--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What's an archive, son? Is that anything…" description: "\"What's an archive, son? Is that anything like a closet?\" — Redd Foxx" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aa0/redd-foxx-22618_archives_what-s-an-archive-son-is-that-anything-l_3081047.jpg" --- # What's an archive, son? Is that anything like a closet? ![“What's an archive, son? Is that anything like a closet?” quote by Redd Foxx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aa0/redd-foxx-22618_archives_what-s-an-archive-son-is-that-anything-l_3081047.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aa0/redd-foxx-22618_archives_what-s-an-archive-son-is-that-anything-l_3081047.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aa0/redd-foxx-22618_archives_what-s-an-archive-son-is-that-anything-l_3081047.jpg) > “What's an archive, son? Is that anything like a closet?” [Redd Foxx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/redd-foxx/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The joke plays on the literal meaning of “archive” versus a closet, highlighting confusion over technical terms. **In simple terms:** Wordplay about archives and closets. Key Takeaway Clarify jargon to avoid misunderstandings. Themes humor language communication misunderstanding education Mood lighthearted playful educational Type comedic didactic When to use this quote - classroom teaching - office training - family conversations - online forums Key Concepts semantic confusion comedic timing cultural reference Questions to Reflect On - When have you misinterpreted a term? - How do you explain technical words simply? A Different Perspective Humor can obscure the seriousness of miscommunication. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Archive Son](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/archive-son-5256103/) [Archives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/archives/) [Closet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/closet/) [Closets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/closets/) [Like](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like/) [Like Closet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-closet-4880062/) [Son](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/son/) [Son Like](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/son-like-292486/) ## Related quotes > [I know what I like; if you go to my closet, I have at least four of everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janelle-monae/i-know-what-i-like-if-you-go-to-my-closet-i-have-at-least-four-of/) [Janelle Monae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janelle-monae/) > [There is nothing truly beautiful but that which can never be of any use whatsoever; everything useful is ugly, for it is the expression…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theophile-gautier/there-is-nothing-truly-beautiful-but-that-which-can-never-be-of-any/) [Theophile Gautier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theophile-gautier/) > [I hate a messy closet. I totally freak out when my closet is messy and I can't find anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiernan-shipka/i-hate-a-messy-closet-i-totally-freak-out-when-my-closet-is-messy-and/) [Kiernan Shipka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiernan-shipka/) > [I have the motto that says, 'Whatever you see in your closet that you like, pick it and wear it.' It's not just your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willow-smith/i-have-the-motto-that-says-whatever-you-see-in-your-closet-that-you/) [Willow Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willow-smith/) > [The first thing you have to understand is that I was not desperate to be a writer. I was never a closet writer filing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikas-swarup/the-first-thing-you-have-to-understand-is-that-i-was-not-desperate-to/) [Vikas Swarup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikas-swarup/) > [Wondering what I'm doing tonight I've been in the closet and feel all right](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dee-dee-ramone/wondering-what-i-m-doing-tonight-i-ve-been-in-the-closet-and-feel-all/) [Dee Dee Ramone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee-dee-ramone/) > [That's where I spent of lot of my high-school years -- in the closet. It wasn't too cramped, but you do get really hot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-lee/that-s-where-i-spent-of-lot-of-my-high-school-years-in-the-closet-it/) [Amy Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-lee/) > [Freedom is too enormous to be slipped under a closet door.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harvey-milk/freedom-is-too-enormous-to-be-slipped-under-a-closet-door/) [Harvey Milk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-milk/) > [See, I will always shop, and that's sort of a problem. Clothes are always exploding out of my closet!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zoe-lister-jones/see-i-will-always-shop-and-that-s-sort-of-a-problem-clothes-are/) [Zoe Lister-Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zoe-lister-jones/) > [The funny thing about these uniforms is that you hang them in the closet and they get smaller and smaller.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curt-flood/the-funny-thing-about-these-uniforms-is-that-you-hang-them-in-the/) [Curt Flood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curt-flood/) > [The hotel I'm in has a lovely closet. A nail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henny-youngman/the-hotel-i-m-in-has-a-lovely-closet-a-nail/) [Henny Youngman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henny-youngman/) > [Friends are readily disappointed by the size of my closet. And I thought it was big!