simile-a figure of speech that expresses a resemblance between things of different kinds. 
  
cliche-a sentence or phrase, usually expressing a popular or common thought or idea, that has lost originality, ingenuity, and impact by long overuse.  
  
Yeah, I know I've abused horribly the concept of this thread.  But, in this case, it is a simile that lost its originality, ingenuity, and impact by long overuse. 
  
... in the first half of the twentieth century