![Hobos2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f8/Hobos2.jpg)
A hobo is a
migrant worker
A migrant worker is a person who migrates within a home country or outside it to pursue work. Migrant workers usually do not have the intention to stay permanently in the country or region in which they work.
Migrant workers who work outsi ...
in the United States.
Hoboes,
tramp
A tramp is a long-term homeless person who travels from place to place as a vagrant, traditionally walking all year round.
Etymology
Tramp is derived from a Middle English verb meaning to "walk with heavy footsteps" (''cf.'' modern English ''t ...
s and bums are generally regarded as related, but distinct: a hobo travels and is willing to work; a tramp travels, but avoids work if possible; and a bum neither travels nor works.
Etymology
The origin of the term is unknown. According to etymologist
Anatoly Liberman
Anatoly Liberman (russian: Анато́лий Си́монович Либерма́н; born 10 March 1937) is a linguist, medievalist, etymologist, poet, translator of poetry (mainly from and into Russian), and literary critic.
Liberman is a pro ...
, the only certain detail about its origin is the word was first noticed in
American English
American English, sometimes called United States English or U.S. English, is the set of varieties of the English language native to the United States. English is the most widely spoken language in the United States and in most circumstances i ...
circa 1890.
The term has also been dated to 1889 in the
Western
Western may refer to:
Places
*Western, Nebraska, a village in the US
*Western, New York, a town in the US
*Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western world, countries that id ...
—probably
Northwestern—
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
, and to 1888. Liberman points out that many
folk etymologies
Folk etymology (also known as popular etymology, analogical reformation, reanalysis, morphological reanalysis or etymological reinterpretation) is a change in a word or phrase resulting from the replacement of an unfamiliar form by a more famili ...
fail to answer the question: "Why did the word become widely known in California (just there) by the early Nineties (just then)?"
Author
Todd DePastino
Todd DePastino (born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States) is an author and history professor.
Biography
Personal life
DePastino and his wife Stephanie live in Pittsburgh with their two children.
Education
Mt. Lebanon High School in Pitt ...
notes that some have said that it derives from the term "hoe-boy", coming from the
hoe they are using and meaning "farmhand", or a greeting such as "Ho, boy", but that he does not find these to be convincing explanations.
Bill Bryson
William McGuire Bryson (; born 8 December 1951) is an American–British journalist and author. Bryson has written a number of nonfiction books on topics including travel, the English language, and science. Born in the United States, he has b ...
suggests in ''
Made in America'' (1998) that it could either come from the
railroad
Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...
greeting, "Ho, beau!" or a
syllabic abbreviation of "homeward bound".
It could also come from the words "homeless boy" or "homeless
Bohemian
Bohemian or Bohemians may refer to:
*Anything of or relating to Bohemia
Beer
* National Bohemian, a brand brewed by Pabst
* Bohemian, a brand of beer brewed by Molson Coors
Culture and arts
* Bohemianism, an unconventional lifestyle, origin ...
".
H. L. Mencken
Henry Louis Mencken (September 12, 1880 – January 29, 1956) was an American journalist, essayist, satirist, cultural critic, and scholar of American English. He commented widely on the social scene, literature, music, prominent politicians, ...
, in his ''
The American Language
''The American Language; An Inquiry into the Development of English in the United States'', first published in 1919, is H. L. Mencken's book about the English language as spoken in the United States.
Origins and concept
Mencken was inspired by ...
'' (4th ed., 1937), wrote:
Tramps and hobos are commonly lumped together, but in their own sight they are sharply differentiated. A ''hobo'' or ''bo'' is simply a migratory laborer; he may take some longish holidays, but soon or late he returns to work. A ''tramp'' never works if it can be avoided; he simply travels. Lower than either is the ''bum'', who neither works nor travels, save when impelled to motion by the police.
History
![Riding on the rods](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/07/Riding_on_the_rods.jpg)
While drifters have always existed, it is unclear exactly when hoboes first appeared on the American railroading scene. With the end of the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...
in the 1860s, many discharged veterans returning home began
hopping freight trains. Others looking for work on the
American frontier followed the railways west aboard freight trains in the late 19th century.
In 1906, Professor Layal Shafee, after an exhaustive study, put the number of tramps in the United States at about 500,000 (about 0.6% of the US population at the time). His article "What Tramps Cost Nation" was published by ''The New York Telegraph'' in 1911, when he estimated the number had surged to 700,000.
The number of hoboes increased greatly during the
Great Depression era of the 1930s. With no work and no prospects at home, many decided to travel for free by freight train and try their luck elsewhere.
Life as a hobo was dangerous. In addition to the problems of being itinerant, poor, and far from home and support, plus the hostility of many train crews, they faced the
railroad police
Railroad police or railway police are people responsible for the protection of railroad (or railway) properties, facilities, revenue, equipment (train cars and locomotives), and personnel, as well as carried passengers and cargo. Railroad police ...
, nicknamed "bulls", who had a reputation of violence against trespassers. Moreover, riding on a freight train is dangerous in itself. British poet
W. H. Davies, author of ''
The Autobiography of a Super-Tramp
''The Autobiography of a Super-Tramp'' is an autobiography published in 1908 by the Welsh poet and writer W. H. Davies (1871–1940). A large part of the book's subject matter describes the way of life of the tramp in the United Kingdom, Canada ...
'', lost a foot when he fell under the wheels when trying to jump aboard a train. It was easy to be trapped between cars, and one could freeze to death in cold weather. When freezer cars were loaded at an ice factory, any hobo inside was likely to be killed.
Around the end of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
, railroads began to transition from steam to
diesel
Diesel may refer to:
* Diesel engine, an internal combustion engine where ignition is caused by compression
* Diesel fuel, a liquid fuel used in diesel engines
* Diesel locomotive, a railway locomotive in which the prime mover is a diesel engin ...
locomotives, making jumping freight trains more difficult. This, in combination with increased postwar prosperity, led to a decline in the number of hoboes. In the 1970s and 1980s hobo numbers were augmented by returning
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War (also known by other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vietnam a ...
veterans, many of whom were disillusioned with settled
society
A society is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction, or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. Soci ...
. Overall, the national economic demand for a mobile surplus labor force has declined over time, leading to fewer hoboes.
According to
in ''Rolling Nowhere'' (1984), at some unknown point in time, as many as 20,000 people were living a hobo life in North America. Modern freight trains are much faster and thus harder to ride than in the 1930s, but they can still be boarded in railyards.
Culture
Expressions used through the 1940s
Hoboes were noted for, among other things, the distinctive lingo that arose among them. Some examples follow:
Many hobo terms have become part of common language, such as "big house", "glad rags", "main drag", and others.
Hobo signs and graffiti
![Beggersignsinfrance-sept1921](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/52/Beggersignsinfrance-sept1921.jpg)
Almost from the beginning of the existence of hoboes, as early as the 1870s,
it was reported that hoboes communicated with each other by way of a system of cryptic "hobo signs", which would be chalked in prominent or relevant places to clandestinely alert future hoboes about important local information. Many listings of these symbols have been made. A few symbols include:
* A triangle with hands, signifying that the homeowner has a gun.
[Moon, Gypsy: "Done and Been", p. 198. Indiana University Press, 1996.]
* A horizontal zigzag signifying a barking dog.
[Moon, Gypsy: "Done and Been", p. 24. Indiana University Press, 1996.]
* A circle with two parallel arrows meaning "Get out fast," as hoboes are not welcome in the area.
* A cat signifying that a kind lady lives here.
Reports of hoboes using these symbols appeared in newspapers and popular books straight through the Depression, and continue to turn up in American popular culture; for example,
John Hodgman
John Kellogg Hodgman (born June 3, 1971) is an American author, actor, and humorist. In addition to his published written works, such as '' The Areas of My Expertise'', ''More Information Than You Require'', and '' That Is All'', he is known for ...
's book ''The Areas of My Expertise'' features a section on hobo signs listing signs found in newspapers of the day as well as several whimsical ones invented by Hodgman, and the
Free Art and Technology Lab released a
QR Hobo Code, with a QR stenciler, in July 2011. Displays on hobo signs have been exhibited in the
Steamtown National Historic Site at
Scranton, Pennsylvania
Scranton is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Lackawanna County. With a population of 76,328 as of the 2020 U.S. census, Scranton is the largest city in Northeastern Pennsylvania, the Wyoming V ...
