Tracing Quotations
Charles Lamb? Théophile Gautier? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: When I was choosing a major in college, people would ask me what I wished to do in life. I am somewhat indolent; hence, the following response reflects my underlying beliefs: The best thing to have to do is nothing. I usually did not share this …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: Positively, The Best Thing a Person Can Have To Do Is Nothing”
Oscar Wilde? Gustave Flaubert? Robert H. Sherard? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: A famous writer who was punctilious about punctuation described an arduous day of work as follows: I spent all morning putting in a comma and all afternoon taking it out. In some versions of the anecdote the operations were reversed: I spent all …
Martin Luther King Jr.? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: While reading about the economics of health care I came across the following statement attributed to the famous civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.: Of all the forms of inequality, injustice in health care is the most shocking and inhumane. A writer at “The Huffington …
Anaïs Nin? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The acclaimed modern diarist Anaïs Nin apparently experienced an addictive intensity when writing in her diary. The following words have been attributed to her: This diary is my kief, hashish, and opium pipe. Is this an authentic quotation, or is it simply a hallucination? Reply from Quote Investigator: …
Woody Allen? Groucho Marx? Cloquet? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The comedian and movie director Woody Allen sometimes constructs ontological jokes. For example, the following is attributed to Allen: I hate reality, but it is still the only place where I can get a decent steak. Oddly, the following very similar quip has been credited …
Samuel Goldwyn? George Oppenheimer? Ellenor Stoothoff? Andrew Carnegie? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The phrase “like water off a duck’s back” is a well-known idiom that refers to an incident or a comment having little or no effect on a person. Here is a comically garbled version of the expression: It rolls off my back …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: It Rolls Off My Back Like a Duck”
Salvador Dali? Walter H. Cottingham? Laura E. Riding? C. Archie Danielson? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Some individuals have impressive natural gifts and aptitudes but do not have strong desires or motivations. Their worthwhile potential achievements often remain unrealized. The following adage embodies this notion: Intelligence without ambition is a bird without wings. These words …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: Intelligence Without Ambition Is a Bird Without Wings”
Herbert Hoover? John A. Ryan? Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr.? Apocryphal Question for Quote Investigator: The great depression which began in 1929 was one of the most serious economic calamities of the twentieth century. In the U.S. a high unemployment rate persisted for more than a decade. Herbert Hoover was the U.S. President when the crisis …
Bertrand Russell? Frank P. Hobgood? Jessie Woodrow Wilson Sayre? Reader’s Digest? Montreal Star? Andrew Carnegie? Winston Churchill? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: A piquant slogan has been used by pacifists and peace activists for decades. Here are two variants: The first saying is often attributed to the philosopher and social thinker Bertrand Russell, but I …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: War Does Not Determine Who Is Right — Only Who Is Left”
Marshall Field? Harry Gordon Selfridge? John Wanamaker? César Ritz? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: There is a famous customer service slogan that has been highlighted by several business people. Here are two versions: The customer is always right.The customer is never wrong. Do you know who created this motto? Reply from Quote Investigator: The earliest …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: The Customer Is Always Right”