'Pissing on cotton' ripped off?
I was reading Dana Stevens' review for AMERICAN GANGSTER today, where she writes:
Lucas is a satanic charmer who can turn a phrase like nobody's business: The atmosphere at a high-stakes pool game was "so quiet you could've heard a rat piss on a piece of cotton in China."
For some reason I thought the memorable line that appeared in the film was original, but if pressed I would have been open to the possibility that it was an expression I had never before encountered. Google searches indicate that when people use the phrase they're referring to the film, although there are some instances where people say "mouse" instead of "ant," and mouse IS closer to how Lucas worded it. So what's the deal? Did Mamet just rip-off what he read in a NYT MAGAZINE profile? share