, operated by the
National Park Service
The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propert ...
, and in the
National Cryptologic Museum
The National Cryptologic Museum (NCM) is an American museum of cryptologic history that is affiliated with the National Security Agency (NSA). The first public museum in the U.S. Intelligence Community, NCM is located in the former Colony Sev ...
in
Annapolis Junction, Maryland
Annapolis Junction is an unincorporated community in Howard and Anne Arundel counties, Maryland, United States.
Demographics
The ZIP Code for Annapolis Junction is 20701.
The following information is based on the 2000 Census for 20701:
*Popula ...
,
and Webster's ''Third New International Dictionary'' supplies a listing of hobo signs under the entry for "hobo".
![19-06-376-carter](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/83/19-06-376-carter.jpg)
Despite an apparently strong record of authentication, however, there is doubt as to whether hobo signs were ever actually in practical use by hoboes. The alternative hypothesis is that the signs were invented early on by a writer or writers seeking to add to the fantastical mythos that began to surround hoboes soon after they first appeared; this fabrication, then, was perpetuated and embellished by writers over the years, aided occasionally by hoboes willing to make up a colorful story or pose for a photo.
Several hoboes during the days that the signs were reportedly most in use asserted that they were in fact a "popular fancy" or "a fabrication".
Nels Anderson
Nels Anderson (July 31, 1889 – October 8, 1986) was an early American sociologist who studied hobos, urban culture, and work culture.
Biography
Anderson studied at the University of Chicago under Robert E. Park and Ernest Burgess, whose ...
, who both hoboed himself and studied hoboes extensively for a
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chic ...
master's thesis,
wrote in 1932,
Another merit of the book odfrey Irwin's 1931 ''American Tramp and Underworld Slang''is that the author has not subscribed to the fiction that American tramps have a sign language, as so many professors are wont to believe.
Though newspapers in the early and peak days of hoboing (1870s through the
Depression) printed photos and drawings of hoboes leaving these signs, these may have been staged in order to add color to the story.
Nonetheless, it is certain that hoboes have used some graffiti to communicate, in the form of "monikers" (sometimes "monicas"). These generally consisted simply of a road name (moniker), a date, and the direction the hobo was heading then. This would be written in a prominent location where other hoboes would see it.
Jack London
John Griffith Chaney (January 12, 1876 – November 22, 1916), better known as Jack London, was an American novelist, journalist and activist. A pioneer of commercial fiction and American magazines, he was one of the first American authors to ...
, in recounting his hobo days, wrote,
Water-tanks are tramp directories. Not all in idle wantonness do tramps carve their monicas, dates, and courses. Often and often have I met hoboes earnestly inquiring if I had seen anywhere such and such a "stiff" or his monica. And more than once I have been able to give the monica of recent date, the water-tank, and the direction in which he was then bound. And promptly the hobo to whom I gave the information lit out after his pal. I have met hoboes who, in trying to catch a pal, had pursued clear across the continent and back again, and were still going.
The use of monikers persists to this day, although since the rise of cell phones a moniker is more often used simply to "tag" a train car or location. Some moniker writers have tagged train cars extensively; one who tagged under the name Bozo Texino during the 1970s and ’80s estimated that in one year ("where I went overboard") he marked over 30,000 train cars.
[Daniel, Bill. ''Who Is Bozo Texino?'' (documentary). Self-published: billdaniel.net, 2005.] However, not all moniker writers (or "boxcar artists") are hoboes; Bozo Texino in fact worked for the railroad, though others such as "A No. 1" and "Palm Tree Herby" rode trains as tramps or hoboes.
Ethical code
Hobo culture—though it has always had many points of contact with the mainstream American culture of its day—has also always been somewhat separate and distinct, with different cultural norms. Hobo culture's ethics have always been subject to disapproval from the mainstream culture; for example, hopping freight trains, an integral part of hobo life, has always been illegal in the U.S. Nonetheless, the ethics of hobo culture can be regarded as fairly coherent and internally consistent, at least to the extent that any culture's various individual people maintain the same ethical standards. That is to say, any attempt at an exhaustive enumeration of hobo ethics is bound to be foiled at least to some extent by the diversity of hoboes and their ideas of the world. This difficulty has not kept hoboes themselves from attempting the exercise. An ethical code was created by Tourist Union #63 (a hobo union created in the mid-1800s to dodge anti-vagrancy laws, which did not apply to union members) during its 1889 National Hobo Convention:
# Decide your own life; don't let another person run or rule you.
# When in town, always respect the local law and officials, and try to be a gentleman at all times.
# Don't take advantage of someone who is in a vulnerable situation, locals or other hoboes.
# Always try to find work, even if temporary, and always seek out jobs nobody wants. By doing so you not only help a business along, but ensure employment should you return to that town again.
# When no employment is available, make your own work by using your added talents at crafts.
# Do not allow yourself to become a stupid drunk and set a bad example for locals' treatment of other hoboes.
# When jungling in town, respect handouts and do not wear them out; another hobo will be coming along who will need them as badly, if not worse than you.
# Always respect nature; do not leave garbage where you are jungling.
# If in a community jungle, always pitch in and help.
# Try to stay clean, and boil up wherever possible.
# When traveling, ride your train respectfully. Take no personal chances. Cause no problems with operating crew or host railroad. Act like an extra crew member.
# Do not cause problems in a train yard; another hobo will be coming along who will need passage through that yard.
# Do not allow other hoboes to molest children; expose all molesters to authorities – they are the worst garbage to infest any society.
# Help all runaway children, and try to induce them to return home.
# Help your fellow hoboes whenever and wherever needed; you may need their help someday.
# If present at a hobo court and you have testimony, give it. Whether for or against the accused, your voice counts!
Conventions
General
There are numerous hobo conventions throughout the United States each year. The ephemeral ways of hobo conventions are mostly dependent on the resources of their hosts. Some conventions are part of railroad conventions or "railroad days". Others are quasi-private affairs, hosted by long-time hoboes. Still others are ad hoc—that is, they are held surreptitiously on private land. Some of these conventions are held in abandoned quarries along major rivers.
Most non-mainstream conventions are held at current or historical
railroad stops. The most notable is the
National Hobo Convention held in
Britt, Iowa
Britt is a city in Hancock County, Iowa, United States, and is the home of the National Hobo Convention and the Hobo Museum. The population was 2,044 at the 2020 census.
History
A train depot was built at Britt in 1870, with tracks running fro ...
. The town first hosted the Convention in 1900, but there followed a hiatus of thirty-three years. Since 1934 the convention has been held annually in Britt, on the second weekend in August.
Notable persons
Notable hoboes
*
Jack Black, author of ''You Can't Win'' (1926)
*
Maurice W. Graham, a.k.a. "Steam Train Maury"
*
Joe Hill
*
Leon Ray Livingston, a.k.a. "A No.1"
*
Harry McClintock
Harry Kirby McClintock (October 8, 1882 – April 24, 1957), also known as "Haywire Mac", was an American railroad man, radio personality, actor, singer, songwriter, and poet, best known for his song "Big Rock Candy Mountain".
Life
Harry McC ...
*
Utah Phillips
Bruce Duncan "Utah" Phillips (May 15, 1935 – May 23, 2008)
, KVMR, Nevada City, California, May 24, 2008. Retrieved 24 May 2008 ...
*
Robert Joseph Silveria Jr., a.k.a. "Sidetrack", who killed 34 other hoboes before turning himself in to the authorities
*
T-Bone Slim
Matti Valentin Huhta (February 14, 1880 – May 15, 1942), better known by his pen name T-Bone Slim, was an American humorist, poet, songwriter, hobo, and labor activist, who played a prominent role in the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW ...
* Bertha Thompson, a.k.a. "Boxcar Bertha", was widely believed to be a real person. ''Sister of the Road'' was penned by
Ben Reitman __NOTOC__
Ben Lewis Reitman M.D. (1879–1943) was an American anarchist and physician to the poor ("the hobo doctor"). He is best remembered today as one of radical Emma Goldman's lovers.
Reitman was a flamboyant, eccentric character. Emma Goldm ...
and presented as an autobiography.
*
Jim Tully, an author who penned several pulp fiction books, 1928 through 1945.
