Theatrical Show: “Wham!”; Review: “Ouch!”

Wolcott Gibbs? Alexander Woollcott? Else Rempel? Thomas Vinciguerra? Guinness Book of World Records? Apocryphal?

Dear Quote Investigator: I love stories about funny theatrical reviews. A prominent critic once attended a performance of a show called “Wham!” and published the amusingly concise evaluation “Ouch!”

This pithy critique has been attributed to Wolcott Gibbs and Alexander Woollcott who both wrote for “The New Yorker” magazine. Yet, I suspect that this anecdote is fictitious. Would you please explore this topic?

Quote Investigator: The Internet Broadway Database (IBDB) provides no matches for “Wham!” which reduces the credibility of the tale. Alexander Woollcott died in 1943, and Wolcott Gibbs died in 1958.

The earliest match found by QI appeared in “The Edmonton Journal” of Alberta, Canada in 1965 within a column titled “Else Rempel’s Edmonton Notebook” which printed the following short item. Boldface added to excerpts by QI:[1] 1965 January 14, The Edmonton Journal, Else Rempel’s Edmonton Notebook: For What It’s Worth, Quote Page 6, Column 1, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. (Newspapers_com)

For What It’s Worth
The shortest criticism in theatrical history was made by drama critic Wolcott Gibbs when he reviewed a farce called Wham!
Gibbs’ only comment was “Ouch!”

This anecdote was doubted by journalist Thomas Vinciguerra who was knowledgeable on this topic. He compiled and published the collection “Backward Ran Sentences: The Best of Wolcott Gibbs from The New Yorker”. Vinciguerra said the following about Gibbs during an interview in 2011:[2]Website: The New Yorker, Interview title: Q. & A. Thomas Vinciguerra on Wolcott Gibbs, Interviewer name: Jon Michaud, Date on website: October 10, 2011, Website description: Essays, commentary, … Continue reading

I first heard of him at age twelve, when I came across him in “The Guinness Book of World Records.” The editors said that the world’s shortest piece of criticism had been “attributed” to him. Supposedly, in reviewing a farce called “Wham!” Gibbs wrote the single-word response “Ouch!” I thought the comment was hilarious, and that Gibbs’s name sounded owlish and prickly—both of which, I later discovered, he was. It didn’t even matter that the review turned out to be apocryphal.

Below are additional selected citations in chronological order.

Continue reading “Theatrical Show: “Wham!”; Review: “Ouch!””

References

References
↑1 1965 January 14, The Edmonton Journal, Else Rempel’s Edmonton Notebook: For What It’s Worth, Quote Page 6, Column 1, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. (Newspapers_com)
↑2 Website: The New Yorker, Interview title: Q. & A. Thomas Vinciguerra on Wolcott Gibbs, Interviewer name: Jon Michaud, Date on website: October 10, 2011, Website description: Essays, commentary, fiction, and cartoons. (Accessed newyorker.com on February 4, 2022) link

Science Gathers Knowledge Faster Than Society Gathers Wisdom

Isaac Asimov? Michio Kaku? Apocryphal?

Dear Quote Investigator: Science has been extraordinarily successful in making impressive discoveries. Yet, humankind’s thoughtfulness and judgement have been severely tested by the new insights and capabilities that have emerged. A prominent science fiction author said:

Science gathers knowledge faster than society gathers wisdom.

Would you please help me to identify the author of this statement together with a citation?

Quote Investigator: In 1988 Isaac Asimov and Jason A. Shulman published “Isaac Asimov’s Book of Science and Nature Quotations”. The work contained 86 sections, and each began with a quotation from Asimov. The epigraph for the “Science and Society” section was the following. Boldface added to excerpts by QI:[1]1988, Isaac Asimov’s Book of Science and Nature Quotations, Edited by Isaac Asimov and Jason A. Shulman, Chapter 72: Science and Society, (Quotation appears as chapter epigraph), Quote Page … Continue reading

The saddest aspect of life right now is that science gathers knowledge faster than society gathers wisdom.
ISAAC ASIMOV

Below are additional selected citations in chronological order.

