RKMBs Forums .::Important::. off topic and offensive posts The Revenge of Frank Burns.

During this period of enormous growth, businesses entering the Internet arena scrambled to find economic models that work. Free services supported by advertising shifted some of the direct costs away from the consumer--temporarily. Services such as Delphi offered free web pages, chat rooms, and message boards for community building. Online sales have grown rapidly for such products as books and music CDs and computers, but the profit margins are slim when price comparisons are so easy, and public trust in online security is still shaky. Business models that have worked well are portal sites, that try to provide everything for everybody, and live auctions. AOL's acquisition of Time-Warner was the largest merger in history when it took place and shows the enormous growth of Internet business! The stock market has had a rocky ride, swooping up and down as the new technology companies, the dot.com's encountered good news and bad. The decline in advertising income spelled doom for many dot.coms, and a major shakeout and search for better business models took place by the survivors.


A current trend with major implications for the future is the growth of high speed connections. 56K modems and the providers who supported them spread widely for a while, but this is the low end now. 56K is not fast enough to carry multimedia, such as sound and video except in low quality. But new technologies many times faster, such as cablemodems and digital subscriber lines (DSL) are predominant now.

Wireless has grown rapidly in the past few years, and travellers search for the wi-fi "hot spots" where they can connect while they are away from the home or office. Many airports, coffee bars, hotels and motels now routinely provide these services, some for a fee and some for free.

A next big growth area is the surge towards universal wireless access, where almost everywhere is a "hot spot". Municipal wi-fi or city-wide access, wiMAX offering broader ranges than wi-fi, EV-DO, 4g, and other formats will joust for dominance in the USA in the years ahead. The battle is both economic and political.

Another trend that is rapidly affecting web designers is the growth of smaller devices to connect to the Internet. Small tablets, pocket PCs, smart phones, ebooks, game machines, and even GPS devices are now capable of tapping into the web on the go, and many web pages are not designed to work on that scale.


As the Internet has become ubiquitous, faster, and increasingly accessible to non-technical communities, social networking and collaborative services have grown rapidly, enabling people to communicate and share interests in many more ways. Sites like Facebook, Twitter, Linked-In, YouTube, Flickr, Second Life, delicious, blogs, wikis, and many more let people of all ages rapidly share their interests of the moment with others everywhere.

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"Just the facts, ma'am."
This, the best known quote from the Jack Webb series Dragnet, was never said by Sgt. Friday in any of the Dragnet radio or television series. The quote was, however, adopted in the 1987 Dragnet pseudo-parody film starring Dan Aykroyd and Tom Hanks in which Aykroyd played Sgt. Joe Friday.
Correct versions:
"All we want are the facts, ma'am."
"All we know are the facts, ma'am."

"I don't think we're in Kansas anymore, Toto.", Dorothy Gale in The Wizard of Oz (played by Judy Garland)
This phrase was never uttered by the character. What she really said was Toto, I've a feeling we're not in Kansas any more.

“Nice guys finish last.” Leo Durocher (1906–1991), US baseball manager.
As reported in the biography, Nice Guys Finish Last, (by Leo Durocher, with Ed Linn, Simon & Schuster, 1975), Durocher’s remark was his reply to being asked his opinion of the 1946 New York Giants. He actually said “Take a look at them. All nice guys. They’ll finish last. Nice guys – finish last.” Elision of the subordinate conjunction in the final sentence turned an evaluation into a declaration that nice people are doomed to failure.

“The two most common elements in the Universe are Hydrogen and Stupidity.” Harlan Ellison (born May 27, 1934), US author.
Although stated by Ellison in a non-fiction essay in the mid-1960s, this quote has been frequently misattributed to Frank Zappa. In Zappa's autobiography, The Real Frank Zappa Book (1989), on page 239, Zappa does make a similar comment: "Some scientists claim that hydrogen, because it is so plentiful, is the basic building block of the universe. I dispute that. I say there is more stupidity than hydrogen, and that is the basic building block of the universe."