* Steven Gene Wold, a.k.a. "
Seasick Steve
Steven Gene Wold ( né Leach, 19 March 1951),/nowiki>freight_trains.html" ;"title="freight_trains.html" ;"title="/nowiki>freight trains">/nowiki>freight trains">freight_trains.html" ;"title="/nowiki>freight trains">/nowiki>freight trains/nowiki> f ...
"
Notables who have hoboed
*
Nels Anderson
Nels Anderson (July 31, 1889 – October 8, 1986) was an early American sociologist who studied hobos, urban culture, and work culture.
Biography
Anderson studied at the University of Chicago under Robert E. Park and Ernest Burgess, whose ...
, American sociologist
*
Raúl Héctor Castro
Raúl Héctor Castro (; June 12, 1916 – April 10, 2015) was a Mexican American politician, diplomat and judge. In 1964, Castro was selected to be U.S. Ambassador to El Salvador, a position he held until 1968 when he was appointed U.S. Ambass ...
, Mexican American politician, diplomat and judge
*
Ralph Chaplin, author of labor anthem "
Solidarity Forever
"Solidarity Forever", written by Ralph Chaplin in 1915, is a popular trade union anthem. It is sung to the tune of " John Brown's Body" and "The Battle Hymn of the Republic". Although it was written as a song for the Industrial Workers of the W ...
"
*
Yvon Chouinard
Yvon Chouinard (born November 9, 1938) is an American rock climber, environmentalist, philanthropist and outdoor industry businessman. His company, Patagonia, is known for its commitment to protecting the environment.
Chouinard is also a surf ...
*
Stompin' Tom Connors, Canadian Singer, Songwriter
*
, sociologist who rode the rails researching his book ''Rolling Nowhere''
*
W. H. Davies, Welsh poet who also lived as a tramp
*
Jack Dempsey
William Harrison "Jack" Dempsey (June 24, 1895 – May 31, 1983), nicknamed Kid Blackie and The Manassa Mauler, was an American professional boxer who competed from 1914 to 1927, and reigned as the world heavyweight champion from 1919 to 1926 ...
*
U Dhammaloka
*
Loren Eiseley
Loren Eiseley (September 3, 1907 – July 9, 1977) was an American anthropologist, educator, philosopher, and natural science writer, who taught and published books from the 1950s through the 1970s. He received many honorary degrees and was ...
*
Woody Guthrie
Woodrow Wilson Guthrie (; July 14, 1912 – October 3, 1967) was an American singer-songwriter, one of the most significant figures in American folk music. His work focused on themes of American socialism and anti-fascism. He has inspired ...
, American folk musician
*
James Eads How
James Eads How (1874 - 1930) was an American organizer of the hobo community in the early 20th century. He was heir of a wealthy St. Louis family but chose to live as a hobo and to help the homeless migrant workers. The newspapers often referred ...
, wealthy community organizer
* , German adventurer and novelist
*
Harry Kemp, American poet and prose writer
*
Jack Kerouac, American author
*
Louis L'Amour
Louis Dearborn L'Amour (; né LaMoore; March 22, 1908 – June 10, 1988) was an American novelist and short story writer. His books consisted primarily of Western novels (though he called his work "frontier stories"); however, he also wrote hi ...
*
Jack London
John Griffith Chaney (January 12, 1876 – November 22, 1916), better known as Jack London, was an American novelist, journalist and activist. A pioneer of commercial fiction and American magazines, he was one of the first American authors to ...
, American author
*
Chris McCandless, American adventurer who sometimes referred to himself as "Alexander Supertramp"
*
Robert Mitchum
Robert Charles Durman Mitchum (August 6, 1917 – July 1, 1997) was an American actor. He rose to prominence with an Academy Award nomination for the Best Supporting Actor for ''The Story of G.I. Joe'' (1945), followed by his starring in ...
*
Frederick Niven, Canadian author
*
Bob Nolan
Bob Nolan (born Clarence Robert Nobles; April 13, 1908 – June 16, 1980, name changed to Robert Clarence Nobles in 1929) was a Canadian-born American singer, songwriter, and actor. He was a founding member of the Sons of the Pioneers, and compo ...
, Singer and Songwriter.
*
George Orwell, British author
*
John Patric
John Patric (May 22, 1902 – August 31, 1985) was an American writer. He was a contributing writer for '' National Geographic'' during the mid to late 1930s and early 1940s and was the author of two books. His 1943 book, ''Yankee Hobo in the Or ...
*
Harry Partch
Harry Partch (June 24, 1901 – September 3, 1974) was an American composer, music theorist, and creator of unique musical instruments. He composed using scales of unequal intervals in just intonation, and was one of the first 20th-century com ...
*
Al Purdy
Alfred Wellington Purdy (December 30, 1918 – April 21, 2000) was a 20th-century Canadian free verse poet. Purdy's writing career spanned fifty-six years. His works include thirty-nine books of poetry; a novel; two volumes of memoirs and four b ...
*
Ben Reitman __NOTOC__
Ben Lewis Reitman M.D. (1879–1943) was an American anarchist and physician to the poor ("the hobo doctor"). He is best remembered today as one of radical Emma Goldman's lovers.
Reitman was a flamboyant, eccentric character. Emma Goldm ...
, anarchist and physician
*
Carl Sandburg
Carl August Sandburg (January 6, 1878 – July 22, 1967) was an American poet, biographer, journalist, and editor. He won three Pulitzer Prizes: two for his poetry and one for his biography of Abraham Lincoln. During his lifetime, Sandburg ...
*
Emil Sitka
Emil Sitka (December 22, 1914January 16, 1998) was a veteran American actor, who appeared in hundreds of movies, short films, and television shows, and is best known for his numerous appearances with The Three Stooges. He is one of only two acto ...
*
Philip Taft, labor historian
*
Dave Van Ronk
David Kenneth Ritz Van Ronk (June 30, 1936 – February 10, 2002) was an American folk singer. An important figure in the American folk music revival and New York City's Greenwich Village scene in the 1960s, he was nicknamed the "Mayor of Ma ...
*
Dale Wasserman
Dale Wasserman (November 2, 1914 – December 21, 2008) was an American playwright, perhaps best known for his book for Man of La Mancha.
Early life
Dale Wasserman was born in Rhinelander, Wisconsin, the child of Russian immigrants Samuel ...
In mainstream culture
Books
* ''All the Strange Hours: The Excavation of a Life'', by
Loren Eiseley
Loren Eiseley (September 3, 1907 – July 9, 1977) was an American anthropologist, educator, philosopher, and natural science writer, who taught and published books from the 1950s through the 1970s. He received many honorary degrees and was ...
, 1975.
* ''American Travels of a Dutch Hobo 1923–1926'', by , 1984, .
* ''A Period of Juvenile Prosperity'' (2013) by
Mike Brodie,
* ''
The Areas of My Expertise'' by
John Hodgman
John Kellogg Hodgman (born June 3, 1971) is an American author, actor, and humorist. In addition to his published written works, such as '' The Areas of My Expertise'', ''More Information Than You Require'', and '' That Is All'', he is known for ...
- Humor book which features a lengthy section on hoboes, including a list of 700 hobo names which spawned an online effort to illustrate the complete list.
* ''
The Autobiography of a Super-Tramp'', by
W. H. Davies, 1908
* ''
Bottom Dogs'', by
Edward Dahlberg
Edward Dahlberg (July 22, 1900 – February 27, 1977) was an American novelist, essayist, and autobiographer.
Background
Edward Dahlberg was born in Boston, Massachusetts, to Elizabeth Dahlberg. Together, mother and son led a vagabond existence ...
* ''Beggars of Life'', (1924), by
Jim Tully
* ''
Evasion'' by Anonymous
* ''From Coast to Coast with Jack London'' by "A-No.-1" (
Leon Ray Livingston)
* ''The Freighthopper's Manual for North America: Hoboing in the 21st Century'', by Daniel Leen. .
* ''Hard Travellin': The Hobo and His History'', by Kenneth Allsop. .
* ''
Hobo'', by Eddy Joe Cotton, 2002.
* ''The Hobo - The Sociology of the Homeless Man'', by
Nels Anderson
Nels Anderson (July 31, 1889 – October 8, 1986) was an early American sociologist who studied hobos, urban culture, and work culture.
Biography
Anderson studied at the University of Chicago under Robert E. Park and Ernest Burgess, whose ...
, 1923.