Continue reading “Science Gathers Knowledge Faster Than Society Gathers Wisdom”

References

References
↑1 1988, Isaac Asimov’s Book of Science and Nature Quotations, Edited by Isaac Asimov and Jason A. Shulman, Chapter 72: Science and Society, (Quotation appears as chapter epigraph), Quote Page 281, A Blue Cliff Editions Book: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, New York. (Verified with scans; Internet Archive)

Nobody Realizes That Some People Expend Tremendous Energy Merely To Be Normal

Albert Camus? Blanche Balain? Justin O’Brien? Herbert R. Lottman? Apocryphal?

Dear Quote Investigator: It is natural for a few aspects of each individual to be atypical or divergent. For many people extraordinary energy is needed simply to appear normal. The famous French philosopher Albert Camus apparently mentioned this in “The Myth of Sisyphus” or in one of his notebooks, but I am having trouble locating the original French statement. Would you please help me to find a citation?

Quote Investigator: Albert Camus maintained a series of notebooks to record his nascent ideas and aphorisms. He also transcribed statements he heard from others. After his death in 1960, material from the notebooks was edited and published in a series of books. Camus penned remarks into notebook number four between January 1942 and September 1945. He preserved the following comment from “B.B.”, actress and poet Blanche Balain. Boldface added to excerpts by QI:[1]1964, Carnets: janvier 1942 – mars 1951 (Notebooks: January 1942 – March 1951) by Albert Camus, Cahier IV (Notebook 4), Quote Page 105, Éditions Gallimard, Paris, France. (Verified with … Continue reading

B. B. « Personne ne se rend compte que certaines personnes dépensent une force herculéenne pour être seulement normales. »

Translator Justin O’Brien rendered notebook number four into English. Here is his version of the comment:[2]1965, Notebooks 1942-1951 by Albert Camus, Translated from the French by Justin O’Brien, Notebook 4, Date: Between June and August 1943, Quote Page 80, Alfred A. Knopf, New York. (Verified with … Continue reading

B.B.: “Nobody realizes that some people expend tremendous energy merely to be normal.”

Albert Camus popularized this statement via his posthumous notebook, but he did not craft it. Blanche Balain should receive credit for this insight.

Below are additional selected citations in chronological order.

Continue reading “Nobody Realizes That Some People Expend Tremendous Energy Merely To Be Normal”

References

References
↑1 1964, Carnets: janvier 1942 – mars 1951 (Notebooks: January 1942 – March 1951) by Albert Camus, Cahier IV (Notebook 4), Quote Page 105, Éditions Gallimard, Paris, France. (Verified with scans)
↑2 1965, Notebooks 1942-1951 by Albert Camus, Translated from the French by Justin O’Brien, Notebook 4, Date: Between June and August 1943, Quote Page 80, Alfred A. Knopf, New York. (Verified with scans)

The Penalty of Success Is To Be Bored By the People Who Used To Snub You

Mary Wilson Little? Nancy Astor? Charley Jones? Cholly Knickerbocker? Earl Wilson? Junius? Anonymous?

Dear Quote Investigator: If one climbs the social ladder the result can be surprising. People who once snubbed you will allow you to enter their social circle. Yet, attending their gatherings often results in boredom. This observation has been attributed to the U.S. author Mary Wilson Little and the U.K. politician Nancy Astor. Would you please explore this topic?

Quote Investigator: The earliest evidence located by QI appeared in several newspapers in August 1880. The creator was initially anonymous. Mary Wilson Little claimed authorship in 1897. Over the decades the phrasing has evolved, and the ascription has shifted. Here is a sampling with dates:

1880 Aug 10: The penalty of success is to be bored by the attentions of people who used to snub you. (Anon)

1880 Aug 17: The penalty of success is to be bored by the attention of people who used to snub you. (Anon)

1881 May 12: The penalty of success is to be bored by people who used to snub you. (Anon)

1897: The penalty of success is to be bored by the attentions of people who formerly snubbed you. ( M. W. L. – Mary Wilson Little)

1913 Oct 07: One of the penalties of success is to be bored by the attentions of the people who used to snub you. (Anon)

1925 Oct 06: The penalty of success is to be bored by the attention of people who formally snubbed you. (Anon)

1941 Jan 29: The penalty of success is to be bored by the attentions of people who formerly snubbed you. (The Office Cat by Junius)

1949: The penalty of success is to be bored by the attentions of people who formerly snubbed you. (Attributed to Mary Wilson Little by Evan Esar)

1953 May 28: The penalty of success is to be bored by the people who used to snub you. (Attributed to Charley Jones by Earl Wilson)

1953 July 06: The penalty of success is to be bored by the people who used to snub you. (Attributed to Nancy Astor by Cholly Knickerbocker)

Below are selected citations in chronological order.

