![]() Speak when you are angry and you will make the finest speech you will ever regret. In 1962 the quip appeared in newspapers via the syndicated feature titled “Today’s Chuckle”, and no ascription was given: 1962 February 3, Aberdeen American-News (Aberdeen Daily News), Today’s Chuckle, Quote, Column 1, Aberdeen, South Dakota. Speak when you’re angry and you’ll make the best speech you ever regretted. In December 1958 the popular syndicated columnist Earl Wilson printed a version, but he did not present a source: 1958 December 2, Aberdeen American-News (Aberdeen Daily News), Earl Wilson’s New York, Quote, Column 5, Aberdeen, South Dakota. “Speak when you are angry, and you’ll make the best speech you’ll ever regret.” Jones”: 1957 July 18, The Geneva Times, Thought for Today (Saying in upper left corner), Quote, Column 1, Geneva, New York. The words were ascribed to someone named “Harry H. In July 1957 a Geneva, New York newspaper printed an instance in the upper left corner of the front page under the title “Thought For Today”. Speak when you’re angry and you’ll make the best speech you’ll ever regret. This mass-circulation periodical was an important nexus for disseminating quotations: 1956 September, Reader’s Digest, Volume 69, (Freestanding quotation at bottom of page), Quote, The Reader’s Digest Association, Pleasantville, New York. In September 1956 “The Reader’s Digest” printed the joke with an attribution of “Anonymous”. ![]() His best advice to contestants is: “If you speak when angry, you’ll make the best speech you’ll ever regret.” This was the earliest instance found as noted previously: QI hypothesizes that the show was “You Bet Your Life” which was hosted by Groucho. In 1954 a columnist reported that Groucho Marx spoke a version of the quip to a contestant on television. The above tale was thematically connected to the saying, but it did not contain the adage, and the humorous thrust was quite different. No sooner had the Son promised than he received a stinging blow from the paternal walking-stick, and by the time he had counted to seventy-five had the unhappiness to see the old man jump into a waiting cab and whirl away. Promise me that when next you are angry you will count one hundred before you move or speak.” “My boy,” said an aged Father to his fiery and disobedient Son, “a hot temper is the soil of remorse. A tale about a father and son presented the recommendation that an angry person should wait instead of taking inappropriate precipitate action however, this suggestion was comically undermined: 1899 (Copyright 1898), Fantastic Fables by Ambrose Bierce, Father and Son, Start, Quote, G. In 1899 “Fantastic Fables” by Ambrose Bierce was released, and it contained a collection of stories which undercut or subverted traditional moralistic advice. Here are additional selected citations in chronological order. The misattribution to Henry Ward Beecher was based on an incorrect reading of an entry in a 1977 quotation collection created by Laurence J. However, QI has examined multiple editions of this book and the quotation was absent. Oddly, a major reference work stated that the expression appeared in Bierce’s “The Cynic’s Word Book” of 1906 which is better known under its later title “The Devil’s Dictionary”. However, QI has found no substantive evidence that Bierce wrote or spoke this quotation. Groucho quips: “It takes a heap of spending to make a house a home.” His best advice to contestants is: “If you speak when angry, you’ll make the best speech you’ll ever regret.”Īmbrose Bierce did write a parody fable that was tangentially related to this theme, and a detailed citation for this short tale is given below. Boldface has been added: 1954 November 3, Greensboro Record, Inside TV by Eve Starr, Quote Page B3, Column 4, Greensboro, North Carolina. In June 1954 a column titled “Inside TV” by Eve Starr was published in a North Carolina newspaper, and Starr reported on two jokes told by Groucho Marx during his show. ![]() ![]() Quote Investigator: The earliest evidence located by QI points to a famous comedian who is rarely mentioned in conjunction with this saying. These words have been attributed to the preacher Henry Ward Beecher, the humorist Ambrose Bierce, and the quotation compiler Laurence J. Speak when you are angry and you will make the best speech you will ever regret. Here is an adage reflecting this insight: Jones? Anonymous?ĭear Quote Investigator: The rant of an enraged person often contains statements that necessitate contrite apologies later. Ambrose Bierce? Henry Ward Beecher? Laurence J. ![]()
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