"Purple Cow" is a short nonsense poem by American writer Gelett Burgess. It was first published in 1895.
"Purple Cow" is a short nonsense poem by American writer Gelett Burgess. It was first published in 1895.
I never saw a Purple Cow,
I never hope to see one;
But I can tell you, anyhow,
I'd rather see than be one. [1]
The poem was first published in the first issue of Burgess's magazine The Lark in May 1895 and became his most widely known work. [2] It originally had the longer title "The Purple Cow's projected feast/Reflections on a Mythic Beast/Who's Quite Remarkable, at Least". [3] This publication of the poem also included an illustration by Burgess featuring a cow jumping over an art nouveau fence heading towards a naked human, with both the cow and the human filled in black. [3] A poster version of his illustration is part of the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. [4]
The poem became popular, eventually becoming what one commentator called "[t]he most quoted poem in twentieth-century America, after 'The Night Before Christmas'". [5] In addition to being widely anthologized, [2] it was often transmitted orally without credit to Burgess. [3] Many years after its appearance, publicist Jim Moran appeared at Burgess's home with a cow he had painted purple. [6]
Burgess came to resent its popularity. A few years after writing the poem, Burgess wrote another short poem in response, titled "Confession: and a Portrait Too, Upon a Background that I Rue", which appeared in the final issue of The Lark in April 1897: [7]
Ah, yes, I wrote the "Purple Cow"—
I'm Sorry, now, I wrote it;
But I can tell you Anyhow
I'll Kill you if you Quote it! [8]
Several parodies of "The Purple Cow" have been written by others, including O. Henry. [6]
United States President Harry S. Truman was once asked by UFO researcher and publisher James W. Moseley if he'd ever seen a UFO. Truman reportedly responded by reciting lines from Burgess's poem. [9]
"Purple Cow" is also the name of the ice cream shop found inside Meijer stores. Founder Fred Meijer handed out cards for free ice cream at any Meijer Purple Cow ice cream shop to customers as part of a promotional campaign. [10] [ relevant? ] [11]
The "Purple Cow Drive-In" ice-cream stand in Crimora, Virginia has a purple cow head on a post. Its status as a local landmark led to the naming of Purple Cow Road. [12]
Marketer Seth Godin has used the phrase "Purple Cow" for the concept of marketing a product as "intrinsically different" in his book, Purple Cow: Transform Your Business by Being Remarkable. [13] [14] The phrase has also been used for the marketing concept of choosing a name which "makes your audience stop in their tracks and wonder why the title was chosen." [15]
A purple cow is the mascot of Williams College, a private liberal arts college in Williamstown, Massachusetts, which was named after the college's humor magazine Purple Cow, which, in turn, took its name from Burgess's poem. [16]
A slightly modified version of the final line of the poem is referenced in the book Fletch and the Man Who (1983) by Gregory Mcdonald in the line
"Irwin!" Roy Filby echoed. "I'd rather see one than be one!"
in which Filby is making fun of not only Fletch but his albatross of a first name, which is a recurring theme in the series of books. [17]
Purple Cow is a pipe tobacco blend manufactured by Cornell & Diehl blended by the late Bob Runowski and crafted for the Chicago Pipe Show years ago.
Ice cream is a sweetened frozen food typically eaten as a snack or dessert. It may be made from milk or cream and is flavoured with a sweetener, either sugar or an alternative, and a spice, such as cocoa or vanilla, or with fruit such as strawberries or peaches. It can also be made by whisking a flavored cream base and liquid nitrogen together. Food coloring is sometimes added, in addition to stabilizers. The mixture is cooled below the freezing point of water and stirred to incorporate air spaces and to prevent detectable ice crystals from forming. The result is a smooth, semi-solid foam that is solid at very low temperatures. It becomes more malleable as its temperature increases.