Continue reading “The Penalty of Success Is To Be Bored By the People Who Used To Snub You”

Success Is To Be Measured Not So Much By the Position That One Has Reached in Life As By the Obstacles Which He Has Overcome

Booker T. Washington? Apocryphal?

labyrinthDear Quote Investigator: The true measure of success in life is not determined solely by the position one attains. Instead, the measure must consider the obstacles one has overcome. The prominent educator and author Booker T. Washington said something like this. Would you please help me to find a citation?

Quote Investigator: Booker T. Washington published a series of autobiographical articles in the New York periodical “The Outlook”. The November 10, 1900 piece included the following. Boldface added to excerpts by QI:[1]1900 November 10, The Outlook, Volume 66, Number 11, Up from Slavery: An Autobiography by Booker T. Washington, Start Page 649, Quote Page 654, The Outlook Company, New York. (Google Books Full View) … Continue reading

I have learned that success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome while trying to succeed.

Below are additional selected citations in chronological order.

Continue reading “Success Is To Be Measured Not So Much By the Position That One Has Reached in Life As By the Obstacles Which He Has Overcome”

References

References
↑1 1900 November 10, The Outlook, Volume 66, Number 11, Up from Slavery: An Autobiography by Booker T. Washington, Start Page 649, Quote Page 654, The Outlook Company, New York. (Google Books Full View) link

The Factory of the Future Will Have Only Two Employees, a Man and a Dog

Warren Bennis? Fred Lamond? Jerry L. Benefield? British Post Office Engineering Union? Anonymous?

Dear Quote Investigator: A humorous and cautionary prediction states that the automated factory of the future will have only two employees: one human and one dog:

  • The human feeds the dog.
  • The dog makes sure no one touches the equipment.

This notion has been attributed to Professor of Business Administration Warren Bennis and others. Would you please explore this topic?

Quote Investigator: The earliest match located by QI appeared in the trade journal “Datamation” in 1978. Journalist Fred Lamond noted that the development of increasingly powerful microprocessors was facilitating new types automation. Lamond published a wry joke circulating in Britain:[1]1978 November 1, Datamation, Volume 24, Number 11, Europeans Blame Computers by Fred Lamond, Start Page 107, Quote Page 107 and 110, Technical Publishing Company: A Dunn and Bradstreet Company, … Continue reading

“How many people are required to maintain a new System X electronic exchange?” runs a rather bitter joke in the British Post Office Engineering Union. Answer: “A man and a dog.” “What does the man do?” “Feed the dog.” “What does the dog do?” “Make damn sure neither the man nor anybody else gets his fingers on the equipment.”

Lamond did not provide a precise attribution. Thus, droll remark is difficult to trace because of its variability. Currently, the creator remains anonymous. Warren Bennis did employ this joke in 1988 and 1989, but he disclaimed authorship as indicated further below.

Here are additional selected citations in chronological order.

Continue reading “The Factory of the Future Will Have Only Two Employees, a Man and a Dog”

References

References
↑1 1978 November 1, Datamation, Volume 24, Number 11, Europeans Blame Computers by Fred Lamond, Start Page 107, Quote Page 107 and 110, Technical Publishing Company: A Dunn and Bradstreet Company, Barrington, Illinois. (Verified with scans; Internet Archive)

It Is Classic Because of a Certain Eternal and Irrepressible Freshness

Edith Wharton? Ezra Pound? Apocryphal?

Dear Quote Investigator: A classic work must be timeless, and it must also exhibit an irrepressible freshness. This notion has been attributed to the prominent U.S. novelist Edith Wharton and the well-known poet and critic Ezra Pound. Would you please help me to resolve this uncertainty?

