Tracing Quotations
Booker T. Washington? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: If you desire to improve your condition in life or lift yourself up then you should help someone else to achieve a better life. The famous educator and orator Booker T. Washington made this point eloquently. Would you please help me to find a citation? Reply from …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: The Best Way To Lift One’s Self Up Is To Help Some One Else”
H. L. Mencken? Robert E. Adams? Apocryphal? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Acerbic commentator H. L. Mencken has received credit for a figurative remark that mentions military bands and military cooks. Yet, I have been unable to find a solid citation. Would you please examine this topic? Reply from Quote Investigator: In 1942 H. L. …
Andy Warhol? Sylvia Miles? Wayland Flowers? Jack O’Brian? Rex Reed? Olivia Goldsmith? Ivana Trump? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: The opening of an exciting theatrical production or an innovative art museum can be a prestigious event with an impressive guest list. Yet, many openings are weary exercises in public relations with unremarkable attendees. A self-promoter …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: We Attend the Openings of Envelopes”
Jean Cocteau? Pablo Picasso? Herbert V. Prochnow? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The life mission of an artist is paradoxical. Masterpieces are not subservient to narrow facticity. Representing truths and insights requires the imaginative transformation of raw materials. Here are two versions of an energizing maxim for artists: The saying above has been attributed to …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: I Am a Lie That Always Tells the Truth”
Dorothy L. Sayers? Lord Peter Wimsey? Harriet Vane? Philip Broadley? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: I have found the perfect sardonic motto for the QI website: A facility for quotation covers the absence of original thought. According to the “Encarta Book of Quotations” these words were spoken by the character Lord Peter Wimsey in the …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: A Facility for Quotation Covers the Absence of Original Thought”
Pablo Picasso? Jean Cocteau? Dorothy Allison? Henry A. Murray? Peter De Vries? Albert Camus? Julie Burchill? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Art works such as novels, paintings, and sculptures embody a stylized and distorted representation of the world. Yet, deep truths can best be expressed by deviating from the straitjacket of verisimilitude. Here are four …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: Art Is a Lie That Makes Us Realize Truth”
Oliver Cromwell? John Andrewes? Earl of Chichester? Mark Antony Lower? Viscount Fauconberg? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: A popular saying extols continuous improvement. Here are four versions: This saying has been credited to the controversial English military and political leader Oliver Cromwell. Would you please explore this adage? Reply from Quote Investigator: This adage was …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: If I Cease Becoming Better, I Shall Soon Cease To Be Good”
Golda Meir? Simcha Dinitz? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: A humble brag is a statement that on its surface appears to be modest or self-deprecating; however, the true intent is to highlight a success or achievement. The funniest response I have seen to these types of comments is the following: Don’t act so humble; you …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: Don’t Be So Humble—You’re Not That Great”
Frederik Pohl? Robert Heinlein? Isaac Asimov? Connie Willis? Ed Bryant? George Zebrowski? Ben Bova? Robert J. Sawyer? Sam Moskowitz? Question for Quote Investigator: Predicting the primary effects of a new technology is difficult but feasible. Anticipating all the secondary effects is nearly impossible. Here are two statements of a viewpoint that has achieved popularity amongst …
Jean Cocteau? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The prominent French artist Jean Cocteau crafted the most insightful remark about addiction that I have ever read. Some drugs permanently shift one’s perception of pleasure and purpose in the world. Would you please help me to find Cocteau’s comment about the difficulty of taking the world seriously …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: It Is Difficult, After Knowing Opium, To Take Earth Seriously”