Tracing Quotations
Dorothy Parker? Tiffany Thayer? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The popular 1932 movie “I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang” was about an innocent man who was sent to prison and escaped from a chain gang. A humorist wrote a scathing review of an erotic book which suggested that the shoddy novel should have …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: I Am a Fugitive From a Daisy Chain Gang”
Mildred B. Vermont? Marian Inman? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Motherhood is stressful and tiring, but the rewards are remarkable. One delighted mother said something like the following: Being a mother is one of the highest salaried positions since the payment is pure love. Would you please help me to determine the author and find …
Salvador Dali? Eleanor R. Morse? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Neophyte artists must learn from the works of established artists, but imitation is controversial. A famous creator presented the following adage: Those who do not want to imitate anything, produce nothing. This statement has been attributed to the prominent Spanish surrealist painter Salvador Dalí. Is …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: Those Who Do Not Want To Imitate Anything, Produce Nothing”
Oscar Wilde? Charles Caleb Colton? Herbert Beerbohm Tree? Punch Magazine? Dublin Monthly Magazine? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Words and deeds are imitated when they are deemed useful, popular, or admirable. However, a simulacrum is inferior when compared to the original. A wit once said: Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery that mediocrity can …
John Maynard Keynes? Daniel Dennett? Isaiah Berlin? Eloise Jarvis McGraw? Herman Melville? T. H. Pear? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Are our thoughts composed of basic elements? Do we contemplate words, pictures, video snippets, or perception patterns while cogitating? I was reminded of this classic epistemological question by recent advancements in the field of artificial …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: “Do You Think In Words or Pictures?” “I Think In Thoughts””
John Wayne? Peter McWilliams? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The famous actor John Wayne apparently spoke about the sense of renewal we experience with each new day. Metaphorically, tomorrow arrives clean and perfect. It puts itself into our hands, and hopes we’ve learned something from yesterday. Would you please help me to find a citation …
Kobe Bryant? Hasheem Thabeet? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Facing challenges and pressures in life can be disheartening, but psychologically reframing these experiences as a catalyst for positive growth and change is useful. Confronting and overcoming negative situations provides an opportunity to rise. Prominent U.S. basketball player Kobe Bryant said something like this. Would you please …
Mary Livingstone? Oscar Levant? John Dryden? Jonathan Swift? Edgar Allan Poe? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: The utterance of a pun is sometimes greeted with the assertion that puns are the lowest form of humor, but a humorist once explained the true reason behind this criticism. The complainer was unable to think of the pun …
Elizabeth Taylor? John Madden? Jason Kidd? Richard Meryman? Derek Donald? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: A person who has been ostracized can achieve rehabilitation over time. The key to this re-acceptance is the attainment of success in some endeavor. An athlete who wins a big game, an actor who stars in a popular show, an …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: Success Is a Great Deodorant”
Hilaire Belloc? Solomon Cohen? John Butler Yeats? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Absolute candor leads to social friction, alienation, and hostility. People tell lies to avoid hurting the feelings of others. Also, people embellish the truth to construct entertaining anecdotes from humdrum events. Further, people alter the truth to avoid harsh certainties. The following controversial …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: Without a Little Falsehood Life Would Be Impossible”