Tag: Quote Of The Week

Muhammad Ali Quote Of The Week From Greg Bover

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

“A man who views the world the same at fifty as he did at twenty has wasted thirty years of his life.”
Muhammad Ali (1942-       )

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Born Cassius Marcellus Clay in Kentucky, Ali won the Olympic gold medal for light heavyweight boxing in 1960. He worked his way up to a title fight by 1964 and was the youngest challenger to take a title from a champ (Sonny Liston). A follower of Elijah Muhammad and the Nation of Islam, Ali was arrested and stripped of his title in 1967 for his refusal, as a conscientious objector, to be drafted during the Vietnam War. His conviction was overturned by the Supreme Court four years later. He went on to take the title twice more from Joe Frazier and George Foreman. He retired from the ring in 1981 and was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 1984, likely caused by repeated head trauma. Since then he has traveled extensively as a UN ambassador of peace and is active in promoting education and the defense of the Bill of Rights. George W. Bush awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2008.

Greg Bover

Theodore Roosevelt Quote Of The Week From Greg Bover

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

May 17, 2012
“Far and away the best prize that life offers is the chance to work hard at work worth doing.”

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Theodore Roosevelt, (1858 – 1919)
The 26th President of the United States, TR was born wealthy, but also sickly, suffering from asthma his entire life. To compensate, he embraced “the strenuous life” and was famed for his exuberance and activism. He was elected to the New York State Assembly one year after graduating from Harvard University, and became a force for reform in the Republican Party. He was Vice President to William McKinley and at 42 became the youngest person to hold the office of President when McKinley was assassinated in 1901. He is widely credited as the prime mover behind the completion of the Panama Canal, and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for negotiating an end to the Russo-Japanese War. A life-long naturalist, Roosevelt was essential in the creation of our National Park System. His refusal to shoot an American black bear that had been tied to a tree created a meme that lives on today in the stuffed Teddy Bear.

Greg Bover

Quote of the Week from Greg Bover

Posted on by God's Morning

“Remember, no matter where you go, there you are.”
Earl Mac Rauch,  from “The Adventures of Buckaroo Bansai Across the 8th Dimension”

Not much biographic information is available for Rauch, a novelist and screenwriter who, in addition to the 1984 sci-fi farce Buckaroo Bansai (sic), also wrote New York, New York and A Stranger is Watching, but his quote reminds us that it is not possible to escape from one’s self.

 Greg Bover

Gregory R. Bover
VP Operations, Project Manager
C. B. Fisk, Inc
978 283 1909
www.cbfisk.com

Anonymous Quote of The Week From Greg Bover

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

Dear Joey,

I think this one may have flown under the radar last week. I know there’s no accompanying bio, but it was too good a quote to pass up.

"If you think you are too small to be effective, you have never been in the dark with a mosquito" – Anonymous

Regards, Gregory R. Bover

Søren Kierkegaard Quote of The Week From Greg Bover

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

“Anxiety is the dizziness of freedom.”
Søren Kierkegaard  (1813- 1855)

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Often described as the Father of Existentialism, Kierkegaard, a Dane, was highly critical of the established church in his native country, finding it more concerned with politics than with the divine. During his short life he kept a 7,000 page journal in which his philosophy and theology are minutely explained. Kierkegaard observed that self-examination is the only road to self-awareness. His insistence that one should tirelessly question for oneself how best to live influenced philosophers from Camus to Heidegger, Sartre, and Niebuhr.  

Greg Bover

Robin Williams Quote of The Week From Greg Bover

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

“God gave men both a penis and a brain, but only enough blood to run one at a time.”
Robin Williams (1952-     )

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A Chicago native, Williams attended Claremont McKenna College and the Juilliard School, breaking into television as the alien Mork on Happy Days. Mork was such a popular character that the spin-off Mork and Mindy ran four years providing Williams with the perfect vehicle for his unparalleled mimicry and improvisational impersonations.

A veteran of dozens of film roles ranging from Peter Pan to the deranged killer in Insomnia, Williams received an Academy award for his portrayal of a Harvard professor in Good Will Hunting, as well as several Emmys, Golden Globes and other awards.

Williams continues to perform stand-up comedy and is active in support of myriads of charities, some connected to his battles with substance abuse. Thrice married, the quote may reflect self-awareness of his own tendencies toward promiscuity.

Greg Bover

Sir Terence David John Quote of The Week From Greg Bover

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

“Build a man a fire, and he’ll be warm for a day. Set a man on fire, and he’ll be warm for the rest of his life.”

Sir Terence David John “Terry” Pratchett, (1948 -     )

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Knighted in 2009 for his contributions to literature, English fantasy and science fiction writer Pratchett is among the most widely read authors in western popular culture. Known primarily for his Discworld series, he also has a long history of collaborations with other authors including Neil Gaiman, (Good Omens) and Larry Niven, (Rainbow Mars). His erudite and witty style is flavored by a solid knowledge of astronomy and physics. In 2009 Pratchett announced that he was suffering from early onset Alzheimer’s disease, and has been active in the search for a cure.

