[Ads-l] Proverb Origin: Inside Every Old Person There Is a Young Person Trying to Get Out

[ADSGarson O'Toole]

"The Dictionary of Modern Proverbs" has a helpful entry for the saying
in the subject line. The first citation is from 1973.

Below I present precursors in 1962 and 1964 together with a solid
match in 1968. I conjecture that this saying about the old/young
dichotomy evolved from a saying about the fat/thin dichotomy which
employed the same template.

There is a separate QI article about the fat/thin family of sayings
located here.
https://quoteinvestigator.com/2025/11/20/fat-thin/

The first partial match I found for the old/young saying appeared in
1962. The following excerpt also mentioned the fat/thin saying:

[ref] 1962 August 17, The Esher News and Advertiser, Mainly for Women
by Mary Courtland, Quote Page 4, Column 2, Esher, Surrey, England.
(Newspapers_com) [/ref]

[Begin excerpt]
Someone said that inside every fat man is a thin one trying to get
out. I'd like to adapt that and say that inside every middle-aged
person is a young one trying to get out. Sometimes, of course, they
do, with startling results!
[End excerpt]

In 1964 "The Pittsburgh Press" of Pennsylvania published a piece by
columnist Harriet Van Horne which contained a partial match. The
following excerpt also mentioned the fat/thin saying:

[ref] 1964 December 9, The Pittsburgh Press, Old-Timers Give Screen
Glow by Harriet Van Horne (Scripps-Howard Staff Writer), Quote Page
90, Column 3, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Newspapers_com) link [/ref]
https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-pittsburgh-press-inside/184095434/

[Begin excerpt]
Inside every fat man, runs the adage, there's a captive thin man,
begging to come out.
Extending this we may fairly say that inside every old trouper worth
his salt there's a frisky young devil who--the instant the lights go
down--does come out.
[End excerpt]

In 1968 William D. McBride, assistant director of public relations of
Martin Marietta Corporation, employed the saying during a discussion
held at the University of Iowa's Centennial Press Conference:

[ref] 1968 October 26, Iowa City Press-Citizen, Novelist Miller Heads
Panel: 'Hatred for the Young' Debated, Quote Page 3A, Column 3, Iowa
City, Iowa. (Newspapers_com) [/ref]

[Begin excerpt]
McBride said, "Inside every old man is a young one trying to get out."
He doesn't hate young people, he said, but he is exasperated by them.
[End excerpt]

The QI article about this proverb is scheduled for future posting.

I started to explore the saying in the subject line while researching
a related inquiry about: "Inside Every Old Person There Is a Young
Person Wondering What Happened". Here is the link to that previous QI
article:
https://quoteinvestigator.com/2025/11/01/old-young/

Feedback welcome
Garson

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