[Ads-l] Saying: No explanation is needed for a believer; no explanation suffices for an unbeliever

ADSGarson O'Toole adsgarsonotoole at GMAIL.COM
Sat Aug 8 09:24:49 UTC 2020


Bill Mullins wrote:
> The Amazing Dunninger was a mentalist who had a radio show in
> the 1940s and a television show on ABC in 1956.  He closed out
> his TV show with "To those who believe no explanation is necessary,
> to those who do not believe no explanation is possible."

Thanks for your response, Bill. YouTube has some audio recordings from
mentalist Joseph Dunninger's radio show. I checked a few, but he did
not use the saying in the sign-off of the radio show. YouTube has one
video, but it is not from the television show, and it cuts off
abruptly.

Below is some indirect evidence in 1956 suggesting that a person named
Dunninger employed the saying. This is consistent with your comment.

[ref] 1956 December 26, Plainfield Courier-News, This Side of Sports
by Don Murray (Sports Editor), Quote Page 26, Column 1, Plainfield,
New Jersey. (Newspapers_com) [/ref]

[Begin excerpt]
Borrowing Dunninger's favorite phrase, "For those who believe, no
explanation is necessary. For those who do not believe, no explanation
is possible."
[End excerpt]

Garson

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The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org



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