The hero was distinguished by his achievement; the celebrity by his name or trademark.

We read advertisements... to discover and enlarge our desires.

The most important American addition to the World Experience was the simple surprising fact of America. We have helped prepare mankind for all its later surprises.

It is only a short step from exaggerating what we can find in the world to exaggerating our power to remake the world.

Historians will not fail to note that a people who could spend $300 billion on defense refused to spend a tiny fraction of that total to keep their libraries open in the evening.

The most promising words ever written on the maps of human knowledge are terra incognita, unknown territory.

Best-sellerism is the star system of the book world. A "best seller" is a celebrity among books. It is a book known primarily (sometimes exclusively) for its well-knownness.