Quote Investigator® – Tracing Quotations

Quote Origin: A Bore Is a Person Who Deprives You of Solitude Without Providing You with Company

Oscar Wilde? Gian Vincenzo Gravina? John D. MacDonald? Roger Ebert? Paul Gibson? Anonymous?

**Painting titled “Solitude” by Frederic Leighton circa 1890**

Question for Quote Investigator: A clever person constructed the following definition:

A bore is a person who deprives you of solitude without providing you with company.

This remark has been attributed to Irish wit Oscar Wilde, Italian man of letters Gian Vincenzo Gravina, U.S. thriller writer John D. MacDonald, and movie critic Roger Ebert. I have never seen a solid citation. Would you please explore this topic?

Reply from Quote Investigator: The earliest match found by QI appeared in the periodical “Reader’s Digest” in March 1949 within a section of miscellaneous sayings called “Quotable Quotes”. Boldface added to excerpts by QI:¹

Gian Vincenzo Gravina, contemporary Italian author: A bore is a man who deprives you of solitude without providing you with company.

The entries printed on the “Quotable Quotes” page were sent to “Reader’s Digest” by readers who were compensated. The quotations were not verified by the magazine; hence, misquotations sometimes appeared.

Gian (Giovanni) Vincenzo Gravina was the name of a prominent Italian jurist and author who died in 1718. Thus, the claim that Gravina was a “contemporary Italian author” was odd. Perhaps, Giovanni Vincenzo Gravina was a pseudonym used by a contemporary author.

Oscar Wilde died in 1900. He implausibly received credit in 2008. John D. MacDonald used the expression in a 1974 novel, but he credited Gravina. Roger Ebert used the saying in 1976, but he credited John D. MacDonald.

Below are additional selected citations in chronological order.

Quote Origin: Love Is the Crowning Grace of Humanity, the Holiest Right of the Soul, the Golden Link Which Binds Us to Duty and Truth

Francis Petrarch? Plutarch? Henry Theodore Tuckerman? Frederick Saunders? Apocryphal?

**Painting “The Fountain of Love” by François Boucher circa 1748**

Question for Quote Investigator: The following ornate passage about love has been attributed to Francis Petrarch, a prominent poet of the Italian Renaissance:

Love is the crowning grace of humanity, the holiest right of the soul, the golden link which binds us to duty and truth.

I am skeptical because I have never seen a solid citation. Would you please explore the provenance of these words?

Reply from Quote Investigator: The earliest match found by QI appeared in 1845 within “The American Review: A Whig Journal of Politics, Literature, Art, and Science”. Essayist Henry Theodore Tuckerman published a piece about the sonnets composed by Francis Petrarch. In the following passage, Tuckerman was not presenting a direct quotation from Petrarch; instead, Tuckerman was delivering his own summary opinion:¹

Love, Petrarch maintains, is the crowning grace of humanity, the holiest right of the soul, the golden link which binds us to duty and truth, the redeeming principle that chiefly reconciles the heart to life, and is prophetic of eternal good. It is a blessing or a bane, a weakness or a strength, a fearful or a glorious experience, according to the soul in which it is engendered. Let us endeavor to define its action and vindicate its worth, as set forth in the Sonnets of Petrarch.

QI believes Henry Theodore Tuckerman deserves credit for the quotation under examination although Tuckerman was attempting to depict the thoughts of Petrarch.

Below are additional selected citations in chronological order.

Quote Origin: Being Powerful Is Like Being a Lady. If You Have To Tell People You Are, You Aren’t

Jesse Carr? Margaret Thatcher? Anonymous?

**The Political Lady (L’Ambitieuse) painted by James Tissot circa 1885**

Question for Quote Investigator: Positive self-descriptions are sometimes inaccurate. Here are three versions of a saying which illustrates this insight:

(1) Power is like being a lady—if you have to tell them you are, you ain’t.

(2) Being powerful is like being a lady. If you have to tell people you are, you ain’t.

(3) Being powerful is like being a lady. If you have to tell people you are, you aren’t.

In this context, the term “lady” means a woman of refinement or superior social status. This remark has been attributed to U.S. labor union leader Jesse Carr and U.K. Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. Would you please explore the provenance of this saying?