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-jessica-parker/friends-are-readily-disappointed-by-the-size-of-my-closet-and-i/) [Sarah Jessica Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-jessica-parker/) > [People dance and we have a lot of music and... this might be the closet I get for a while.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cameron-crowe/people-dance-and-we-have-a-lot-of-music-and-this-might-be-the-closet/) [Cameron Crowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cameron-crowe/) > [I feel like I've been shut in a closet, and he's on the other side, and he doesn't have the key to unlock the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-kleypas/i-feel-like-i-ve-been-shut-in-a-closet-and-he-s-on-the-other-side-and/) [Lisa Kleypas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-kleypas/) > [I own about 300 pairs of shoes. When I start to go over 300, I have mini-sales from my closet and give the money…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacy-london/i-own-about-300-pairs-of-shoes-when-i-start-to-go-over-300-i-have/) [Stacy London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacy-london/) ## More by Redd Foxx > [Junk runs in the family. My granddad was a junk man in St. Louis and so was my uncle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/redd-foxx/junk-runs-in-the-family-my-granddad-was-a-junk-man-in-st-louis-and-so/) [Redd Foxx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/redd-foxx/) > [A girl's legs are her best friends...but even the best of friends must part.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/redd-foxx/a-girl-s-legs-are-her-best-friends-but-even-the-best-of-friends-must/) [Redd Foxx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/redd-foxx/) > [I'm convinced that Sanford and Son shows middle-class America a lot of what they need to know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/redd-foxx/i-m-convinced-that-sanford-and-son-shows-middle-class-america-a-lot/) [Redd Foxx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/redd-foxx/) > [“Beauty may only be skin deep, but ugly goes clear to the bone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/redd-foxx/beauty-may-only-be-skin-deep-but-ugly-goes-clear-to-the-bone/) [Redd Foxx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/redd-foxx/) > [You make me wish that birth control was retroactive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/redd-foxx/you-make-me-wish-that-birth-control-was-retroactive/) [Redd Foxx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/redd-foxx/) > [Certain things should be yours to have when you work your way to the top.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/redd-foxx/certain-things-should-be-yours-to-have-when-you-work-your-way-to-the/) [Redd Foxx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/redd-foxx/) > [This is the big one! You hear that, Elizabeth? I'm coming to join ya, honey!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/redd-foxx/this-is-the-big-one-you-hear-that-elizabeth-i-m-coming-to-join-ya/) [Redd Foxx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/redd-foxx/) > [I carry a knife now because I read in a white magazine that all black people carry knives. So I rushed out and bought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/redd-foxx/i-carry-a-knife-now-because-i-read-in-a-white-magazine-that-all-black/) [Redd Foxx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/redd-foxx/) > [The food here is so tasteless you could eat a meal of it and belch and it wouldn't remind you of anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/redd-foxx/the-food-here-is-so-tasteless-you-could-eat-a-meal-of-it-and-belch/) [Redd Foxx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/redd-foxx/) > [I feel sorry for people who don't drink or do drugs. Because someday they're going to be in a hospital bed, dying, and they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/redd-foxx/i-feel-sorry-for-people-who-don-t-drink-or-do-drugs-because-someday/) [Redd Foxx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/redd-foxx/) > [Health nuts are going to feel stupid someday, lying in hospitals dying of nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/redd-foxx/health-nuts-are-going-to-feel-stupid-someday-lying-in-hospitals-dying/) [Redd Foxx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/redd-foxx/) > [The show doesn't drive home a lesson, but it can open up people's minds enough for them to see how stupid every kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/redd-foxx/the-show-doesn-t-drive-home-a-lesson-but-it-can-open-up-people-s/) [Redd Foxx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/redd-foxx/) > [If you can see the handwriting on the wall... you're on the toilet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/redd-foxx/if-you-can-see-the-handwriting-on-the-wall-you-re-on-the-toilet/) [Redd Foxx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/redd-foxx/) > [Hey! Leave the door open will ya? The flies haven't been out all day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/redd-foxx/hey-leave-the-door-open-will-ya-the-flies-haven-t-been-out-all-day/) [Redd Foxx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/redd-foxx/) > [A girl's legs are her best friends, but the best of friends must part.