It’s cold again outside, and that means one thing — it’s time to break out the long johns.
I recall being a child and staying with family friends on their farm for a few days. The woman of the household was a wonderful lady named Marge, and she told me we would be making long johns. The brain of this 5-year-old envisioned some sort of sweatshop with sewing machines humming away. I was pleasantly surprised to find out she and I would be in the kitchen making long donuts with a maple glaze of incredibly sugary frosting. Not too many years later, I learned to also appreciate thermal underwear and its waffle weave texture just as much. Long johns were — and continue to be — necessary clothing in the winter weather of Iowa.
Even in my suit-and-tie days out of college, I was known to wear long johns. While in a meeting at The Des Moines Register where we were all seated in chairs in a circle, I could see my coworker Shannon laughing at me from across the room. With my legs crossed at the knee, I leaned forward and tried mouthing, “What’s so funny?” She kept laughing. Shannon could see I was becoming irritated with her, and she finally blurted out, “Quit being such a jerk. I am just laughing at your long underwear that I can see from your suit pant leg.” Laugh all you want, Shannon. I was toasty warm.
Maybe you wonder where the term “long johns” came from. Some say it began with soldiers in World War II who donned the thermal underwear, but the words appeared many years prior. According to a story in the Summit (Colorado) Daily, the invention of long johns is credited to John Smedley in the English town of Matlock in Derbyshire. Smedley manufactured the clothing on the premises of his Lea Mills in the late 18th century, the story says. The name “long johns” supposedly refers to American boxer John L. Sullivan, who reigned as the heavyweight champion from 1882-1892.
So now you know. The next time you slip into some long johns, you can think of John Smedley and John L. Sullivan. And the next time you eat a delicious maple-glazed long john donut, you can think of all the wonderful bakers like Marge.
Have a fantastic Friday, and thanks for reading.
Shane Goodman
Editor and Publisher
Times Vedette digital editions
shane@gctimesnews.com
641-332-2707