Mark Twain? Jack Benny? Satchel Paige? Muhammad Ali? Unknown gerontology researcher? Question for Quote Investigator: On a popular website recently I saw a slide show of quotations ascribed to Mark Twain that included the following: Age is an issue of mind over matter. If you don’t mind, it doesn’t matter. I thought this was said …
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Quote Origin: Genius Is One Percent Inspiration, Ninety-Nine Percent Perspiration
Thomas Edison? Kate Sanborn? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Thomas Edison is credited with a famous adage about creativity and innovation: Genius is 1 percent inspiration and 99 percent perspiration. I found another quotation that specified a slightly different ratio of 2 percent to 98 percent. What did Edison actually say? Reply from Quote Investigator: …
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Quote Origin: The Man Who Does Not Read Has No Advantage Over the Man Who Cannot Read
Mark Twain? Joseph D. Eggleston Jr.? Inland Steel Company? Quin Ryan? Abigail Van Buren? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Mark Twain is credited with a marvelous saying about the importance of reading: A person who won’t read has no advantage over one who can’t read. I was unable to determine when this saying was created, …
Quote Origin: The Future Is Not What It Used To Be
Yogi Berra? Paul Valéry? Laura Riding? Robert Graves? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: I am interested in a saying that is both humorous and shrewd: The future is not what it used to be. I have seen several other versions of the saying. The phrasing that uses the word “ain’t” is often credited to Yogi …
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Quote Origin: Those Who Mind Don’t Matter, and Those Who Matter Don’t Mind
Theodor Seuss Geisel? Mark Young? Bernard Baruch? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: I am trying to validate a quotation that is credited to Theodor Geisel who is better known as Dr. Seuss, the popular author of children’s books. I have been unable to determine where the quote appeared. The task is complicated because there are …
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Quote Origin: I Have the Simplest Tastes; I Am Always Satisfied with the Best
Oscar Wilde? Edgar Saltus? Winston Churchill? Randolph Churchill? Lord Birkenhead? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: I have discovered two very similar quotations that are credited to two very different people. The first is ascribed to the legendary wit Oscar Wilde: I have the simplest tastes. I am always satisfied with the best. The second saying …
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Quote Origin: Aeroplanes and Tanks Are Only Accessories to the Man and the Horse
Field Marshal Douglas Haig? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Horses were used effectively in warfare for thousands of years. On many occasions horse-mounted cavalry units were decisive on the battlefield. But the development of machine guns, barbed wire, and armored tanks dramatically changed military tactics. The quotation I am interested in has been ascribed to …
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Quote Origin: The Great Use of a Life Is to Spend It for Something That Outlasts It
William James? Ralph Barton Perry? Henry James? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: I have been working to confirm the source and accuracy of a quotation that is attributed to the famous philosopher and educator William James. Here are three versions: A version of this saying was listed in the Wikipedia entry for James, but more …
Quote Origin: It Takes Courage for a Person to Listen to His Own Goodness and Act On It
Pablo Casals? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: I am hoping you will be interested in researching the following quote: Each person has inside a basic decency and goodness. If he listens to it and acts on it, he is giving a great deal of what the world needs most. It is not complicated but takes …
Quote Origin: Shake Was a Dramatist of Note; He Lived by Writing Things to Quote
Shake? William Shakespeare? Mulleary? Goethe? Henry Cuyler Bunner? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: While studying English in school I heard the following humorous rhyme about The Bard of Avon: Shakespeare was a dramatist of note who lived by writing things to quote. These words are from a longer poem, but I have not been able …
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