* ''The Hobo Handbook - A Field Guide to Living by Your Own Rules'', by
Josh Mack
Josh is a masculine given name, frequently a diminutive (hypocorism) of the given names Joshua or Joseph, though since the 1970s, it has increasingly become a full name on its own. It may refer to:
People A–J
* "Josh", an early pseudonym of S ...
, 2011. (Book on the Hobo lifestyle, written by one who has ridden the rails in recent years.)
* ''
Ironweed'' by
William Kennedy, 1983. A
Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, also adapted for a 1987 film (see below).
* ''
The Jungle
''The Jungle'' is a 1906 novel by the American journalist and novelist Upton Sinclair. Sinclair's primary purpose in describing the meat industry and its working conditions was to advance socialism in the United States. However, most readers we ...
'' by
Upton Sinclair
Upton Beall Sinclair Jr. (September 20, 1878 – November 25, 1968) was an American writer, muckraker, political activist and the 1934 Democratic Party nominee for governor of California who wrote nearly 100 books and other works in sever ...
contains a section in which the main character,
Jurgis Rudkus, abandons his family in Chicago and becomes a hobo for a while.
* ''Knights of the Road'', by Roger A. Bruns, 1980. .
* ''Lonesome Road'', by Thomas Minehan, 1941.
* ''
Lonesome Traveler
''Lonesome Traveler'' is a non-fiction collection of short essays and sketches by American novelist and poet Jack Kerouac, published in 1960. It is a compilation of Kerouac's journal entries about traveling the United States, Mexico, Morocco, ...
'', by Jack Kerouac ("The Vanishing American Hobo")
* ''
The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane
''The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane'' is a 2006 novel by Kate DiCamillo and illustrated by Bagram Ibatoulline. Following the life of a china rabbit, the book won the 2006 Boston Globe-Horn Book Award in Fiction category.
Plot
Edward Tulane ...
'' by
Kate DiCamillo
Katrina Elizabeth DiCamillo (born March 25, 1964) is an American children's fiction author. She has published over 25 novels, including '' Because of Winn-Dixie'', ''The Tiger Rising'', ''The Tale of Despereaux'', ''The Miraculous Journey ...
* ''Muzzlers, Guzzlers, and Good Yeggs'' by
Joe Coleman
* ''
Of Mice and Men
''Of Mice and Men'' is a novella written by John Steinbeck. Published in 1937, it narrates the experiences of George Milton and Lennie Small, two displaced migrant ranch workers, who move from place to place in California in search of new job o ...
'', by
John Steinbeck
* ''
On the Road'', by
Jack Kerouac
* ''Once a Hobo...'' (1999), by Monte Holm
* ''One More Train to Ride: The Underground World of Modern American Hobos'' by
Clifford Williams.
* ''Riding the Rails: Teenagers on the Move During the Great Depression'' by
Errol Lincoln Uys, (Routledge, 2003)
* ''Riding Toward Everywhere'' by
William T. Vollmann, 2008.
* ''
The Road
''The Road'' is a 2006 post-apocalyptic novel by American writer Cormac McCarthy. The book details the grueling journey of a father and his young son over a period of several months across a landscape blasted by an unspecified cataclysm that ha ...
'', by
Jack London
John Griffith Chaney (January 12, 1876 – November 22, 1916), better known as Jack London, was an American novelist, journalist and activist. A pioneer of commercial fiction and American magazines, he was one of the first American authors to ...
* ''Rolling Nowhere: Riding the Rails with America's Hoboes'' by
- Paperback: 304 pages, Publisher: Vintage (2001),
* ''Sister of The Road: The Autobiography of
Boxcar Bertha
''Boxcar Bertha'' is a 1972 American romantic crime drama film directed by Martin Scorsese and produced by Roger Corman, from a screenplay by Joyce H. Corrington and John William Corrington, Made on a low budget, the film is loose adaptation o ...
'' - (as told to) Dr.
Ben Reitman __NOTOC__
Ben Lewis Reitman M.D. (1879–1943) was an American anarchist and physician to the poor ("the hobo doctor"). He is best remembered today as one of radical Emma Goldman's lovers.
Reitman was a flamboyant, eccentric character. Emma Goldm ...
* ''
Stumptown Kid'', By Carol Gorman and Ron J. Finley
* ''Tales of an American Hobo'' (1989), by Charles Elmer Fox
* ''Tramping on Life'' (1922) and ''More Miles'' (1926), by
Harry Kemp
* ''Tramping with Tramps'' (1899) by
Josiah Flynt
* ''Waiting for Nothing'',
Tom Kromer
* ''Wild Honey'' (1927), by
Frederick Niven
* ''
You Can't Win'', by
Jack Black
* ''
Yankee Hobo in the Orient'', (1943), by
John Patric
John Patric (May 22, 1902 – August 31, 1985) was an American writer. He was a contributing writer for '' National Geographic'' during the mid to late 1930s and early 1940s and was the author of two books. His 1943 book, ''Yankee Hobo in the Or ...
* ''
Down and Out in Paris and London
''Down and Out in Paris and London'' is the first full-length work by the English author George Orwell, published in 1933. It is a memoir in two parts on the theme of poverty in the two cities. Its target audience was the middle- and upper-cl ...
'', by
George Orwell
Comics
* ''
Kings in Disguise
''Kings in Disguise'' is a six-issue comic book limited series, published in 1988 by Kitchen Sink Press. It was created by writer Jim Vance and artist Dan Burr. ''Kings in Disguise'' is a multiple Harvey and Eisner awards winner, and is consider ...
'' (1988), by
James Vance and
Dan Burr
* ''
Laugh-Out-Loud Cats'',
webcomic
Webcomics (also known as online comics or Internet comics) are comics published on a website or mobile app. While many are published exclusively on the web, others are also published in magazines, newspapers, or comic books.
Webcomics can be c ...
by
Adam Koford, featuring two anthropomorphic cats as hoboes.
* The
Avenger
Avenger, Avengers, The Avenger, or The Avengers may refer to:
Arts and entertainment In the Marvel Comics universe
* Avengers (comics), a team of superheroes
** Avengers (Marvel Cinematic Universe), a central team of protagonist superheroes o ...
and master archer in
Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...
,
Hawkeye, is aware of, and can read hobo code in
Matt Fraction
Matt Fritchman (born December 1, 1975), better known by the pen name Matt Fraction, is an Eisner Award-winning American comic book writer, known for his work as the writer of '' The Invincible Iron Man'', '' The Immortal Iron Fist'', ''Uncanny ...
and
David Aja
David Aja (born April 16, 1977) is a Spanish comic book artist, best known for his work on ''The Immortal Iron Fist'' and '' Hawkeye''.
Career
Aja obtained a degree in Fine Arts at the University of Salamanca and served as a member of the facult ...
's 2012 run on the character.
* ''USA Comics'' #2 (1941) introduced Vagabond, a police officer named Pat Murphy who created an alter ego, Chauncey Throttlebottom III, a well-spoken hobo, to fight crime.
* ''USA Comics'' #5 (1941) had a character, Butch Brogan, alias Fighting Hobo, that helps save a kidnapped puppy in "The Dog-Nappers".
* The ''
TaleSpin
''TaleSpin'' is an American animated television series first aired in 1990 as a preview on Disney Channel and later that year as part of '' The Disney Afternoon''. It features characters adapted from Disney's 1967 animated feature ''The Jungle Bo ...
'' comic ''The Long Flight Home'' reveals
Kit Cloudkicker
This is a list of characters in the The Walt Disney Company, Disney animated series ''TaleSpin''. ''TaleSpin'' was previewed on The Disney Channel in May through July 1990, and premiered Broadcast syndication, in syndication in September of that ...
was once a hobo prior to working for
Don Karnage.
Documentaries
* ''
Hobo'' (1992), a documentary by John T. Davis, following the life of a hobo on his travels through the United States.
* ''
American Experience
''American Experience'' is a television program airing on the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) in the United States. The program airs documentaries, many of which have won awards, about important or interesting events and people in American his ...
'', "
Riding the Rails
''Riding the Rails'' is a 1938 Fleischer Studios animated short film featuring Betty Boop and Pudgy the Pup. Although some sources claim that this film was nominated for an Academy Award, it does not appear in the official Academy Awards database ...