Quote Investigator: In 1934 Ezra Pound published “ABC of Reading” which included the following passage. Boldface added to excerpts by QI:[1] 1960 (1934 Copyright), ABC of Reading by Ezra Pound, Section: Warning, Quote Page 13 and 14, New Directions Publishing Corporation, New York. (Verified with scans)

A classic is classic not because it conforms to certain structural rules, or fits certain definitions (of which its author had quite probably never heard). It is classic because of a certain eternal and irrepressible freshness.

QI has found no substantive evidence that Edith Wharton used this saying. She died in 1937, and she received credit by 2006.

Below are additional selected citations in chronological order.

Continue reading “It Is Classic Because of a Certain Eternal and Irrepressible Freshness”

References

References
↑1 1960 (1934 Copyright), ABC of Reading by Ezra Pound, Section: Warning, Quote Page 13 and 14, New Directions Publishing Corporation, New York. (Verified with scans)

Quote Origin: We Have Only the Present Moment, Sparkling Like a Star in Our Hands — and Melting Like a Snowflake

Marie Beynon Ray? Francis Bacon? Henry David Thoreau? W. Somerset Maugham? Booth Tarkington?

Question for Quote Investigator: Our life on Earth does not extend forever. A writer once used two vivid and clashing metaphors to describe this precious moment:

Sparkling like a star in our hands and melting like a snowflake

This figurative language has been attributed to English philosopher Francis Bacon and U.S. self-help author Marie Beynon Ray. Would you please explore this topic?

Reply from Quote Investigator: There is no substantive evidence that Francis Bacon penned this remark. He died in 1626, and the saying was attributed to him centuries later in 2001.

In 1952 Marie Beynon Ray published “The Best Years of Your Life” in which she discussed enjoying a full life during retirement years. Boldface added to excerpts by QI:1

But we are not living in eternity. We have only the present moment, sparkling like a star in our hands — and melting like a snowflake.
We’d better get started.

QI believes Marie Beynon Ray deserves credit for the saying above. Other writers have penned thematically related statements about the importance of the present moment. Here are some chronologically ordered examples.

Continue reading “Quote Origin: We Have Only the Present Moment, Sparkling Like a Star in Our Hands — and Melting Like a Snowflake”

Sliding Down a Barrister

Dorothy Parker? Mae West? Alexander Woollcott? A. E. Mortimer? Mark Barron? Meyer Levin? Billy Boner? Anonymous?

Dear Quote Investigator: The U.S. poet and wit Dorothy Parker has received credit for scandalous wordplay based on the following phrases:

Sliding down a banister
Sliding down a barrister

Would you please explore this topic?

Quote Investigator: The earliest match located by QI appeared within a January 1933 column published in the “Daily News” of New York City which paid teachers for comical items inadvertently penned by students:[1] 1933 January 18, Daily News, $2 for Classroom Boners, Quote Page 26, Column 3, New York. (Newspapers_com)

The News will pay $2 for every Classroom Boner published.
A Boner is a humorous expression found in examination papers, etc., by school teachers. Boners must be original. And they must be funny.

A correspondent from Long Island supplied the following item. Boldface added to excerpts by QI:

Billy has a bad habit of sliding down the barristers.
Mrs. A. E. MORTIMER.
88-24 189th St., Hollis, L. I.

In June 1933 gossip columnist Mark Barron attributed an instance to Dorothy Parker:[2] 1933 June 12, The Wilkes-Barre Record, A New Yorker At Large by Mark Barron, Quote Page 8, Column 4, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. (Newspapers_com)

This time she doesn’t plan to drop in on London. “The last time I was in England,” she quipped, “I spent the whole time sliding down barristers.”

In 1934 critic and radio broadcaster Alexander Woollcott published the book “While Rome Burns” which included a chapter about Dorothy Parker containing a different instance of the joke:[3] 1934, While Rome Burns by Alexander Woollcott, Chapter: Some Neighbors: IV: Our Mrs. Parker, Quote Page 149, Viking Press, New York. (Verified with hardcopy)

Then I remember her comment on one friend who had lamed herself while in London. It was Mrs. Parker who voiced the suspicion that this poor lady had injured herself while sliding down a barrister.

