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{{notability|Biographies|date=October 2014}}
{{Infobox writer <!-- for more information see [[:Template:Infobox writer/doc]] -->
{{Infobox writer <!-- for more information see [[:Template:Infobox writer/doc]] -->
| name = William E. Vaughan
| name = William E. Vaughan
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| occupation = Columnist
| occupation = Columnist
| nationality = [[United States|American]]
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'''William E. ("Bill") Vaughan''' (October 8, 1915 – February 25, 1977) was an [[United States|American]] [[columnist]] and [[author]]. Born in [[Saint Louis, Missouri]], he wrote a syndicated column for the ''[[Kansas City Star]]'' from 1946 until his death in 1977. He was published in ''[[Reader's Digest]]'' and ''[[Better Homes and Gardens (magazine)|Better Homes and Gardens]]'' under the [[pseudonym]] Burton Hillis.<ref>[http://www.kansascity.com/614/#1950 www.kansascity.com | Star History<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> He attended [[Washington University in St. Louis]].
'''William E. Vaughan''' (October 8, 1915 – February 25, 1977) was an American [[columnist]] and [[author]]. Born in [[Saint Louis, Missouri]], he wrote a syndicated column for the ''[[Kansas City Star]]'' from 1946 until his death in 1977. He was published in ''[[Reader's Digest]]'' and ''[[Better Homes and Gardens (magazine)|Better Homes and Gardens]]'' under the [[pseudonym]] Burton Hillis.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.kansascity.com/614/#1950 |title=www.kansascity.com {{!}} Star History<!-- Bot generated title --> |access-date=2007-06-12 |archive-date=2014-05-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140502001651/http://www.kansascity.com/614/#1950 |url-status=dead }}</ref> He attended [[Washington University in St. Louis]].


His folksy [[aphorisms]] (published in his "Starbeams" feature) are often collected in books and on [[Internet]] sites. Bill Vaughan died at age 61 of [[lung cancer]].
He is known and still quoted decades later for his folksy [[aphorisms]], some of which were published in his "Starbeams" feature. They have been collected in books and on [[Internet]] sites. Bill Vaughan died at age 61 of [[lung cancer]].<ref name=nyt>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1977/02/27/archives/bill-vaughan-columnist-and-kansas-city-editor.html|title=BILL VAUGHAN, COLUMNIST AND KANSAS CITY EDITOR [obituary] |date=February 27, 1977|page=28|work=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref>


==Quotations==
==Aphorisms==
Examples of his aphorisms which have been quoted long after his death include:
{{Refimprove|date=February 2012}}
*"To Err is Human; To Really Foul Things Up Requires a Computer"<ref name="qi69">{{Cite web |title=To Err is Human; To Really Foul Things Up Requires a Computer|url=https://quoteinvestigator.com/2010/12/07/foul-computer/ |access-date=2021-09-20 |website=Quote Investigator |date=7 December 2010 |language=en-US}} quoting 1969 April 2, Free Lance-Star, Senator Soaper [Free standing quote], Page 1, Column 2, Fredericksburg, Virginia.</ref>
*"A real patriot is the fellow who gets a parking ticket and rejoices that the system works."
*"The best of all gifts around any Christmas tree: the presence of a family all wrapped up in each other."<ref name="mo10">{{Cite news |last=Priddy |first=Bob |date=2010-12-21 |title="Tell me a story of Christmas" |language=en-US |work=Missourinet |url=https://blog.missourinet.com/2010/12/21/tell-me-a-story-of-christmas/ |access-date=2021-09-20}}</ref>
*"Size isn't everything. The whale is endangered, while the ant continues to do just fine."
*"Frankly, the feeling of the adult contingent in the second house from the corner is that, instead of taking down the Christmas decorations, it will be easier to move."<ref name="ti62">{{Cite magazine |date=1962-01-05 |title=The Press: Star Paragrapher |language=en-US |magazine=Time |url=http://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,874400,00.html |access-date=2021-09-20 |issn=0040-781X}}</ref>
*"A citizen of America will cross the ocean to fight for democracy, but won't cross the street to vote in a national election."
*"A real patriot is the fellow who gets a parking ticket and rejoices that the system works."<ref name="ra">{{Cite web |title=Inspirational Quotes by Burton Hillis (William E. Vaughan) (American Columnist) |url=https://inspiration.rightattitudes.com/authors/burton-hillis-william-e-vaughan/ |access-date=2021-09-20 |website=inspiration.rightattitudes.com}}</ref>
*"If there is anything the nonconformist hates worse than a conformist, it's another nonconformist who doesn't conform to the prevailing standard of nonconformity."

*"Suburbia is where the developer bulldozes out the trees, then names the streets after them."
==Books==
*"It might be a good idea if the various countries of the world would occasionally swap history books, just to see what other people are doing with the same set of facts."
He wrote three books, ''Bird Thou Never Wert,'' a 1962 collection of columns, ''Sorry I Stirred It'' 1964, and ''Half the Battle'' 1967.<ref name=nyt/> Posthumous collections were published, columns in 1979, ''The Best of Bill Vaughan''.<ref name="bbv">{{Cite book |last=Vaughan |first=Bill |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/5336864 |title=The Best of Bill Vaughan |date=1979 |publisher=Independence Press |isbn=0-8309-0261-9 |location=Independence, MO |oclc=5336864}}</ref>
*"An optimist stays up until midnight to see the New Year. A pessimist stays up to make sure the old year leaves."
and aphorisms in 1981, ''Starbeams.''<ref name="sb">{{Cite book |last=Vaughan |first=Bill |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/8177435 |title=Starbeams |date=1981 |publisher=Independence Press |isbn=0-8309-0329-1 |location=Independence, MO |oclc=8177435}}</ref>
*"Economists report that a college education adds many thousands of dollars to a man's lifetime income—which he then spends sending his son to college."
*"It would be nice if the poor were to get even half of the money that is spent in studying them."
*"The best of all gifts around any Christmas tree: the presence of a family all wrapped up in each other."
*"Youth is when you're allowed to stay up late on New Year's Eve. Middle age is when you're forced to!"
*"The groundhog is like most prophets; it delivers its prediction then disappears."