Reply from Quote Investigator: The earliest match found by QI appeared in the “Fairbanks Daily News-Miner” of Fairbanks, Alaska in October 1975. The words were attributed to Jesse Carr, but the quotation was indirect. Boldface added to excerpts by QI:¹

A friend of Jesse L. Carr says the Teamster leader has a saying that goes, “Power is like being a lady—if you have to tell them you are, you ain’t.”

The next earliest citation known to QI appeared in “Newsweek” magazine in September 1976. The statement was presented as a direct quotation from Carr at the beginning of an article about the labor leader:²

“Being powerful is like being a lady. If you have to tell people you are, you ain’t …
— Jesse Carr, head of Teamsters Union Local 959, Anchorage

Based on the citations listed above, QI believes that Jesse Carr deserves credit for this remark. The version in “Newsweek” is probably the most accurate. Margaret Thatcher received credit by 1984, but the saying was already in circulation. Also, QI has not found any citation displaying a direct quotation from Thatcher.

Below are additional selected citations in chronological order.

Quote Origin: Sure, He Was Great, But Don’t Forget That Ginger Rogers Did Everything He Did Backwards and in High Heels

Ginger Rogers? Ann Richards? Bob Thaves? Ronald Reagan? Faith Whittlesey? Liz Carpenter?

**Picture of a couple dancing from Unsplash**

Question for Quote Investigator: The U.S. entertainer Fred Astaire won high praise as a magnificent dancer. Astaire’s partner Ginger Rogers also achieved acclaim, but she did not achieve the same level of celebrity. A humorous feminist line compares the capabilities of the two:

Of course, Fred Astaire was a wonderful dancer, but Ginger Rogers did everything he did backwards and in high heels.

I do not know the exact phrasing. This line has been credited to Texas politician Ann Richards, cartoonist Bob Thaves, U.S. President Ronald Reagan, and Ginger Rogers herself. I have not seen a solid citation. Would you please explore the provenance of this remark?

Reply from Quote Investigator: The earliest match known to QI appeared on May 3, 1982, in the comic strip “Frank & Ernest” by Bob Thaves. The strip showed three characters looking at a sign for a “Fred Astaire Film Festival”. One character says the following:¹

SURE HE WAS GREAT, BUT DON’T FORGET THAT GINGER ROGERS DID EVERYTHING HE DID, … BACKWARDS AND IN HIGH HEELS.

QI believes that Bob Thaves is the most likely creator of this quip. Ronald Reagan used a version of the line during a speech in 1986. Ann Richards used a version during a speech in 1988.

Below are additional selected citations in chronological order.

Quip Origin: Nothing Is Impossible for the Person Who Doesn’t Have To Do It Himself

A. H. Weiler? Earl Wilson? Mitch Miller? Anonymous?

**Picture of an incomplete jigsaw puzzle from Unsplash**

Question for Quote Investigator: Grandiose managers brag of the monumental tasks they can accomplish. This unrealistic attitude is reflected in a quip:

Nothing is impossible for the man who doesn’t have to do it himself.

Newspaper editor A. H. Weiler has received credit for this joke, but I have never seen a solid citation. Would you please explore this topic?

Reply from Quote Investigator: The earliest match known to QI appeared in July 1954 within the investment magazine “Changing Times: The Kiplinger Magazine”. The quip was grouped with miscellaneous humorous statements, and no ascription was specified. Boldface added to excerpts by QI:¹

Nothing is impossible to the chap who doesn’t have to do it himself.

Thus, the creator remains anonymous. A. H. Weiler received credit in 1968, but the long delay reduced the credibility of the attribution.

Below are additional selected citations in chronological order.

Quote Origin: It Is Questionable If All the Mechanical Inventions Yet Made Have Lightened the Day’s Toil of Any Human Being

John Stuart Mill? Henry George? Herbert Vincent Mills? Apocryphal?

Question for Quote Investigator: Numerous labor-saving machines were designed and built in the nineteenth century, but a prominent political economist was unimpressed. He doubted whether these inventions had lessened the toil of anyone by even a single day.

This notion has been attributed to John Stuart Mill, but I do not recall the precise phrasing. Would you please help me to find a citation?

