Quote Queen

Georgia Douglas Johnson (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Thomas Sydenham – 1624 – Scientist

“The arrival of a good clown exercises a more beneficial influence upon the health of a town than of twenty asses laden with drugs.”

Chauncey Wright – 1830 – Philosopher

“The accidental causes of science are only accidents relatively to the intelligence of a man.”

Philip Gilbert Hamerton – 1834 – Artist

“Have you ever observed that we pay much more attention to a wise passage when it is quoted than when we read it in the original author?”

Charles Sanders Peirce – 1839 – Philosopher

“Every new concept first comes to the mind in a judgment.”

Georgia Douglas Johnson – 1880 – Poet

“Your world is as big as you make it.”

Carl Van Doren – 1885 – Author

“Yes, it’s hard to write.  But it’s harder not to.”

Hilda Doolittle – 1886 – Poet

“Consider the birds.  Be wise as serpents.”

Elsa Schiaparelli – 1890 – Fashion Designer

“In difficult times fashion is always outrageous.”

Arthur Holly Compton – 1892 – Scientist

“If co-operation, is thus the life blood of science and technology, it is similarly vital to society as a whole.”

Cyril Connolly – 1903 – Journalist

“The secret to success is to be in harmony with existence, to be always calm to let each wave of life wash us a little farther up the shore.”

Robert Wise – 1914- Producer

“You can’t tell any kind of a story without having some kind of a theme, something to say between the lines.”

Jean Vanier – 1928 – Philosopher

“Growth begins when we begin to accept our own weakness.”

Arnold Palmer – 1929 – Golfer

“The road to success is always under construction.”

Roger Maris – 1934 – Journalist

“You hit home runs not by chance but by preparation.”

Charles Kuralt – 1934 – Journalist

English: Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones official headshot from biography and press kit (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

“The love of family and the admiration of friends is much more important than wealth and privilege.”

Mary Oliver – 1935 – Poet

“Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?”

Karl Lagerfeld – 1938 – Designer

“I’m a working-class person, working with class.”

Roy Ayers – 1940 – Musician

“The true beauty of music is that it connects people.  It carries a message, and we, the musicians, are the messengers.”

Stephen Jay Gould – 1941 – Scientist

“We pass through this world but once.”

Neale Donald Walsch – 1943 – Author

“Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.”

Charles Simonyi – 1948 – Businessman

“Yachts are the closest a commoner can get to sovereignty.”

Bill O’Reilly – 1949 – Commentator and Author

“Public misbehavior by the famous is a powerful teaching tool.”

Stephanie Tubbs Jones – 1949 – Congresswoman

“My reputation is too important to put it aside for purposes of some friendship.  We have a job to do.”

Amy Irving – 1953 – Actress

“One of my problems is that I’m very honest and direct.  You pay a price for that.”

Chris Columbus – 1958 – Director

“My reason for getting into the film business was a Spider-Man comic called ‘The Night Gwen Stacy Died’ when I was a kid; it changed my life.”

Peter Nelson – 1959 – Actor

“One of the problems the Internet has introduced is that in this electronic village, all the village idiots have Internet access.”

Alison Bechdel – 1960 – Cartoonist

“Even drawing gray hair at all is difficult to render in black and white.”

Colin Firth – 1960 – Actor

“As much as the next person, I want to be approved of, but I’m not greedy for that stuff.”

Dick Costolo – 1963 – Businessman

“Not only can you not plan the impact you’re going to have, you often won’t recognize it even while you’re having it.”

Marian Keyes – 1963 – Writer

“Every day I wake up afraid that I won’t be able to write, that today is the day it has left me.”

Randy Johnson – 1963 – Athlete

“Work hard.  And have patience.  Because no matter who you are, you’re going to get hurt in your career and you have to be patient to get through the injuries.”

Jack Ma – 1964 – Businessman

“You should learn from your competitor, but never copy.  Copy and you die.”

John Sununu – 1964 – Politician

“As a boy, when I was bad, my mother would chew me out in Spanish.  And since I was bad a lot, I learned a lot of Spanish.”

Guy Ritchie – 1968 – Director

“The best thing to do is find one person in your life and try to love them unconditionally.  If you’ve accomplished that, you’ve accomplished a lot.”

Jacob Young – 1979 – Actor

“I hate to sound cliché, but I understand why people love to cook.  It’s fun!”