Greg Bover

General Omar Nelson Bradley Quote of The Week From Greg Bover

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

"We are given one life and the decision is ours whether to wait for circumstances to make up our mind or whether to act, and in acting, to live"

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General Omar Nelson Bradley (1891-1983)
Among the most intellectual men ever to command the United States Armed Forces, Bradley graduated from West Point just before WWI, in the same class as Dwight Eisenhower. He returned there to teach mathematics between the wars, and then worked at the War Department for George Marshall, eventually rising to command the 82ndAirborne at the outbreak of WWII. Sent to North Africa in overall command by Eisenhower, he moved to London in 1943 to help plan the Normandy Invasion. Later in the war he became embroiled in the political tussle between Montgomery and Patton and was blamed for reverses associated with the Battle of the Bulge.

After the war, Bradley was promoted to Army Chief of Staff and then the first Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff by President Truman, and later NATO Commander. He was influential in the dismissal of Douglas MacArthur as the head of the United States forces in Korea, and in the policies that resulted in the Korean stalemate. Active in industry during his retired life, Bradley was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Ford in 1971.

Greg Bover

George Eliot Quote of The Week from Greg Bover

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

“It’s never too late to be who you might have been.”
Mary Anne Evans, aka George Eliot (1819-1880)

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Among the finest novelists of the Victorian Age, Evans chose a masculine pen name in order that her work would be taken more seriously by the male-dominated literati, and to keep her private life, including a twenty year relationship with a married man, private. Her novels Adam Bede, The Mill on the Floss, Silas Marner, and especially Middlemarch, are regarded as masterful descriptions of life in provincial England with great insight into the psychological drama of everyday life.

Cyril Connolly Quote of The Week From Greg Bover

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

“Better to write for yourself and have no public than to write for the public and have no self.”
Cyril Connolly (1903-1974)

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An Eton educated literary critic, Connolly was for many years the editor of Horizon, the influential English magazine on prose. He was well traveled, thrice married, and hobnobbed with many of the great literary lights of his generation, but never attained the success as a fiction writer that he desired.

Greg Bover

Norman Vincent Peale Quote of The Week From Greg Bover

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

“Formulate and stamp indelibly on your mind a mental picture of yourself as succeeding. Hold this picture tenaciously. Never permit it to fade. Your mind will seek to develop the picture…Do not build up obstacles in your imagination.”

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Norman Vincent Peale (1898 – 1993)

Author of the popular book The Power of Positive Thinking, in 1952, Peale was pastor of the Marble Collegiate Church in New York for more than fifty years. In his long running radio and television program, The Art of Living, and his many books, magazine articles, and sermons he tirelessly preached that the development of right thinking was the key to a good life. Though his opposition to John Kennedy’s candidacy on the grounds of Kennedy’s Catholicism sullied his own reputation, he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1984 by Ronald Reagan.

Greg Bover

Lily Tomlin Quote of The Week From Greg Bover

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

“If truth is beauty, how come no one has their hair done in the library?”
Mary Jean (Lily) Tomlin (1939-     )

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Detroit born comedian and actress Tomlin got her first big break in 1969 as a member of Rowan and Martin’s Laugh-In where she developed long-running characters such as Ernestine, the telephone operator, and Edith Ann, the wise and plain spoken five-year-old. She went on to create memorable roles in movies including “All of Me”, “Nine to Five” and “Short Cuts.” She was nominated for an Academy Award for her role in Altman’s “Nashville”, and has received numerous awards for her Broadway and recorded work, including four Emmys, a Tony, and a Grammy .

Greg Bover

Mae West Quote of The Week from Greg Bover

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

December 2, 2011
“I’m all for restraint, as long as it doesn’t go too far.”
Mary Jane (Mae) West (1893- 1980)

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From her beginnings in vaudeville, West moved on to Broadway, writing, directing and starring in the 1920’s hit play Sex for which she was arrested and jailed on morals charges, launching a life-long battle with censorship. Her film career began in the thirties with memorable roles in Night after Night, I’m No Angel, and Diamond Lil. West often wrote or rewrote her own dialogue featuring her penchant for double entendre while up-staging a long string of leading men, including Cary Grant, Randolph Scott, and W.C. Fields. She made no films from the Second World War until 1970 when she appeared in Gore Vidal’s camp hit Myra Breckenridge. Inflatable life jackets are still referred to by her name for their resemblance to her statuesque form.

Greg Bover

Carrie Fisher Quote of The Week From Greg Bover

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

    “Holding on to a resentment is like drinking poison and waiting for the other person to die.”

