"That the automobile has practically reached the limit of its development is suggested by the fact that during the past year no improvements of a radical nature have been introduced." -- Scientific American, January 2, 1909
"The concept is interesting and well-formed, but in order to earn better than a "C," the idea must be feasible." -- A Yale University management professor in response to Fred Smith's paper proposing reliable overnight delivery service. (Smith went on to found Federal Express.)
"A cookie store is a bad idea. Besides, the market research reports say America likes crispy cookies, not soft and chewy cookies like you make." -- Response to Debbi Fields's idea of starting Mrs. Fields' Cookies
"Heavier-than-air flying machines are impossible." -- Lord Kelvin, British mathematician, physicist, and president of the British Royal Society, circa 1895
"[Airplanes] are interesting toys but of no military value." -- Marechal Ferdinand Foch, professor of strategy and commandant of Superieure de Guerre, 1911
"The thought of being President frightens me. I do not think I want the job." -- Ronald Reagan, Governor of California, 1973
"By 1980 all 'power' (electric, atomic, solar) is likely to be virtually costless." -- Henry Luce, Founder of Time, Life, and Fortune magazines in 1956
"A few decades hence, energy may be free--just like the unmetered air." -- John von Neuman, American Scientist in 1956
"By 1980 we will be self-sufficient and will not need to rely on foreign enemies . . . uh, energy." -- Richard Nixon, 1973
"With over 50 foreign cars already on sale here, the Japanese auto industry isn't likely to carve out a big slice of the U.S. market for itself." -- Business Week, 8/2/68
"I would have made a good pope." -- Richard Nixon, 1980
"The French people are incapable of regicide." -- King Louis XVI of France, circa 1789, (he was convicted of treason and beheaded in 1793)
"The wireless music box has no imaginable commercial value. Who would pay for a message sent to nobody in particular?" -- David Sarnoff's associates in response to his urgings for investment in the radio in the 1920s
"The cinema is little more than a fad. It's canned drama. What audiences really want to see is flesh and blood on the stage." -- Charlie Chaplin, circa 1916
"[Louis Pasteur's] theory of germs is a ridiculous fiction." -- Pierre Pachet, Professor of Physiology at Toulouse 1872
"I have traveled the length and breadth of this country and talked with the best people in business administration. I can assure you on the highest authority that data processing is a fad and won't last out the year." -- The editor in charge of business books at Prentice-Hall, responding to Karl V. Karstrom (a junior editor who recommended a manuscript about data processing), circa 1957.
"You'll never work again!" -- Allan Williams (John Lennon's first manager) to Lennon in 1961 after a fight with his client.
"The concept is interesting and well-formed, but in order to earn better than a "C," the idea must be feasible." -- A Yale University management professor in response to Fred Smith's paper proposing reliable overnight delivery service. (Smith went on to found Federal Express.)
"A cookie store is a bad idea. Besides, the market research reports say America likes crispy cookies, not soft and chewy cookies like you make." -- Response to Debbi Fields's idea of starting Mrs. Fields' Cookies
"Heavier-than-air flying machines are impossible." -- Lord Kelvin, British mathematician, physicist, and president of the British Royal Society, circa 1895
"[Airplanes] are interesting toys but of no military value." -- Marechal Ferdinand Foch, professor of strategy and commandant of Superieure de Guerre, 1911
"The thought of being President frightens me. I do not think I want the job." -- Ronald Reagan, Governor of California, 1973
"By 1980 all 'power' (electric, atomic, solar) is likely to be virtually costless." -- Henry Luce, Founder of Time, Life, and Fortune magazines in 1956
"A few decades hence, energy may be free--just like the unmetered air." -- John von Neuman, American Scientist in 1956
"By 1980 we will be self-sufficient and will not need to rely on foreign enemies . . . uh, energy." -- Richard Nixon, 1973
"With over 50 foreign cars already on sale here, the Japanese auto industry isn't likely to carve out a big slice of the U.S. market for itself." -- Business Week, 8/2/68
"I would have made a good pope." -- Richard Nixon, 1980
"The French people are incapable of regicide." -- King Louis XVI of France, circa 1789, (he was convicted of treason and beheaded in 1793)
"The wireless music box has no imaginable commercial value. Who would pay for a message sent to nobody in particular?" -- David Sarnoff's associates in response to his urgings for investment in the radio in the 1920s
"The cinema is little more than a fad. It's canned drama. What audiences really want to see is flesh and blood on the stage." -- Charlie Chaplin, circa 1916
"[Louis Pasteur's] theory of germs is a ridiculous fiction." -- Pierre Pachet, Professor of Physiology at Toulouse 1872
"I have traveled the length and breadth of this country and talked with the best people in business administration. I can assure you on the highest authority that data processing is a fad and won't last out the year." -- The editor in charge of business books at Prentice-Hall, responding to Karl V. Karstrom (a junior editor who recommended a manuscript about data processing), circa 1957.
"You'll never work again!" -- Allan Williams (John Lennon's first manager) to Lennon in 1961 after a fight with his client.
