity. Yngvarr (c) 11:32, 25 March 2008 (UTC)