" (1999), a
PBS
The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...
documentary by Lexy Lovell and Michael Uys, narrated by
Richard Thomas, detailing the hoboes of the
Great Depression, with interviews of those who rode the rails during those years.
* ''
The American Hobo
''The American Hobo'' is a 2003 documentary film by writer and director Bobb Hopkins.
Content
The documentary examines the history and culture of American hobos. The documentary is narrated by Academy Award-winning actor Ernest Borgnine. It ...
'' (2003), a documentary narrated by
Ernest Borgnine
Ernest Borgnine (; born Ermes Effron Borgnino; January 24, 1917 – July 8, 2012) was an American actor whose career spanned over six decades. He was noted for his gruff but relaxed voice and gap-toothed Cheshire Cat grin. A popular perfor ...
featuring interviews with
Merle Haggard
Merle Ronald Haggard (April 6, 1937 – April 6, 2016) was an American country music singer, songwriter, guitarist, and fiddler.
Haggard was born in Oildale, California, toward the end of the Great Depression. His childhood was troubled a ...
and
James Michener
James Albert Michener ( or ; February 3, 1907 – October 16, 1997) was an American writer. He wrote more than 40 books, most of which were long, fictional family sagas covering the lives of many generations in particular geographic locales and ...
.
* ''
The Human Experience'', (2008), a documentary by Charles Kinnane. The first experience follows Jeffrey and his brother Clifford to the streets of New York City where the boys live with the homeless for a week in one of the coldest winters on record. The boys look for hope and camaraderie among their homeless companions, learning how to survive on the streets.
Fictional characters
Examples of characters based on hoboes include:
*
Charlie Chaplin's "
Little Tramp
: ''See The Tramp for the character played by Charlie Chaplin''.
''Little Tramp'' is a musical with a book by David Pomeranz and Steven David Horwich and music and lyrics by David Pomeranz.
Based on the life of comedian Charles Chaplin and na ...
"
*
Emmett Kelly
Emmett Leo Kelly (December 9, 1898March 28, 1979) was an American circus performer, who created the clown figure "Weary Willie," based on the hobos of the Great Depression in the 1930s. According to Charles W. Carey, Jr.:
:Kelly’s creation of ...
's "Weary Willy"
*
Red Skelton
Richard Red Skelton (July 18, 1913September 17, 1997) was an American entertainer best known for his national radio and television shows between 1937 and 1971, especially as host of the television program '' The Red Skelton Show''. He has stars ...
's "Freddy the Freeloader"
* "Bagdad, Hobo Detective," featured in the
pulp magazine ''Popular Detective'' (1937 & 1938)
Films
![Chaplin The Kid edit](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ea/Chaplin_The_Kid_edit.jpg)
* ''
The Circus'' (1928), directed by Charlie Chaplin.
* ''
Beggars of Life
''Beggars of Life'' is an American film directed by William Wellman and starring Wallace Beery and Richard Arlen as hobos, and Louise Brooks as a young woman who dresses as a young man and flees the law. The film is regarded as Brooks's best Ame ...
'' (1928), directed by
William A. Wellman
William Augustus Wellman (February 29, 1896 – December 9, 1975) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter, actor and military pilot. He was known for his work in crime, adventure, and action genre films, often focusing on avi ...
* ''
City Lights'' (1931), directed by Charlie Chaplin.
* ''
Number Seventeen
''Number Seventeen'' is a 1932 comedy thriller film directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring John Stuart, Anne Grey and Leon M. Lion. The film, which is based on the 1925 burlesque stage play '' Number Seventeen'' written by Joseph Jeffers ...
'' (1932), directed by
Alfred Hitchcock.
* ''
Wild Boys of the Road
''Wild Boys of the Road'' is a 1933 pre-Code Depression-era American drama film directed by William Wellman and starring Frankie Darro, Rochelle Hudson, and Grant Mitchell. It tells the story of several teens forced into becoming hobos. The s ...
'' (1933), directed by William A. Wellman.
* ''
City Limits'' (1934), directed by
William Nigh
William Nigh (October 12, 1881 – November 27, 1955) was an American film Film director, director, screenwriter, writer, and actor. His film work sometimes lists him as either "Will Nigh" or "William Nye".
Biography
Nigh was born Emil Kreu ...
.
* ''
Modern Times'' (1936), directed by Charlie Chaplin.
* ''
Father Steps Out'' (1941), directed by
Jean Yarbrough
Jean Yarbrough (August 22, 1901 – August 2, 1975) was an American film director.
Biography
Jean Yarbrough was born in Marianna, Arkansas on August 22, 1901. He attended the University of the South located in Sewanee, Tennessee. In 1922 ...
.
* ''
Sullivan's Travels
''Sullivan's Travels'' is a 1941 American comedy film written and directed by Preston Sturges. A satire on the film industry, it follows a famous Hollywood comedy director (Joel McCrea) who, longing to make a socially relevant drama, sets out to ...
'' (1941), directed by
Preston Sturges
Preston Sturges (; born Edmund Preston Biden; August 29, 1898 – August 6, 1959) was an American playwright, screenwriter, and film director. In 1941, he won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay for the film '' The Great McGinty'' (1940), h ...
.
* ''
Jack London
John Griffith Chaney (January 12, 1876 – November 22, 1916), better known as Jack London, was an American novelist, journalist and activist. A pioneer of commercial fiction and American magazines, he was one of the first American authors to ...
'' (1943), biopic directed by
Alfred Santell
Alfred Allen Santell (1895–1981), was an American film director and film producer.
Santell directed over 60 films, beginning in 1917, most of which were two-reel comedy short subjects for Hal Roach and other productions companies. Taking up f ...
.
* ''
It Happened on Fifth Avenue
''It Happened on 5th Avenue'' is a 1947 American comedy film directed by Roy Del Ruth and starring Victor Moore, Ann Harding, Don DeFore, Charles Ruggles and Gale Storm. Herbert Clyde Lewis and Frederick Stephani were nominated for the Acade ...
'' (1947), directed by
Roy Del Ruth.
* ''
Joe Hill'' (1971), directed by
Bo Widerberg
Bo Gunnar Widerberg (; 8 June 1930 – 1 May 1997) was a Swedish film director, writer, editor and actor.
Biography Early life
Widerberg was born in Malmö, Malmöhus County, Sweden.
Career
Widerberg was the director of films such as ''Rave ...
* ''
Boxcar Bertha
''Boxcar Bertha'' is a 1972 American romantic crime drama film directed by Martin Scorsese and produced by Roger Corman, from a screenplay by Joyce H. Corrington and John William Corrington, Made on a low budget, the film is loose adaptation o ...
'' (1972), directed by
Martin Scorsese
Martin Charles Scorsese ( , ; born November 17, 1942) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter and actor. Scorsese emerged as one of the major figures of the New Hollywood era. He is the recipient of many major accolades, inclu ...
and starring
Barbara Hershey
Barbara Lynn Herzstein, better known as Barbara Hershey (born February 5, 1948), is an American actress. In a career spanning more than 50 years, she has played a variety of roles on television and in cinema in several genres, including weste ...
as a sexy hobo girl during the
Great Depression.
* ''
Emperor of the North Pole
''Emperor of the North Pole'' is a 1973 American action adventure film directed by Robert Aldrich, starring Lee Marvin, Ernest Borgnine, Keith Carradine, and Charles Tyner. It was later re-released on home media (and is more widely known) und ...
'' a.k.a. ''Emperor of the North'' (1973), directed by Robert Aldrich. Loosely based on
Jack London
John Griffith Chaney (January 12, 1876 – November 22, 1916), better known as Jack London, was an American novelist, journalist and activist. A pioneer of commercial fiction and American magazines, he was one of the first American authors to ...
's ''
The Road
''The Road'' is a 2006 post-apocalyptic novel by American writer Cormac McCarthy. The book details the grueling journey of a father and his young son over a period of several months across a landscape blasted by an unspecified cataclysm that ha ...
''.
* ''
Hard Times'' a.k.a. ''The Streetfighter'' (1975), directed by
Walter Hill
Walter may refer to:
People
* Walter (name), both a surname and a given name
* Little Walter, American blues harmonica player Marion Walter Jacobs (1930–1968)
* Gunther (wrestler), Austrian professional wrestler and trainer Walter Hahn (born 1 ...
