Tracing Quotations
A. H. Reginald Buller? Resident of Brighton? E. V. Lucas? Carolyn Wells? Walter Winchell? Robert Conquest? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: There is a comical limerick about a “family” named Stein. The three referents were prominent writer Gertrude Stein, influential sculpture Jacob Epstein, and famous scientist Albert Einstein. Wordplay was used to split “Stein” from …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: A Notable Family Named Stein With Gertrude, Ep, and Ein”
Carolyn Wells? Bruce Porter? Gelett Burgess? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: The following well-known adage concisely states a controversial moral principle: Of two evils, choose the lesser. I’ve heard these cynical variants: Would you please explore the history of the last statement? Reply from Quote Investigator: In 1904 the popular and prolific writer and poet …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: Of Two Evils, Choose the Prettier”
Anthony Burgess? Israel Zangwill? Carolyn Wells? Merry-Andrew? Abraham Rotstein? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: The proverb “Every dog has his day” is familiar to many, but recently I came across an amusing twist: Every dogma has its day. These words were credited to the English author Anthony Burgess who is probably best known for the …