A. A. Milne? Winnie the Pooh? Tom Phillips? Walter Kerr? Jack Valenti? Anonymous?
Dear Quote Investigator: The following poignant and memorable quotation about love and companionship appears on many websites:
If you live to be a hundred, I want to live to be a hundred minus one day, so I never have to live without you.
Usually these words are attributed to the author A. A. Milne who created the character Winnie the Pooh and his companions Tigger, Eeyore, Piglet, Christopher Robin and others. Yet, I have never seen a citation, and I suspect that the Milne never wrote it. Would you please explore this topic?
Quote Investigator: QI has been unable to find this quotation in the writings of A. A. Milne. The earliest conceptual match located by QI appeared in “The Rotarian” magazine in 1917. An advertisement from Tom Phillips presented a four-line verse containing the central idea of the quotation. Boldface added to excerpts by QI:[1] 1917 January, The Rotarian, Volume 10, Number 1, (Advertisement placed by Tom Phillips), Quote Page 94, Column 1, Rotary International, Chicago, Illinois. (Google Books Full View) link
Greetings—
May you all live forever
May I live forever less a day
For I would not wish to live
When all my friends had passed awayTOM PHILLIPS
See you on Peachtree St., June 17th
Below are additional selected citations in chronological order.
Continue reading “May You All Live Forever. May I Live Forever Less A Day”