Tracing Quotations
Anton Chekhov? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: Recently I was reading a collection of writing tips designed for neophyte scribblers, and I came across a valuable piece of advice that was attributed to Anton Chekhov: Don’t tell me the moon is shining; show me the glint of light on broken glass. I have seen this statement …
Continue reading “Don’t Tell Me the Moon Is Shining; Show Me the Glint of Light on Broken Glass”
Yogi Berra? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: Yogi Berra was a brilliant baseball player and manager. He is also famous for his comically wise sayings which are known as ‘Yogiisms’. This is my favorite on the topic of making decisions: When you come to a fork in the road, take it. Is this an authentic Yogiism? …
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Albert Einstein? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: The following saying is attributed to the scientific genius Albert Einstein: I never think of the future – it comes soon enough. Did he really say this? When did he say it? Quote Investigator: The earliest evidence of this saying located by QI was printed in a newspaper article …
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John Lennon? Birthday Card? Dixie Lee Crosby? Dixie Willson? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: I am a big fan of the Beatles, and I think I have a good mental picture of my favorite band member, John Lennon. The following popular pair of statements is often credited to Lennon, but I think the attribution is false: …
Continue reading “Count Your Age by Friends, Not Years. Count Your Life by Smiles, Not Tears”
Thomas Carlyle? Irving Fisher? Joseph Schumpeter? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: There is a humorous saying about parrots and economists that is often attributed to the philosopher and satirist Thomas Carlyle. Sometimes the joke is simply ascribed to Anonymous. Here are three versions: 1: Teach a parrot the terms ‘supply and demand’ and you’ve got an …
Continue reading “Teach a Parrot to Say ‘Supply and Demand’ and You Have an Economist”
Thomas Edison? David Sarnoff? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: I saw the following quotation on the website of a medical school with a strong history of innovation: There’s a way to do it better — find it. The words were attributed to the inventor and research laboratory pioneer Thomas A. Edison. I also saw an advertisement …
Warren Buffett? Samuel Johnson? Maria Edgeworth? Bertrand Russell? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: I recall seeing a lecture by the famed investor Warren Buffett during which he cautioned his audience to avoid falling into self-destructive behavior patterns. He used this eloquent analysis: The chains of habit are too light to be felt until they are too …
John Maynard Keynes? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: Quotations that were supposedly spoken by famous people shortly before death are notoriously unreliable. I heard that the prominent economist John Maynard Keynes on his deathbed was asked whether he had any regrets, and he said something like: I should have drunk more champagne. I only wish I …
Continue reading “My Only Regret Is That I Have Not Drunk More Champagne In My Life”
Alexander Graham Bell? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: The brilliant inventor Alexander Graham Bell helped to create the first practical telephone. He is often credited with the following inspiring statement: Don’t keep forever on the public road. Leave the beaten track behind occasionally and dive into the woods. You will be certain to find something you …
Audrey Hepburn? Sam Levenson? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: Audrey Hepburn was a magnificent movie star, and she was also a well-known worker for humanitarian causes. On various websites I have seen a collection of sayings called “Time Tested Beauty Tips” that have been attributed to her. The first tip says: For attractive lips, speak words …
Continue reading “For Attractive Lips, Speak Words of Kindness”