English: Cardinal de Richelieu (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Cardinal de Richelieu – 1585 – Clergyman

“Carry on any enterprise as if all future success depended on it.”

Richard Chenevix Trench – 1807 – Clergyman

“Grammar is the logic of speech, even as logic is the grammar of reason.”

Leo Tolstoy – 1828 – Novelist

“Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself.”

Mary  Austin – 1868 – Writer

“People would be surprised to know how much I learned about prayer from playing poker.”

Ralph Hodgson – 1871 – Poet

“The handwriting on the wall may be a forgery.”

James Agate – 1877 – Critic

“My mind is not a bed to be made and re-made.”

John Hall Wheelock – 1886 – Poet

“The job of an editor in a publishing house is the dullest, hardest, most exciting, exasperating and rewarding of perhaps any job in the world.”

Kurt Lewin – 1890 – Psychologist

“A successful individual typically sets his next goal somewhat but not too much above his last achievement.  In this way he steadily raises his level of aspiration.”

Colonel Sanders – 1890 – Businessman (Harlan Sanders)

“There’s no reason to be the richest man in the cemetery.  You can’t do any business from there.”

Arthur Freed – 1894 – Producer

“Don’t try to be different.  Just be good.  To be good is different enough.”

Beverley Nichols – 1898 – Writer

“Marriage – a book of which the first chapter is written in poetry and the remaining chapters in prose.”

James Hilton – 1900 – Novelist

“If you forgive people enough you belong to them, and they to you, whether either person likes it or not, squatter’s rights of the heart.”

Joseph E. Levine – 1905 – Producer

Leo Tolstoy 1848 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

“You can fool all the people all the time if the advertising is right and the budget is big enough.”

Cesare Pavese – 1908 – Poet

“We do not remember days, we remember moments.”

Cliff Robertson – 1923 – Actor

“Show business is like a bumpy bus ride.  Sometimes you find yourself temporarily juggled out of your seat and holding onto a strap.  But the main idea is to hang in there and not be shoved out the door.”

Russell M. Nelson – 1924 – Clergyman

“Your life will be a blessed and balanced experience if you first honor your identity and priority.”

Sol Le Witt – 1928 – Artist

“You shouldn’t be a prisoner of your own ideas.”

Michael Novak – 1933 – Philosopher

“Love is not a feeling of happiness.  Love is a willingness to sacrifice.”

Joe Theismann – 1949 – Athlete

“No matter how great you are, the next great one is already sitting there waiting to take your place.”

Tom  Wopat – 1951 – Actor

“When you’re doing the traditional musicals, singing songs that are 40 and 50 years old, you realize there’s a reason why those musicals are hits.  These are amazing songs.”

Michael Keaton – 1951 – Actor

“There comes a point in your life when you realize how quickly time goes by, and how quickly it has gone.  Then it really speeds up exponentially.  With that, I think you start to put a lot of things into context; you start to see how huge the world is, and really, the universe.”

Angela Cartwright – 1952 – Actress

“My shadow in my art is one way I trace who I was and where I have been.  My shadow and I have been on a journey for quite a while now.”

Alisher Usmanov – 1953 – Businessman

“I have been very fortunate to be successful in business, and I believe that it is right that people who have this type of wealth should give something back into society.”

John Kricfalusi – 1955 – Artist

“All artists get better with age.  The more you draw, the better you’re going to get.”

Mario Batali – 1960 – Chef

“If you want your kids to listen to you, don’t yell at them.  Whisper.  Make them lean in.  My kids taught me that.  And I do it with adults now.”

Hugh Grant – 1960 – Actor

“But I just know from experience that accent wise, even if you’re an accent genius, crossing the Atlantic is the hardest thing in the world either way.”

Aleksander Hemon – 1964 – Writer

“I resist when someone calls me a novelist:  it implies some kind of inherent superiority of the novel.  I’m not a novelist, I’m a writer.”

Adam Sandler – 1966- Actor

“My name is Adam Sandler.  I’m not particularly talented,  I’m not particularly good-looking.  And yet I’m a multi-millionaire.”

Akshay Kumar – 1967 – Actor

“It takes two hands to clap!  I cannot be solely blamed for what happened in my relationships!  If things soured, it happened because of both parties.  Not just me!”

Rachel Hunter – 1969 – Model

“All you need is a bad angle and suddenly you’re 30 pounds overweight.”

