Abraham Lincoln? Ambrose Burnside? Charles Fair? Dear Quote Investigator: One of the worst military strategists in history was a Civil War general named Ambrose Burnside (sideburns are named after his whiskers). After a military fiasco called the Battle of the Crater, Abraham Lincoln relieved him of command and supposedly said: Only Burnside could have managed …
Author Archives: quoteresearch
All Creative-Writing Programs Ought to be Abolished by Law
Kay Boyle? John Barth? Cormac McCarthy? Louis Menand? Dear Quote Investigator: I have been reading about creative writing programs because I am seriously considering attending one. Recently, I encountered a quotation from the writer and educator Kay Boyle which stunned me. Her comment appeared in an article in The New Yorker magazine titled “Show or …
Continue reading “All Creative-Writing Programs Ought to be Abolished by Law”
The Politics of Personal Destruction
Bill Clinton? John Quincy Adams? Dear Quote Investigator: Reading the news and blogs of today emphasizes the fact that political discourse can be extremely brutal. I was reminded of Bill Clinton’s lament when he discussed his relationship with White House intern Monica Lewinsky and said there was a harsh new form of politics based on …
Go for a Business that Any Idiot Can Run
Warren Buffett? Peter Lynch? Dear Quote Investigator: In 2008 I read an interview with the super-investor Warren Buffett in which he said you should put your money into a company that can be run by an idiot because eventually it will be run by an idiot. But that advice sounded familiar to me. Did someone …
Golf is a Good Walk Spoiled
Mark Twain? William Gladstone? A Northern Gael? F. W. Payn? Sam Loates? The Allens? Harry Leon Wilson? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: I love to play golf, but sometimes when I am playing poorly I am tempted to simply walk the course and get some exercise. When I mentioned this to a friend he told me …
Not Everything That Counts Can Be Counted
Albert Einstein? William Bruce Cameron? Hilliard Jason? Stephen Ross? Lord Platt? George Pickering? Dear Quote Investigator: Recently I saw a comic strip titled “Baby Einstein” that contained a few quotations that are often attributed to Albert Einstein. I think the following saying is very insightful: Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything …
Continue reading “Not Everything That Counts Can Be Counted”
Want a Friend in Washington, Get a Dog
Harry Truman? Samuel Gallu? Gordon Gekko? Dear Quote Investigator: I love dogs and live near Washington D.C. One of my favorite quotes is attributed to former President Harry Truman who experienced some bruising political battles and said, “If you want a friend in Washington, get a dog.” Could you please investigate this quote? Quote Investigator: …
Quote Origin: A Single Death Is a Tragedy; A Million Deaths Is a Statistic
Joseph Stalin? Leonard Lyons? Beilby Porteus? Kurt Tucholsky? Erich Maria Remarque? Question for Quote Investigator: There is a vivid statement that typifies a heartless attitude toward human mortality: A single death is a tragedy; a million deaths is a statistic. These words are often attributed to the Soviet leader Joseph Stalin, but I have not …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: A Single Death Is a Tragedy; A Million Deaths Is a Statistic”
Part Went for Liquor, Part for Women, Rest Spent Foolishly
Channing Pollock? George Raft? Tug McGraw? Stan Bowles? George Best? Dear Quote Investigator: George Raft was my favorite film star from the Golden Age of Hollywood. He often played gangsters and was memorable in “Some Like it Hot”. Raft was known for his high income in Tinseltown and for his wild profligacy. The quotation that …
Continue reading “Part Went for Liquor, Part for Women, Rest Spent Foolishly”
Quote Origin: Better to Remain Silent and Be Thought a Fool than to Speak and Remove All Doubt
Abraham Lincoln? Mark Twain? Biblical Proverb? Maurice Switzer? Arthur Burns? John Maynard Keynes? Confucius? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Here are two versions of an entertaining saying that is often credited to Abraham Lincoln or Mark Twain: Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak and to remove all doubt. It’s …