Water, water everywhere and not a drop to drink.
A misquotation from the poem “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” by Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1834).
Actual quote: Water, water, every where, / And all the boards did shrink; / Water, water, every where, / Nor any drop to drink.

Luke, I am Your Father – Darth Vader in Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
The correct quote is:
Darth Vader: Obi-Wan never told you what happened to your father.
Luke Skywalker: He told me enough! He told me you killed him!
Darth Vader: No. I am your father.
Luke Skywalker: No... that's not true! That's impossible!
Possibly from the movie Tommy Boy

"The Celestial Kingdom is so great that if you were able to see it you'd kill yourself just to get there..." – Joseph Smith the LDS (Mormon) first prophet
This is a common tale told in Mormon sermons. It is intended to inspire the parishioners into understanding glory of the Lowest kingdom of heaven, therefore inspiring the listener to wonder the glory of the Terrestrial Kingdom and the Celestial Kingdom
External Research on the subject and possible origins of the quote.

"Fe-Fi-Fo-Fum, I smell the blood of Englishman, Be him alive or be he dead, I'll grind his bones to make my bread."
Should this be quoting from Joseph Jacobs' English Fairy Tales it should say "Fe-Fi-Fo-Fum, I smell the blood of Englishman, Be him alive or be he dead, I'll have his bones to grind my bread." but of course, most people aren't trying to.

"Mirror, mirror, on the wall..." – The Queen in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
The correct quote is "Magic mirror on the wall” (followed by "who is the fairest one of all?" and, later in the film, "who now is the fairest one of all?") The misquotation does however echo the original Grimm "Spieglein, Spieglein, an der Wand, Wer ist die Schönste im ganzen Land?" (but the story existed before Grimm).

"'Step into my parlor,' said the spider to the fly."
Actual quote: "Will you walk into my parlor?" said the spider to the fly" from "The Spider and the Fly".
Also referenced on the song "Spider to the Fly" by the Paper Chase

"If you build it, they will come"
Actual quote: "If you build it, he will come" from Field of Dreams.
Possibly a confusion of the Wayne's World 2 quote "If you book them, they will come." Said by the spirit of Jim Morrison.

"A rose by any other name smells just as sweet."
Actual quote: "What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other word would smell as sweet."
The quote is found in Act II, scene ii of William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet – the well-known "Balcony Scene" in which Juliet declares that it is but Romeo's name that is the crime of their passion.
Captain Kirk misquotes the line in the original Star Trek series episode "Is There In Truth No Beaut

Only the Dead have seen the end of War.
Attributed to Plato, but actually written by George Santayana in his The Life of Reason (1953). It was first misquoted in one of retired general Douglas MacArthur's farewell speeches and then crept into popular use.

I am the devil, and I have come to do the devil's work.
Usually misattributed to Charles Manson, in regard to the murders at the home of Sharon Tate. Manson was not present at any of the murders known to have been committed by his followers. The actual phrase, though not as said above, was uttered by Charles "Tex" Watson to Wojciech "Voytek" Frykowski.
Actual quote: "I'm the devil, I'm here to do the devil's business. Give me all your money.

I'm out of order? You're out of order! This whole court's out of order!
Actual quote: "You're out of order! You're out of order! The whole trial is out of order! They're out of order!"
Character of Arthur Kirkland in ...And Justice for All in response to Judge Rayford saying "Mr. Kirkland, you are out of order."

Well, here's another fine mess you've gotten me into
Attributed to Oliver Hardy, and often said after another one of Stan Laurel's mistakes.
The actual quote was "Well, here's another nice mess you've gotten me into!", which was said in the 1930's short The Hardy Murder Case although there were several variations in subsequent films. The short which followed The Hardy Murder Case was Another Fine Mess, which is presumably the source.
Ray Stevens later recorded a song that quoted "Here's another fine mess you've gotten me into / another fine mess, ah well, what else is new."

