cuckoo for cocoa puffs

16:50 Oct 4, 2004

This question was closed without grading. Reason: Answer found elsewhere

English to French translations [PRO]
Marketing - Advertising / Public Relations

English term or phrase: cuckoo for cocoa puffs

this is taken from a movie. Two kids are talking and one says that his father is in an institution...he says his dad is "cuckoo for cocoa puffs"....any help at all as to how to translate this would be exremely helpful...preferably someone who lives in France.

Melimage (X)

Summary of answers provided

4 +5

est dingo pour les cocoa puffs

suezen

son père est...

Lucie Fourneyron

1 +3

not for points

Rachel Vanarsdall

coucou pour des bulles de chocolat...

manaa

Answers

2 hrs confidence:

coucou pour des bulles de chocolat...

Explanation:
Déjà, l´expression est obscure quant à sa signification... En anglais, cuckoo signifie "imbécile", si ça peut aider...

manaa
Native speaker of:

French

The asker has declined this answer

2 hrs confidence:

son père est...

Explanation:
(un) dingue de chocolat.

Lucie Fourneyron
Germany
Local time: 06:21
Native speaker of:

French

17 mins confidence:

peer agreement (net): +5

est dingo pour les cocoa puffs

Explanation:
cuckoo signifie fou, barjo, etc.

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Note added at 14 hrs 46 mins (2004-10-05 07:37:13 GMT)
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In answer to Rachel\'s note, I would disagree that it is an unkind way of saying his father is mentally ill. On the contrary, it\'s like saying \'he\'s nuts for something\', in other words, he loves them so much (\'à la folie\') that he would do anything (almost!)to get them!
In fact, in the original advert, it works well because of the onomatopoeia in the sounds (K, K, K, K). So, in the French version \'dingo\' works in a similar way (dingo/cocoa)

suezen
Local time: 06:21
Native speaker of:

English
PRO pts in category: 10

The asker has declined this answer

7 hrs confidence:

peer agreement (net): +3

not for points

Explanation:
"I'm cuckoo for cocoa puffs" is an advertising slogan.

It's just an unkind way of saying his father is mentally ill and it has nothing to do with his fondness for chocolate cereal.

for instance, you might call someone "loony tunes" - it has nothing to do with Bugs Bunny or the other cartoon characters.

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Note added at 7 hrs 3 mins (2004-10-04 23:54:09 GMT)
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http://www.tvacres.com/adanimals_sonnycuckoo.htm

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Note added at 20 hrs 10 mins (2004-10-05 13:01:13 GMT)
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Here are some examples of this phrase being used to mean someone is mentally ill:

\"Invisibelle votes to evict Amy even though Lori is “cuckoo for cocoa puffs.” And Chesty votes to evict Psycho Lori despite their instant connection in the house.\"

\"So let\'s see if I have this right:
1) Can\'t find a lawyer to represent him in an ADA case because *NYU* is too powerful?
2) UC Berserkly is covering up for something *NYU* did?
3) He\'s written a letter to the US attorney general but hasn\'t gotten around to mailing it yet.

This guy is cuckoo for cocoa puffs.\"

\"There is something wrong with Phil Roach.

We may have to get him Baker Acted.

It only takes a few minutes to find out the man is cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs.

For instance, just the other day, somebody asked Roach, the athletic director at Rollins College, how he keeps all his great athletes eligible. You must have a lot of tutors, huh?

\"We don\'t believe in athletic tutors,\" Roach said. \"We don\'t need them.\"

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Note added at 1 day 1 hr 31 mins (2004-10-05 18:22:15 GMT)
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this may be obvious, but in my first note I should have said that *in the asker\'s example* the expression is being used to make fun of mental illness - I did not mean to suggest that that was the point of the advertising campaign! Apparently the use of this expression to mean someone is actually \"nuts\" and not just \"nuts about chocolate-flavored cereal\" was made popular in the movie \"Reality Bites.\" And I wish I knew a good (preferably chocolate-free!) French equivalent for the asker!

Rachel Vanarsdall
Local time: 00:21
Native speaker of:

English

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