Swami Sivananda Saraswati – The Divine Life Society – Rishikesh (Photo credit: wieland7)

August Wilhelm von Schlegel – 1767 – Poet

“In actual life, every great enterprise begins with and takes its first forward step in faith.”

Francis Bowen – 1811 – Philosopher

“To become a thoroughly good man is the best prescription for keeping a sound mind and a sound body.”

Antonin Dvorak – 1841 – Composer

“Mozart is sweet sunshine.”

David O. McKay – 1873 – Clergyman

“Let us realize that:  the privilege to work is a gift, the power to work is a blessing, the love of work is success.”

Swami Sivananda – 1887 – Philosopher

“Put your heart, mind, and soul into even your smallest acts.  This is the secret of success.”

Howard Dietz – 1896 – Musician

“Composers shouldn’t think too much – it interferes with their plagiarism.”

Claude Pepper – 1900 – Politician

“Life is like riding a bicycle:  you don’t fall off unless you stop pedaling.”

Frank Cady – 1915 – Actor

“If you hang around enough to show these people what you can do, you have a chance in this acting business.”

Sid Caesar – 1922 – Actor

“The guy who invented the first wheel was an idiot.  The guy who invented the other three, he was a genius.”

Peter Sellers – 1925 – Actor

“Women are more difficult to handle than men.  It’s their minds.”

Harlan Howard – 1927 – Musician

“I’m always collecting emotions for future reference.”

Patsy Cline – 1932 – Singer

“In childhood I developed a serious throat infection, and my heart stopped beating.  I recovered from that illness with a voice that boomed forth like Kate Smith’s.”

Peter Maxwell Davies – 1934 – Composer

Publicity photo of Sid Caesar from his television program Caesar’s Hour. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

“You don’t underestimate either players or audiences in any circumstances.”

Alan Dundes – 1935 – Educator

“Light travels faster than sound.  This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.”

Les Wexner – 1937 – Businessman

“Entrepreneurs, guys that start businesses, grow with them.  It’s more painful than it would appear.”

Sam Nunn – 1938 – Politician

“Leadership must be established from the top down.”

Jack Prelutsky – 1940 – Poet

“Children seem naturally drawn to poetry – it’s some combination of the rhyme, rhythm, and the words themselves.”

Willie Tyler – 1940 – Comedian

“The reason lightning doesn’t strike twice in the same place is that the same place isn’t there the second time.”

Bernie Sanders – 1941 – Politician

“People don’t trust private health insurance companies for all the right reasons.”

Marianne Wiggins – 1947 – Author

“I’m fascinated by the narrative of geology, and I’m a veritable pack rat of a collector on the road.  I keep a rock hammer in my car.”

Mike Simpson – 1950 – Politician

“A fresh pair of eyes can often find problems.”

Jon Scieszka – 1954 – Author

“For a lot of kids, reading is not magical.  It’s really hard work.”

Terry Tempest Williams – 1955 – Author

“When I write, I put one foot in front of the other.  It’s an act of faith.  I just follow my heart.”

Aimee Mann – 1960 – Musician

“The knock-out punch is always the one you never see coming.”

Thomas Kretschmann – 1962 – Actor

“Acting is all about truth and honesty, and the sensitivity that’s capable of transporting you.”

Martin Freeman – 1971 – Actor

“Disappointment is an endless wellspring of comedy inspiration.”

David Arquette – 1971 – Actor

“I’m trying to figure out how to be the best person I can be.  But it’s been a process of trail and error.”

Pink – 1979 – Musician (Alecia Beth Moore)

“You can’t move mountains by whispering at them.”

Jonathan Taylor Thomas – 1981 – Actor

“Success is not in never failing, but rising everytime you fall.”

Rob Delaney – 1984 – Athlete

“I’m crazy about Shakespeare, who was a notorious word inventor.  And my wife is an English teacher, and she’s hilarious.”

English: John Pierpont Morgan, Jr., 1867-1943 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Queen Elizabeth I – 1523 – British Royalty

“A clear and innocent conscience fears nothing.”

George-Louis Leclerc de Baffon – 1707 – Naturalist

“Writing well is at one and the same time good thinking, good feeling, and good expression; it is having wit, soul, taste, all together.”

Grandma Moses – 1860 – American Folk Artist (Anna Mary Robertson Moses)

“Life is what we make it, always has been, always will be.”

