George Bernard Shaw? Ogden Nash? Viva Begbie? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: I once heard the following humorous definition: Marriage — An alliance between two people: One can’t sleep with the window shut; the other can’t sleep with the window open. This definition has been attributed to the Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw and the U.S. …
Author Archives: quoteresearch
I Always Prefer To Believe the Best of Everybody. It Saves So Much Trouble
Rudyard Kipling? Mrs. Mallowe? Mrs. Hauksbee? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: The following quotation embodies an irrepressible optimism: I always prefer to believe the best of everybody. It saves so much trouble. The famous author Rudyard Kipling has received credit for this remark, but I haven’t been able to find a citation. Are these really his …
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God’s Way of Pointing You in a New Direction
Oprah Winfrey? Mike Patrick? Peter A. LaPorta? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: Failure is painful, but it also provides an opportunity to learn. An apparent defeat may be transformed into a victory by using hard-won knowledge to discover a different pathway to success. The prominent television producer, entrepreneur, and actress Oprah Winfrey concisely communicated this same …
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I Washed It Down With Some Snakebite Remedy Which I Always Keep Handy. Only, However, After First Being Bitten By a Snake Which I Also Keep Handy
W. C. Fields? Clifford Terry? Corey Ford? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: The famous comedian W. C. Fields apparently told a hilarious joke about whiskey. Here are three versions: (1) I always carry a flask of whisky in case of snake bite. I also carry a small snake. (2) I like to keep a bottle of …
The Only Way of Discovering the Limits of the Possible Is To Venture a Little Way Past Them Into the Impossible
Arthur C. Clarke? Tobias Dantzig? Robert Heinlein? Jerome Agel? Harold Faber? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: The science fiction luminary Arthur C. Clarke once said something like: the best way to find the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible. I have seen several different versions of this remark. Would you …
Quote Origin: There Are Three Kinds of Lies: Lies, Damned Lies, and Statistics
Mark Twain? Benjamin Disraeli? St. Swithin? Eliza Gutch? Charles Dilke? Charles Stewart Parnell? Robert Giffen? Arthur James Balfour? Francis Bacon? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Statistical analysis can provide deep insights into an issue. Yet, carelessness or duplicity can generate misleading results. A popular cynical adage communicates this mistrust: There are three kinds of lies: …
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I Had the Syrup But It Wouldn’t Pour
Gertrude Stein? Alice B. Toklas? Glenway Wescott? William Styron? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: Whenever I experience difficulty in a creative endeavor like writing or drawing I am reminded of the following expression: I have the syrup, but it won’t pour. The prize-winning author William Styron said something similar to this. Would you please help me …
Quote Origin: The Sea Is the Sea. The Old Man Is an Old Man
Ernest Hemingway? Bernard Berenson? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Ernest Hemingway’s classic novella “The Old Man and the Sea” has been exhaustively analyzed by critics and commentators. Beleaguered high school students have been coerced into composing essays about the tale. Unsurprisingly, the story has been transformed into a cornucopia for symbol generation. Yet, Hemingway himself …
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Quote Origin: People Will Not Say Anymore That the Greeks Fight Like Heroes But Heroes Fight Like Greeks
Winston Churchill? Demetrius Caclamanos? John Rupert Colville? Queen Frederika of Greece? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: A family of statements highlights the valor of military forces. Here are two examples: Henceforth we will not say that Greeks fight like heroes, but that heroes fight like Greeks Finns don’t fight like heroes; heroes fight like Finns …
Damn Everything But the Circus! Damn Everything That Is Grim, Dull, Motionless, Unrisking, Inward Turning
E. E. Cummings? Corita Kent? Helen Kelley? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: To enjoy a full life one must be willing to embrace excitement, change, beauty, and risk. Metaphorically, one must enter the center ring of life’s circus and perform. The prominent U.S. poet E. E. Cummings (often styled e e cummings) has been credited with …