Tracing Quotations
Marilyn Monroe? Sheilah Graham? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Beauty icon Marilyn Monroe’s film career was jeopardized in the 1950s when scandal-mongers reported on her past as a risqué calendar model. Interestingly, her popularity and fame actually grew. When she was questioned about the calendar she responded with a clever and hilarious remark about a …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: It’s Not Quite True I Had Nothing On: The Radio Was On”
Marilyn Monroe? Bette Midler? Anonymous? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: There is a picture on several Pinterest pinboards and Tumblrs that shows a young girl walking in oversized shoes with the following quotation superimposed on the image Give a girl the right shoes and she can conquer the world. —Marilyn Monroe A recent article on …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: Give a Girl the Right Shoes and She Can Conquer the World”
George Bernard Shaw and Isadora Duncan? Anatole France and Isadora Duncan? Arthur Miller and Marilyn Monroe? Albert Einstein and a chorus girl? George Bernard Shaw and a strange lady in Zurich? Question for Quote Investigator: Reportedly there was famous exchange between the prominent playwright George Bernard Shaw and the glamorous dancer Isadora Duncan on the …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: But Suppose the Child Inherited My Beauty and Your Brains?”
Marilyn Monroe? Eleanor Roosevelt? Anne Boleyn? Laurel Thatcher Ulrich? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Observing a stream of tweets is a confusing way to learn about a quotation: Well behaved women rarely make history – Marilyn MonroeWell-behaved women rarely make history – Eleanor RooseveltWell behaved women rarely make history – Anne BoleynWell behaved women rarely …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: Well-Behaved Women Seldom Make History”
Marilyn Monroe? Ben Hecht? Milton Greene? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The legendary screen star Marilyn Monroe was ambivalent about her fame. She supposedly said the following: Hollywood is a place where they’ll pay you a thousand dollars for a kiss and fifty cents for your soul. Is this an accurate quotation? Do you know …
Tony Curtis? Charlton Heston? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Tony Curtis was a wonderful actor, and I was saddened when he passed away in 2010. For years I have wondered about a quotation that he supposedly said. The story goes that he was asked what it was like to kiss Marilyn Monroe and he said: …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: Kissing Marilyn Monroe Is Like Kissing Hitler”