Tristan Bernard – 1866 – Playwright

“To live happily with other people, ask them only what they can give.”

John Pierpont Morgan, Jr. – 1867 – Industrialist and Philanthropist

“When you expect things to happen – strangely enough – they do happen.”

Edith Sitwell – 1887 – Poet

“I am patient with stupidity but not with those who are proud of it.”

Taylor Caldwell – 1900 – Novelist

“It is a waste of money to help those who show no desire to help themselves.”

Paul Brown – 1908 – Coach

“When you win, say nothing.  When you lose, say less.”

Elia Kazan – 1909 – Director

“What’s called a difficult decision is a difficult decision because either way you go there are penalties.”

Todor Zhivkov – 1911 – Politician

“A good journalist is not the one that writes what people say, but the one that writes what he is supposed to write.”

David Packard – 1912 – Businessman

“Take risks.  Ask big questions.  Don’t be afraid to make mistakes; if you don’t make mistakes, you’re not reaching far enough.”

Anthony Quayle – 1913 – Actor

“To understand a man, you must know his memories.  The same is true of a nation.”

Jacob Lawrence – 1917 – Artist

“When the subject is strong, simplicity is the only way to treat it.”

Laura Ashley – 1925 – Fashion Designer

“We don’t want to push our ideas on to customers, we simply want to make what they want.”

Al McGuire – 1928 – Coach

“I think everyone should go to college and get a degree and then spend six months as a bartender and six months as a cabdriver.  Then they would really be educated.”

Paul Getty – 1932 – Businessman

“My formula for success is rise early, work late, and strike oil.”

Malcolm Bradbury – 1932 – Novelist

“Culture is a way of coping with the world by defining it in detail.”

Buddy Holly – 1936 – Singer and Songwriter (Charles Hardin Holley)

Michael Feinstein and Marvin Hamlisch By Phil Konstantin (Photo credit: Officer Phil)

“If anyone asks you what kind of music you play, tell him ‘pop’.  Don’t tell him ‘rock ‘n’ roll’ or they won’t even let you in the hotel.”

Peter Storey – 1945 – Athlete

“Once a place becomes special, it’s no longer special.”

Joe Klein – 1946 – Journalist

“I think if you make a strong statement of principle, even if the folks disagree with you, people will respect you for it.”

Gloria Gaynor – 1949 – Musician

“Well, we all know that self-esteem comes from what you think of you, not what other people think of you.”

Peggy Noonan – 1950 – Columnist and Political Writer

“Candor is a compliment; it implies equality.  It’s how true friends talk.”

Michael Feinstein – 1956 – Musician

“The Gershwin legacy is extraordinary because George Gershwin died in 1937, but his music is as fresh and vital today as when he originally created it.”

Jennifer Egan – 1962 – Novelist

“If you don’t have people that the reader cares about and stories that are gripping, you’ve got nothing.”

Oliver Hudson – 1976 – Actor

“Blood relatives often have nothing to do with family, and similarly, family is about who you choose to make your life with.”

J. D. Pardo – 1980 – Actor (Jorge Daniel Pardo)

“It’s hard for the majority of people to accept what they don’t understand.”

English: Catharine Beecher Category:Beecher family (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Marquis de Lafayette – 1757 – Revolutionary

“Humanity has won its battle.  Liberty now has a country.”

John Dalton – 1766 – Scientist

“It’s the right idea, but not the right time.”

Francis Wright – 1795 – Activist

“The simplest principles become difficult of practice, when habits, formed in error, have been fixed by time, and the simplest truths hard to receive when prejudice has warped the mind.”

Catharine Beecher – 1800 – Educator

“The great want of our race is perfect educators to train new-born minds, who are infallible teachers of what is right and true.”

Jane Addams – 1860 – Social Reformer

“The good we secure for ourselves is precarious and uncertain until it is secured for all of us and incorporated into our common life.”

Henry Seidel Canby – 1878 – Critic

“Arrogance, pedantry, and dogmatism; the occupational diseases of those who spend their lives directing the intellects of the young.”

Joseph P. Kennedy – 1888 – Diplomat

“When you’re sitting across from some important person, always picture him sitting there in a suit of long red underwear.  That’s the way I always operated in business.”