Reply from Quote Investigator: In 1848 John Stuart Mill published “Principles of Political Economy with Some of Their Applications to Social Philosophy”. Mill did not believe that machines had improved the quality of life of workers in the past, but he expressed hope that they could be beneficial in the future. Boldface added to excerpt by QI:¹

Hitherto it is questionable if all the mechanical inventions yet made have lightened the day’s toil of any human being. They have enabled a greater population to live the same life of drudgery and imprisonment, and an increased number of manufacturers and others to make large fortunes. They have increased the comforts of the middle classes. But they have not yet begun to effect those great changes in human destiny, which it is in their nature and in their futurity to accomplish.

Mill has received credit for a wide variety of different phrasings for this idea. Below is an overview with dates and attributions.

Saying Origin: Labor-Saving Devices Don’t Save Labor. They Increase It

John Stuart Mill? Henry George? H. L. Mencken? C. Palfrey? J. E. Jennings? Adam Coaldigger? Anonymous?

**Illustration of the Edison multipolar dynamo from the British Library**

Question for Quote Investigator: Recent progress in artificial intelligence and robotics has led some to believe that work hours will shrink and leisure will grow. However, history suggests a different possibility.

Brilliant inventors have created a series of remarkable labor-saving devices, yet somehow people seem to be working harder than ever. This notion has been summarized with a trenchant adage:

Labor-saving machinery doesn’t really save labor.

This saying has been attributed to English philosopher John Stuart Mill, U.S. political economist Henry George, and U.S. essayist H. L. Mencken.

This counter-intuitive observation has inspired several possible explanations including the following: Machines allow more goods and services to be produced at lower prices, but this causes the needs and desires of people to grow and expand; hence, working hours have not decreased in several decades.

Would you please explore the provenance of this saying?

Reply from Quote Investigator: This saying can be expressed in many ways; hence, it is difficult to trace. John Stuart Mill articulated the central idea in 1848 although he employed a different phrasing. Here is an overview with dates and attributions:

1848: It is questionable if all the mechanical inventions yet made have lightened the day’s toil of any human being (John Stuart Mill)

1869: All the contrivances of science and art for economy of labor do not save labor, but stimulate production (C. Palfrey)

1885: All the labor-saving machinery that has hitherto been invented has not lessened the toil of a single human being (Attributed to John Stuart Mill by Henry George)

1900: No labor-saving invention has been used to save labor, but to increase it (J. E. Jennings)

1905: Labor-saving devices don’t save labor. They increase it (Anonymous)

1929: Labor-saving devices don’t save labor which is proven by the fact that men never worked as many days per annum or worked as feverishly as they have since the advent of the labor-saving devices (Adam Coaldigger)

1935: The plain fact is that labor-saving machinery doesn’t save labor at all (Howard Vincent O’Brien)

1962: Labor-saving machinery had in fact not saved any labor (Attributed to John Stuart Mill by August Heckscher)

1989: The fact is that a lot of labour-saving devices don’t really save labour (Sue Birchmore)

2008: No labor-saving device has ever saved a minute of labor! (Attributed to H. L. Mencken)

Below are details for selected citations in chronological order.

Saying Origin: Good Science Fiction Can Predict the Automobile; Better SF Can Predict the Drive-In Theater; The Best SF Can Predict the Resultant Sexual Revolution

Gardner Dozois? Isaac Asimov? Robert Heinlein? Cory Doctorow? Apocryphal?

**Picture of a drive-in movie theater from Unsplash**

Question for Quote Investigator: A competent science-fiction (SF) author can use the knowledge of automobiles and movie theaters to predict the creation of drive-in movie theaters. But an ingenious SF author can predict the dramatic shift in sexual behavior caused by these changes in mobility and privacy.

The prominent SF editor Gardner Dozois has received credit for presenting this notion, but I do not know the precise phrasing he used. Also, I do not know where his comment appeared. Would you please explore this topic?