Hello, Clarice.
This line, while occasionally used in parody of the film The Silence of the Lambs, was never once used in the film itself. However, Anthony Hopkins's character, Hannibal Lecter, does at one point utter a similar phrase of "Good evening, Clarice." On the other hand in the sequel Hannibal, when the doctor answers detective Pazzi's cell phone, just before he pushes him off the library balcony, Dr. Lecter greets Agent Starling with the following, "Is this Clarice? Well, hello Clarice..."

You want the truth? You can't handle the truth!
While Jack Nicholson does indeed say the second part of this line in the film A Few Good Men, the correct dialogue sequence is: "You want answers?" "I want the truth!" "You can't handle the truth!" Cruise's character, in response to being asked if he wants answers, responds that he thinks he is entitled; asked again if he wants answers, Cruise states that he wants the truth. This sets off the monologue from Nicholson that begins with "You can't handle the truth!" This misquotation is commonly used in parodies of the scene, including twice on The Simpsons.

Let them eat cake.
This was never said by Marie Antoinette. Jean-Jacques Rousseau, in his 1783 autobiography Confessions, relates that "a great princess" is said to have advised, with regard to starving peasants, "S’ils n’ont plus de pain, qu’ils mangent de la brioche," commonly translated as "If they have no bread, let them eat cake!" It has been speculated that he was actually referring to Maria Theresa of Spain.

My momma always said life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get.
This famous line is spoken by Tom Hanks, playing Forrest Gump in the 1994 film of the same name. However, in Winston Groom's original novel, the "box of chocolates" line is rather different: "Bein' an idiot ain't no box of chocolates." Groom reportedly dislikes the change

"I woke up this mornin' and I got myself a beer."
Correctly, according to the book "Light My Fire" by fellow Doors member Ray Manzarek, Jim Morrison was in fact singing "I woke up this mornin' and I got myself a beard", as the song allegedly tells of Morrison waking up after 3 weeks of drug induced sleep.
The line "I woke up this morning and I got myself a beer" was inspired by Alice Cooper. He and Morrison were talking at the recording studio just before Jim went to record this song. He asked Alice about his day and he responded "Ehh.. Woke up this morning.... got myself a beer." Morrison decided to use the line in the song. Repeated in many interviews with Alice Cooper over the years.

"Preach the Gospel always, and if necessary, use words."
Often attributed to Francis of Assisi, the origin of this quote is unknown.



"Show me a young Conservative and I'll show you someone with no heart. Show me an old Liberal and I'll show you someone with no brains."
Often attributed to Winston Churchill. [5], The phrase originated with Francois Guisot (1787-1874): "Not to be a republican at twenty is proof of want of heart; to be one at thirty is proof of want of head." It was revived by French Premier Georges Clemenceau (1841-1929): "Not to be a socialist at twenty is proof of want of heart; to be one at thirty is proof of want of head."

"Crisis? What crisis?"- British Prime Minister James Callaghan
This was a headline from The Sun newspaper (11 January 1979) referring to Callaghan's reply at an improvised press conference. Asked "What is your general approach, in view of the mounting chaos in the country at the moment?", Callaghan replied "Well, that's a judgment that you are making. I promise you that if you look at it from outside, and perhaps you're taking rather a parochial view at the moment, I don't think that other people in the world would share the view that there is mounting chaos."


"Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar."
This quote is often attributed to Sigmund Freud to show that even that a famous psychoanalyst can admit that not everything has a profound meaning; However, no variation of this quote ever appears in his writings. It was probably falsely attributed by a journalist, long after Freud's death.
Actually, the quote is "Sometimes a pipe is just a pipe." The story goes that Freud was lecturing on oral fixation and one of his cheekier students asked about his ever-present pipe and Freud replied, sometimes a pipe is just a pipe.
An alternative from Rudyard Kipling, from his poem "The Betrothed":
"A million surplus Maggies are willing to bear the yoke;
And a woman is only a woman, but a good Cigar is a Smoke."