(his directorial debut), and starring
Charles Bronson (as a hobo turned
street fighter
, commonly abbreviated as ''SF'' or スト (''Suto''), is a Japanese media franchise centered on a series of fighting video and arcade games developed and published by Capcom. The first game in the series was released in 1987, followed by six ...
).
* ''
The Billion Dollar Hobo
''The Billion Dollar Hobo'' is a 1977 American comedy film starring Tim Conway and Will Geer (in his last role).
Plot
Conway is Vernon Praiseworthy, only heir to his uncle's fortune, who faced poverty and misfortune during the Great Depression b ...
'' (1977), starring
Tim Conway
Thomas Daniel "Tim" Conway (December 15, 1933 – May 14, 2019) was an American actor, comedian, writer, and director. From 1966 to 2012 he appeared in more than 100 TV shows, TV series and films. Among his more notable roles, he portrayed the ...
and
Will Geer
Will Geer (born William Aughe Ghere; March 9, 1902 – April 22, 1978) was an American actor, musician, and social activist, who was active in labor organizing and other movements in New York and Southern California in the 1930s and 1940s. In Ca ...
.
* ''
Pee-Wee's Big Adventure'' (1985), starring
Pee-wee Herman
Pee-wee Herman is a comic fictional character created and portrayed by American comedian Paul Reubens. He is best known for his films and television series during the 1980s. The childlike Pee-wee Herman character developed as a stage act that q ...
, directed by
Tim Burton
Timothy Walter Burton (born August 25, 1958) is an American filmmaker and animator. He is known for his gothic fantasy and horror films such as '' Beetlejuice'' (1988), '' Edward Scissorhands'' (1990), '' The Nightmare Before Christmas'' (1993 ...
. Pee-wee meets Hobo Jack when he hops a freight train on his way to the Alamo.
* ''
Vagabond
Vagrancy is the condition of homelessness without regular employment or income. Vagrants (also known as bums, vagabonds, rogues, tramps or drifters) usually live in poverty and support themselves by begging, scavenging, petty theft, temporar ...
'' (1985) (French title: ''Sans Toit Ni Loi''), directed by Agnès Varda, tells the story of a traveling woman's untimely death through
flashbacks and interviews with the people who met her.
* ''
The Journey of Natty Gann
''The Journey of Natty Gann'' is a 1985 American adventure film directed by Jeremy Paul Kagan, produced by Walt Disney Pictures and released by Buena Vista Distribution. The film introduced Meredith Salenger and also starred John Cusack, Lainie ...
'' (1985), starring
Meredith Salenger
Meredith Dawn Salenger is an American actress. Her credits include the 1985 film ''The Journey of Natty Gann'', as the title character, and the 1989 teen comedy '' Dream a Little Dream''.
Early life and education
Salenger was born and raised in ...
as a young girl riding the rails to find her father.
* ''
Ironweed'' (1987), directed by
Héctor Babenco
Héctor Eduardo Babenco (February 7, 1946July 13, 2016) was an Argentine-Brazilian film director, screenwriter, producer and actor who worked in several countries including Brazil, Argentina, and the United States. He was one of the first Braz ...
and based on the
Pulitzer Prize-winning
novel by
William Kennedy, who also wrote the screenplay.
* ''
Life Stinks
''Life Stinks'' is a 1991 American comedy film co-written, produced, directed by and starring Mel Brooks. It is one of the few Mel Brooks comedies that is not a parody, nor at any time does the film break the fourth wall. It co-stars Lesley Ann ...
'' (1991), directed by and starring
Mel Brooks
Mel Brooks (born Melvin James Kaminsky; June 28, 1926) is an American actor, comedian and filmmaker. With a career spanning over seven decades, he is known as a writer and director of a variety of successful broad farces and parodies. He began ...
.
* ''
Tokyo Godfathers
is a 2003 Japanese animated tragicomedy adventure film written and directed by Satoshi Kon. The film stars live-action actors such as Toru Emori, Yoshiaki Umegaki, and Aya Okamoto as the lead voice actors.
Kon was inspired by the 1948 America ...
'' (2003), an
anime
is hand-drawn and computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japanese, (a term derived from a shortening of ...
directed by
Satoshi Kon
was a Japanese film director, animator, screenwriter and manga artist from Sapporo, Hokkaido and a member of the Japanese Animation Creators Association (JAniCA). He was a graduate of the Graphic Design department of the Musashino Art Univer ...
.
* ''
Into the Wild'' (2007), directed by
Sean Penn
Sean Justin Penn (born August 17, 1960) is an American actor and film director. He has won two Academy Awards, for his roles in the mystery drama ''Mystic River'' (2003) and the biopic ''Milk'' (2008).
Penn began his acting career in televisi ...
, based on
Jon Krakauer
Jon Krakauer (born April 12, 1954) is an American writer and mountaineer. He is the author of bestselling non-fiction books—'' Into the Wild''; ''Into Thin Air''; ''Under the Banner of Heaven''; and '' Where Men Win Glory: The Odyssey of Pat ...
's non-fiction book about
Christopher McCandless
Christopher Johnson McCandless (; February 12, 1968 – August 1992), also known by his pseudonym "Alexander Supertramp", was an American adventurer who sought an increasingly nomadic lifestyle as he grew up. McCandless is the subject of '' Int ...
.
* ''
Resurrecting the Champ
''Resurrecting the Champ'' is a 2007 American sports drama film directed by Rod Lurie and written by Michael Bortman and Allison Burnett, based on a ''Los Angeles Times Magazine'' article entitled "Resurrecting the Champ" by J. R. Moehringer. Th ...
'' (2007), starring
Samuel L. Jackson
Samuel Leroy Jackson (born December 21, 1948) is an American actor and producer. One of the most widely recognized actors of his generation, the films in which he has appeared have collectively grossed over $27 billion worldwide, making him ...
and
Josh Hartnett
Joshua Daniel Hartnett (born July 21, 1978) is an American actor and producer. He first came to attention in 1997 for his role as Michael Fitzgerald in the television crime drama series '' Cracker''. He made his feature film debut in 1998 in th ...
, directed by
Rod Lurie
Rod Lurie ( he, רוד לוריא; born May 15, 1962) is an Israeli-American director, screenwriter, and former film critic.
Early life and career
The son of internationally syndicated cartoonist Ranan Lurie, he was born in Israel but moved to ...
.
* ''
Kit Kittredge: An American Girl'' (2008).
* ''
Hobo with a Shotgun
''Hobo with a Shotgun'' is a 2011 exploitation action black comedy film directed by Jason Eisener, written by John Davies, from a story by Eisener, and starring Rutger Hauer. It is based on a faux- trailer of the same title featured in the Que ...
'' (2011), an
exploitation film
An exploitation film is a film that tries to succeed financially by exploiting current trends, niche genres, or lurid content. Exploitation films are generally low-quality "B movies", though some set trends, attract critical attention, become hi ...
directed by Jason Eisener and written by John Davies, starring
Rutger Hauer
Rutger Oelsen Hauer (; 23 January 1944 – 19 July 2019) was a Dutch actor. In 1999, he was named by the Dutch public as the Best Dutch Actor of the Century.
Hauer's career began in 1969 with the title role in the Dutch television series ' ...
as a
vigilante
Vigilantism () is the act of preventing, investigating and punishing perceived offenses and crimes without legal authority.
A vigilante (from Spanish, Italian and Portuguese “vigilante”, which means "sentinel" or "watcher") is a person who ...
hobo.
* ''
The Muppets
The Muppets are an American ensemble cast of puppet characters known for an absurdist, burlesque, and self-referential style of variety- sketch comedy. Created by Jim Henson in 1955, they are the focus of a media franchise that encompasses ...
'' (2011), the film features a character named Hobo Joe (played by
Zach Galifianakis
Zachary Knight Galifianakis (born October 1, 1969) is an American actor and comedian. He appeared in ''Comedy Central Presents'' special and presented his show '' Late World with Zach'' on VH1.
Galifianakis has starred in films including ''T ...
) and some
Whatnot hoboes. They later appeared in the sequel ''
Muppets Most Wanted
''Muppets Most Wanted'' is a 2014 American musical crime comedy film and the eighth theatrical film featuring the Muppets. Directed by James Bobin and written by Bobin and Nicholas Stoller, the film is a sequel to ''The Muppets'' (2011) and sta ...
'' (2014).
