Tracing Quotations
Albert Einstein? Louis Zukofsky? Roger Sessions? William of Ockham? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: The credibility of a quotation is increased substantially if it can be ascribed to a widely-recognized genius such as Albert Einstein. Hence a large number of spurious quotes are attributed to him. I would like to know if the following is …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: Everything Should Be Made as Simple as Possible, But Not Simpler”
Mark Twain? James Wayle? Ebenezer Rockwood Hoar? Walter Winchell? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: In the past few days several phony quotations were widely disseminated on the internet; in other words, they went viral. My question is about a saying that might be genuine. A CNN article contains the following expression attributed to Mark Twain: I …
Mark Twain? Clarence Darrow? Overland Monthly? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: I saw the quotation below when it was tweeted a few days ago. It was credited to Mark Twain, but apparently he never said it: I’ve never wished a man dead, but I have read some obituaries with great pleasure. Later I read news …
Frank Lloyd Wright? Herbert Hoover? Arch Oboler? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: When I was a child I saw a gallery of images showing a house built at the top of a waterfall. I fell in love with that house, called Fallingwater, and later learned that it was built by the extraordinary American architect Frank …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: The Architect Can Only Advise His Client to Plant Vines”
Dorothy Parker? James Webb Young? Owen H. Hott? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: A friend and I recently wondered about the origin of the following poem. We did not have much luck tracking it: See the happy moron, He doesn’t give a damn, I wish I were a moron, My God! perhaps I am! There …
Mark Twain? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: I have heard the following quote attributed to Mark Twain: A man who doesn’t smoke is like a sinking ship with no rats to desert it. I am skeptical. Would you please explore the provenance of this expression? Reply from Quote Investigator: QI has been unable to locate …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: She Was a Sinking Vessel with No Freight to Throw Overboard”
Who was fighting? Russians? French? Zulus? English? Prussians? Boers? Question for Quote Investigator: When I worked on a student newspaper in college I was told a story about a late night editor at a major newspaper who received a terse wire report saying the “Russians Have Taken Umbrage”. The editor did not know the meaning …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: French Have Taken Umbrage. English Have Taken Cognizance.”
Robert Benchley? Mattie Barwick? David Niven? Question for Quote Investigator: You might enjoy looking into this confusing question. I have been searching newspaper databases for a project involving the Venice canals. The following humorous note appeared in a newspaper called the Miami News on October 30, 1958: Word comes from European traveler, Mattie (Mrs. George) …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: Venice Streets Are Full of Water. Please Advise”
Friars Club? Delaney Club? Beverly Hills Tennis Club? Hillcrest Country Club? Question for Quote Investigator: There is a wonderful story about Groucho Marx and an elite private club. I have heard so many variants of this tale that I was hoping you would investigate. In one version Groucho resigns from a club, and in another …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: I Don’t Want to Belong to Any Club That Will Accept Me as a Member”
Albert Einstein? Associated Press? Time magazine? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: You recently discussed one quotation by Albert Einstein about taxes, but my question is about another remark attributed to the genius. The Canadian newspaper “Globe and Mail” published the following earlier this year: Albert Einstein said of his tax return, “This is too difficult …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: Taxes: This is a Question Too Difficult for a Mathematician”