"'We don't need no steenking badges!" – Bandit in The Treasure of the Sierra Madre
The original quote is "Badges? We ain't got no badges! We don't need no badges. I don't have to show you any stinkin' badges!"
This quote is actually from the film Blazing Saddles, in an obvious spoof of the original source.
When the newly recruited Mexican Bandits are presented badges for their participation in the upcoming raid on the town of Rock Ridge, the leader responds with: "Badges? We don't need no stinking badges."
The line was again misquoted in the movie The Ninth Configuration, in which a group of mental patients spend their time playing a game called "Famous Lines from Famous Movies" where one person quotes a line and the rest must identify the movie.
This is also quoted in the Weird Al Yankovic film UHF, with 'badges' replaced with 'badgers'.



"Spare the rod, spoil the child"
There are numerous proverbs dealing with the subject of discipline in childrearing, but this is the closest: "He that spareth his rod hateth his son: but he that loveth him chasteneth him betimes." – Bible (King James Version), Proverbs 13:24
This quote can be found in "Hudibras" by Samuel Butler a poem in the 1600's

"Don't fire till you see the whites of their eyes."
This quotation is usually attributed to Andrew Jackson at the Battle of New Orleans.
In fact, it originates with Colonel William Prescott commander of George Washington's Continental Army, at the Battle of Bunker Hill. The full quotation is, "Don't fire till you see the whites of their eyes. Then, fire low!"
Source: George Washington's War by Robert Leckie



"Houston, we have a problem"
This phrase, supposedly uttered by Apollo 13 commander, Jim Lovell was, in its original rendering: "Houston, we've had a problem here. We've had a main B bus undervolt". However, the first notification to Houston that there was a problem was by fellow astronaut Jack Swigert, who used almost identical words. The official Nasa chronology [3] lists the messages as:
55:55:20 – Swigert: "Okay, Houston, we've had a problem here."
55:55:28 – Lousma: "This is Houston. Say again please."
55:55:35 – Lovell: "Houston, we've had a problem. We've had a main B bus undervolt."
However, in the movie Apollo 13, Tom Hanks says Houston, we have a problem

"Whenever I hear the word 'culture' I reach for my revolver."
The actual quote is "Wenn ich Kultur höre ... entsichere ich meinen Browning!" This translates as: "Whenever I hear [the word] 'culture'... I remove the safety from my Browning!"
This quote is often mistakenly attributed to leading Nazi Hermann Goering, or occasionally to Julius Streicher, a lower-ranking Nazi. This misattribution may date from the famous Frank Capra documentaries (Why We Fight) shown to American troops before shipping out.
In fact, it is a line uttered by the character Thiemann in Act 1, Scene 1 of the play Schlageter, written by Hanns Johst. The association with Nazism is appropriate, as the play was first performed in April 1933, in honor of Hitler's birthday.
Baldur von Schirach, head of the Hitlerjugend, delivered this sentence in a public speech, circa 1938. A footage of the scene, with von Schirach actually drawing his gun, appears in Frederic Rossif's documentary "from Nurnberg to Nurnberg".
Notes: It is possible that this is actually a rather more felicitous phrase in translation than it is in the original. Both the original German and this English translation were juxtaposed by Howard Thomas in his review of an article by Nicholas H. Battey in the Journal of Experimental Biology, December 2002, as "the famous words of Hanns Johst: 'Wenn ich Kultur höre ... entsichere ich meinen Browning' – 'Whenever I hear the word culture, I reach for my revolver.'"
The phrase itself may be a play on words as the word Browning may refer to both a pistol and the English poet Robert Browning.
Additionally it should be noted that a Browning (most likely the M1935 High-Power) is not a revolver, but a magazine-fed semi-automatic pistol. However, at the time the word "Browning" was used to refer to any pistol, much as "Colt" is used for any revolver in westerns.




"Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned"
The correct quotation is "Heaven has no rage like love to hatred turned/ Nor hell a fury like a woman scorned." by William Congreve in The Mourning Bride of 1697.
"Don't fire till you see the whites of their eyes."