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/redd-foxx/a-girl-s-legs-are-her-best-friends-but-the-best-of-friends-must-part/) [Redd Foxx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/redd-foxx/) [Explore all 27 Redd Foxx quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/redd-foxx/) ## More Archives quotes > [Research promoted by NARA within a major coalition of Federal and private sector research partners has at last demonstrated that an Electronic Records Archives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allen-weinstein/research-promoted-by-nara-within-a-major-coalition-of-federal-and/) [Allen Weinstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allen-weinstein/) > [The archives recall not one single incriminating incident, not one drunken escapade, not one reported affair, not one spat with a team-mate or reporter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-atherton/the-archives-recall-not-one-single-incriminating-incident-not-one/) [Michael Atherton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-atherton/) > [The Carnegie Foundation is well aware of the fact that their reports frequently find their way to dusty archives in academic institutions, but occasionally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-everett-koop/the-carnegie-foundation-is-well-aware-of-the-fact-that-their-reports/) [C. Everett Koop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-everett-koop/) > [I spent three years researching American Rose, research that included connecting with Gypsy's sister, the late actress June Havoc (I was the last person…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-abbott/i-spent-three-years-researching-american-rose-research-that-included/) [Karen Abbott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-abbott/) > [I've found myself moved by letters and diaries in archives as well as trashy, summer blockbusters. It's possible to make a connection with any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/i-ve-found-myself-moved-by-letters-and-diaries-in-archives-as-well-as/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [“It's really fine that you found a good archivist to do the basically difficult and at times harrowing work of cleaning out old papers.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-f-k-fisher-2/it-s-really-fine-that-you-found-a-good-archivist-to-do-the-basically/) [M.F.K. Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-f-k-fisher-2/) > [There was an intervention of the foreign states in the Russian Far East, Archangel of the West border of Russia. The foreign troops were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-semichastny/there-was-an-intervention-of-the-foreign-states-in-the-russian-far/) [Vladimir Semichastny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-semichastny/) > [I have a website because it's an interesting tool, very - and quite unexpectedly - useful for my work. It's become an archive and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-howe/i-have-a-website-because-it-s-an-interesting-tool-very-and-quite/) [John Howe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-howe/) > [I woke up one day and I was like, "I don't have anything to save for myself for the future." That's when I started…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-wu/i-woke-up-one-day-and-i-was-like-i-don-t-have-anything-to-save-for/) [Jason Wu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-wu/) > [I applied for funding to embark on an overseas field trip in Iceland, and spent six weeks there happily holed up in the national…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-kent/i-applied-for-funding-to-embark-on-an-overseas-field-trip-in-iceland/) [Hannah Kent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-kent/) > [With our blogs and tweets, digital cameras, and unlimited-gigabyte e-mail archives, participation in the online culture now means creating a trail of always present,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-foer/with-our-blogs-and-tweets-digital-cameras-and-unlimited-gigabyte-e/) [Joshua Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-foer/) > [Over the last two years, I have been able to comb through The Prince's archives. I have been free to read his journals, diaries…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-dimbleby/over-the-last-two-years-i-have-been-able-to-comb-through-the-prince-s/) [Jonathan Dimbleby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-dimbleby/) > [We may observe in some of the abrupt grounds we meet with, sections of great masses of strata, where it is as easy to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-may-observe-in-some-of-the-abrupt-grounds-we-meet-with-sections-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I went to the archives to see what Dumbo work there was, not for current film, but just for my love of animation. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-sohn/i-went-to-the-archives-to-see-what-dumbo-work-there-was-not-for/) [Peter Sohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-sohn/) > [Whether it's your own material or somebody else's material, it's essential that you identify with it thoroughly. It's like you want to archive it;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-stookey/whether-it-s-your-own-material-or-somebody-else-s-material-it-s/) [Paul Stookey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-stookey/) [Browse all 164 Archives quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/archives/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "What's an archive, son? 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