Tracing Quotations
Benjamin Disraeli? Prince Jérôme Napoléon? Napoleon III? French Academician? Mr. Snigger? Suffragette? Max O’Rell? Paul Blouët? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The statesman Benjamin Disraeli was famous for his witticisms and barbs. Reportedly he was once asked about the difference in meaning between the words “misfortune” and “calamity”, and he constructed a jest aimed at …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: What Is the Difference Between a Misfortune and a Calamity?”
Franz Kafka? Anne Rice? Russell Brand? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The comedian and controversial wild man Russell Brand released the bestselling autobiography “My Booky Wook” in 2007 and the sequel “Booky Wook 2: This Time It’s Personal” in 2010. The sequel had a fascinating epigraph on the first page: Don’t bend; don’t water it …
Zora Neale Hurston? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: A quotation about success has been attributed to the prominent American author and pioneering folklorist Zora Neale Hurston. Here are two versions: Those who don’t got it, can’t show it. Those who got it, can’t hide it Those that don’t got it, can’t show it. Those that …
Charlie Chaplin? Albert Einstein? János Plesch? Hans Albert Einstein? Eduard Einstein? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The entertainer Charlie Chaplin and the scientist Albert Einstein were two of the most famous individuals of the last century. I have heard the following anecdote about a meeting between them in the 1930s. While traveling together they were …
Al Capone? Irwin Corey? Ted Bessell? Robert De Niro? Willie Sutton? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The notorious gangster Al Capone reportedly had an odd sense of humor and joked about using coercion. Here are three versions of a saying that is attributed to him: You get a lot more from a kind word and …
George Bernard Shaw? Abba Eban? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: There is a popular phrase used to criticize individuals and groups. Here are three examples: Some politicians never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity. He never missed an occasion of losing an opportunity. This group loses no chance to miss an opportunity. Can you …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: Some People Never Miss an Opportunity to Miss an Opportunity”
William Faulkner? Peter De Vries? Herman Wouk? W. Somerset Maugham? Jane Yolen? Raymond Chandler? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: As a writer I find the following quotation about motivation both amusing and invigorating: I write when I’m inspired, and I see to it that I’m inspired at nine o’clock every morning. I have seen these …
Mark Twain? Miss Manners? Judith Martin? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: I am considering using a quotation that is attributed to Mark Twain in the conclusion of my Master’s Thesis about social media. Unfortunately, I have been unable to verify the ascription, and the origin of the expression is uncertain: Let us make a special …
Mark Twain? Christian Nestell Bovee? Eva Alice? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Recently I clicked on a link that led to a top business-oriented website and was greeted by an interstitial page that displayed a quotation attributed to Mark Twain: Kindness is a language which the deaf and the blind can read. I thought this …
Alexander Pope? Samuel Johnson? Jonathan Swift? John Dennis? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: I have heard several versions of a quotation that is beloved by people who dislike puns: (1) He who would make a pun would pick a pocket. (2) A man who will pun, will pick a pocket. (3) A man who could …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: He Who Would Pun Would Pick a Pocket”