==References==
==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{Reflist}}
1.Kansas City Star. "Tell Me a Story of Christmas'. http://www.kansascity.com/entertainment/article4801698.html
* {{cite news|work=[[The Kansas City Star]]|title= Bill Vaughan's 'Tell Me a Story of Christmas'|url=http://www.kansascity.com/entertainment/article4801698.html|date=December 22, 2014}}
* {{cite book|title=Starbeams|first=Bill|last=Vaughan|publisher=Independence Press|date=1981|isbn=9780830903290}}
2.Starbeams. Personal Author: Vaughan, Bill. Added Author(s): Vaughan, Kirk W. Butler, Robert W., 1948-. ISBN: 9780830903290. Publication Information: Independence, MO : Independence Press, [c1981]
Physical Description: 148 p. ill. 21 cm.


==Sources==
==Sources==
* [http://www.basicfamouspeople.com/index.php?aid=20 Basic Famous People]
* [http://www.basicfamouspeople.com/index.php?aid=20 Basic Famous People]
* [http://www.kcpl.org/localhistory/media.cfm?mediaID=34997 Kansas City Public Library]
* [http://www.kcpl.org/localhistory/media.cfm?mediaID=34997 Kansas City Public Library] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071007112648/http://www.kcpl.org/localhistory/media.cfm?mediaID=34997 |date=2007-10-07 }}


==External links==
==External links==
*[http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/b/bill_vaughan.html More Bill Vaughan quotes]
*[http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/b/bill_vaughan.html More Bill Vaughan quotes]


{{Authority control}}
{{Persondata <!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]]. -->

| NAME = Vaughan, William E.
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
| SHORT DESCRIPTION = American writer
| DATE OF BIRTH = October 8, 1915
| PLACE OF BIRTH = [[St. Louis, Missouri]]
| DATE OF DEATH = February 25, 1977
| PLACE OF DEATH =
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vaughan, William E.}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vaughan, William E.}}
[[Category:1977 deaths]]
[[Category:1977 deaths]]
⚫
[[Category:American writers]]
[[Category:Washington University in St. Louis alumni]]
[[Category:Washington University in St. Louis alumni]]
[[Category:The Kansas City Star people]]
[[Category:The Kansas City Star people]]
[[Category:1915 births]]
[[Category:1915 births]]
[[Category:American male writers]]
[[Category:American male writers]]
⚫
[[Category:20th-century American writers]]
[[Category:20th-century American businesspeople]]

Latest revision as of 05:24, 16 July 2024

William E. Vaughan
BornOctober 8, 1915
St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
DiedFebruary 25, 1977
OccupationColumnist

William E. Vaughan (October 8, 1915 – February 25, 1977) was an American columnist and author. Born in Saint Louis, Missouri, he wrote a syndicated column for the Kansas City Star from 1946 until his death in 1977. He was published in Reader's Digest and Better Homes and Gardens under the pseudonym Burton Hillis.[1] He attended Washington University in St. Louis.

He is known and still quoted decades later for his folksy aphorisms, some of which were published in his "Starbeams" feature. They have been collected in books and on Internet sites. Bill Vaughan died at age 61 of lung cancer.[2]

Aphorisms

[edit]

Examples of his aphorisms which have been quoted long after his death include:

  • "To Err is Human; To Really Foul Things Up Requires a Computer"[3]
  • "The best of all gifts around any Christmas tree: the presence of a family all wrapped up in each other."[4]
  • "Frankly, the feeling of the adult contingent in the second house from the corner is that, instead of taking down the Christmas decorations, it will be easier to move."[5]
  • "A real patriot is the fellow who gets a parking ticket and rejoices that the system works."[6]

Books

[edit]

He wrote three books, Bird Thou Never Wert, a 1962 collection of columns, Sorry I Stirred It 1964, and Half the Battle 1967.[2] Posthumous collections were published, columns in 1979, The Best of Bill Vaughan.[7] and aphorisms in 1981, Starbeams.[8]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "www.kansascity.com | Star History". Archived from the original on 2014-05-02. Retrieved 2007-06-12.
  2. ^ a b "BILL VAUGHAN, COLUMNIST AND KANSAS CITY EDITOR [obituary]". The New York Times. February 27, 1977. p. 28.
  3. ^ "To Err is Human; To Really Foul Things Up Requires a Computer". Quote Investigator. 7 December 2010. Retrieved 2021-09-20. quoting 1969 April 2, Free Lance-Star, Senator Soaper [Free standing quote], Page 1, Column 2, Fredericksburg, Virginia.
  4. ^ Priddy, Bob (2010-12-21). ""Tell me a story of Christmas"". Missourinet. Retrieved 2021-09-20.
  5. ^ "The Press: Star Paragrapher". Time. 1962-01-05. ISSN 0040-781X. Retrieved 2021-09-20.
  6. ^ "Inspirational Quotes by Burton Hillis (William E. Vaughan) (American Columnist)". inspiration.rightattitudes.com. Retrieved 2021-09-20.
  7. ^ Vaughan, Bill (1979). The Best of Bill Vaughan. Independence, MO: Independence Press. ISBN 0-8309-0261-9. OCLC 5336864.
  8. ^ Vaughan, Bill (1981). Starbeams. Independence, MO: Independence Press. ISBN 0-8309-0329-1. OCLC 8177435.

Sources

[edit]
[edit]
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