I Swear I’m Not a Grammar Snob
Fun, language September 7th, 2008What makes me weirder?
a) I watched The Bourne Ultimatum and freeze-framed this newspaper shot so I could read the fine print.
b) I noticed a mistake in grammar, called my husband into the room and excitedly showed him what I’d found.
For the record, he gave me the same blank stare as the time I made him get in my car without telling him why. After we drove around for five blocks, I stopped and showed him why I made him come with me.
My odometer turned over to 77,777 miles!
Well, I thought it was something.
So can you spot the error?
Stumble it!
September 8th, 2008 at 8:02 am
kathy. if i might go off topic… I’m impressed that you watched a Matt Damon/ Jason Bourne Film. That’s a guy movie. Wsa Dave watching with you?
Mrs C loves Mel Gibson/ George Clooney films. those she will see with me.
as for odometers, I’m weird that way too. i won’t stop my car on a reading that is all 6’s. I’m sure that if i stop and park, something bad will happen. I’m weird too.
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September 8th, 2008 at 8:03 am
Oops. Sorry for the repeat comment.
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September 8th, 2008 at 8:18 am
The use of ‘then’ instead of ‘than’ is the glaring error, but the whole thing is a mess. For a start, the title says ‘Who IS Jason Bourne?’ and then the text begins with ‘his code name WAS Jason Bourne’. The comma is dubious but allowable, but the clause ‘each one seemingly more deadly than the next’ is just all-round ugly.
‘Seemingly more deadly’? ‘More deadly than the next’??? Gaaahhh!!! Where’s my red pen?
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September 8th, 2008 at 9:57 am
I didn’t have to guess after reading twelve comments! I guess I always get here too late. So many blogs, too little time, you know how that is. And I will admit it, I didn’t spot it. I was looking for spelling mistakes.
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September 8th, 2008 at 10:34 am
As a computer programmer I’m all too aware of THEN vs THAN. Eighteen years of IF/THEN statements will do that to you.
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September 8th, 2008 at 10:45 am
What exactly were parts 1 and 2 of the special report?
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September 8th, 2008 at 11:01 am
Writing “then” when it should be “than” drives me nuts. Guys don’t seem to care about those kind of inaccuracies on film. For instance, my husband doesn’t really care if an actress’ boobs are fake, but I keep pointing it out.
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September 8th, 2008 at 11:28 am
Yeah — I see it “more deadly then the next” — wtf??
Outsourcing — see what it brings us down to??
Margaret’s last blog post..Common Garden Spider
September 8th, 2008 at 11:39 am
Should be than instead of then. Right?
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September 8th, 2008 at 12:27 pm
Well I think it is far more impressive that you even SAW that error in a MOVIE. On TV.
Eagle-eyed indeed there Kathy! Do you have a 72 inch television or do you sit nose to the screen just waiting for typos?
You should be one of those people who write the ever-increasing lists of continuity errors for imdb.com.
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September 8th, 2008 at 1:46 pm
Ahhh bummer! I didn’t guess this one! I had to read comments to get the answer. lol
This weekend we were watching the first season of The X Files and when Dana looked at her watch the hands said 5:05 but the digital said 4:03…weird huh???
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September 8th, 2008 at 2:38 pm
A+
September 8th, 2008 at 3:41 pm
‘Seemingly’ is also superfluous here. Any editor worth his/her salt would cut it.
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September 8th, 2008 at 3:51 pm
Can *I* spot the error?
Depends what you think an error is.
Some folks believe that Matt Damon and Ben Affleck were supposed to be a “package deal for life” (i am sure they had a contract somewhere from third grade onward) and his name is not above the title on this one.
I guess Ben Affleck’s good looks (so say People magazine or whoever decides who is attractive) couldn’t balance out Matt Damon’s acting ability any more. Some say that is the error here…Ben Affleck was robbed out and will never get to be Bourne Free, or Bourne to be Wild or any of that stuff.
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September 8th, 2008 at 4:41 pm
The same kind of thing drives me nuts as well. I go out of my mind when I get e-mails from people who are supposed to be professionals that have grammar and spelling errors. And when the e-mail is from an executive it makes my teeth itch.
September 8th, 2008 at 5:15 pm
Lord Likely — Beating of writers who commit that offense is both justified and encouraged.
BabaBooey — God, I’m hating this passage more and more now. I think it’s time to write the movie producers and give them a piece of our minds.
Shiko — Ugh. That’s a bad one. Looks stupid and makes you sound stupid. But I hardly think anyone who does it really cares, which is sad.
Jay — I love that we’re tearing apart this passage. Yes, the tense thing is almost as bad as then/than. I should republish the image loaded with all our mistakes IN RED! It would look a bloody mess, literally.
windyridge — Sister, you have no idea. I may have to start a series on this issue. Lots of people are gleefully editing bad copy. You can get the next one, OK?
Jeff — IF anyone else here is a programmer, THEN you have my sympathies. ELSE, count your blessings.
OK, Crazy — The reporter was doing a series on Jason Bourne. We know this because Bourne asks him “what have you been writing about?” Beyond that, I can’t say since I really only got into the action of the movie. Plot details are often lost on me.
kathcom — Funny! To men, the fact is boobs are boobs are boobs are boobs.
