Peter Drucker? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: While perusing a book of quotations categorized as outrageous I saw a remark about college education attributed to the famous business guru Peter Drucker: When a subject becomes totally obsolete we make it a required course. I haven’t been able to determine where or when this statement appeared. …
Author Archives: quoteresearch
Quote Origin: Humor Can Be Dissected, as a Frog Can, But the Thing Dies in the Process
Mark Twain? E. B. White? Katharine S. White? André Maurois? Marty Feldman? Question for Quote Investigator: A cogent simile about the cerebral examination of humor has been attributed to three clever individuals: humorist Mark Twain, children’s author E. B. White, and French author André Maurois. Here are four versions: Analyzing humor is a bit like …
Quote Origin: Gentlemen, You May Include Me Out
Samuel Goldwyn? Herbert Fields? June Provines? Sheilah Graham? Alva Johnston? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Movie mogul Samuel Goldwyn was famous for his creative and idiosyncratic use of the English language. Hollywood legend asserts that Goldwyn participated in a complex, protracted, and tense corporate negotiation in the 1930s. But he was unhappy with the final …
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Quote Origin: This Is On Me
Dorothy Parker? William P. Rothwell? Soaker? Apocryphal? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: The notable wit Dorothy Parker was also known as an imbiber. She would sometimes generously buy a round of drinks for her companions using the phrase: This is on me. Once when asked to create an epitaph for her tombstone she selected the …
Quote Origin: Things Turn Out Best for Folks Who Make the Best of the Way Things Turn Out
Titus Livius? John Wooden? Art Linkletter? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Everyone experiences some adversity, and that may help to explain the popularity of the following adage: Things turn out best for the people who make the best out of the way things turn out. These words have been attributed to at least three people: …
Quote Origin: The Dirtiest Book in All the World Is the Expurgated Book
Walt Whitman? Horace Traubel? Morris L. Ernst? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Walt Whitman’s landmark poetry collection “Leaves of Grass” was shocking to some of his contemporaries, and he was told by publishers, critics, and attorneys that his work required expurgation. Whitman consented to this censorship initially, but he became increasingly unhappy and angry with …
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Quote Origin: Wherever She Went, Including Here, It Was Against Her Better Judgment
Dorothy Parker? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The notable wit Dorothy Parker was once asked to create an epitaph for her tombstone. Apparently, she crafted several different candidates for inscription over the years. I am interested in the following: Wherever she went, including here, it was against her better judgment. Did the coruscating Algonquin Round …
Quote Origin: Whatever You Are, Try To Be a Good One
Abraham Lincoln? William Makepeace Thackeray? Laurence Hutton? Apocryphal? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Selecting a profession can be quite difficult, and changing your initial choice may be necessary. Yet, you should always strive for excellence. The following inspirational words are heartening: Whatever you are, be a good one. The phrase is usually attributed to Abraham …
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Quote Origin: Just Close Your Eyes and Think of England
Queen Victoria? Lucy Baldwin? Pierre Daninos? Lady Hillingham? Lady Hillingdon? Jonathan Gathorne-Hardy? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: There is a well-known though unreliable anecdote about the guidance offered to brides in the repressive Victorian era. Supposedly, Queen Victoria was asked by one of her newly married daughters about possible carnal activities in the marriage bed. …
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Quote Origin: Even If You Win the Rat Race, You’re Still a Rat
Lily Tomlin? Jackie Gleason? Bill Cunningham? William Sloane Coffin? Russell Baker? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: There is a popular quip about the competitive daily grind of the working world. Here are two versions: 1) Even if you win the rat race, you’re still a rat 2) So you’ve won the rat race. You’re still …
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