GR translation: reet pleats

[Rich Clavey]

reet, a.

(riːt) 

U.S. dial. var. right a. (usu. in sense 8). 
   Also a common dial. var. in the U.K.: see Eng. Dial. Dict. 

   1934 in Webster.    1942 Amer. Mercury July 85 Jelly got into his zoot suit with the reet pleats.    1943 Crisis July 201/2 Negro youths will crack at anyone of any race who is nice looking. They will say, ‘A fine queen‥a reet cheet’.    1946 B. Treadwell Big Bk. Swing 125/1 Reet, fine, O.K.    1977 Hot Car Oct. 42/3 People I've spoken to who went last year said it was reet good and very alcoholic.

OED


--- On Sun, 2/24/13, jochen stremmel <jstremmel at gmail.com> wrote:

> From: jochen stremmel <jstremmel at gmail.com>
> Subject: Re: GR translation: reet pleats
> To: "James Kyllo" <jkyllo at gmail.com>
> Cc: "Mike Jing" <gravitys.rainbow.cn at gmail.com>, "Pynchon Mailing List" <pynchon-l at waste.org>
> Date: Sunday, February 24, 2013, 4:56 AM
> Seems to me that in the context with
> zoot suit it has another meaning:
> 
> The design of the suit had many modifications, and came in
> all colors,
> but it consisted basically of "the long killer-diller coat
> with a
> drape shape and wide shoulders; pants with reet-pleats,
> billowing out
> at the knees, tightly tapered and pegged at the ankles; a
> porkpie or
> wide-brimmed hat; pointed or thick-soled shoes; and a long,
> dangling
> keychain."
> 
> Read more: http://www.cdispatch.com/robhardy/article.asp?aid=15572#ixzz2LoSRmsBK
> 
> 
> 2013/2/24 James Kyllo <jkyllo at gmail.com>:
> > Difficult to translate, referring to a song or two:
> > http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkMIKEykTjI (Louis
> Jordan - Reet, Petite and
> > Gone)
> > and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tE46zm4yjhA (Jackie
> Wilson - Reet Petite)
> >
> > It's how the word "right" spoken with a Northern accent
> is often
> > transliterated, and that is used to mean "very" or
> "certainly" as in "It's
> > reet cold this morning".
> >
> >
> > On Sun, Feb 24, 2013 at 6:42 AM, Mike Jing <gravitys.rainbow.cn at gmail.com>
> > wrote:
> >>
> >> P249.4-12   ... It is all out of
> shape, no focus to it until a sarcastic
> >> flourish from the band, and here comes the meanest
> customer Slothrop has
> >> seen outside of a Frankenstein movie—wearing a
> white zoot suit with reet
> >> pleats and a long gold keychain that swings in
> flashing loops as he crosses
> >> the room with a scowl for everybody, in something
> of a hurry but taking the
> >> time to scan faces and bodies, head going side to
> side, methodical, a little
> >> ominous. He stops at last in front of Slothrop,
> who’s putting together a
> >> Shirley Temple for himself.
> >>
> >> What are "reet pleats"?  Specifically, what is
> the meaning of the word
> >> "reet" here?  I am having trouble finding an
> appropriate translation.
> >>
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > --
> > http://www.last.fm/user/Auto_Da_Fe
> > http://www.pop.nu/en/show_collection.asp?user=2412
> > http://www.librarything.com/profile/Auto_Da_Fe
> > http://www.thedetails.co.uk/
> > http://www.songkick.com/users/Auto_Da_Fe
> > http://big-game.tumblr.com/
>