Three of the Real Deal

February 16, 2016  •  Leave a Comment

Who was "the real McCoy?" Scholars maintain the phrase started out as a Scotch Whiskey advertisement for "the real Mackay." In America, Mackay became McCoy, but no one is sure how the phrase became popular in the States. Did Elijah McCoy inspire the phrase when railroads expressed a preference for his patented invention? Or was it the boxer Kid McCoy, whose deceptive style and many imitators caused some to ask who was "the real" McCoy? Or maybe the real McCoy was Bill McCoy, a prohibition smuggler with a reputation for selling liquor that was not cut or counterfeit.

To tell the truth, no one knows. Will the real McCoy please stand up?

 


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