Leonard Bernstein? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The late 1960s and early 1970s were a time of societal upheaval and uncertainty in the United States. The prominent conductor and composer Leonard Bernstein who was well-known for crafting the music of “West Side Story” delivered a speech during which he asserted that only the artists of …
Yearly Archives: 2014
Quote Origin: Give the People What They Want and They’ll Come
Humorist: Red Skelton? George Jessel? Goodman Ace? Groucho Marx? Bert Lahr? James Bacon? Funeral: Harry Cohn? Louis B. Mayer? Question for Quote Investigator: A show business platitude states that success at the box office is achievable by simply giving the people what they want. A harsh comical anecdote about a funeral reinterpreted this saying. The …
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Quote Origin: Duty Comes Before Pleasure, But Only in the Dictionary
Harold L. Spence? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: You examined an adage about success and work that cleverly referred to their alphabetical order. I’ve seen a different joke about duty and pleasure: Duty comes before pleasure, but only in the dictionary. Would you please explore this saying? Reply from Quote Investigator: The earliest instance of …
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Quote Origin: Animal Rights and Beings from Another Planet
George Bernard Shaw? John Harris? Brigid Brophy? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: George Bernard Shaw was a strong advocate of vegetarianism who was greatly concerned with animal welfare. The following statement attributed to Shaw encouraged the reader to embrace an abstract extraplanetary perspective and asked the reader to condemn the instrumental use of animals for …
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Quote Origin: The Purpose of Life Is Not To Be Happy But To Matter
Ralph Waldo Emerson? Leo Rosten? Thomas Carlyle? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: On Facebook and the web the following quotation has been circulating widely: The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and …
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Quote Origin: The Most Dangerous Phrase Is: “We’ve Always Done It That Way”
Grace Murray Hopper? Apocryphal? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Grace Murray Hopper was a pioneering computer scientist whose work was central to the development of COBOL, one of the foundational high-level programming languages. She worked in a very fast moving technological domain where simply attempting to repeat previously successful strategies was sometimes disastrous. I am …
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Quote Origin: Laughter Is an Instant Vacation
Milton Berle? Bob Hope? Eugene P. Bertin? Connie Nelson? Robert Zwickey? Dale Turner? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: The comedian Milton Berle was a major star for decades on radio and then on television. The following insightful adage has been attributed to him: Laughter is an instant vacation. I have also seen these words credited …
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Quote Origin: Relativity: A Hot Stove and A Pretty Girl
Albert Einstein? Helen Dukas? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Albert Einstein was asked to explain the abstruse theory of relativity so many times that he reportedly created a comical illustration involving a hot stove and a pretty girl. Would you please explore the provenance of this tale? Reply from Quote Investigator: The earliest evidence located …
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Quote Origin: Here Lies the Body of Dorothy Parker. Thank God!
Dorothy Parker? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The notable wit Dorothy Parker constructed several epitaphs for herself. I am interested in the following: Here Lies the Body of Dorothy Parker. Thank God! When did she craft this fateful expression? Reply from Quote Investigator: QI has already examined a collection of epitaphs that have been ascribed …
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Quote Origin: Life Is Either a Daring Adventure or Nothing
Helen Keller? Van Wyck Brooks? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: An inspirational adage encouraging boldness and audacity has been attributed to Helen Keller who overcame great adversity: Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. Is this accurate? Reply from Quote Investigator: Helen Keller did write a closely matching statement; however, the appended …
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