Edward Appleton – 1892 – Scientist

“I don’t mind what language an opera is sung in so long as it is a language I don’t understand.”

Billy Rose – 1899 – Entertainer

“It’s hard for a fellow to keep a chip on his shoulder if you allow him to take a bow.”

Julien Green – 1900 – Novelist

“The secret is to write just anything, to dare to write just anything, because when you write just anything, you begin to say what is important.”

Lawrence Clark Powell – 1906 – Critic

“Write to be understood, speak to be heard, read to grow.”

Carmen Laforet – 1921 – Author

Jane Addams (LOC) (Photo credit: The Library of Congress)

“I write short, my words tight to the thread of the narrative.”

Jimmy Reed – 1925 – Musician

“What you sees, is what you gets.”

Robert M. Pirsig – 1928 – Philosopher

“The place to improve the world is first in one’s own heart and head and hands.”

David Allan Coe – 1939 – Musician

“One thing is certain, you can’t shake hands with a fist.”

Swoosie Kurtz – 1944 – Actress

“It’s so funny whenever things come full circle.”

Carly Fiorina – 1954 – Businesswoman

“You have to master not only the art of listening to your head, you must also master listening to your heart and listening to your gut.”

Jeff Foxworthy – 1958 – Comedian

“Find something in life that you love doing.  If you make a lot of money, that’s a bonus, and if you don’t, you still won’t hate going to work.”

Michael Winslow – 1958 – Actor

“Keeping busy:  This is a problem that you’re glad to have.”

Naveen Jain – 1959 – Businessman

“Stay focused on the mission.”

Chris Christie – 1962 – Governor of New Jersey

“And the greatest lesson that Mom ever taught me though was this one.  She told me there would be times in your life when you have to choose between being loved and being respected.  Now she said to always pick being respected.”

Alice Sebold – 1963 – Writer

“I like gardening – it’s a place where I find myself when I need to lose myself.”

Rosie Perez – 1964 – Actress

“I am a positive person.  I never think of the glass as half empty.   I just keep pushing forward.”

Dave Sitek – 1972 – Musician

“I believe in the power of song.  Under the spell of the right song, passion is within reach, love is close by, and you are not alone.”

China Mieville – 1972 – Writer

“Ever since I was two, I’ve loved octopuses, monsters, and abandoned buildings.”

Greg Rusedski – 1973 – Athlete

“It’s about you.  If you win, it’s you; if you lose, it’s you.  Black and white.  Nowhere to hide.”

Naomie Harris – 1976 – Actress

“At Cambridge, it was the weirdest culture.  Everyone pretended they didn’t do any work, yet it was so competitive.”

Pippa Middleton – 1983 – Celebrity

“When hosting a party, move any clutter from the space where you’re entertaining.”

Konstantin Eduardovich Tsiolkovsky was a Russian rocket scientist and pioneer of cosmonautics. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

King Louis XIV – 1638 – French Royalty

“Everytime I appoint someone to a vacant position, I make a hundred unhappy and one ungrateful.”

Casper David Friedrich – 1774 – Artist

“The painter should paint not only what he has in front of him, but also what he sees inside himself.”

John Griffin Carlisle – 1834 – Politician

“After we have calmly stood by and allowed monopolies to grow fat, we should not be asked to make them bloated.”

Konstantin Tsiolkovsky – 1857 – Scientist

“The Earth is the cradle of humanity, but mankind cannot stay in the cradle forever.”

Arthur C. Nielsen – 1897 – Businessman

“Leave no stone unturned to help your clients realize maximum profits from their investment.”

Darryl F. Zanuck – 1902 – Director

“Television won’t be able to hold on to any market it captures after the first six months.  People will soon get tired of staring at a plywood box every night.”

Arthur Koestler – 1905 – Novelist

“Creative activity could be described as a type of learning process where teacher and pupil are located in the same individual.”

John Cage – 1912 – Composer

“I can’t understand why people are frightened of new ideas.  I’m frightened of the old ones.”

Jack Valenti – 1921 – Businessman

“There isn’t anything in the world that can’t be made better.”

Justin Kaplan – 1925 – Writer

“Television, despite its enormous presence, turns out to have added pitifully few lines to the communal memory.”

Bob Newhart – 1929 – Comedian

“Laughter gives us distance.  It allows us to step back from an event, deal with it and then move on.”

Werner Erhard – 1935 – Celebrity

“Create your future from your future not your past.”

