Will Rogers: wise and witty sayings of a great American humorist

by Will Rogers

Will Rogers' Wit and Wisdom also contains photographs from the collection of the Will Rogers Memorial, Claremore, OK.

Genres: Humor, Biography, Nonfiction

62 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1969

About the author

People noted wry homespun commentary of American humorist William Penn Adair Rogers, known as Will, on society and politics.

This Cherokee cowboy, comedian, vaudeville performer, and actor fathered Will Rogers Jr., the congressman and veteran of World War II.

A mother bore Rogers, known as favorite son of Oklahoma, into a prominent family. This world-famous figure traveled around the world three times, made 50 silent films and 21 "talkie" movies, and wrote more than four thousand nationally-syndicated newspaper columns.

The American people adored Rogers, the top-paid movie star in Hollywood at the time before the mid-1930s. Rogers died with aviator Wiley Post, whose small airplane crashed near Barrow, Alaska territory.

Reviews

[Jon Zelazny · Rating 3 out of 5]

1/24/25 update:

I'm so glad I got to visit the historic Will Rogers estate, as described below, because it sadly burned to the ground in the recent Pacific Palisades fire.



"Well, Prohibition is better than no alcohol at all."

Just had Friendsgiving out at his old spread, i.e., Will Rogers State Park. To the left of the big house is a small garage they've converted into this little free museum. A few maps, photos, posters, quotes, a DVD playing a clip reel. You get the man's whole life in, like, ten minutes.

Which is the kind of memorial I guess I want. A brief, self-guided walkabout around some dividers in my garage, maybe 2,500 words detailing the highlights of my existence, and you're done.

[Jeff · Rating 2 out of 5]

Will Rogers was probably the most admired American celebrity of the 1920s and 30s. He had a keen eye for commentary on life and culture of the day, satirizing every aspect of political life without being mean-spirited. This short book is a collection of quotes from his various movies, newspaper columns, and vaudeville shows. The problem is that the quotes are largely without context, and end up losing something in the translation from the humour of the Roaring Twenties and the Great Depression to the reader of today. I enjoyed the two biographies I’ve read about Rogers more.

[Wendy · Rating 4 out of 5]

He was as thoughtful a man as he was a humorous one.

[Norma J. Engelberg · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not the best of Will Rogers quotes but it's a start.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written when political correctness was not so important.

[Sandy · Rating 1 out of 5]

Eh. Nothing much to say on this one

[Rudolph Pascucci · Rating 2 out of 5]

Even though he died before I was born I recall from my childhood that Will Rogers was even then a fixture in the American culture of the time. Let's just say my childhood was a long time ago. Having never actually read anything written by Rogers I formed my early opinion of him via the few quotes that I had read and an occasional snip of old newsreel. I was thus looking forward to a few good laughs when I began this book, and that is exactly what I got, a few good laughs. The rest was a rather disappointing realization of just how much our culture has changed since Rogers time. From this distance oh how naive and dated poor Will seems to have become. As Will said, we each play to our own audience, sadly, the audience that Will played to has long ago passed, along with him, into history.

[Prescott · Rating 5 out of 5]

The sayings of Will Rogers prior to his death in 1934 are amazingly applicable to todays similar issues in politics, the economy, and character of the American people.

[Dáithí's · Rating 5 out of 5]

How can one go wrong with Will? His wise sayings tainted with humour and sarcasm are timeless.