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Carrie Fisher (1956-    )
Born to Debbie Reynolds and Eddie Fisher, one of Hollywood’s golden postwar couples who messily divorced when she was two, the actress, novelist, lecturer, and screenwriter is perhaps best know for her portrayal of Princess Leia in the early Star Wars movies. She is thought of as one of the smartest people in the film industry and has had a less well-know career as a script doctor and writer. Her novel Postcards from the Edge and her memoir Wishful Drinking detail her battles with substance abuse and eating disorders. The Emmy Award winning Fisher continues to tour as a lecturer and appears frequently on television (30 Rock, Sex in the City, etc.)

Greg Bover

Steven Wright Quote of the Week From Greg Bover

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

“Last year I went fishing with Salvador Dali. He was using a dotted line. He caught every other fish.”
Steven Wright 1955-

Although born in New York, comedian, actor and writer Steven Wright is a rabid Sox fan. Known for his lethargic voice and deadpan delivery of ironic, philosophical and sometimes nonsensical jokes and one-liners, Wright grew up in Burlington, (as did Amy Poehler). He attended Emerson College, (with Dennis Leary) and began his stand up career around Harvard Square.

Greg Bover

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Kin Hubbard Quote of The Week From Greg Bover

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

"There are two ways to handle a woman, and nobody knows either of them."
Frank McKinney (Kin) Hubbard (1868-1930)

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Midwestern humorist, cartoonist, and writer known best for his political commentary, Hubbard was a high school dropout who said his goal in life was to own a circus. He worked briefly as a silhouette artist and attended art school for a short time before beginning cartoon work for the Indianapolis News.  For 25 years he drew the acclaimed cartoon “Abe Martin of Brown County” which went into syndication and made him nationally known. Will Rogers cited Hubbard as an influence and called him the greatest humorist of his time. Another Hubbard comment on sexual dimorphism: “Boys will be boys, and so will a lot of middle-aged men.”

Greg Bover

Honoré de Balzac Quote of The Week From Greg Bover

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

October 27, 2011
"Behind every great fortune there is a crime."
HonorĂ© de Balzac (1799 – 1850)

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Balzac is often considered the founder of European Realist Literature. His attention to detail and his multi-faceted characters have served as an inspiration to generations of writers, including Dickens, Dostoyevsky, Proust, Poe, Faulkner, Kerouac, and Calvino. His masterwork, Le Comédie Humaine, or The Human Comedy, is a series of sketches of all aspects of life, often presented minute by minute. Although a conservative royalist in his politics, Balzac understood the frustrations of the down-trodden and the revolutionaries in the great social upheavals of his later life.

Greg Bover

William Boyd (Bill) Watterson Quote of The Week From Greg Bover

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

“There is not enough time to do all the nothing we want to do.”
William Boyd (Bill) Watterson (1932-   )

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A graduate of Kenyon College with a degree in political science, Watterson was a political cartoonist and ad designer before creating his award winning comic strip Calvin and Hobbes in 1985. Named for the Protestant reformer John Calvin and the philosopher Thomas Hobbes, the strip was hugely popular until 1995 when he stopped drawing it, maintaining he had said all he wanted to say. Famously reclusive, (hence no picture), he refused to allow the strip to be merchandised, and grants no interviews.

Bill Waterson had the Occupy Movement summed up decades ago in this strip-

(click for the larger version)

calvinandhobbesoccupy

Epicurus Quote of The Week From Greg Bover

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

October 13, 2011
“Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; but instead remember that what you have now was once among the things you only hoped for.”

Epicurus (341 BC – 270 BC)

click photo for the Epicurus wikipedia page

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Born on the Greek island of Samos, Epicurus believed that the goal of one’s life should be happiness, peace and freedom from fear. Often misunderstood as a sort of hedonism because of similarities in a pursuit of pleasure, Epicureanism teaches instead that overindulgence likely brings pain. The greatest pleasure is to be gained in the enjoyment of friends, the simple blessings of food, and the living of the quiet, useful life.

(I decided to quote Epicurus this week because I was struck by the similarity to what Donna wrote earlier. Has anyone ever seen them in the same place at the same time? Hmm.)

Greg Bover

W. Robertson Davies Quote of the Week From Greg Bover

Posted on by Joey Ciaramitaro

October 6, 2011
“The world is full of people whose notion of a satisfactory future is, in fact, a return to the idealised past.”

W. Robertson Davies (1913-1995)

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The son of a Canadian senator and media mogul, Davies received a degree in literature from Oxford University, then returned to Canada to a career of writing essays, plays, criticism, and especially novels, including his widely celebrated The Fifth Business, a Jungian exploration of magical realism and the world of the spirit, which he followed with The Manticore and World of Wonders, forming his much admired Deptford Trilogy. His stylish literary output continued with the Toronto Trilogy, (The Rebel Angels, What’s Bred in the Bone, and The Lyre of Orpheus.)  Davies was also a sought-after speaker and won awards for his literate humor. He was a finalist for the Booker Prize in 1991, but died before he could complete the last book of a third trilogy.

Greg Bover