George Bernard Shaw? Puck? Saxby’s Magazine? Elbert Hubbard? Confucius? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: The following adage is the perfect antidote to excessive negativity and obstructionism: People who say it cannot be done should not interrupt those who are doing it. These words are often attributed to Asian sage Confucius and to the acclaimed playwright …
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Quote Origin: Every Ambitious Would-Be Empire Clarions It Abroad That She Is Conquering the World to Bring It Peace
Henry David Thoreau? George S. Boutwell? Taylor Caldwell? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: George S. Boutwell was a U.S. politician who campaigned to end slavery and later became president of the Anti-Imperialist League. He objected to the annexation of the Philippines. The following statement has been attributed to him: Every ambitious would-be empire clarions it …
Quote Origin: A Gentleman Is a Man Who Never Gives Offense Unintentionally
Oscar Wilde? Margaret Butler? Geraldine Grove? Lord Chesterfield? John Wayne? Christopher Hitchens? John Cleese? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Books of etiquette once provided a definition of a gentleman that included the following assertion: A gentleman never insults anyone intentionally. The clever addition of a two-letter prefix humorously spun the definition: A gentleman never insults …
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Quote Origin: The Eternal Stars Shine Out Again, So Soon As It Is Dark Enough
Ralph Waldo Emerson? Martin Luther King Jr.? Emily Faithfull? Amelia Edith Barr? Charles A. Beard? Thomas Carlyle? Norman Vincent Peale? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: There is a popular metaphorical expression that encourages people to maintain hope and optimism during times of unhappiness and trouble. Here are three versions: 1) Only when it is dark …
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Quote Origin: Those Who Love Deeply Never Grow Old
Benjamin Franklin? Dorothy Canfield Fisher? Arthur Wing Pinero? Abigail Van Buren? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: I recently saw an illustration of two people embracing above the following caption: Those who love deeply never grow old; they may die of old age, but they die young. At least three different people have been credited with …
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Quote Origin: The Hottest Places in Hell Are Reserved for Those Who in a Period of Moral Crisis Maintain Their Neutrality
Dante Alighieri? John F. Kennedy? John A. Hutton? Theodore Roosevelt? W. M. Vines? Henry Powell Spring? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Dante Alighieri composed the famous tripartite epic poem “The Divine Comedy”. The following statement was supposedly included in the first part called “Inferno”: The hottest places in Hell are reserved for those who in …
Quote Origin: The Golden Rule: Whoever Has the Gold Makes the Rules
Wizard of Id? Jafar? Brant Parker? Johnny Hart? Dick Boland? Jack Caprio? Jesse Jackson? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: The Golden Rule is a famous ethical principle that can be stated as follows: Do unto others as you would have others do unto you. Several different lampoons and parodies have been constructed based on this …
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Quote Origin: To Avoid Criticism, Say Nothing, Do Nothing, Be Nothing
Aristotle? Elbert Hubbard? William Pitt? Fred Shero? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Receiving criticism is an unpleasant experience, but it is also inevitable. If your actions in the world are significant then you will draw detractors. This notion is cleverly expressed in the following pointed remark: To avoid criticism, say nothing, do nothing, be nothing. …
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Quote Origin: Niagara Falls: The First Great Disappointment in Married Life
Oscar Wilde? Ann Landers? Gershon Legman? Anonymous? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: In 1882 the coruscating wit Oscar Wilde came to the United States to see the country and to conduct a series of lectures. When he visited the Niagara Falls, a classic honeymoon destination, he was unimpressed. Here are two variants of a saying …
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Quote Origin: You Can’t Teach an Old Dogma New Tricks
Dorothy Parker? Life Magazine? Maxson Foxhall Judell? Edwin G. Nourse? Tom Lehrer? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: The following adage about age and recalcitrance is familiar to many: You can’t teach an old dog new tricks. I am trying to trace a comical wordplay variant: You cannot teach an old dogma new tricks. This statement …
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