Tracing Quotations
Henry Ward Beecher? Jonas Salk? Hodding Carter? Wise Woman? Ronald Reagan? Jean W. Rindlaub? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: The goals of child rearing have sometimes been explicated using two vivid metaphors: roots and wings. This contrasting figurative language presents a powerful though oddly incongruous combination: Parents should provide their children with roots and wings. There …
Continue reading “There Are Two Lasting Bequests We Can Give Our Children: Roots and Wings”
Dorothy Parker? Alice Roosevelt Longworth? Earl Wilson? Robert Harling? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: The most trenchant comment pertaining to gossip that I have ever heard is often attributed to the wit Dorothy Parker. The quip is based on altering the following conventional instruction on etiquette: If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say …
Continue reading “If You Can’t Say Something Good About Someone, Sit Right Here by Me”
Studio Report? David O. Selznick? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: The celebrated movie star Fred Astaire was known for his charm and his extraordinary dancing, but his initial screen test was a disaster. Hollywood legend claims that the studio report evaluating Astaire contained the following line: Can’t act. Can’t sing. Slightly bald. Can dance a little. …
Continue reading “Can’t Act; Slightly Bald; Can Dance a Little”
Christopher Marlowe? Laurence J. Peter? Evan Esar? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: Christopher Marlowe was a brilliant poet and dramatist of the 1500s whose works influenced the luminary William Shakespeare. I was astonished to find the following statement attributed to him: Money can’t buy love, but it improves your bargaining position. In my opinion, this expression …
Continue reading “Money Can’t Buy Love, But It Improves Your Bargaining Position”
John Lennon? Philip Norman? Bill Harry? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: Today paparazzi stalk celebrities, and gossip websites shriek about every misstep or manufactured scandal. But the struggle of living in a fishbowl is not new for well-known individuals. In the 1960s after the Beatles became famous, John Lennon reportedly feared that he would cause pandemonium …
Continue reading “The Price of Fame Is Not Being Able to Go to the Pub for a Quiet Pint”
Clark Kerr? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: The most candid and blunt statement I have ever heard attributed to a university administrator was reportedly spoken in the 1950s: The chancellor’s job is to provide parking for the faculty, and athletics for the alumni, and sex for the students. Is this a genuine statement from the straight-laced …
Peter Marshall? E. W. Palmer? Mary Morain? Stanley Sykes? Horace Mann? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: Would you please explore the provenance of the following inspirational quotation? A different world cannot be built by indifferent people. These words are often attributed to someone named Peter Marshall, but I have seen other individuals credited. Quote Investigator: The …
Continue reading “A Different World Cannot Be Built By Indifferent People”
Albert Einstein? Alexandre Dumas, fils? Elbert Hubbard? Brooks F. Beebe? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: The following funny saying is usually attributed to Albert Einstein: The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits. Yet, no one provides any justification for crediting the brilliant scientist with this jest. Is this another fake Einstein …
Continue reading “The Difference Between Stupidity and Genius Is That Genius Has Its Limits”
Nancy Astor? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: Recently, I saw the following comical remark attributed to the socialite and parliamentarian Lady Astor: We women do talk too much but even then we don’t tell half we know. Is this ascription accurate? Quote Investigator: Nancy Astor was an important political pioneer as the first woman to take …
Continue reading “We Women Do Talk Too Much, But Even Then We Don’t Tell Half We Know”
Ernest Cassel? Bernard Baruch? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: There is an entertaining quotation about the changing labels that were applied to a famous financier. He was successively called a gambler, a speculator, and a banker, although he did not significantly change his methods. Do you know who crafted this humorous description of transformation? Quote Investigator: …