Where did the phrase honky tonk originate?
An excellent question! I have a plausible theory that allows for people hearing things diffently and words becoming corrupted. the phrase was first popular with broad summer areas such as beach resorts and amusement parks(Like Coney Island) and there wee and may still be a variety of borderline restaurant-night clubs onthe boardwalk or midway area that are open in the fornt to facilitate cooling and pedestrian traffic access- man carnival buildigns are of this type-more substantial than a lean-to but still OPEN FRONT. My Guess Honky-Tonk Maybe be a corruption og OPEN FRONT Could also refer to a style of evening gown also called Empire or Strapless(wornby H-T performers by the way) and called an OPEN FRONT/ Listent o the song (sweet gypsy rose0 nad read in Open Front-rather than honky tonk and it still makes sense(Tony Orlando Song) that”s my educated guess. It is not a foreign word like Bistro or Pizzeria.
