[Note: Parts of former entry no bears out tonight were incorporated into this new entry.]
ain’t no boogers out tonight n Also ain’t no boogerbears out tonight, ain’t no buggerbears ~, ain’t no buggers ~, boogerbear; for addit varr see quots chiefly S Atl (exc FL), AL
= ain’t no bears out tonight n.
1936 Anniston Star (AL) 10 Dec 12/6, When we were a child . . there was a game we played under the name of “Buggerbear.” . . There wasn’t any bear but we’d get all shivery from hearing that the buggerbear would get us out in the dark of the night. 1950 Steele Debby 15 SC, The dark hair and sweater and the dark hollows under the woman’s eyes made Deborah remember a game she had played as a child: “Ain’t no boogers out tonight. . .” 1955 Clarke Remembering 42 GA (as of 1930s), The best of all the games for people of our age was known as “Ain’t no boogers out tonight.” Like so many other games, one of the players would be “it” and would hide. The other players would then skip and dance around the yard singing a little ditty going like this, “Ain’t no boogers out tonight ’cause Daddy killed ’em all last night.” 1966 Weltner Southerner 14 cnGA (as of 1930s), After supper in the summertime my mother would move us out of the house to run off energy before bedtime. We would catch lightning bugs, and play sling the statue, red light, and another game called “ain’t no boogerbears out tonight.” 1967–69 DARE (Qu. EE16, Hiding games that start with a special, elaborate method of sending the players out to hide) Inf GA72B, There ain’t no buggerbears out tonight; (Qu. EE33, . . Outdoor games . . that children play) Inf AL30, No boogers [ˈbᴜgɚz] out tonight—a hiding game played at night. 1972 NC Folkl. 20.92, “Brer” Stem brings back to our minds those children’s games some of us played long ago, like “Ain’t No Bugger Bears Out Tonight.” 1982 Quanah Tribune–Chief (TX) 11 Nov 1/1, Now, I always preferred mud pies and “Booger Bear” to some of the above-mentioned games. 2009 in 2016 DARE File—Internet NC, One [game] we called Ain’t No Booger Bears Out Tonight. You would say “Ain’t no booger bears out tonight. Grandpa killed them all last night,” and then count to 25. Then everyone who was hiding had to try to get back to home base without being tagged. 2014 Ibid cGA (as of c1960), There is a certain mystique about playing outside at night. “Playing out” times called for different games, different rules and different players. Tag, King of the Hill, Steal the Bacon, Red Rover, May I? Kick the Can and last but not least, Aint No Buggers out Tonight. All the kids in the neighborhood would gather, just after supper, in the empty field across the street from our house; all the children plus daddy. Daddy was always the “bugger”. 2016 Ibid SC, Ain’t No Boogers Out Tonight, ’Cause Grandpa Killed Them All Last Night. Who remembers this childhood game? We grew up playing this game on summer evenings after supper and until probably just about “dark thirty.” We would select one person to be the “Booger”. Ibid NC, All of us kids were out after dark playing “ain’t no boogers out tonight”. . . The game wasn’t any fun until after dark, and once it got dark we knew we would be going home soon, so we had to play hard and fast!