Margaret — The sad thing is it may not have been outsourced. I see mistakes in the local paper like this, too. GRRRR!
cardiogirl — Yep. You get a gold star for noticing.
Maureen — I have a habit of always checking text when it appears for a split second (gotta love freeze frame!) I love reading those continuity errors on IMDB.com. I try to remember some of them for the next time I watch a particular movie. Guess it’s a quirk of mine. There are many, as you well know.
Lori — Oooo! Another person who likes to find movie errors! See, I’m not that crazy. I’m in good company!
brooke — Too bad I don’t get money for finding errors. Now that’d be a fun job.
Shieldmaiden96 — You’re right. It sounds like novel-writing, not copy for the newspaper. Good one!
TheSnackHound — Family Guy did a funny bit on the inexplicable success of these two. I never understood the appeal of Ben Afflack, and some even wonder how Matt Damon got so big. The Bourne series redeems him, but just barely. Just goes to show the viewing public will watch almost anyone. Which is why we should all get our 15 minutes of fame some day.
Lee — Me too! I’ve pointed errors out to high-level staff, but they never appreciate it. The way I look at it is I’ve just saved them face. Thanks are in order.
September 8th, 2008 at 5:49 pm
And how many people probably saw that before it was considered done? Ugh…
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September 8th, 2008 at 5:51 pm
I just thought of something. Maybe the person who published this paper for use in the movie was going for authenticity. Afterall, newspapers are full of retractions and typos if you think about it. Maybe they just wanted it to be more “real.”
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September 8th, 2008 at 7:09 pm
THEN should be THAN!!!! Yay for grammar snobs!!! I peruse anything and everything….errors are on billboards, in newspapers, EVERYWHERE!!
September 8th, 2008 at 7:18 pm
I go through phases. Bad grammar always bugs me, but am I in the mood to point it out that day?
And sometimes, when someone excitedly asks you to get in the car, you just do it. Unless they just threw a big cement block in the trunk.
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September 8th, 2008 at 7:21 pm
Hi! I just wanted to let you now how much I enjoy your site. I would be honored if you would accept the “I Love Your Blog Award over at CROCODILE SOUP FOR THE SOUL.
Laurie
http://lanne67-crocodilesoup.blogspot.com/
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September 8th, 2008 at 9:07 pm
Wow, it took me a while to find that one. But I remember doing the same thing with that movie Paycheck. I think they used the wrong “it’s” or something. And I’ve actually found worse in real newspapers. Not too long ago there was a story in our paper about how gas was so expensive that truckers were literally burning money.
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September 8th, 2008 at 9:34 pm
What about the change in tenses? Title uses present tense, while the body of the article uses past tense.
I too look for this stuff, but normally I reserve such hunts for small business outdoor advertising. Making nouns plural seems to be of particular difficulty in Atlanta.
muskrat’s last blog post..semen tissues like islands in a stream
September 8th, 2008 at 9:37 pm
PS- I too celebrate odometer readings. There’s yelling and horn-honking involved. And sometimes, narcotics!
muskrat’s last blog post..semen tissues like islands in a stream
September 8th, 2008 at 9:42 pm
My odometer turned over to 77,777 miles
I understand completely. I got positively giddy when we typed invoice no. 99999 at work.
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September 8th, 2008 at 9:54 pm
I believe I caught most of the grammatical errors seen here and may have spotted a new one: who uses a double hyphen “- -“?
Some Bourne Ultimatum trivia:
– Journalist character Simon Ross works at the Guardian, which is a genuine, famous British newspaper with a large circulation.
– The Guardian’s offices appear in the film.
– Ross’ editor is played by Alan Rusbridger – the real Editor of the Guardian.
– The Guardian is often lampooned as “The Grauniad”, as it once featured a preponderance of textual errors – mostly due to scrambling of letters in its ancient “hot metal” type casting process.
Perhaps the ghost of the Grauniad has resurfaced?
September 9th, 2008 at 1:41 am
Hi! Just to be different! Considering he hasn’t died yet, I will correct: “he had many identities”. It should read, touch wood, “he has many identities”. Boy, I hope my grammar is right.
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September 9th, 2008 at 3:19 am
Someone talked about text messaging murdering the English language further? I recently had a debate on my blog about that very worrying trend. Check this out! http://wanjiku-unlimited.blogspot.com/2008/08/i-wanna-text-you-up.html
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September 9th, 2008 at 3:36 am
i’m amazed that you spotted that. what keen eyes you have…
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September 9th, 2008 at 4:11 am
You are very keen to have spotted that at once. If you haven’t pointed out there was something totally wrong with it, I wouldn’t have noticed at all.
I think it’s a crime for publications to commit such kind of error. They have proofreaders and editors and “simple” error like that shouldn’t be missed. I was referring to “THEN”. It should have been “THAN”.
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September 9th, 2008 at 4:40 am
Chris — Dave and I watched it together. I do like a good action flick now and then. Also, it was incredible on the new audio system. Theater-quality. I get the whole 66,666 thing. I think your wheels fall off if you stop when it hits that number.
