Tracing Quotations
Thomas Carlyle? Irving Fisher? Joseph Schumpeter? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: There is a humorous saying about parrots and economists that is often attributed to the philosopher and satirist Thomas Carlyle. Sometimes the joke is simply ascribed to Anonymous. Here are three versions: 1: Teach a parrot the terms ‘supply and demand’ and you’ve got …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: Teach a Parrot to Say ‘Supply and Demand’ and You Have an Economist”
Thomas Edison? David Sarnoff? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: I saw the following quotation on the website of a medical school with a strong history of innovation: There’s a way to do it better — find it. The words were attributed to the inventor and research laboratory pioneer Thomas A. Edison. I also saw an …
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Warren Buffett? Samuel Johnson? Maria Edgeworth? Bertrand Russell? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: I recall seeing a lecture by the famed investor Warren Buffett during which he cautioned his audience to avoid falling into self-destructive behavior patterns. He used this eloquent analysis: The chains of habit are too light to be felt until they are …
John Maynard Keynes? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Quotations that were supposedly spoken by famous people shortly before death are notoriously unreliable. I heard that the prominent economist John Maynard Keynes on his deathbed was asked whether he had any regrets, and he said something like: I should have drunk more champagne. I only wish …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: My Only Regret Is That I Have Not Drunk More Champagne In My Life”
Alexander Graham Bell? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The brilliant inventor Alexander Graham Bell helped to create the first practical telephone. He is often credited with the following inspiring statement: Don’t keep forever on the public road. Leave the beaten track behind occasionally and dive into the woods. You will be certain to find something …
Audrey Hepburn? Sam Levenson? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Audrey Hepburn was a magnificent movie star, and she was also a well-known worker for humanitarian causes. On various websites I have seen a collection of sayings called “Time Tested Beauty Tips” that have been attributed to her. The first tip says: For attractive lips, speak …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: For Attractive Lips, Speak Words of Kindness”
Yogi Berra? Simone Signoret? Peter De Vries? Tommy Handley & Ronald Frankau? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Holidays sometimes make me nostalgic. They also remind me of the following clever quip: Nostalgia ain’t what it used to be. These words are often attributed to the famed baseball quotemaster Yogi Berra, but recently I learned of …
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Mark Twain? Albert Bigelow Paine? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Mark Twain formulated a wonderful expression about the fallibility of memory as one grows older. Here is the beginning of his humorous saying: When I was younger, I could remember anything, whether it had happened or not. My own memory may be failing because I …
@AlexeSixx? @_NanooChii? @ Soumi_S? @MissMagdo? @damana? Question for Quote Investigator: I have spent hours playing the quasi-hypnotic computer game Tetris. The following astutely funny remark reveals the subversive lesson of the game: If Tetris has taught me anything, it’s that errors pile up and accomplishments disappear. I have seen this statement tweeted and retweeted many …
Mae West? A College Student? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: The actress, screenwriter, and sex symbol Mae West was well-known for delivering double entendres. Here are two examples of clever lines with multiple meanings: I was once pure as snow, but then I drifted.I used to be Snow White but I drifted. Did Mae West …
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