Many historical quotes that we’ve heard in our lifetime are so famous that we often don’t feel the need to question them. But, believe it or not, many quotes we think are accurate actually aren’t, and weren’t even said by who we think they were. From Neil Armstrong to Marilyn Monroe, some of history’s most well-known icons have been credited with words they didn’t even say. Some are simply just misquotes, others have been exaggerated, and a few are complete lies. We’ve gathered 21 well-known quotes that aren’t as accurate as we thought.
#1 Neil Armstrong
Due to some glitchy audio, there has been much debate about what Neil Armstrong said as he became the first human to step onto the Moon during the Apollo 11 mission. For the longest time, people have assumed he said, “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” However, Armstrong himself confirmed that what he actually said during the live broadcast all those years ago was, “That’s one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.”
Image source: NASA Photo ID: S69-31741 – Program: Apollo XI, American Philosophical Society
#2 Marilyn Monroe
While the phrase, “Well-Behaved Women Seldom Make History,” has often been attributed to Marilyn Monroe, she wasn’t the one who said it at all. The quote came from Harvard history professor and author Laurel Thatcher Ulrich. Monroe can actually be credited with saying, “If I’d observed all the rules, I’d never have got anywhere,” a quote with a pretty similar meaning to Ulrich’s.
Image source: New York Sunday News, Snopes
#3 Queen Victoria
It has been a longstanding rumor that Queen Victoria said, “We are not amused,” in response to a dirty joke she heard from an aide. As it turns out, the rumor was anything but true and was allegedly made up by someone at court. The queen’s granddaughter confirmed this in a 1976 interview.
Image source: John Jabez Edwin Mayall, History Extra
#4 Martin Luther King Jr
You may want to pause before posting the famous quote by Martin Luther King Jr, which starts like this, “I mourn the loss of thousands of precious lives, but I will not rejoice in the passing of one, not even an enemy.” Interestingly enough, this phrase in particular wasn’t said by King, but the rest of the quote was. Turns out, a 24-year-old’s initial thoughts on a Facebook status got mixed up with King’s actual words from his book, Strength to Love.
Image source: Yoichi Okamoto, The Atlantic
#5 Henry David Thoreau
It’s long been assumed that philosopher Henry David Thoreau wrote in his book Walden, “Go confidently in the direction of your dreams! live the life you’ve imagined.” Turns out, the real quote is actually, “…If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours.”
Image source: Benjamin D. Maxham, Goodreads
#6 Albert Einstein
The quote “A little knowledge is a dangerous thing” has long been attributed to Albert Einstein. As it turns out, not only did Eistein not say those words, but the quote itself isn’t accurate at all. Alexander Pope, an English poet who coined the phrase, actually said, “A little learning is a dangerous thing.”
Image source: Arthur Sasse, Professor Buzzkill
#7 Paul Revere
It’s a common misconception that Paul Revere was heard yelling, “The British are coming!” during his 1775 ride, where he delivered warnings to colonists about British Troops approaching. In reality, to keep his mission under wraps, it’s said that he actually yelled, “The Regulars are coming” instead.
Image source: John Singleton Copley, Biography
#8 Anthony Hopkins As H. Lecter
The iconic line “Hello, Clarice” is never actually said by Anthony Hopkins’s character Hannibal Lecter in the 1991 film ‘The Silence of the Lambs’. In the movie, the greeting Lecter actually says to Jodie Foster’s character is “Good morning, Clarice,” which is far less chilling than the former.
Image source: © Oliver Mark / CC BY-SA 4.0, Mental Floss
#9 Mark Twain
The famous line, “The only two certainties in life are death and taxes,” has often been attributed to writer and humorist Mark Twain. However, this iconic phrase actually dates back to the 1700s, which is over a century before Twain was even born. As it so happens, two lesser-known writers, Christopher Bullock and Edward Ward, are responsible for two different variations of the quote.
Image source: A.F. Bradley, New York, History Hit
#10 George Washington
Although there’s no evidence that a young George Washington said the words “I cannot tell a lie” after an incident involving his family’s cherry tree, it remains an enduring myth. It’s believed that author Mason Locke Weems completely invented the story to promote Washington’s image as an honest and virtuous leader in a biography written after his passing.