Becki — Maybe they never looked at it, thinking who would be goofy enough to freeze-frame on it?
TheSnackHound — I could see that. Or maybe it was an “in joke.” Nah. Probably just a mistake.
Carol J. — They stick out like sore thumbs to me. For all the effort that goes into making a movie or a sign, you’d think someone would eyeball it better.
Margaret — I do, too. And I’ll admit I don’t always notice. Somehow this one jumped out at me. Husband still thinks I’m strange and he’ll never get in the car with me now unless I tell him why.
Laurie — Thanks so much for the award. I’m honored and happy to have you as a regular reader. {{blushing}}
diesel — God, I can never spell your name right on the first try. “It’s” always jumps out at me. Wrote about it in the early months. Also researched my newspaper’s online archives for misuses of “literally.” Best offense: “During the proceedings of the morning neither Grace nor McMath had much to say to defense counsel, although they literally “hung’ on every word of Mr. Taylor.” Oh yeah? How exactly do you do that?
muskrat — You’re right. Tense is mismatched. And pluralizing words incorrectly is a major offense. But Lord Likely has the solution (see above) and I fully support it. I’ll celebrate my next same-digit odometer rollover. There will be champagne (not while driving, of course).
Musing — And now you don’t need to feel funny about it the next time it happens. We are soul sisters!
dizzley — Unfortunately, I do, but only in this blog when responding to comments. I don’t know why. I’ve done it since the beginning and now I can’t stop. Cool trivia! Thanks for sharing. I often check IMDB.com for trivia after I watch a movie. Thank God for the internet.
Peter McCartney — You’re right. But it’s possible everyone thought he was dead by the third installment in the series. I know, it’s bad. I just watched the movie and I’m still not sure.
Shiko-Msa — Oh, thank you for that link! What a great post! I’m of the opinion that texting is ruining the language, despite protests that it’s a simple evolution. If that’s the case, God help us all. I can’t read it! I pride myself on texting in full words (proper case and grammar, etc).
kouji — Than/then and it’s/its always stick out for me. They’re two of my biggest peeves.
Lainy — Agreed. People in publications should have special radar for that, don’t you think?
September 9th, 2008 at 2:20 pm
THAN!!! I’m a bit of a grammar snob. Actually, I’m lying. I’m a total snob.
Ivory
Children’s author
September 9th, 2008 at 6:27 pm
Kathy, you revealed it to early or you should make it hidden somewhere else. Anyhow, I got it when you have pointed that there is something wrong with it, but, I am deceived at first glance.
September 9th, 2008 at 6:41 pm
Ivory — And where do we think the language would be without grammar snobs? I’m too lax sometimes to call myself a bonefide snob, but I’m glad some people don’t mind. It may save us all from a complete trashing of the language.
Mark — Be glad I didn’t boldface it. Some didn’t see it right away. Maybe I’ll make it tougher next time and really make everyone go insane.
September 9th, 2008 at 7:33 pm
Of course I can spot it! Doesn’t everyone see that little red flag? I’m a librarian AND a big freak about grammar & typos. Perhaps we should arm wrestle for the title?
By the way, Mama O survived the summer of Darling Daughter’s wedding madness! And if you have time, be sure to vote for Regan!
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September 10th, 2008 at 5:05 am
Yep, my pet peeve…then vs than. It’s one of the most common mistakes.
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September 10th, 2008 at 9:08 am
The whole “than” “then” problem is pretty common and always ends up catching my eye. Hooked on phonics doesn’t work for everything… 🙂
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September 10th, 2008 at 4:17 pm
Mama O — Oh, you win already. Hands down! Voted for Regan and will keep voting! Gotta love that face!
lala — That and it’s/its, there/their/they’re. Ugh.
Jenn — Neither do spell checkers. Before word processing programs existed, I’m quite sure everyone’s spelling was far more accurate. Sign ‘o the times.
September 11th, 2008 at 5:13 pm
Then/than! UGH. One of my pet peeves along with there/their/they’re.
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September 13th, 2008 at 4:41 am
Anne — I’m guessing you would have caught it, too. That is, if you’re insane like me and think to freeze text on-screen. How much you wanna bet you do it now?
September 16th, 2008 at 12:53 am
Haha thats amazing how you could pick up on that! I was puzzled for like 10 mins lol
September 16th, 2008 at 1:24 am
ah. will have to watch out for my its-es and it’s-es on these comments then. :O
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September 16th, 2008 at 6:16 am
Jokes — Don’t worry. You’re not alone. Lots of people stared at the screen for a good long while!
kouji — Oh, never worry about spelling and grammar in this blog. I don’t wear my grammar police uniform here!
October 10th, 2008 at 10:33 am
Than is correct.
I’m like you but I truly am a grammar snob. In fact, nothing humiliates me more than when I make a grammatical error. I’ve fallen on my face, slipped down stairs, confessed my love, had my skirt blown up by the wind, etc, but I just laugh them off. I make a grammatical mistake? I slink off, hoping to die.
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October 10th, 2008 at 5:02 pm
Frances — I feel the same way! I figure if I’m going to call myself a writer, I need to have the basics down, right?