Wall Street Lays An Egg facts for kids

The famous headline "Wall Street Lays An Egg" appeared in Variety magazine on October 30, 1929. Variety was a newspaper that wrote about movies and entertainment. This headline described a very bad day for the stock market, called Black Tuesday. This day was part of the Wall Street Crash of 1929, a huge financial panic. The actual words in the headline were "WALL ST. LAYS AN EGG". It is one of the most famous headlines ever printed in America. People still talk about it in history books today.

What "Lays An Egg" Means

The phrase "laying an egg" is an old American saying. It was very popular in the 1900s, especially in the world of show business. It means to "fail badly" or to have a terrible performance. Variety magazine was well-known for its fun and slangy way of writing. Their headlines and articles often used catchy, informal language. Another famous headline from Variety was "Sticks Nix Hick Pix". This meant "country people don't like movies about country people."

Who Wrote the Headline?

It is not completely clear who wrote this famous headline. Author Ken Bloom believes that Sime Silverman, who owned Variety, wrote it. However, Robert John Landry, who worked at Variety for 50 years, has a different idea. Mr. Landry, who was once the managing editor, said that Claude Binyon wrote it. Binyon was the city editor for Variety at the time.

The Headline's Lasting Impact

The phrase "Wall Street Lays An Egg" is still used sometimes today. People use it to talk about big financial problems. For example, a section in the 1973 book A Random Walk Down Wall Street is called "Wall Street Lays An Egg." Chapter 18 of the 1996 book Lorenz Hart: A Poet on Broadway also uses the title. The 2003 book New World Coming: The 1920s and the Making of Modern America has a chapter 17 with this title too.

Even in the 21st century, people use different versions of the headline. They use them to announce when the economy is doing badly. Variety itself has used new versions. In 1962, they wrote "Wall Street, Son of Egg." In 1987, they used "Wall Street Lays An Egg: The Sequel." Other magazines have used it too. For example, Vanity Fair wrote "Wall Street Lays Another Egg" in 2008.