the.com/hatstand
a tree that traded leaves for fedoras and somehow stands prouder for it
means A freestanding rack with branching pegs or hooks for hanging hats and coats, and (in British slang) a way of saying someone is comically mad or unhinged.
from A plain compound of "hat" and "stand" — "hat" from Old English hætt, a cousin of "hood," and "stand" from Old English standan, both rooted in the same ancient Germanic stock. The literal furniture sense came first; the slang meaning "crazy, off one's rocker" is a later British colloquialism, the idea being that someone is so far gone they've come unscrewed and gone "stark raving hatstand."
- slang
- British slang for completely insane or unhinged
- victorian boom
- Bentwood designs made them parlor status symbols
- silent comedy
- A reliable prop for pratfalls and head-bonking gags
- hall tree
- Larger versions add mirrors, hooks, and umbrella stands
the hat stand scene — fawlty towers episode where basil hits the major with a hat stand in 1975
victorian brass hat stand — common furniture piece from 1800s homes, typically 6-7 feet tall with hooks