Jonathan Kozol – 1936 – Writer

“Pick battles big enough to matter, small enough to win.”

George Lazenby – 1939 – Actor

“Fame is short-lived, and you’re the last to know when you are no longer hot.”

Photo of Cathy Guisewite at the Emmy Awards. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

William Devane – 1940 – Actor

“The business is built on slowing or even stopping the aging process.”

Raquel Welch – 1940 – Actress

“You can’t fake listening.  It shows.”

Werner Herzog – 1942 – Director

“Civilization is like a thin layer of ice upon a deep ocean of chaos and darkness.”

Al Stewart – 1945 – Musician

“Nothing that’s forced can ever be right, if it doesn’t come naturally, leave it.”

Cathy Guisewite – 1950 – Cartoonist

“Food, love, career, and mothers, the four major guilt groups.”

Herman Koch – 1953 – Writer

“In one way or another, every parent is curious what their children … what they are doing when we don’t see? … What double lives are they leading?  Is there something else?”

Graham Yost – 1959 – Writer

“If you put people in a corner, you see what their character really is.”

Ric Keller – 1964 – Politician

“Common sense and history tell you that rewarding illegal behavior will only encourage more of it.”

Chris Morris – 1965 – Critic

“The pursuit of approval usually ends in disaster.”

Sondre Lerche – 1982 – Musician

“History shows us that the songs – the myth, the experience and the emotion – live longer the less you explain.”

Daniel Burnham on the terrace of his Evanston, IL home. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Daniel Burnham – 1846 – Architect

“Let your watchword be order and your beacon beauty.”

Mary Renault – 1905 – Novelist

“You can make an audience see nearly anything, if you yourself believe in it.”

Max Delbruck – 1906 – Scientist

“Any living cell carries with it the experience of a billion years of experimentation by its ancestors.”

Richard Wright – 1908 – Novelist

“Men can starve from a lack of self-realization as much as they can from a lack of bread.”

Paul Harvey – 1918 – Journalist

“In times like these, it helps to recall that there have always been times like these.”

Craig Claiborne – 1920 – Editor

“Man is born to eat.”

Ivan Illich – 1926 – Sociologist

“We must rediscover the distinction between hope and expectation.”

Dick York – 1928 – Actor

“Radio allowed people to act with their hearts and minds.”

Anthony de Mello – 1934 – Clergyman

“These things will destroy the human race:  politics without principle, progress without compassion, wealth without work, learning without silence, religion without fearlessness and worship without awareness.”

Dawn Fraser – 1937 – Philosopher

“It’s a beautiful thing, diving into the cool crisp water and then just sort of being able to pull your body through the water and the water opening up for you.”

Ken Harrelson – 1941 – Athlete

“In baseball you hit your home run over the right-field fence, the left-field fence, the center-field fence.  Nobody cares.  In golf everything has got to be right over second base.”

Bob Filner – 1942 – Politician

“Rosa Parks’ courage, determination, and tenacity continue to be an inspiration to all those committed to non-violent protest and change nearly half a century later.”

English: US Rep. Bob Filner (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Ray Floyd – 1942 – Athlete

“They call it golf because all the other four-letter words were taken.”

Tom Watson – 1949 – Athlete

“No other game combines the wonder of nature with the discipline of sport in such carefully planned ways.  A great golf course both frees and challenges a golfer’s mind.”

Brian Schweitzer – 1955 – Politician

“I challenge you to be dreamers; I challenge you to be doers and let us make the greatest place in the world even better.”

Damon Wayans – 1960 – Comedian

“Nobody can stop you but you.  And shame on you if you’re the one who stops yourself.”

Beyoncé Knowles – 1981 – Musician

“I like to walk around with bare feet and I don’t like to comb my hair.”

English: Full-length portrait of the Maine author Sarah Orne Jewett by photographer Arnold Genthe. Courtesy of the Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division, Washington, D. C. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

James Joseph Sylvester – 1814 – Mathematician

“Mathematics is the music of reason.”

Sarah Orne Jewett – 1849 – Author

“What has made this nation great?  Not its heroes but its households.”

Louis Sullivan – 1856 – Architect

“Words are the most malignant, the most treacherous possession of mankind.  They are saturated with the sorrows of all time.”

Ferdinand Porsche – 1875 – Designer

“I couldn’t find the sports car of my dreams, so I built it myself.”

