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The meaning and origin of the expression: A hard man is good to find

A hard man is good to find

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What's the meaning of the phrase 'A hard man is good to find'?

A risqué comic play on words on a good man is hard to find.

What's the origin of the phrase 'A hard man is good to find'?

Mae WestThe Oxford Dictionary of Comic Quotations attributes this saying to Mae West (1892 - 1980). It's certainly in her style, although I can't find any source documentation to support the attribution. Which part of the man she preferred to be hard I'll leave to your imagination.

Another artist who could plausibly have coined the quip was Sophie Tucker ('The last of the red-hot mammas'), who used a good man is hard to find as her signature tune.

Gary Martin - the author of the phrases.org.uk website.

By Gary Martin

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