Tracing Quotations
Henry David Thoreau? Robert Chambers? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: A centimillionaire who is fixated on the wealth and extravagances of a billionaire may feel comparatively poor. Yet, a different mindset would allow almost anyone to feel wealthy. The transcendentalist philosopher Henry David Thoreau suggested that one could feel rich if one’s pleasures were inexpensive. …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: That Person Is the Richest Whose Pleasures Are the Cheapest”
Sue Grafton? Kinsey Millhone? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: A handbag with the logo of a top fashion company is quite expensive. The high cost functions as a marker of desirability. Here is a germane adage: Pay enough for anything and it passes for taste. This statement has been attributed to popular detective novelist Sue …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: Pay Enough for Anything and It Passes for Taste”
Mark Twain? Walter Powell? Collis Huntington? Mark Hopkins? Jim Winder? Gavin Dobson? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: During the 1800s the discovery of gold in a locale triggered a frenetic scramble of miners who dreamed of great fortunes. Unfortunately, mining led to disappointment for most miners. Here are two versions of a pertinent adage: This …
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: A prominent professional basketball player once shared a bracing insight. Only a relatively tiny number of people are able to advance to the U.S. National Basketball Association (NBA). Hoping to become an NBA player is rarely a practical goal. Hence, one should place an emphasis on education and …
Boyle Roche? Joe Miller? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: A comically incoherent or absurd statement is sometimes called a bull or an Irish bull. Here is an example: I am writing this letter with a sword in one hand and a pistol in the other. If the writer is not a three-handed alien then this …
Gerald Stanley Lee? F. W. Macdonald? Thomas Vezey Strong? Heywood Broun? Eugene O’Neill? Vincent Starrett? Florentine doorkeeper? Parisian Curator? Question for Quote Investigator: Critics and tastemakers have proclaimed that some paintings, books, and plays are masterpieces. Yet, the general populace is not always able to perceive the quality of these works. An anecdote set in …
Peter Drucker? Elsie Robinson? Warren Bennis? Stephen R. Covey? Glenn J. Shanahan? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: In the domain of business and entrepreneurship two contrasting statements yield a crucial insight: The most successful organizations require both efficiency and effectiveness. Another version highlights the following two ideas: These notions have been attributed to the famous …
Babe Paley? Wallis Simpson? Suzy Knickerbocker? Mrs. J. Gordon Douglas Sr.? Gregg Moran? Truman Capote? Dorothy Parker? Joan Rivers? Zenith Carburetor? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Achieving wealth and a svelte body have become idealized goals in some cultural milieus. Here are three versions of a pertinent maxim: As knowledge of the eating disorders anorexia …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: You Can Never Be Too Rich or Too Thin”
Buckminster Fuller? Helen Hayes? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The full potential of a person or an idea is not visible in a nascent state. An ingenious analogy expresses this viewpoint: There is nothing in a caterpillar that tells you it’s going to be a butterfly. This remark has been attributed to the inventor and …
Coco Chanel? Gabrielle Chanel? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: When a fashionable new item or design is created it is always embedded in its time period. The item is certain to lose favor eventually and become unfashionable. Yet, some fashions transcend and endure. These items can be revived and become fashionable again and again. The …