Loren Eiseley – 1907 – Scientist

“Man is always marveling at what he has blown apart, never at what the universe has put together, and this is his limitation.”

Kitty Carlisle – 1910 – Musician

“My mother thought Hollywood was a den of iniquity, and people came to terrible bad ends there.”

Alan Ladd – 1913 – Actor

“Nobody’s strong enough to stand up under a floor of weak material.”

Dixie Lee Ray – 1914 – Politician

“The general public has long been divided into two parts, those who think science can do anything, and those who are afraid it will.”

Mort Walker – 1923 – Artist

“Laughter is the brush that sweeps away the cobwebs of your heart.”

Loren Eiseley (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Alison Lurie – 1926 – Novelist

“We can lie in the language of dress or try to tell the truth; but unless we are naked and bald, it is impossible to be silent.”

Hugh Sidey – 1927 – Journalist

“A sense of humor … is needed armor.  Joy in one’s heart and some laughter on ones lips is a sign that the person down deep has a pretty good grasp on life.”

Eileen Brennan – 1935 – Actress

“Actors are crazy or we wouldn’t be doing this.”

Eduardo Galeano – 1940 – Journalist

“We are all mortal until the first kiss and the second glass of wine.”

Al Jardine – 1942 – Musician

“Yes, my grandfather worked with Thomas Edison on the electric car, and he sold electric cars at the 1900 World’s Fair in Paris.”

Michael Huffington – 1947 – Politician

“In so many things, growth comes from adversity.”

Kjell Magne Bondevik – 1947 – Norwegian Statesman

“Knowledge of other people’s beliefs and ways of thinking must be used to build bridges, not to create conflicts.”

Dave Ramsey – 1960 – Author

“Credit is an ‘I love debt’ score.”

Malcolm Gladwell – 1963 – Author

“We don’t know where our first impressions come from or precisely what they mean, so we don’t always appreciate their fragility.”

William Eardley IV – 1964 – Public Servant

“Lord, bless me with the ability to achieve all that I can, and the wisdom to realize it doesn’t all have to be by tomorrow.”

Rachel Johnson – 1965 – Author

“Being boring is just wrong, isn’t it?  You wouldn’t have got anywhere being boring.”

Charlie Sheen – 1965 – Actor

“As kids we’re not taught how to deal with success; we’re taught how to deal with failure.  If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.  If at first you succeed, then what?”

Kiran Desai – 1971 – Author

“The publishing world is very timid.  Readers are much braver.”

Jeannie Finch – 1980 – Athlete

“There’s nothing better than working up a good sweat.”

Paz de la Huerta – 1984 – Actress

“I don’t ever wear makeup.  I steam my face.  I put hot water to open pores and cold water to close them.”

Shaun White – 1986 – Athlete

“The hardest thing about skateboarding is consistency.  The slightest flick of your foot or gust of wind can send your board flying, so it’s really anybody’s game out there.”

Albert Spalding (LOC) (Photo credit: The Library of Congress)

Abraham Tucker – 1705 – Philosopher

“Dwell upon the brightest parts in every prospect … and strive to be pleased with the present circumstances.”

Henry George – 1839 – Economist

“What has destroyed every previous civilization has been the tendency to the unequal distribution of wealth and power.”

George Robert Sims – 1847 – Journalist

“The way was long and weary, But gallantly they strode, A country lad and lassie, Along the heavy road.”

Al Spalding – 1850 – Athlete

“Two hours is about as long as any American can wait for the close of a baseball game, or anything else for that matter.”

Eugene Field – 1850 – Poet

“Here we have a baby.  It is composed of a bald head and a pair of lungs.”

Paul Bourget – 1852 – Novelist

“One must live the way one thinks or end up thinking the way one has lived.”

Hiram Johnson – 1866 – Politician

“The first casualty when war comes is truth.”

Bill Shankly – 1913 – Athlete

“Aim for the sky and you’ll reach the ceiling.  Aim for the ceiling and you’ll stay on the floor.”

Tom Glazer – 1914 – Musician

“Participation, I think, is one of the best methods of educating.”

Cleveland Amory – 1917 – Historian

“I can’t take a well-tanned person seriously.”

Alan K. Simpson – 1931 – Politician

“If you have integrity, nothing else matters.  If you don’t have integrity, nothing else matters.”

