Tracing Quotations
Dennis Gabor? Abraham Lincoln? Ilya Prigogine? Alan Kay? Steven Lisberger? Peter Drucker? Forrest C. Shaklee? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: I have seen several different versions of an adage about prediction and invention. Here are some examples: The future cannot be predicted, but futures can be invented. We cannot predict the future, but we can invent …
Continue reading “We Cannot Predict the Future, But We Can Invent It”
Marcus Flavinius? Jean Lartéguy? Jean Pouget? Roger Frey? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigate: I would like your help in determining the authenticity of an eloquent letter that was supposedly sent by Marcus Flavinius, a centurion, to his cousin in Rome. Flavinius was fighting in a military campaign overseas in the 2nd Century AD, and he stated …
Bob Dylan? Bob Marley? Roger Miller? Donald Freeman? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: I love the following quote, and have used it on my blog: Some people feel the rain. Others just get wet. After researching the origin of the saying, it still remains unclear. Two famous musicians named Bob have each been credited: Bob Dylan …
Continue reading “Some People Feel the Rain. Others Just Get Wet”
Mark Twain? W. C. Fields? Harris Dickson? Barracuda Pete? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: I mentioned a joke credited to Mark Twain to a friend recently: It’s easy to quit smoking. I’ve done it hundreds of times. She said that the jest was actually created by the famous comedian W. C. Fields and not Twain. Also, …
Continue reading “It’s Easy to Quit Smoking. I’ve Done It a Thousand Times”
Ralph Waldo Emerson? Eric Mark Golnik? Thomas Hitchcock, Jr.? Thomas Hitchcock, Sr.? F. Ambrose Clark? Rosalind Russell? Jock Whitney? Desi Arnaz? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: There is a quotation about sportsmanship that I would like to learn more about: Win as if you were used to it, lose as if you enjoyed it for a …
Continue reading “Lose As If You Like It, and Win As If You Are Used to It”
Albert Einstein? Nick the Greek? Nicholas Dandolos? Ted Thackrey, Jr.? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: According to a legend in the gambling world Albert Einstein once visited a Las Vegas casino and after observing the action around the roulette wheel he said: You cannot beat a roulette table unless you steal money from it. Any truth …
Hillary Clinton? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: I saw on Facebook recently a supposed quotation from Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. While visiting some country in Central Asia she was asked by a reporter about fashion and she replied: Would you ever ask a man that question? No details were given about when or where this …
Winston Churchill? Paul S. Nadler? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: I heard this story many years ago at an economics convention. I’ve contacted the Churchill Archive and a couple of renowned Churchill scholars, and so far the answer seems to be “apocryphal,” as with so many great quotes attributed to the Great Quote Magnet. But it …
Continue reading “Anecdote: It Will Take Them Ten Years to Prove Me Wrong”