* ''
Man of Steel'' (2013) depicts
Clark Kent living as a homeless itinerant worker before ultimately taking the mantle of
Superman and finding work as a reporter at the ''
Daily Planet
The ''Daily Planet'' is a fictional newspaper appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly in association with Superman. The newspaper was first mentioned in ''Action Comics'' #23 (April 1940). The ''Daily Planet'' build ...
''.
* ''
Nomadland
''Nomadland'' is a 2020 American drama film written, produced, edited and directed by Chloé Zhao. Based on the 2017 nonfiction book '' Nomadland: Surviving America in the Twenty-First Century'' by Jessica Bruder, it stars Frances McDormand ...
'' (2020), directed by
Chloé Zhao.
* Many animated cartoons depict hoboes as main or secondary characters, hobo-related activities such as traveling by train, with a
bindle
A bindle is the bag, sack, or carrying device stereotypically used by the American sub-culture of hobos. The bindle is colloquially known as the ''blanket stick'', particularly within the Northeastern hobo community.
A hobo who carried a bind ...
, or in the company of hoboes. For example,
Warner Brothers
Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...
' ''
Box Car Blues'' (1930) with
Bosko, ''Hobo Gadget Band'' (1939),
MGM
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 a ...
's ''Henpecked Hoboes'' (1946) with
George and Junior
''George and Junior'' are cartoon characters, two anthropomorphic bears created by Tex Avery for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. All of the George and Junior shorts were directed by Tex Avery in the 1940s. They appeared in four cartoons: '' Henpecked Hoboes ...
in their first appearance, ''Mouse Wreckers'' (1948), ''8 Ball Bunny'' (1950) with
Bugs Bunny
Bugs Bunny is an animated cartoon character created in the late 1930s by Warner Bros. Cartoons, Leon Schlesinger Productions (later Warner Bros. Cartoons) and Voice acting, voiced originally by Mel Blanc. Bugs is best known for his starring role ...
, and ''
The Easter Bunny Is Comin' to Town
''The Easter Bunny is Comin' to Town'' is a 1977 musical Easter television special produced by Rankin/Bass Productions, using their "Animagic" stop motion animation. It reunites the writer Romeo Muller. designer Paul Coker Jr., and narrator Fred A ...
'' (1977).
Music
Artists
Musicians known for hobo songs include:
Tim Barry
Tim Barry is an American musician and the lead singer of the Richmond, Virginia-based punk rock band Avail. In addition to performing with Avail, he was the bass guitarist in the Richmond-based folk punk band (Young) Pioneers from 1994 ...
,
Baby Gramps
Baby Gramps is a guitar performer, who, though born in Miami, Florida, has been based in the Northwest U.S. for at least the last 40 years. He is famous for his palindromes. Baby Gramps started performing in 1964 and is still playing profession ...
,
Railroad Earth
Railroad Earth is a bluegrass-influenced Americana band formed in Stillwater, New Jersey in 2001. The band's music combines elements of progressive bluegrass, folk, rock, country, jazz, Celtic and other Americana influences. Recognized as " ...
,
Harry McClintock
Harry Kirby McClintock (October 8, 1882 – April 24, 1957), also known as "Haywire Mac", was an American railroad man, radio personality, actor, singer, songwriter, and poet, best known for his song "Big Rock Candy Mountain".
Life
Harry McC ...
,
Ramblin' Jack Elliott
Ramblin' Jack Elliott (born Elliot Charles Adnopoz; August 1, 1931) is an American folk singer and songwriter.
Life and career
Elliott was born in 1931 in Brooklyn, New York, United States, the son of Florence (Rieger) and Abraham Adnopoz, a ...
,
Utah Phillips
Bruce Duncan "Utah" Phillips (May 15, 1935 – May 23, 2008)
, KVMR, Nevada City, California, May 24, 2008. Retrieved 24 May 2008 ...
,
Jimmie Rodgers
James Charles Rodgers (September 8, 1897 – May 26, 1933) was an American singer-songwriter and musician who rose to popularity in the late 1920s. Widely regarded as "the Father of Country Music", he is best known for his distinctive rhythmi ...
,
Seasick Steve
Steven Gene Wold ( né Leach, 19 March 1951),/nowiki>freight_trains.html" ;"title="freight_trains.html" ;"title="/nowiki>freight trains">/nowiki>freight trains">freight_trains.html" ;"title="/nowiki>freight trains">/nowiki>freight trains/nowiki> f ...
, and
Boxcar Willie.
Songs
Examples of hobo songs include:
* "Be a Hobo" by
Moondog
Louis Thomas Hardin (May 26, 1916 – September 8, 1999), known professionally as Moondog, was an American composer, musician, performer, music theoretician, poet and inventor of musical instruments. Largely self-taught as a composer, his ...
* "
Big Rock Candy Mountain
"The Big Rock Candy Mountains", first recorded by Harry McClintock in 1928, is a country folk song about a hobo's idea of paradise, a modern version of the medieval concept of Cockaigne. It is a place where "hens lay soft-boiled eggs" and there ...
" by
Harry McClintock
Harry Kirby McClintock (October 8, 1882 – April 24, 1957), also known as "Haywire Mac", was an American railroad man, radio personality, actor, singer, songwriter, and poet, best known for his song "Big Rock Candy Mountain".
Life
Harry McC ...
, recorded by various artists including
Burl Ives
Burl Icle Ivanhoe Ives (June 14, 1909 – April 14, 1995) was an American musician, actor, and author with a career that spanned more than six decades.
Ives began his career as an itinerant singer and guitarist, eventually launching his own rad ...
,
Tom Waits
Thomas Alan Waits (born December 7, 1949) is an American musician, composer, songwriter, and actor. His lyrics often focus on the underbelly of society and are delivered in his trademark deep, gravelly voice. He worked primarily in jazz during ...
,
Lisa Loeb
Lisa Loeb (; born March 11, 1968) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, author and actress. She started her career with the number 1 hit song "Stay (I Missed You)" from the film '' Reality Bites,'' the first number 1 single for an artist ...
,
Baby Gramps
Baby Gramps is a guitar performer, who, though born in Miami, Florida, has been based in the Northwest U.S. for at least the last 40 years. He is famous for his palindromes. Baby Gramps started performing in 1964 and is still playing profession ...
,
The Restarts
The Restarts are an English street punk band based in London.
The Restarts were formed in 1995 in London with Darragh O'Neill on drums, Kieran Plunkett from Armed and Hammered on bass guitar, and Mik Useless on the guitar. They played many ...
and
Harry Dean Stanton
Harry Dean Stanton (July 14, 1926 – September 15, 2017) was an American actor, musician, and singer.
In a career that spanned more than six decades, Stanton played supporting roles in films including ''Cool Hand Luke'' (1967), ''Kelly's Heroes ...
.
* "Driver Pull" by
Tim Barry
Tim Barry is an American musician and the lead singer of the Richmond, Virginia-based punk rock band Avail. In addition to performing with Avail, he was the bass guitarist in the Richmond-based folk punk band (Young) Pioneers from 1994 ...
* "
Hallelujah, I'm a Bum" recorded by Harry McClintock,
Al Jolson
Al Jolson (born Eizer Yoelson; June 9, 1886 – October 23, 1950) was a Lithuanian-American Jewish singer, comedian, actor, and vaudevillian. He was one of the United States' most famous and highest-paid stars of the 1920s, and was self-billed ...
, and others
* "Hard Travelin'" and "
Hobo's Lullaby Goebel Leon Reeves (October 9, 1899 – January 26, 1959) was an American folk singer. His most famous song is "Hobo's Lullaby", which has been covered by various singers, especially Woody Guthrie. Among other artists who later performed the song w ...
" by
Woody Guthrie
Woodrow Wilson Guthrie (; July 14, 1912 – October 3, 1967) was an American singer-songwriter, one of the most significant figures in American folk music. His work focused on themes of American socialism and anti-fascism. He has inspired ...
* "
Here Comes Your Man" by the
Pixies
A pixie (also pisky, pixy, pixi, pizkie, and piskie in Cornwall and Devon, and pigsie or puggsy in the New Forest) is a mythical creature of British folklore. Pixies are considered to be particularly concentrated in the high moorland areas aro ...
is about hoboes travelling on trains in California and dying because of earthquakes.
