Talk:Gaffer

How
How can this definition ever be expanded to an encyclopedia entry? Isn't there a description of all the jobs on a movie set? Wetman 11:52, 15 Feb 2004 (UTC)

The following paragraph belongs to an article on film lighting equipment, not on the people who operate it:

Different types and wattage of lights are given different names, for example a 1Kw fresnel light is called a "pup" whereas an open faced 1Kw lamp is called a "Blonde". A Gaffer's lighting truck will also contain many different types of stands, clamps and gels.

dramatic 08:22, 8 Mar 2004 (UTC)

Agreed! I thought after I typed it, that it really belongs somewhere else, but thought it usefull enough to leave. Given this is my second Wiki addition there is still some learning to do... Cheers.

British English
Gaffer may have its roots in 16th Century English, but it is still a commonly used word in Britain for "boss". It is particularly often used by football (soccer) players when referring to the team's manager/coach. Should this article be renamed as something like Gaffer (film crew) and Gaffer be a disambiguation page, with a new page for the common British meaning? This is not to say that the usage of Gaffer in this article is incorrect in Britain. Dancarney 00:07, 24 March 2006 (UTC)
 * A valid point that should be mentioned at the outset, and not hidden away under "Derivation". I've slightly reorganised this article so that a disambiguation and second article probably aren't needed. ..dave souza, talk 22:44, 14 August 2006 (UTC)
 * These are two different meanings and should be in separate articles. I agree with Dancarney's suggestion that they should be split and a disambiguation page created. Chardir 15:04, 15 August 2006 (UTC)
 * If someone wants to do that I've no great objection, though both articles should have a reference to each other in the text as well as referring to other meanings at the disambiguation page, since they're both bosses! ..dave souza, talk 21:08, 15 August 2006 (UTC)

Split
Proposal: That this page remains but the Gaffer as an old man or foreman section is moved to a new article Gaffer (foreman) and a Gaffer (disambiguation) page is created with links to these two and Gaffer Tape. Comments please. Chardir 16:32, 23 August 2006 (UTC)
 * The problem with this is that it gives primacy to a relatively recent term for a boss which is common in the motion picture industry, relegating a longstanding term which remains common in British English usage, thus reflecting a bias towards the US which can occur in the internet. My preference is to keep the two together, but if need be Gaffer could become a disambiguation page for Gaffer (boss) and Gaffer (motion picture). ...dave souza, talk 17:25, 23 August 2006 (UTC)
 * Indeed, the suggestion by Dave souza is probably better than yours Chardir. That way it doesn't give primacy to any of the usages. If I don't hear any complaints about this in the next day or so, I will go ahead and do this.-Localzuk(talk) 14:27, 12 November 2006 (UTC)
 * Cool, I'm happy with that. Chardir 14:12, 13 November 2006 (UTC)

Surprised that Kate Bush's use of the term, "gaffa," has not yet been discussed here or incorporated into the "gaffer" entry. She describes a metaphysical state of being in the song, "Suspended in Gaffa," released in 1982 from her album, THE DREAMING. Musidora 20:47, 19 November 2006 (UTC)

A GAFFER IS ALSO A LIGHTING TECHNITION —Preceding unsigned comment added by 75.97.72.62 (talk) 22:25, 15 October 2009 (UTC)