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 …
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Quote Origin: It Rolls Off My Back Like a Duck
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 …
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Quote Origin: Intelligence Without Ambition Is a Bird Without Wings
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 …
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Quote Origin: Gentlemen, You Have Come Sixty Days Too Late. The Depression Is Over
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 …
Quote Origin: War Does Not Determine Who Is Right — Only Who Is Left
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 …
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Quote Origin: The Customer Is Always Right
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 …
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Quote Origin: Our Comedies Are Not To Be Laughed At
Samuel Goldwyn? William Cox? Cumberland’s Comedies? Mack Sennett? Johnny Grey? Christie Comedies? Abe Stern? Carl Laemmle? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: A Hollywood movie producer had achieved great fame with opulent historical dramas. His company also released financially lucrative comedies which were embraced by audiences but lambasted by critics. While attending a lavish party the …
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Quote Origin: Not Everyone Will Understand Your Journey. That’s Fine. It’s Not Their Journey To Make Sense Of. It’s Yours
Zero Dean? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: On Facebook I saw a cogent statement about purpose and individuality: Not everyone will understand your journey. That’s fine. It’s not their journey to make sense of. It’s yours. These words were superimposed on a beautiful picture, but no ascription was provided. You have examined many quotations with …
Joke Origin: Always Go To Other People’s Funerals — Otherwise, They Won’t Come To Yours
Yogi Berra? J. F. Shaw Kennedy? Charles Lee? Punch Magazine? Clarence Day? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: A comical remark about funeral attendance has been attributed to the baseball great Yogi Berra: Always go to other people’s funerals; otherwise they won’t go to yours. A simple interpretation seems to require ghosts to attend a future …
Quote Origin: Writing Is the Art of Applying the Seat of the Pants to the Seat of the Chair
Sinclair Lewis? Mary Heaton Vorse? Felicia Gizycka? Robert Benchley? Douglas Fairbanks Jr.? Marianne Gingher? Stevie Cameron? Andrew Hudgins? Nora Roberts? Stephen King? Oliver Stone? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: An astonishingly simple stratagem has been recommended to anyone who wishes to become a famous author, playwright, screenwriter, or composer. The secret to success and productivity …