Hoi Polloi - Appearances in The Twenty-first Century

Appearances in The Twenty-first Century

The August 14, 2001 episode of CNN's Larry King Live program included a discussion about whether the sport of polo was an appropriate part of the image of the British Royal Family. Joining King on the program were "best-selling biographer and veteran royal watcher Robert Lacey" and Kitty Kelley, author of the book The Royals. Their discussions focused on Prince Charles and his son Prince William.

Lacey said, "There is another risk that I see in polo. Polo is a very nouveau riche, I think, rather vulgar game. I can say that having played it myself, and I don't think it does Prince Charles's image, or, I dare say, this is probably arrogant of me, his spirit any good. I don't think it is a good thing for him to be involved in. I also, I'm afraid, don't think is a good thing for to be encouraging his sons to get involved in. It is a very "playboy" set. We saw Harry recently all night clubbing, and why not, some might say, playing polo down in the south of Spain. I think the whole polo syndrome is something that the royal family would do very well to get uninvolved with as soon as possible.

King turned the question to Kelley, saying, "Kitty, it is kind of hoi polloi, although it is an incredible sport in which, I have been told, that the horse is 80 percent of the game, the rider 20 percent. But it is a great sport to watch. But it is hoi polloi isn't it?"

To which Kelley replied, "Yes, I do agree with Robert. The time is come and gone for the royals to be involved with polo. I mean it is – it just increases that dissipated aristo-image that they have, and it is too bad to encourage someone like Prince William to get involved."

The term also appears in the 2003 Broadway musical Wicked, where it is used by the characters Elphaba and Glinda to refer to the many inhabitants of the Emerald City: "... I wanna be in this hoi polloi ..."

Jack Cafferty, a CNN anchorman, was caught misusing the term. On 9 December 2004 he retracted his statement, saying "And hoi-polloi refers to common people, not those rich morons that are evicting those two red-tail hawks (ph) from that fifth Avenue co-op. I misused the word hoi-polloi. And for that I humbly apologize."

New media and new inventions have also been described as being by or for the hoi polloi. Bob Garfield, co-host of NPR's On the Media program, 8 November 2005, used the phrase in reference to changing practices in the media, especially Wikipedia, "The people in the encyclopedia business, I understand, tend to sniff at the wiki process as being the product of the mere hoi polloi." The blog Isengard.gov referred to the $100 PC project as being for kids and the hoi polloi. The post went on to refer to the correct usage of the phrase, "*Although we at Isengard.gov are using the Greek phrase hoi polloi in its correct meaning of "the common people", rather than the incorrect but more hoi-polloish meaning of "the hoity-toities", "the fancy-living types", the "ravenous blood-sucking leeches fattening their stomachs on the backs of the masses", or "THE ARISTOCRATS!", it does not, in and of itself, indicate that we are insufferable smarty-pants. That may be established by independent means."

Duran Duran lead singer and lyricist Simon le Bon has included the phrase in the band's song Skin Divers from their 2007 release Red Carpet Massacre: Fighting on the shore, The hoi polloi want more, Howling bloody murder, but it's nothing just a murmur.

Gossip Girl (TV series) character Chuck Bass refers to fellow character Dan Humphrey as hoi polloi in episode 14 of the second season, "In The Realm of the Basses" He says "that's the problem with an open invitation. No way to keep out the hoi polloi."

Dottore Massimo in The Thief Lord (film) says to his son Scipio "What have I told you about mixing with the hoi polloi?" He is referring to Scipio's friendship with Prosper and Bo, two brothers that are poor runaways.

Kay D. Smith and Marc Tall have produced a dance music collaboration titled Hoipolloi.

Rome (TV Series) character Ciarán Hinds uses the phrase in episode 5 of the first season "The ram has touched the wall" in the scene where he as Caesar refuses a truce with Pompei Magnus. When proposed with a reason for refusing the truce he comments "something the hoi polloi can understand".

The term also appears in the 2010 HBO film, "You Don't Know Jack", where Jack Kevorkian (played by Al Pacino) says, "If it's good enough for the aristoi, then it should be good enough for the hoi polloi."

Sigur Rós's singer Jónsi uses the expression on his 2010 Go's Boy Lilikoi song, on the line "You grind your claws, you howl, you growl unafraid of Hoi Polloi", repeated twice throughout the song.

Rizzoli & Isles (TV Series) character Dr. Maura Isles (Sasha Alexander) uses the phrase in episode 1 of the third season "What Doesn't Kill You" in the scene where she and Det. Jane Rizzoli (Angie Harmon) are arguing in the police lab. When Jane calls her Poindexter the know-it-all, Maura shouts back, "I'd rather be Poindexter the know-it-all than the hoi polloi."