* "
Here I Go Again
"Here I Go Again" is a song by British rock band Whitesnake. Originally released on their 1982 album, '' Saints & Sinners'', the power ballad was re-recorded for their 1987 self-titled album. The song was re-recorded again the same year in a ...
" by Whitesnake featured the lyric "Like a hobo I was born to walk alone" although it was later changed to "like a drifter."
* "Hobo" by The Hackensaw Boys
* "Hobo Bill", "Ain't Got No Home (Woody Guthrie song), I Ain't Got No Home" and "Mysteries of a Hobo's Life" by Cisco Houston
* "Hobo Bill's Last Ride" by Jimmie Rodgers (country singer), Jimmy Rogers, also recorded by Manfred Mann's Earth Band
* "Hobo Blues" and "The Hobo" by John Lee Hooker
* "Hobo Chang Ba" by Captain Beefheart
* "Hobo Flats" by Oliver Nelson
* "Hobo Flats" by Count Basie
* "Hobo Jungle" by The Band
* "Hobo Humpin' Slobo Babe" by Whale (band)
* "Hobo Kinda Man" by Lynyrd Skynyrd
* "Hobo, You Can't Ride This Train" by Louis Armstrong
* "The Hobo" by
Merle Haggard
Merle Ronald Haggard (April 6, 1937 – April 6, 2016) was an American country music singer, songwriter, guitarist, and fiddler.
Haggard was born in Oildale, California, toward the end of the Great Depression. His childhood was troubled a ...
* "The Hobo Song" by John Prine also covered by Johnny Cash
* "The Hobo Song" by Jack Bonus which was covered by Jerry Garcia's bluegrass group, Old & In the Way
* "The Hobo Song" by Kevin Roth from the Shining Time Station's Christmas special, Tis a Gift''
* "
Hobo's Lullaby Goebel Leon Reeves (October 9, 1899 – January 26, 1959) was an American folk singer. His most famous song is "Hobo's Lullaby", which has been covered by various singers, especially Woody Guthrie. Among other artists who later performed the song w ...
" (a.k.a. "Weary Hobo"), written by Goebel Reeves, recorded by various artists, including
Woody Guthrie
Woodrow Wilson Guthrie (; July 14, 1912 – October 3, 1967) was an American singer-songwriter, one of the most significant figures in American folk music. His work focused on themes of American socialism and anti-fascism. He has inspired ...
, Arlo Guthrie, Emmylou Harris, Pete Seeger, The Kingston Trio, and Ramblin' Jack Eliot
* "Hobo's Meditation", written by Jimmie Rodgers, recorded by Linda Ronstadt on the album ''Trio (Dolly Parton, Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris album), Trio''
* "Hobos on Parade" by Shannon Wright
* "Homeless Brother" by Don McLean
* "Hopscotch Willie" by Stephen Malkmus
* "I Am a Lonesome Hobo", "Only a Hobo" and "Ramblin' Gamblin' Willie" by Bob Dylan
* "I Take a Lot of Pride in What I Am" by
Merle Haggard
Merle Ronald Haggard (April 6, 1937 – April 6, 2016) was an American country music singer, songwriter, guitarist, and fiddler.
Haggard was born in Oildale, California, toward the end of the Great Depression. His childhood was troubled a ...
* "Jack Straw (song), Jack Straw" by Robert Hunter (lyricist), Robert Hunter and Bob Weir
* "Jesus' Blood Never Failed Me Yet" a recording of a hobo singing on a London street, by composer Gavin Bryars.
* "King of the Road (song), King of the Road" by Roger Miller
* "Kulkurin Valssi" (Hobo Waltz) by Arthur Kylander
* "Lännen lokari" (Western Logger) by Hiski Salomaa
* "Last of the Hobo Kings" by Mary Gauthier
* "Like a Hobo" by Charlie Winston
* "Mary Lane" by Fred Eaglesmith
* "Morning Glory" by Tim Buckley lyrics by Larry Beckett
* "My Traveling Star" by James Taylor
* "Never Tire of the Road" by Andy Irvine (musician), Andy Irvine
* "Orange Claw Hammer" by Captain Beefheart which contains the lyric: "I'm on the bum where the hobos run, the air breaks with filthy chatter."
* "Papa Hobo" and "Hobo's Blues" by Paul Simon
* "Ramblin' Man (Hank Williams song), Ramblin' Man" by Hank Williams Sr.
* "Sergeant Small" by Andy Irvine (musician), Andy Irvine
* "Streets of London (song), Streets of London" by Ralph McTell
* "Waiting for a Train" by Jimmie Rodgers
* "Way Out There" by Bob Nolan, recorded by the Sons of the Pioneers.
* "Western Hobo" by The Carter Family
Stage
* ''King of the Hobos'' (2014), a one-man musical that premiered at Emerging Artists Theatre in New York City, is centered around the death of
James Eads How
James Eads How (1874 - 1930) was an American organizer of the hobo community in the early 20th century. He was heir of a wealthy St. Louis family but chose to live as a hobo and to help the homeless migrant workers. The newspapers often referred ...
, known during his lifetime as the "Millionaire Hobo".
Television
* Criminal Minds (season 4), ''Criminal Minds'' (season 4), episode 5 "Catching Out" (2008)
* ''Mad Men'' (season 1), episode 8, "The Hobo Code#Season 1 (2007), The Hobo Code" (2007)
* Mannix (season 6), ''Mannix'' (season 6), episode 22 "To Quote a Dead Man" (1973)
* ''The Magic School Bus'' special, ''A Magic School Bus Halloween'', features Lily Tomlin's character "Archibald Dauntless"
* "E-I-E-I-(Annoyed Grunt)" Episode 5 of Season 11 of ''The Simpsons'' (1999). Sneed teases Homer Simpson, Homer about his shoes, claiming they are Gucci loafers, but Homer says he bought them form a hobo.
* ''The Littlest Hobo'': long-running Lassie-esque franchise about a roving dog that lives the hobo lifestyle
* In ''The Simpsons'' episode "The Old Man and the Key", Grampa Simpson, Grampa explains hobo symbols to Bart Simpson, Bart. Simpsons Tall Tales, In another episode, the Simpsons meet a hobo who tells them American Folklore genre, folktales in exchange for a spongebath.
* ''Shameless (American TV series), Shameless'' (Season 9), Episode 10 and 11. Frank Gallagher becomes part of a hobo competition, a competition looking for the best hobo in Chicago.
* ''Reacher (TV series), Reacher'' (Season 1), Episode 2. Reacher confirms he is not a Vagrant, he's a Hobo.
See also
* Freight Train Riders of America, a gang of rogue freight train riders originally formed by Vietnam veterans
* Freighthopping
* Hobo nickel, an art form associated with hoboes
* Hobo (typeface), designed by Morris Fuller Benton for American Type Founders in 1910
* Kirby, Texas, Kirby, Texas, the "hobo capital of Texas"
* Swagman, roughly the equivalent in Australia
* Wobbly lingo, the jargon of the Industrial Workers of the World
* Train surfing
References
Further reading
* Brady, Jonann (2005)
"Hobos Elect New King and Queen" ''ABC Good Morning America'', includes Todd "Ad Man" Waters' last ride as reigning Hobo King plus hobo slide show with Adman's photo's taken on the road.
* Bannister, Matthew (2006)
"Maurice W Graham 'Steam Train', Grand Patriarch of America's Hobos who has died aged 89" ''Last Word''. BBC Radio. Matthew Bannister talks to fellow King of the Hobos "Ad Man" Waters and to obituary editor of ''The New York Times'', Bill McDonald.
* Davis, Jason (2007)
"The Hobo" ''On The Road'' 30 minute special. KSTP television. Covers "Ad Man" Waters taking his daughter out on her first freight ride.
* Harper, Douglas (2006) [1986]
"Waiting for a Train" Excerpt from ''Good Company: A Tramp Life''
* Johnson, L. Anderson. "Riding the Rails for the Homeless." ''The New York Times''. July 12, 1983, p. B3, col 3. Story on "Ad Man" Waters the Penny Route.
* Oats. "Around the Jungle Fire I, II & III". 1994, 1997, 2000. Interviews with several hoboes: How they got their start, and travels and travails.
from the ''Encyclopedia of Chicago''
External links
*
* {{commons category-inline, Hobos
Hoboes,
Itinerant living
1890s neologisms
American culture