The above three citations are closely grouped in time; hence, the precise chronology of the wordplay is difficult to discern. Woollcott’s book chapter appeared in preliminary form in an article titled “Our Mrs. Parker” published in “Hearst’s International-Cosmopolitan” magazine in August 1933, but Woollcott did not include the quip in the article.[4]1933 August, Hearst’s International-Cosmopolitan, (Hearst’s International combined with Cosmopolitan), “Our Mrs. Parker” by Alexander Woollcott, Start Page 70, (The target … Continue reading

Here are three hypotheses. One: The wordplay began as a humorous error made by a student which was relayed to the “Daily News”. Dorothy Parker heard the remark, and she employed it. Her prominence caused the quip to be reassigned to her.

Two: The wordplay appeared in the “Daily News”. Dorothy Parker never used the remark, but a columnist or agent decided to reassign it to her because she was a well-known wit. Different versions were assigned to Parker.

Three: Parker crafted the wordplay before 1933. Perhaps she used it during the heyday of the Algonquin Round Table in the 1920s. Because the quip was somewhat risqué it did not immediately appear in newspapers or magazines although it did circulate. Finally, in 1933 it emerged with an attribution to an anonymous student and to Parker.

Below are additional selected citations in chronological order.

Continue reading “Sliding Down a Barrister”

References

References
↑1 1933 January 18, Daily News, $2 for Classroom Boners, Quote Page 26, Column 3, New York. (Newspapers_com)
↑2 1933 June 12, The Wilkes-Barre Record, A New Yorker At Large by Mark Barron, Quote Page 8, Column 4, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. (Newspapers_com)
↑3 1934, While Rome Burns by Alexander Woollcott, Chapter: Some Neighbors: IV: Our Mrs. Parker, Quote Page 149, Viking Press, New York. (Verified with hardcopy)
↑4 1933 August, Hearst’s International-Cosmopolitan, (Hearst’s International combined with Cosmopolitan), “Our Mrs. Parker” by Alexander Woollcott, Start Page 70, (The target quotation was absent), International Magazine Co., New York. (Verified with photocopies; great thanks to the Florida librarians)

Artist: The One Thing You Can Claim To Be and Nobody Can Prove You Ain’t

Will Rogers? Apocryphal?

Dear Quote Investigator: The evaluation of art is subjective. The popular U.S. humorist Will Rogers once said something like:

You can call yourself an artist because nobody can prove you ain’t.

Would you please help me to find a citation?

Quote Investigator: In 1926 Will Rogers published “Letters of a Self-Made Diplomat to His President” containing a collection of letters nominally addressed to U.S. President Calvin Coolidge. One letter discussed art. Rogers used the expression “Banana Oil”; the smoothness of this oil led to the metaphorical slang meaning of insincere nonsense. The term “maby” meant maybe. Boldface added to excerpts by QI:[1]1926, Letters of a Self-Made Diplomat to His President by Will Rogers, Volume 1, Letter addressed to Calvin Coolidge, Date: June 5, 1926, Location: Rome, Italy, Start Page 157, Quote Page 162, Albert … Continue reading

We know about 9-10ths of the stuff going on under the guise of Art is the Banana Oil. They call it Art to get to take off the clothes. When you ain’t nothing else, you are an Artist. It’s the one thing you can claim to be and nobody can prove you ain’t.

No matter how you built anything and how you painted anything, if it accidentally through lack of wars or rain happened to live a few hundreds of years, why its Art now. Maby when the Guy painted it at the time he never got another contract.

Below are additional selected citations in chronological order.

Continue reading “Artist: The One Thing You Can Claim To Be and Nobody Can Prove You Ain’t”

References

References
↑1 1926, Letters of a Self-Made Diplomat to His President by Will Rogers, Volume 1, Letter addressed to Calvin Coolidge, Date: June 5, 1926, Location: Rome, Italy, Start Page 157, Quote Page 162, Albert & Charles Boni, New York. (Google Books Full View) link