I remember college kids I was around 25 years ago saying it, so it must have had some staying power.
The "bees knees" thing is definitely a 1920s-30s expression, so someone born in 1908 would have been prime for picking that up.
My granddad lived 1888-1988, and he had all sort of dated expressions that I thought were cool. His favorite term of endearment for us grandkids was, "mutton heads". Most people don't even know what mutton is, these days.