[Ads-l] Adage Origin: Growing old isn't so bad when you consider the alternative

[George Thompson]

There is also another way to express this idea:  How does it feel to be
[your present age]?  Not so bad, when you consider the alternative.
I recall this attributed to Ed Wynn, I think in the early 1950s.  But since
he died in 1966 at age 80, the age must have been 65 or 70, or my notion of
when he said it is pretty far off.

GAT,


On Sun, Jun 29, 2025 at 5:24 PM ADSGarson O'Toole <
00001aa1be50b751-dmarc-request at listserv.uga.edu> wrote:

> Way back in 2014, I posted about the saying in the subject line which
> is listed in the Dictionary of Modern Proverbs as: "Old age is better
> than the alternative". Recently, researcher Garry Apgar sent me a
> valuable 1951 citation. This inspired additional research.
>
> I have updated the Quote Investigator article and changes should
> become visible within 24 hours.
>
> https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__quoteinvestigator.com_2014_07_10_old-2Dage_&d=DwIFaQ&c=slrrB7dE8n7gBJbeO0g-IQ&r=v2Wtu7DQZxSBMSJv-oEMNg&m=96UqGTn_w-3wSfUWDZ8ueiMPf6QLvvPC9xd_3R6wgOcDnt-eBYsTrXD7_JmEIOoi&s=Ec1I-mW2AMVjCkeC2AyEkKNDPh-7I_NsWeyennvW-ts&e=
>
> Here is a current overview:
>
> 1949 Feb 23: Growing old is to some degree preferable to the only
> alternative (Olin Miller)
>
> 1951 Aug 28: Growing old isn't so bad - when one considers the only
> alternative (Anonymous)
>
> 1951 Sep 05: Growing old isn't so bad - when one considers the only
> alternative (Olin Miller)
>
> 1952 Aug 02: Growing old isn't so bad when you consider the
> alternative (Anonymous)
>
> 1953 Mar 20: Growing old doesn’t seem quite so bad when you stop to
> consider the alternative (Anonymous)
>
> 1953 Dec 16: Growing old isn't so bad - what if you hadn't?
>
> Feedback welcome,
> Garson
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> The American Dialect Society -
> https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.americandialect.org&d=DwIFaQ&c=slrrB7dE8n7gBJbeO0g-IQ&r=v2Wtu7DQZxSBMSJv-oEMNg&m=96UqGTn_w-3wSfUWDZ8ueiMPf6QLvvPC9xd_3R6wgOcDnt-eBYsTrXD7_JmEIOoi&s=EtL8-0buonkidjdhUY6optWFHGrdahU7L4_0u12LTnI&e=
>


-- 
George A. Thompson
Author of A Documentary History of "The African Theatre", Northwestern
Univ. Pr., 1998.

But when aroused at the Trump of Doom / Ye shall start, bold kings, from
your lowly tomb. . .
L. H. Sigourney, "Burial of Mazeen", Poems.  Boston, 1827, p. 112

The Trump of Doom -- also known as The Dunghill Toadstool.  (Here's a
picture of his great-grandfather.)

https://heritagecollections.parliament.uk/collections/getrecord/HOP_WOA_3851

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