Multiple theories exist regarding the history of the idiom that conjures up images of nocturnal bacchanalian fervor, with one in particular standing out. Around 1837, the infamous troublemaker Marquis de Waterford and his accomplices spent an evening vandalizing the English town Melton Mowbray. Some of the night's raucous festivities included literally painting various buildings — even a tollbooth — a lovely (and obvious) shade of red.