Andy Grove – 1936 – Businessman

“Success breeds complacency.  Complacency breeds failure.  Only the paranoid survive.”

Peter Ueberroth – 1937 – Businessman

“The integrity of the game is everything.”

Lynn Samuels – 1942 – Entertainer

“People think they’re getting objective information, but they’re not.  They’re getting news wrapped up in opinion.”

Terry Bradshaw – 1948 – Professional Football Player and Broadcaster

“I’m against people reading statements.  When you read a statement, I automatically take it as though you can’t talk, and it’s not real.”

Sharon Christa Corrigan McAuliffe (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Christa McAuliffe – 1948 – Teacher and Astronaut

“I touch the future.  I teach.”

Mark Harmon – 1951 – Actor

“How many times have you been on the freeway and had someone fly by you at 100 mph then end up two cars ahead of you at the off ramp?  What’s the point?”

Jimmy Connors – 1952 – Athlete

“Use it or lose it.”

Keanu Reeves – 1964 – Actor

“The simple act of paying attention can take you a long way.”

Salma Hayek – 1966 – Actress

“What is important is to believe in something so strongly that you’re never discouraged.”

Elizabeth Harrison Walker (Photo credit: Monroedb1)

William Cartwright – 1611 – Dramatist

“The fool inherits, but the wise must get.”

Marguerite Gardiner – 1789 – Writer

“Happiness consists not in having much, but in being content with little.”

Lydia Sigourney – 1791 – Poet

“The strength of a nation, especially a republican nation, is in the intelligent and well ordered homes of the people.”

Elizabeth Harrison – 1849 – Educator

“Those who are lifting the world upward and onward are those who encourage more than criticize.”

James J. Corbett – 1866 – Athlete

“Only those who have patience to do simple things perfectly ever acquire the skills to do difficult things easily.”

Kin Hubbord – 1868 – Journalist

“Don’t knock the weather; nine-tenths of the people couldn’t start a conversation if it didn’t change once in a while.”

Edgar Rice Burroughs – 1875 – Author

“Imagination is but another name for super intelligence.”

Andrei Platonov – 1899 – Writer

“What if we all suddenly get carried away thinking – who will be left to act?”

Walter Reuther – 1907 – Leader

“There is no greater calling than to serve your fellow men.  There is no greater contribution than to help the weak.  There is no greater satisfaction than to have done it well.”

Jacob Bronowski – 1908 – Scientist

“Every animal leaves traces of what it was; man alone leaves traces of what he created.”

Liz Carpenter – 1920 – Writer

“A major advantage of age is learning to accept people without passing judgment.”

Vittorio Gassman – 1922 – Actor

“Acting is not that far from mental disease:  An actor works on splitting his character into others.  It is like a kind of schizophrenia.”

Rocky Marciano – 1923 – Professional Boxer (Rocco Francis Marchegiano)

“I don’t want to be remembered as a beaten champion.”

Conway Twitty – 1933 – Musician

“Listen to advice, but follow your heart.”

Ann Richards – 1933 – Politician and Former Governor of Texas

“Teaching was the hardest work I had ever done, and it remains the hardest work I have done to date.”

Lily Tomlin – 1939 – Actress

“The trouble with being in the rat-race is that even if you win, you’re still a rat.”

Barry Gibb – 1946 – Musician

“The secret is to make sure your family comes before anything else, because no matter what you do you’ve got to come home.”

Dr. Phil McGraw – 1950 – Psychologist

“My father used to say, ‘You would worry less about what people think if you knew how little they did.'”

Timothy Zahn – 1951 – Writer

“Luck is merely an illusion, trusted by the ignorant and chased by the foolish.”

Gloria Estefan – 1957 – Singer

Indian model, actress, and cookbook author Padma Lakshmi (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

“The sad truth is that opportunity doesn’t knock twice.”

Dee Dee Myers – 1961 – Public Servant

“Having a sense of humor has served me more than it has hurt me – just in the sense that it has allowed me to keep my sanity.”

Grant-Lee Phillips – 1963 – Musician

“I’m always keen to head to where the greatest gravitation pull is tugging me.”

Padma Lakshmi – 1970 – Actress, Model, and Chef

“Jewelry should not upstage you.  I pick one hot point on my body that I’m going to highlight.  Let one area do the singing – you don’t want to hear three songs at once.”