"Do you feel lucky, punk?" – Clint Eastwood as Harry Callahan in Dirty Harry
Correct quote plus context: "Ah-ah. I know what you're thinking: 'Did he fire six shots, or only five?' Well, to tell you the truth, in all this excitement I kind of lost track myself. But, being as this is a .44 Magnum, the most powerful handgun in the world, and would blow your head clean off, you've got to ask yourself one question: 'Do I feel lucky?' Well, do ya, PUNK?"
Jim Carrey's character in The Mask paraphrased Harry Callahan by speaking this misquote.



"You dirty rat!"
Never said by James Cagney in any film. However, in Blonde Crazy (1931) he says that another character is a "dirty, double-crossing rat!"
Also quoted in the 1934 Cole Porter musical Anything Goes
Also quoted in the 1990 movie Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles by the character Michelangelo in an attempt to impersonate James Cagney

"Why don't you come up and see me sometime?"
Correct quote: "Why don't you come up sometime and see me? I'm home every evening." – Mae West (She Done Him Wrong)
She switched the word order in her next film, I'm No Angel, where she does say "Come up and see me sometime", but without the "Why don't you".
A mechanical mouse in a Tom and Jerry cartoon repeated "come up and see me sometime."



"I am not a crook" Richard Nixon
Often attributed to his denial of any foreknowledge of the Watergate break-in, when in fact the question raised in a Press Conference was about his personal finances. Nixon's response, properly worded, was: "People have a right to know whether their President is a crook. Well, I'm not a crook."

"Greed is good"
Actual quote: "The point is, ladies and gentleman, that greed, for lack of a better word, is good. Greed is right, greed works." – Michael Douglas (Wall Street)



"Play it again, Sam"
Actual quote: "Play it once, Sam, for old times' sake, play 'As Time Goes By'." – Ingrid Bergman (Casablanca)
Actual quote: "You played it for her, you can play it for me. ... If she can stand to listen to it, I can. Play it." – Humphrey Bogart (Casablanca)
Note: Woody Allen paid homage to Casablanca under the title Play It Again, Sam, which is likely the source of much such misquotation.
The line first occurred in the Marx Brothers' film A Night in Casablanca (1946), another possible source of the misquotation.

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Christmas Tree History

The use of evergreen trees to celebrate the winter season occurred before the birth of Christ.
The first decorated Christmas was in Riga, Latvia in 1510.
The first printed reference to Christmas trees appeared in Germany in 1531.
Nineteenth century Americans cut their trees in nearby forests.

Christmas trees have been sold commercially in the United states since about 1850. Until fairly recently, all Christmas trees came from the forest.

The first Christmas tree retail lot in the United States was started in 1851 in New York by Mark Carr.

In 1900, large stores started to erect big illuminated Christmas trees.
Christmas trees and the environment

Growing Christmas trees provides a habitat for wildlife.

Recycled trees have been used to make sand and soil erosion barriers and been placed in ponds for fish shelter.

Christmas trees remove dust and pollen from the air.

Artificial trees will last for six years in your home, but for centuries in a landfill.

59 percent of real Christmas trees harvested are recycled in community programs.

An acre of Christmas trees provides for the daily oxygen requirements of 18 people.

Artificial / Fake Trees

In 2002, 21% of United States households had a real tree, 48% had an artificial tree and 32% had no tree.

Most fake (artificial) trees (85%) in the U.S. are imported from China. Almost 10 Million fake trees were sold worldwide in 2003. The U.S. Commerce Dept. tracks the Import of Fake Trees

Real Christmas trees are involved in less than one-tenth of one percent of residential fires and only when ignited by some external ignition sources.

Thirty-four to thirty-six million Christmas trees are produced each year and 95 percent are shipped or sold directly from Christmas tree farms.

28 million Christmas trees were sold in 2001.

More than one million acres of land have been planted in Christmas trees. The industry employs over 100,000 people. Many Christmas tree growers grow trees on a part-time basis to supplement farm and non-farm income.

More than 2,000 trees are usually planted per acre. On an average 1,000-1,500 of these trees will survive. In the North, maybe, 750 trees will remain. Almost all trees require shearing to attain the Christmas tree shape. At six to seven feet, trees are ready for harvest. It fighting heavy rain, wind, hail, pests and drought to get a mature tree.