A booby prize is a joke prize usually given in recognition of a terrible performance or last-place finish. A person who finishes last, for example, may get a booby prize such as a worthless coin. Booby prizes are sometimes humorously and jokingly coveted as an object of pride.

Booby prizes, however, may not be given just to those who just have a terrible performance. At times, booby prizes can be given to all non-placing participants of a competition.

Contents 1 Origin 2 Examples 3 References 4 See also

[edit] Origin

The word "boob" stems from the Spanish bobo meaning stupid, which in turn came from the Latin balbus meaning stammering; the word booby to mean dunce appeared in 1599.

Booby prize literally means "idiot's prize". The OED dates this usage to 1893. Booby trap and "booby hatch" are related terms.^[1]

[edit] Examples

• An award is given annually for Mr. Irrelevant, the professional American football player each year who is selected last in the NFL draft.
• A Red Lantern is given to the cyclist who finishes last in the Tour de France and the last musher in the Iditarod.
• A wooden spoon is a common booby prize which is awarded in such sports as Rugby Union, Rowing and in particular to the bottom team on the ladder in AFL (Australian Football League).
• The anthropomorphic Dusty Bin was given as a booby prize in the TV game show 3-2-1.
• A number of game shows have used their own terminology to describe booby prizes, won by contestants who had made either a poor decision or an unlucky choice. On Let's Make a Deal, booby prizes are called "zonks," while the Chuck Barris-produced The New Treasure Hunt called these items "klunks."
• Two games on The Price Is Right offer a booby prize-of-sorts for a losing contestant:
  • A cash prize of less than $10 for revealing the three numbers in the piggy bank prize's blanks (before completing the price of either one of the two more desirable prizes).
  • A $50 prize on Punch a Bunch is also technically a "booby prize" since it's the smallest amount on the board.
• Traditionally, the cadet graduating West Point with the lowest academic record was known as the "goat" and was given a silver dollar by each of his classmates.^[2]

[edit] References

1. ^ straightdope.com
2. ^ http://failuremag.com/index.php/site/print/the_goats_of_west_point/

[edit] See also

• Ig Nobel Prize
• Razzies
• No-Prize
• Bozo bit