Following the bouncing ball....
By Sissygrl
@Sissygrl (10912)
Canada
September 16, 2009 6:59am CST
What exactly does this phrase mean?
Do you suppose it translates funny in another language.. Someone said this in my presence recently and it just make me break out laughing for little to no reason!! It struck me as funny..
Something seemingly normal ever strike you as the most flippin hilarious thing in the world and people stare at you and think your weird?!
2 people like this
7 responses
@cambiste (1244)
• India
16 Sep 09
There used to be a TV program called "Sing along with Mitch" somewhere in 1975 or 1956. It was hosted by a popular singer Mitch Miller. The catchphrase was was created by him.
Miller used to ask the viewer to "follow the bouncing ball". A small ball used to bounce over the lyrics and highlight the word that was being sung. This made it very popular at the time.
Nowadays it is used to imply "Sing along" or "follow the lyrics" kind of meaning. Karaoke beginners are asked to "follow the bouncing ball" and read the lyrics instead of trying to sing on their own.
It does sound funny. lol.
Happy mylotting.
3 people like this
@coffeebreak (17798)
• United States
18 Sep 09
I think that came up as a saying years ago when they'd do a sing-along thing - on tv or other viewing screen.. and they'd have the words to the song on the tv screen and a ball would "bounce" on each word as it was to be said/sang. They do that a lot with kids shows.... ergo "following the bouncing ball".
One I can't figure is "that's the way the cookie crumbles"... what's up with that on? Life crumbling apart?
1 person likes this
@Hatley (163776)
• Garden Grove, California
17 Sep 09
hi sissygrl wow that phrase is as old almost as I am. when I was a kid and went to the matinees on Saturdays they would have what were called short shorts and some of them let the audience sing along ,just before the sentences of the songs would be the instructions follow the bouncing ball as the ball hovered above the words to the song and moved along to the end of each sentence of the song. thus follow the bouncing bAll if you wanted to sing along. most of the audience were kids of course.
2 people like this
@SomeCowgirl (32191)
• United States
3 Oct 09
I do not think that I have ever heard of that phrase, so it's new to me. Yes it is funny, and I don't know what it means. I can't think of a phrase that I thought was hilarious right off hand, so sorry about that. I wonder what "following the bouncing ball" translates in other languages too as well.
oh no not knobs. how to you manage to pull 'knobs' into every serious discussion you see?@Sissygrl (10912)
• Canada
16 Sep 09
hhah its only been two discussions JB.. and i never have a serious one.. well not usually.... and knobs and balls are fun dont you think?!
Hair, oooo organs and knobs and balls.. oh my.. large ? I dont know if there is room for a LARge organ, but we could try to squeeze it in if i came across a nice one!
2 people like this
@danishcanadian (28955)
• Canada
19 Sep 09
The only bouncing ball I have ever heard of following is the one that pops up on a screen on a TV or something, when there is a sing-a-long of some sort going on. You know those religious gospel singing videos that people like to follow? Those often have bouncing balls, so people will see which words to sing. A ball bounces above the word, to draw attention to it.
