As proud citizens of this City of Brotherly Love, we would be remiss not to wish our own Mr. Benjamin Franklin a very happy 397th birthday. Sir, your dictionary of words for “drunk” — as well as some other accomplishments — lives on. We salute you with the above Drunk History of your tangle with that kite and the sky.
From the ‘B’ section of Franklin’s synonyms for “drunk”:
His Head is full of Bees,
Has been in the Bibbing Plot,
Has drank more than he has bled,
He’s Bungey,
He sees the Bears,
He’s had a Thump over the Head with Sampson’s Jawbone,
He’s Bridgey.
Here is Walter Isaacson’s Fresh Air interview on his Franklin biography, Benjamin Franklin: An American Life.
