Tracing Quotations
Jean-Luc Godard? Ansel Adams? Richard Roud? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: When you create a photograph or film your intentions should be well defined. Here are three pertinent statements which may be grouped together: (1) There is nothing worse than a sharp image of a fuzzy concept. (2) There’s no point in having a sharp …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: There’s No Point in Having Sharp Images If You’ve Got Fuzzy Ideas”
George Bernard Shaw? Ritchie Calder? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Prominent Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw is a misquotation magnet. Numerous remarks have been ascribed to him that he never said. Apparently, he once grumbled about being “misquoted everywhere”. He believed that the inaccuracies were chasing him around the world. Would you please help me …
Maya Angelou? Claudia Tate? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: You will experience many setbacks and reversals in life, but you should never feel defeated. Encountering difficulties will help you to strengthen your power to endure and succeed. The prominent poet and memoirist Maya Angelou said something like this. Would you please help me to find …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: You May Encounter Many Defeats, But You Must Not Be Defeated”
Shonda Rhimes? Carol Burnett? Jane Fonda? Anne Lamott? Megan LeBoutillier? Bil Keane? Earl Wilson? Si Cornell? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: A negative response to a request often causes dissatisfaction. Hence the request is repeated many times. Some people do not wish to accept “No” for an answer. The following adage is favored by adamant …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: The Word ‘No’ Is a Complete Sentence”
Mark Twain? Lawrence Pearsall Jacks? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The famous author Mark Twain once surprisingly proclaimed that he had done “not a day’s work in all my life”. He stated that his efforts in life had “been play”. Would you please help me to find a citation for his fascinating comments? Reply from …
Hunter S. Thompson? Bill McKenna? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson has received credit for a remark about living an exuberant life and sliding broadside amid a cloud of smoke into the grave. I am skeptical of this ascription because I have been unable to find a solid citation. Would you …
Henry L. Ellsworth? Charles H. Duell? Roswell Park? Royal S. Copeland? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: According to a popular legend the Commissioner of the U.S. Patent Office wanted to shut down the organization in the nineteenth century. He supposedly proclaimed: Everything that can be invented has been invented. The two primary candidates for the …
Continue reading “Anecdote Origin: Everything That Can Be Invented Has Been Invented”
Samuel Johnson? James Boswell? Robert J. Hanlon? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Misquotations and misattributions are prevalent online, but people who are presenting this faulty information are rarely lying deliberately. Instead, they are naively repeating misinformation they have encountered in the past. The famous English lexicographer Samuel Johnson once said something pertinent which contrasted “carelessness …
Mignon McLaughlin? Curzon Cooper? Robert Byrne? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Whenever I lose an item it suddenly becomes very important. The item is exactly what I need to complete a vital task. This experience is reflected in the following quip: Anything you lose automatically doubles in value. Would you please determine who originated this …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: Anything You Lose Automatically Doubles In Value”
David Foster Wallace? Richard Feynman? Sally Grant? Herb Caen? Wes Craven? Garrison Keillor? Henry J. Tillman? Graffito? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Chemists have taken the popular saying (A) and converted it into the comical remark (B). (A) If you’re not part of the solution you’re part of the problem.(B) If you’re not part of …
Continue reading “Quip Origin: If You’re Not Part of the Solution You’re Part of the Precipitate”