Tracing Quotations
John Lennon? Oscar Wilde? Fernando Sabino? Paulo Coelho? Domingos Sabino? Farah Khan? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Here are three versions of a popular remark that reflects an unwaveringly upbeat perspective on life: (1) Everything is OK in the end; if it’s not OK it’s not the end. (2) Everything is going to be fine …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: Everything Will Be OK in the End. If It’s Not OK It’s Not the End”
John Lennon? Roland Orzabal? Nicky Holland? Tears for Fears? Dear Quote Investigator: The famous songwriter and musician John Lennon has received credit for the following lines: Love is a promise Love is a souvenir Once given Never forgotten, never let it disappear My mother who is very knowledgeable about the Beatles says that these are …
John Lennon? Rod McKuen? Sally Jessy Raphael? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: There is a popular meme/quotation on social networks such as Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr: It matters not who you love, where you love, why you love, when you love, or how you love, it matters only that you love. This saying is attributed to …
Continue reading “It Doesn’t Matter Who You Love or How You Love, But That You Love”
Groucho Marx? Ethel Barrymore? Maurice Barrymore? Paul M. Potter? Gertrude Battles Lane? John Lennon? Joe E. Lewis? Robert Heinlein? Marilyn Manson? Augustus John? Oscar Wilde? Dear Quote Investigator: There is well-known and often repeated admonition directed at young people who are making too much noise: Children should be seen and not heard. Wordplay has produced …
John Lennon? Pablo Picasso? Carleton Noyes? Percy Mackaye? Dudley Crafts Watson? Agnes Snyder? Ricky Gervais? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: When a child is supplied with paint, clay, paper, and scissors he or she will experiment and construct images and figures. The artistic impulse is strong in the early years of life, but sadly it is …
Groucho Marx? Marshall Reid? Fanny Brice? Frank Case? Jane Ace? Goodman Ace? Rudy Vallée? Verree Teasdale? Robert Bloch? John Lennon? Ann Landers? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: The following humorous pun about comeuppance for poor behavior has been attributed to the famous comedian Groucho Marx. The slang term “heel” refers to a contemptible person: Time …
John Lennon? Philip Norman? Bill Harry? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: Today paparazzi stalk celebrities, and gossip websites shriek about every misstep or manufactured scandal. But the struggle of living in a fishbowl is not new for well-known individuals. In the 1960s after the Beatles became famous, John Lennon reportedly feared that he would cause pandemonium …
Continue reading “The Price of Fame Is Not Being Able to Go to the Pub for a Quiet Pint”
John Lennon? Birthday Card? Dixie Lee Crosby? Dixie Willson? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: I am a big fan of the Beatles, and I think I have a good mental picture of my favorite band member, John Lennon. The following popular pair of statements is often credited to Lennon, but I think the attribution is false: …
Continue reading “Count Your Age by Friends, Not Years. Count Your Life by Smiles, Not Tears”
John Lennon? Charles Schulz? Goldie Hawn? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: Did musical superstar John Lennon really tell the following story about his childhood? When I was 5 years old, my mother always told me that happiness was the key to life. When I went to school, they asked me what I wanted to be when …
Continue reading “They Asked Me What I Wanted To Be When I Grew Up. I Said ‘Happy’”
John Lennon? Allen Saunders? Quin Ryan? Walter Ward? Henry Cooke? Robert Balzer? L. S. McCandless? Publilius Syrus? Thomas a Kempis? William Gaddis? Question for Quote Investigator: Recently, a medical emergency threw all my carefully constructed plans into complete disarray. I was reminded of a remarkably astute and ruefully humorous saying credited to the musical superstar …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: Life is What Happens To You While You’re Busy Making Other Plans”