Tracing Quotations
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe? Anais Nin? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: During a Rorschach test a patient is shown a series of ambiguous inkblots and his or her reactions and interpretations are recorded. This assessment reminds me of an adage. Here are two versions: Would you please explore this saying? Reply from Quote Investigator: There …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: One Sees What One Carries In One’s Own Heart”
Mark Twain? Agatha Christie? Sally Berger? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: To overcome procrastination one must initiate a task. Although this is straightforward advice it is an arcane approach according to the following adage: The secret of getting ahead is getting started. The famed humorist Mark Twain and the popular mystery writer Agatha Christie have …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: The Secret of Getting Ahead Is Getting Started”
Sydney J. Harris? Sydney Smith? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Different types of regret may be experienced when you do something and when you refrain from doing something. A statement on this topic has been attributed to two disparate Sydneys: the English wit Sydney Smith and the U.S. columnist Sydney J. Harris. Would you please …
Lucille Ball? Benjamin Franklin? Elbert Hubbard? W. J. Kennedy? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: A popular proverb suggests that when you are faced with a large task you should call upon someone with an ongoing track record of accomplishment. Here are three versions: This notion has been attributed to top comedian Lucille Ball, statesman Benjamin …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: If You Want Something Done, Ask a Busy Person To Do It”
Bill Joy? George Gilder? Bill Gates? Dan Gillmor? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Bill Joy is a top computer scientist who helped to develop the UNIX operating system and co-founded Sun Microsystems. He formulated an important insight now called “Joy’s Law” about the distribution of expertise in organizations. Here are three versions: Would you please …
Mark Twain? Albert Bigelow Paine? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: There are a set of statements attributed to the famous humorist Mark Twain about allowable behaviors in heaven: Did Twain really make any of these remarks? Reply from Quote Investigator: After Mark Twain’s death in 1910 Albert Bigelow Paine who was his friend became his …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: If I Cannot Swear in Heaven I Shall Not Stay There”
Marc Andreessen? Ben Horowitz? Question for Quote Investigator: The companies Uber and Lyft are worth billions of dollars and are juggernauts in the transportation sector. Yet, neither company owns a fleet of vehicles. The multibillion dollar company Airbnb has revolutionized the hospitality sector, yet it owns no hotels or motels. These companies control pivotal software …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: Software Is Eating the World”
Saul Steinberg? Harold Rosenberg? Robert Motherwell? Question for Quote Investigator: A cartoonist once spoke eloquently about the product of absentminded scribbling. Here are three versions: Would you please explore the provenance of this expression? Reply from Quote Investigator: The leading illustrator and cartoonist Saul Steinberg was often featured in the pages of “The New Yorker”. …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: The Doodle Is the Brooding of the Hand”
Johnny Carson? Kenneth Tynan? David Letterman? Ed McMahon? Question for Quote Investigator: A prominent show business personality was once asked how he or she became a star. The reply was a very funny absurdist remark about astrophysical star formation. Do you know who made this response? Reply from Quote Investigator: In 1968 English theatre critic …
Flannery O’Connor? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Flannery O’Connor, the novelist and famous crafter of short stories, was once asked whether she believed that college courses discouraged or stifled budding writers. She gave an answer I found found acerbically entertaining. Would you please help me to find a citation? Reply from Quote Investigator: In 1960 …