Calvin Coolidge? Frank A. Beach? Lisbeth Jordan? Robert E. Whalen? Elliot Liebow? Dear Quote Investigator: The scientific literature on animal behavior contains the term “Coolidge Effect” which apparently was inspired by a ribald anecdote about Calvin Coolidge and his wife Grace. Would you please explore the provenance of this term and the accompanying story? Quote …
Monthly Archives: March 2018
Hitchcock Is a Gentleman Farmer Who Raises Gooseflesh
Ingrid Bergman? Alfred Hitchcock? Stephen King? Stefan Kanfer? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: I once heard a remarkably apt description of a director who created horror films: That auteur is a farmer who raises gooseflesh. Gooseflesh is also referred to as goose bumps or horripilation. Would you please tell me the name of the director and …
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We Cannot Build Peace on Empty Stomachs
Norman Borlaug? John Boyd Orr? George C. Marshall? Dear Quote Investigator: Human deprivation engenders unrest, violence, and war. The following saying has been credited to Nobel laureate Norman Borlaug, an agronomist who contributed to large increases in agricultural productivity: You can’t build peace on empty stomachs. The statement has also been attributed to Nobel laureate …
I Don’t Trust Nature. Out There Things Can Fall On You, Like Meteors or Manna
Robert Benchley? Arthur Loeb Mayer? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: The popular humorist and actor Robert Benchley has been credited with the following response to a colleague who desired company during exercise: Go jogging? What, and get hit by a meteor? Benchley died in 1945; hence, this scenario appears anachronistic. Would you please help determine what …
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Hollywood Is the Only Place Where You Can Die of Encouragement
Dorothy Parker? Pauline Kael? Dear Quote Investigator: The decision to greenlight a movie in Hollywood is complicated and protracted. Those eager to make films experience a mixture of encouragement, uncertainty, delays, and heartbreak. Here are two versions of a germane witticism: Hollywood is the one place on earth where you could die of encouragement. Hollywood …
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The Greatest Trick the Devil Ever Pulled Was Convincing the World He Didn’t Exist
Christopher McQuarrie? Charles Baudelaire? Kevin Spacey? Verbal Kint? Keyser Söze? John Wilkinson? William Ramsey? John Fletcher Hurst? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: The 1995 movie “The Usual Suspects” contains a memorable line spoken by a guileful character about the existence or non-existence of the Devil. The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world …
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Risk Comes from Not Knowing What You’re Doing
Warren Buffett? Jim Rasmussen? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: The investment record of Warren Buffett has been astonishingly successful. His reputation for sagacity means that his tongue can transform a prosaic remark into an adage of wry plainspoken wisdom such as the following: Risk comes from not knowing what you’re going. I have seen low quality …
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If I Call It Art, It’s Art; or If I Hang It in a Museum, It’s Art
Marcel Duchamp? Janet Malcolm? Raul Gamboa? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: The artist provocateur Marcel Duchamp proclaimed that he could transform a prosaic object into an objet d’art worthy of display in a museum. He famously accomplished this feat with a urinal he dubbed “Fountain” in 1917. See the picture above. Would you please help me …
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“Where Should One Use Perfume?” “Wherever One Wants To Be Kissed”
Coco Chanel? Arlene Dahl? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: The brilliant fashion luminary Coco Chanel was once asked about the proper application of fragrance to the body, and she gave an entertaining reply about osculation. Would you please help me to find a citation? Quote Investigator: The earliest evidence located by QI appeared as a short …
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That Common Cold of the Male Psyche, Fear of Commitment
Richard Schickel? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: The film historian and critic Richard Schickel asserted that men’s refusal to commit to relationships is as prevalent as the common cold. Would you please help me to find the exact phrasing and a citation? Quote Investigator: In 1983 Richard Schickel reviewed the movie “Terms of Endearment” in “Time” …
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