top banana

noun

Slang.

1. a leading comedian in musical comedy, burlesque, vaudeville, etc..

   For many years he was top banana on the circuit.

2. the chief person in a group or undertaking.

top banana

noun

1. the leading comedian in vaudeville, burlesque, etc

2. the leader; boss

Word History and Origins

Origin of top banana¹

First recorded in 1950–55

Idioms and Phrases

Also, top dog. The principal person in a group, organization, or undertaking, as in His plan was to be top banana within ten years, or Now that she's top dog you can't get hold of her at all. The first term comes from show business, where from the early 1900s it has signified the leading comedian (possibly the original allusion was to Frank Lebowitz, a burlesque comedian who used bananas in his act). It also gave rise to second banana, for a supporting actor, usually a straight man. Both were transferred to more general use in the second half of the 1900s, as in executive Peter Barton's statement, “There is a certain pain to being a second banana, but you have to have an ability to sublimate your ego,” quoted in The New York Times, May 15, 1996. The variant, top dog, originated in sports in the late 1800s and signified the odds-on favorite or winner in a contest; it alludes to the dog who wins (comes out on top) in a dogfight.