Reply from Quote Investigator: In 1972 Gardner Dozois edited the short story anthology “A Day in the Life”. The remark by Dozois about the difficulty of making predictions was contained in the introduction to one of the tales. The following passage by Dozois contains the initialisms SAC and AEC. SAC referred to the Strategic Air Command of the U.S. which was responsible for operating strategic bombers and intercontinental ballistic missiles. AEC referred to the Atomic Energy Commission of the U.S. which was responsible for overseeing nuclear energy. Boldface added to excerpts by QI:¹

It is a jump from predicting the atomic bomb to predicting atomic submarines or breeder reactors, and it is another jump from there to predicting SAC and the AEC. Few authors have accurately predicted the way the cultural changes will seep inside our everyday lives and alter the experience and quality of it: from SAC to the McCarthy trials.

Most SF can predict the car, some SF can predict the drive-in theater, but SF that can predict the changes in teen-age sexual behavior as a result of the drive-in is vanishingly rare.

Envisioning and depicting the indirect implications of technological advances is challenging. SF luminaries such as Isaac Asimov and Robert Heinlein also commented on this topic.

Below are additional selected citations in chronological order.

Quote Origin: Go Often To the House of Thy Friend, for Weeds Choke the Unused Path

Ralph Waldo Emerson? W. Taylor? Karl Blind? Carolyne Larrington? Poetic Edda? Hávamál? Scandinavian Proverb? Anonymous?

**Picture of a narrow forest path from Unsplash**

Question for Quote Investigator: A friendship endures when it is nurtured and periodically renewed. Silence and distance cause a friendship to decay. The following adage expresses this viewpoint:

Go often to the house of thy friend, for weeds soon choke up the unused path.

This statement has been attributed to transcendentalist philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson, but I have never seen a solid citation, and I have become skeptical. Would you please explore the provenance of this expression?

Reply from Quote Investigator: QI has found no substantive evidence that Ralph Waldo Emerson crafted this saying. He died in 1882, and he received credit by 1921.

The earliest match known to QI appeared in a poem called “Hávamál” which is part of the “Poetic Edda”, a Medieval Icelandic literary work. An English translation by W. Taylor was published in 1828 containing the following verse. Boldface added to excerpts by QI:¹

If you’ve a friend, take care to keep him,
And often to his threshold pace;
Bushes and grass soon choke the path
On which a man neglects to walk.

A different translation of the verse by Carolyne Larrington appeared in a scholarly book from Oxford University Press in 2014:²

I advise you, Loddfafnir, to take this advice,
it will be useful if you learn it,
do you good, if you have it:
you know, if you’ve a friend, one whom you trust well,
go to see him often;
for brushwood grows, and tall grass,
on the road which no man treads.

Here is the corresponding medieval text published in an edition from the Viking Society for Northern Research in 1986:³

Below are additional selected citations in chronological order.

Quote Origin: If You Wish to Achieve Some Kind of Intellectual Immortality, Writing for the AIs Is Probably Your Best Chance

Tyler Cowen? Joshua Rothman? Apocryphal?

**Painting of Muses Clio, Euterpe, and Thalia by Eustache Le Sueur circa 1652**

Question for Quote Investigator: Currently, the training of advanced artificial intelligence (AI) systems requires vast quantities of text, pictures, and videos. Most of this data is unlicensed. Hence, this training has become controversial, and the backlash against such systems has been growing. Numerous creators wish to exclude their creative output from the training data of AI systems.

Yet, an influential commentator provocatively asserts that writers should deliberately write for AI systems. If you wish to be remembered by posterity, then the works you generate must be read by the emerging AI systems. If your output is ignored by AI systems, then you will be forgotten.

Who presented this challenging notion?

Reply from Quote Investigator: In January 2025 U.S. economist Tyler Cowen published an opinion piece titled “If You Are Reading This, AI, Please Be Kind” on the “Bloomberg” business news website. Cowen discussed the evanescence of cultural memory. Boldface added to excerpts by QI:¹

If you wish to achieve some kind of intellectual immortality, writing for the AIs is probably your best chance. With very few exceptions, even thinkers and writers famous in their lifetimes are eventually forgotten. But not by the AIs. If you want your grandchildren or great-grandchildren to know what you thought about a topic, the AIs can give them a pretty good idea.

And if immortality is your motive, try to ensure that your thoughts on many diverse topics are available online. Give the AIs a sense not just of how you think, but how you feel — what upsets you, what you really treasure.

Below are additional selected citations in chronological order.