Frank Gelett Burgess was an American artist, art critic, poet, author and humorist. An important figure in the San Francisco Bay Area literary renaissance of the 1890s, particularly through his iconoclastic little magazine, The Lark, he is best known as a writer of nonsense verse, such as "The Purple Cow", and for introducing French modern art to the United States in an essay titled "The Wild Men of Paris". He was the author of the popular Goops books, and he coined the term "blurb".
An ice cream float or ice cream soda, or spider, is a chilled beverage that consists of ice cream in either a soft drink or a mixture of flavored syrup and carbonated water.
Seth W. Godin is an American author and former dot com business executive.
Purple Cow: Transform Your Business by Being Remarkable is a 2003 book by Seth Godin. The book presents Godin's personal belief that creative advertising is less effective today because of clutter and advertising avoidance. The book advocates that companies produce remarkable products and target people who are likely to spread word of mouth about the product. USA Today said it "reminds business people of the tried-and-true path to success: Make a great product".
Selecta is a Filipino dairy products brand owned by RFM Corporation. Its milk business is operated by RFM Corporation, while its ice cream business is operated under a joint-venture with Unilever Philippines, Inc..
Fletch is a 1985 American neo-noir comedy thriller film directed by Michael Ritchie and written by Andrew Bergman. Based on Gregory Mcdonald's popular Fletch novels, the film stars Chevy Chase as the eponymous character. It co-stars Tim Matheson, Dana Wheeler-Nicholson, Geena Davis and Joe Don Baker.
A milk substitute is any substance that resembles milk and can be used in the same ways as milk. Such substances may be variously known as non-dairy beverage, nut milk, grain milk, legume milk, mock milk and alternative milk.
A palinode or palinody is an ode in which the writer retracts a view or sentiment expressed in an earlier poem. The first recorded use of a palinode is in a poem by Stesichorus in the 7th century BC, in which he retracts his earlier statement that the Trojan War was all the fault of Helen.
Sorbet, also called "water ice", is a frozen dessert made from sugar-sweetened water with flavoring – typically fruit juice, fruit purée, wine, liqueur or honey. Generally sorbets do not contain dairy ingredients, while the sherbets do.
Fletch is a 1974 mystery novel by Gregory Mcdonald, the first in a series featuring the character Irwin Maurice Fletcher.
All Marketers Are Liars: The Power of Telling Authentic Stories in a Low Trust World (2005) is the seventh published book by Seth Godin, and the third in a series of books on 21st century marketing, following Purple Cow and Free Prize Inside.
The Dip: A Little Book That Teaches You When to Quit (2007) is the tenth published book by Seth Godin. It is a 76 page book that illustrates the concept of "the dip"—a temporary setback that can be overcome with persistence—and how to recognize if you are within one worth pushing through or one where you should quit.
Superman is three-flavor ice cream that usually appears in red, blue, and yellow, typically found in the Midwestern United States, particularly Michigan and Wisconsin. The combination is commonly believed to have originated in Detroit, Michigan, at Stroh's Ice Cream during the Prohibition Era, however this isn't known to be definitively true.
"Ice Cream Paint Job" is a song by Dorrough from his debut album, Dorrough Music. The single peaked at number 27 on the Billboard Hot 100. It has been certified platinum by the RIAA.
Attention marketing is a term coined by internet entrepreneur Steve Jelley to describe a particular business model that has evolved around the growth of social media on the internet. It was popularized by the book Purple Cow: Transform Your Business by Being Remarkable by Seth Godin.
Grape ice cream is ice cream with a grape flavor. Some recipes use grape juice in its preparation. Dishes and variations include grape ice cream sandwiches and grape ice cream soda. Grape ice cream is sometimes offered at grape festivals. For example, the Naples Grape Festival has offered grape ice cream. Grape ice cream is not a commonly made flavor in the US. It is one of the more common flavors in Japan.
NotJustOk is a Nigerian music download website created in June 2006 by Ademola Ogundele. With over 1.2 million viewers per month, from 183 countries, it is one of the most visited websites in Nigeria.
Ube ice cream is a Filipino ice cream flavor prepared using ube as the main ingredient. This ice cream is often used in making the dessert halo-halo.
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