Mark Twain? Arthur T. Pierson? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: To experience a joyful event completely one should share it with others. I think Mark Twain made a point similar to this in his collection of sayings called “Pudd’nhead Wilson’s New Calendar”. Would you please help me to find a citation? Reply from Quote Investigator: …
Yearly Archives: 2022
Quote Origin: Each Time You Fail, Start All Over Again, and You Will Grow Stronger
Hellen Keller? Anne Sullivan? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: There is an inspirational saying about beginning a task again even when you fail. Eventually, you will accomplish your purpose although it may not be exactly the purpose with which you began. This notion has been attributed to Anne Sullivan who was the brilliant teacher of …
Quote Origin: Nothing Succeeds Like Undress
Dorothy Parker? Oscar Wilde? Alexandre Dumas? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: While streaming an elaborately expensive television series I encountered a gratuitous scene with scanty clothing. I was reminded of this witticism: Nothing succeeds like undress. This quip has been attributed to Dorothy Parker. Would you please explore the provenance of this remark? Reply from …
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Maxim Origin: Nothing Succeeds Like Success
Alexandre Dumas? Ralph Waldo Emerson? William J. Snelling? Jacques-François Ancelot? Jules Janin? William Pulling? Alphonse de Lamartine? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: One success often leads to another success in a chain of achievement, opportunity, and good fortune. A popular adage expresses this idea: Nothing succeeds like success. This phrase has been attributed to several …
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Quote Origin: To My Mind, There Could Be No Greater Character To Play Than Othello
Paul Robeson? William Shakespeare? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: A prominent actor once discussed William Shakespeare’s tragic character Othello and said the following: There could be no greater character to play. This statement has been attributed to Paul Robeson. Would you please explore this topic. Reply from Quote Investigator: Paul Robeson played the character Othello …
Quote Origin: Inspiration Is for Amateurs—The Rest of Us Just Show Up and Get To Work
Chuck Close? Stephen King? Philip Roth? Harvey Mackay? Mark Twain? Charles Schulz? Rosalyn Drexler? John Barkham? Nocona Burgess? Jill Elaine Hughes? Question for Quote Investigator: An artist must wait patiently for inspiration to occur according to a romanticized depiction of creativity. Yet, a successful professional artist offered the following contrary viewpoint: Inspiration is for amateurs. …
Quote Origin: Nothing Is Ever Really Lost To Us As Long As We Remember It
Lucy Maud Montgomery? Adelaide Anne Procter? Walt Whitman? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The popular Canadian author Lucy Maud Montgomery is best known for the children’s novel “Anne of Green Gables”. Apparently, she once made a powerful statement about transience, mortality, and memory: Nothing is ever really lost to us as long as we remember …
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Quote Origin: Imagination Is a Good Servant, But a Bad Master
Agatha Christie? Hercule Poirot? John Jortin? Maria Edgeworth? Richard Lovell? Letitia Elizabeth Landon? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Creativity and inventiveness are wonderful attributes, but an overly imaginative person is prone to self-deception. Here is a cogent adage: Imagination is a good servant, but a bad master. This saying as been attributed to the famous …
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Quote Origin: I Require Only Three Things of a Man. He Must Be Handsome, Ruthless, and Stupid
Dorothy Parker? John Keats? Richard L. Jenkins? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: A prominent witty woman once described three qualities she desired in a man. He must be handsome, ruthless, and stupid. This viewpoint has been ascribed to poet and critic Dorothy Parker. Would you please help me to find a citation? Reply from Quote …
Quote Origin: She is Happy, For She Knows That Her Dust Is Very Pretty
Dorothy Parker? Franklin Pierce Adams? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The notable wit Dorothy Parker constructed several epitaphs. I am interested in the following: She is happy, for she knowsThat her dust is very pretty. This topic is confusing because I’ve also seen a different version of these lines: She is happy, for she knowsThat …
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