Image source: Gilbert Stuart, Mount Vernon
#11 Jack Swigert
It has long been believed that astronaut Jack Swigert said the words, “Houston, we have a problem”, during the Apollo 13 mission on April 13, 1970. This is because the spaceship’s commander, Jim Lovell, played by Tom Hanks, says the famous line in the 1995 film Apollo 13. But the truth is, Swigert really said, “Okay, Houston, we’ve had a problem here.”
#12 William Shatner As Captain Kirk
The well-known quote, “Beam Me Up, Scotty,” wasn’t said by William Shatner as Captain Kirk in Star Trek, but it’s a common misconception. In reality, Shatner did say similar ones, such as “Scotty, beam us up” or “Beam me up,” but due to spoofs and the title of Shatner’s memoir, the misquote gained popularity anyway.
Image source: NBC Television, Wikipedia
#13 Darth Vader
What Darth Vader says to Luke Skywalker in their famous fight scene in Star Wars: Episode V, The Empire Strikes Back, has long been misremembered by fans. Darth Vader actually says, “No, I am your father,” and not “Luke, I am your father” like everyone believes. The popular misquote comes from a large number of Star Wars fans sharing the wrong line over the years.
Image source: Sam Howzit, Today
#14 Julius Caesar
In reality, Julius Caesar didn’t say the phrase “Et tu, Brute?” literally meaning “and you, Brutus?” or “also you, Brutus?” as his life was being taken. Supposedly, it was just a phrase made up by William Shakespeare for his play titled Julius Caesar. According to Roman historian Suetonius, Caesar spoke nothing at the time, while others claim he said the Greek phrase, Kai su, teknon, meaning, “You too, young man.
Image source: Raffaello Schiaminossi, Wikipedia
#15 Marie Antoinette
As it turns out, the notorious phrase “Let them eat cake,” that has long been attributed to Marie Antoinette, was likely never said by her at all. Historians dug up some evidence in Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s Confessions from the 1760s that another “great princess” had coined the notorious phrase long before Marie Antoinette became queen.
Image source: Johann Michael Militz, Wikipedia
#16 Admiral Horatio Nelson
While it’s widely thought that Admiral Horatio Nelson said, “I see no ships,” as he famously ignored signals from his commanding officer during the Battle of Copenhagen, this isn’t accurate. In reality, his actual words were, “I have a right to be blind sometimes. I really do not see the signal.”
Image source: Lemuel Francis Abbott, History Snob
#17 Henry Morton Stanley
While it’s true that explorer and journalist Henry Morton Stanley found missionary David Livingstone living in Ujiji, Tanzania, it has long been debated whether Stanley said, “Dr. Livingstone, I presume?” when they first met. The debate mostly comes from the fact that neither of the men mentioned the statement in their accounts of the encounter. In fact, it’s widely believed that Stanley just made it up.
Image source: Stanislaw Julian Ostrorog, Wikipedia
#18 Andrew Jackson
While Andrew Jackson was a prominent 19th-century U.S. Army general, the idea that he said the quote “Don’t fire ’til you see the whites of their eyes” is largely false. The phrase actually dates back to the American Revolutionary period and was coined by Colonel William Prescott during the 1775 Battle of Bunker Hill.
Image source: Edward Dalton Marchant, Boston Tea Party Ship
#19 Winston Churchill
During his 1940 speech to the House of Commons on Britain’s fight against Germany, Winston Churchill didn’t exactly say, “We shall fight them on the beaches”, like most people believe. He actually said, “We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender.”
Image source: Central Office of Information, International Churchill Society
#20 Theodore Roosevelt
President Theodore Roosevelt isn’t only famous for being one of America’s favorite presidents, but also for the expression “Walk softly but carry a big stick.” However, this isn’t really what he said. The actual expression he was fond of and used frequently was “speak softly and carry a big stick: you will go far.”
Image source: Pach Brothers, History Snob
#21 Tom Hanks As Forrest Gump
While some people think Tom Hanks’ character, Forrest Gump, says, “Life is like a box of chocolates,” what he actually says is, “My momma always said, ‘Life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get.” Gump’s line is said in the past tense since he’s quoting his mother’s past words.
Image source: Thank You (25 Millions ) views, Filmakers Alliance
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