“If I am not what you say I am, then you are not who you think you are.”

—  James Baldwin

Last update May 7, 2019. History

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James Baldwin 163
(1924-1987) writer from the United States 1924–1987

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[...] QI hypothesizes that this anecdote began as a fictional tale that was intended to be humorous with an edge of antagonism. The story was retold for decades. Famous men were substituted into the role of the individual making the proposition. Occasionally, the individual who received the proposition was also described as famous, but typically she remained unidentified.
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