Last night I rented Sam Fuller's excellent "Pickup on South
Street," which is about a pickpocket who accidentally steals
microfilm intended for some Communist spies. First I just
wanted to recommend the movie to any of you who haven't seen
it, it's tough as nails and smartly done. But I also wanted
to ask about a slang term used by pretty much every character
in the film --
"cannon," meaning a pickpocket. Anyone know where this term
came from, or what its etymology is?
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