Ancient Assyrian tablet maker? Egyptian priest? George T. W. Patrick? George S. Godard? Frederick C. Ferry? Cicero? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The world was supposed to end in 2012 according to many individuals. But the entity assigned the task may have been too busy destroying other worlds. The Smithsonian website posted an article titled: …
Author Archives: quoteresearch
Quote Origin: Folks Are Usually About as Happy as They Make Up Their Minds To Be
Abraham Lincoln? Frank Crane? Orison Swett Marden? Dale Carnegie? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: On twitter recently there was an exchange about a deeply insightful quotation credited to Abraham Lincoln: Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be. I love this saying, and it helps me to reflect constructively …
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Quote Origin: The One Who Follows the Crowd Will Usually Go No Further Than the Crowd
Albert Einstein? Eda LeShan? Alan Ashley-Pitt? Francis Phillip Wernig? Oscar Wilde? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: The following quote has been credited to Albert Einstein and posted on Facebook and various websites: The one who follows the crowd will usually go no further than the crowd. Those who walk alone are likely to find themselves …
Quote Origin: The Best Hospitals Are Not Those Which Merely Use Knowledge But Those Which Create It
George W. Pickering? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: A thoughtful quotation about the connection between medical research and medical care has been credited to Sir George W. Pickering: Medicine is an advancing science and the best hospitals are not those which merely use knowledge but those which create it. Pickering was a professor of medicine …
Dialogue Origin: “It Took Me Fifteen Years to Discover That I Had No Talent for Writing.” “Did You Quit?”
Robert Benchley? Mark Twain? Walter Winchell? Groucho Marx? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: One of the funniest quotations about writing is usually credited to the brilliant wit Robert Benchley: It took me fifteen years to discover that I had no talent for writing, but I couldn’t give it up because by that time I was …
Quote Origin: “Do You Like Kipling?” “I Don’t Know; I’ve Never Kippled Before”
Donald McGill? James Kenneth Stephen? Philip K. Dick? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Graphic artist Donald McGill created one of the most popular postcards of the previous century. The card depicted a man and woman sitting beneath a tree with a book, and the caption said: “Do you like Kipling?” “I don’t know, you naughty …
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Quote Origin: We Cannot Predict the Future, But We Can Invent It
Dennis Gabor? Abraham Lincoln? Ilya Prigogine? Alan Kay? Steven Lisberger? Peter Drucker? Forrest C. Shaklee? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: I have seen several different versions of an adage about prediction and invention. Here are some examples: These sayings are not identical in meaning, but I think they fit together naturally as a group. Could …
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Quote Origin: If We Should Have to Leave Our Bleached Bones on These Desert Sands in Vain, Then Beware the Anger of the Legions.
Marcus Flavinius? Jean Lartéguy? Jean Pouget? Roger Frey? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: I would like your help in determining the authenticity of an eloquent letter that was supposedly sent by Marcus Flavinius, a centurion, to his cousin in Rome. Flavinius was fighting in a military campaign overseas in the 2nd Century AD, and he …
Quote Origin: Some People Feel the Rain. Others Just Get Wet
Bob Dylan? Bob Marley? Roger Miller? Donald Freeman? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: I love the following quote, and have used it on my blog: Some people feel the rain. Others just get wet. After researching the origin of the saying, it still remains unclear. Two famous musicians named Bob have each been credited: Bob …
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Quote Origin: It’s Easy to Quit Smoking. I’ve Done It a Thousand Times
Mark Twain? W. C. Fields? Harris Dickson? Barracuda Pete? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: I mentioned a joke credited to Mark Twain to a friend recently: It’s easy to quit smoking. I’ve done it hundreds of times. She said that the jest was actually created by the famous comedian W. C. Fields and not Twain. …
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