Original artwork, not a still
If I only had a little humility I would be perfect.
Behind the line
What it means
Our interpretation.
A billionaire admitting, with a grin, that his only flaw is a shortage of modesty. The joke works because it is a boast wearing a confession's clothes, which suited a man known for bluster. It travels well as a caption for any big personality, and speakers use it to puncture their own ego before the audience does.
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In context
May contain spoilersShow the scene
Ted Turner, the media mogul, turned the joke on himself in an interview with Forbes magazine, published on 30 January 2003 under the headline "At Long Last, He's Citizen Ted". Asked about himself, he came out with a one-liner: if he only had a little humility, he would be perfect. Wikiquote records it in that form (with "I'd be perfect") as a quote from that Forbes piece, and it has been repeated in profiles of him ever since.
Sources (1)
- Wikiquote: Ted TurnerQuotations list, entry citing Forbes, 30 January 2003Reference checked
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