Investigating the origins of American words, names, quotations and phrases. Over 41,000 entries.
"Do you solemnly swear or affirm that you will tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you god?" is a sworn oath. Politicians are often said to have a problem…
"Government/Washington does not solve problems -- it subsidizes them" is a line that Ronald Reagan (1911-2004) used many times as governor of California and while campaigning for…
"A bargain is usually something you can't use at a price you can't resist" (or, in a later form, "A bargain is something you don't need at a price you can't…
"Efficiency is a highly developed form of laziness" is a saying that has been printed on many gift items, such as T-shirts, hats and buttons. The lazy person wants to be efficient so he…
"Teaching is the greatest act of optimism" has been credited to Colleen Wilcox, a Santa Clara County Superintendent of Schools for 14 years. It's not known when Wilcox said the…
Clostridium perfringens has been nicknamed the "cafeteria germ" since at least 1983. The germ grows when large quantities of food are prepared long before being consumed and are left out…
The movie Forrest Gump (1994) contained the famous line: "My momma always said, 'Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get.'" There have been…
McDonald's fast food restaurants introduced the "CBO" (cheddar-bacon-onion) sandwich in 2012. The sandwich can be made with either meat or chicken. The "CBO" was introduced…
The Simon R. Guggenheim Museum, at 1071 Fifth Avenue, was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright (1867-1959) and completed just after his death. The design of the museum caused much controversy. Reactions…
The first "twelve step program" was used by Alcoholics Anonymous in the 1930s. "The 12-step chocoholics program: Never be more than 12 steps away from chocolate" is a jocular…
Milton Snavely Hershey (1857-1945) established the Lancaster Caramel Company in 1885; he visited Chicago's World Columbian Exposition in 1893 and became fascinated with the German…
"Nuts just take up space where chocolate ought to be" is a jocular saying indicating that the speaker is a chocolate lover. The saying has been cited in print since 1999 and is of unknown…
"There is nothing better than a friend, unless it is a friend with chocolate" is a saying that has been printed on many gift items The saying was created by Linda Grayson's Printwick…
Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865) said many famous quotes, but has many more quotations falsely attributed to him. The Internet (invented over 100 years after Lincoln's death) is full of the real…
"Hasta la vista" is Spanish for "see you later." "Hasta la vista, baby" became a famous catchphrase of the movie Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), starring Arnold…
"The average man thinks he isn't" is from the New York City humor magazine The Judge in 1927. "The average person thinks he isn't" has been credited to Father Larry…
A "ganjapreneur" (ganja + entrepreneur) is a capitalist who sells ganja (marijuana) legally to medical marijuana patients. "Colorado's Marijuana Economy: An Explosion of…
The writer Mark Twain (1835-1910) wrote in 1897: "In the first place God made idiots. This was for practice. Then He made School Boards. — Pudd'nhead Wilson's New Calendar."…
A "mediacrat" is a member of the media who decides the information that the public will consume. "Mediacrat" has been cited in print since at least 1974. The term…
The term "mediacracy" (media + -cracy), meaning the rule of media, was coined in the book title Mediacracy: American Parties and Politics in the Communications Age (1975) by Kevin…