The movie Harvey starring Jimmy Stewart in the role of Elwood P. Dowd had a number of interesting phrases and expressions, not the least of which was talk of having a face to stop a clock. In the movie, Elwood says:
ELWOOD – Well, you’ve heard the expression ‘His face would stop a clock’? Well, Harvey — can look at your clock and stop it. And you can go anywhere you like — with anyone you like — and stay as long as you like — and when you get back — not one minute will have ticked by.
When someone says his face would stop a clock, it means that the other person has an unexpectedly unattractive face.
In the “Tale of the Tudors” from the Warner Brothers’ animated television series, Histeria! that ran from 1998 to 2000, the following is found:
Boys: So for a while, our Henry grieves,
Then he marries Anne of Cleves.
Anne came from fine German stock,
Toast: She had a face that could stop a clock.
Girls: Their marriage was cancelled in less than a year,
His fifth wife, Catherine Howard, was dear.
But Henry found out that her love was not true.
The Dallas Morning News ran a story on January 12, 1986 that read:
The Goddess of Liberty might have a face that could stop a clock on the University of Texas Tower, but she suddenly has attracted her share of suitors. At least two groups want to move the 3000-pound zinc statue out of Austin and put her on permanent display elsewhere.
Just shy of 26 years before that news article, the Milwaukee Journal edition of January 13, 1961 ran the column written by Ione Quingy Griggs of the Journal Staff. From what Idiomation can see, Mrs. Griggs was a cross between Miss Manners and Dear Abby, offering up advice to those who were at a loss as to how to proceed with a particular situation. The topic that day was how to copy with a mother-in-law who picked people apart and respones from readers whose opinion differed from Ms. Griggs’ earlier published opinion on the matter. The following, authored by “Troubled Owner Of Mink Coat,” is an excerpt fromher response.
I read with interest your suggestion that a daughter-in-law voice the words “I am sorry” to her mother-in-law. In my case it should be my husband’s mother to say it. But no, she is always right everybody is wrong! I’m not one to hold grudges, but when she sits with a face to stop a clock because my husband gives me a mink coat for Christmas, I’m ready to give up. The mink coat was a surprise. Everyone but Gran raved about it. She sat frozen faced!
The expression was also found in a news story published on October 19, 1888 in the Chicago Daily Tribune in a story entitled, “The Beautiful Boston Man.”
After the parade the other day a well known Bostonian who is unfortunate in having a face to stop a clock approached an offer of the Cadets in a patronizing sort of way and said, “I saw your company today old man It looked very well very well indeed.”
Idiomation was unable to find an earlier published version of the expression, a face to stop a clock, however it can safely be assumed that if it was used in a news story in 1888 that it was a well-understood phrase among the Chicago Daily Tribune‘s readership and one can guess that the expression dates back at least to the mid-1870s.
Historically Speaking 