23 Skidoo

I saw a man in a muskrat coat

Who said, “23 skidoo!”

And I clicked the remote

As the channels I flicked through.

But there he was on channel 10

In that muskrat coat looking back at me,

And I kept going back again,

The muskrat coat guy wouldn’t leave me be.

And with a pennant so he waved,

From the twenties he seemed to be.

“Rah, Rah,” he said, “And you’ll be saved!”

Now sitting inside a Ford Model T

“Saved from what?” I asked the TV.

And you’ll not believe it but it’s true,

The muskrat coat guy answered me,

Saying again, “23 skidoo!”

“What the hell does that mean?” I said.

Just as he swallowed a gold fish,

Then throwing back his head,

He said to me, “Make a wish.”

So all my wishes I went through,

And there were 23 to choose from.

And once again he said, “23 skidoo.”

But still I had to pick just one.

And of all my wishes, who knew,

I said, “I’d like to become a flapper!”

And we both cried, “23 skidoo!”

As I flushed this poem down the crapper.