Adage Origin: The Only Good Author Is a Dead Author

Patrick O’Connor? Stella Adler? Edward Fuller? Elizabeth Hodgson? Irving Babbitt? Margaret Harford? Jed Harris? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Living authors are often viewed with a mixture of suspicion and aggravation. Here are three versions of a pertinent adage: (1) The only good author is a dead author.(2) All good authors are dead authors.(3) The …

Quote Origin: I’ll Give You a Definite Maybe

Samuel Goldwyn? Jerry Wald? Jed Harris? Louis Sobol? Walter Winchell? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Making a weighty decision is difficult because one must be willing to forgo alternative choices and possibilities. The following equivocal statement comical illustrates this psychological tension: I can give you a definite maybe. The words above have been attributed to …