During Christmas People Will Forget the Past With a Present

Gladys Parker? Don Marquis? Walter Winchell? Uncle Ezra? Phyllis Diller? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: A collection of Christmas season quips employ wordplay based on “past” and “present”. Here are two examples: What I like about Christmas is that you can make people forget the past with a present. At Christmas time youngsters want the past …

Paragraphing Consists of Stroking a Platitude Until It Purrs Like an Epigram

Don Marquis? Christopher Morley? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: Crafting a bright witticism or a clever aphorism is a difficult task especially for a writer who is facing a tight deadline. One strategy is described as follows: Stroke a platitude until it purrs like an epigram. This remark has been ascribed to Don Marquis who was …

An Idea Isn’t Responsible for the People Who Believe In It

Don Marquis? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: One strategy for attacking an idea is to exhibit a repugnant individual who supports the idea. This method can influence the opinions of those who are susceptible to psychological manipulation, but it is logically flawed. Here is a pertinent adage: An idea isn’t responsible for the people who believe …

When Croesus Tells You He Got Rich Through Hard Work, Ask Him “Whose?”

Don Marquis? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: Recently, a wealthy acquaintance told me that hard work was their key to becoming rich. I asked, “Whose?” Would you please explore the provenance of this riposte? Quote Investigator: Don Marquis was a popular columnist and storyteller. In 1921 he published a column called “The Weather Vane” that was …

If You Make People Think They’re Thinking, They’ll Love You. If You Really Make Them Think They’ll Hate You

Don Marquis? Christopher Morley? Roscoe B. Ellard? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: People readily accept thoughtful opinions that are close to their own, but they become unhappy when sharply different viewpoints are expressed forcefully. Here is a germane remark: If you make people think they’re thinking, they’ll love you. If you really make them think they’ll …

I Do Not Believe in Ghosts Because I Have Seen Too Many of Them

Samuel Taylor Coleridge? Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley? Don Marquis? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: While perusing the book “Dim Wit: The Stupidest Quotes of All Time” I came across an entertaining topic for Halloween in the following entry about a famous poet:[ref] 2010, Dim Wit: The Stupidest Quotes of All Time, Compiled by Rosemarie Jarski, Quote Page …

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