History Literature / Desiderata

It's an interesting example of pre-internet MemeticMutation. It spread throughout America in TheSixties, with people passing on the text of the poem without being aware of its source. Discovery of a copy at the bedside of UsefulNotes/AdlaiStevensonII when he died in 1965 helped it gain notice. It became a popular poster in the aftermath. In 1971, Anmerican talk show host Les Crane recorded a recitation of it that became an international hit; interestingly, he wasn't the first to release a recitation of it set to music--that was none other than Creator/LeonardNimoy, who recorded it in 1968 under the title "Spock Thoughts". The success of Crane's version helped establish Ehrmann's authorship once and for all. Like most people, Crane thought it was an old public domain text, and Ehrmann's family sought royalties. Ironically, a 1975 court ruling placed it back in the public domain, where it remains; it was decided that since Erhmann had twice authorized its publication without a copyright notice while he was alive, he'd forfeited the copyright.

* AffectionateParody: Almost as many as ''{{Literature/Casabianca}}''. ''Film/NationalLampoon'' had ''Deteriorata'' (written by Creator/ChristopherGuest), which was a minor hit in 1972 and became a longstanding ''[[Creator/DrDemento Dr. Demento Show]]'' favorite.

It's an interesting example of pre-internet MemeticMutation. It spread throughout America in TheSixties, with people passing on the text of the poem without being aware of its source. Discovery of a copy by the bedside of UsefulNotes/AdlaiStevensonII when he died in 1965 helped it gain notice. It became a popular poster in the aftermath. In 1971, Anmerican talk show host Les Crane recorded a recitation of it that became an international hit; interestingly, he wasn't the first to release a recitation of it set to music--that was none other than Creator/LeonardNimoy, who recorded it in 1968 under the title "Spock Thoughts". The success of Crane's version helped establish Ehrmann's authorship once and for all. Like most people, Crane thought it was an old public domain text, and Ehrmann's family sought royalties. Ironically, a 1975 court ruling placed it back in the public domain, where it remains; it was decided that since Erhmann had twice authorized its publication without a copyright notice while he was alive, he'd forfeited the copyright.

It's an interesting example of pre-internet MemeticMutation. It spread throughout America in TheSixties, with people passing on the text of the poem without being aware of its source. Discovery of a copy by the bedside of UsefulNotes/AdlaiStevensonII when he died in 1965 helped it gain notice. It became a popular poster in the aftermath. In 1971, Anmerican talk show host Les Crane recorded a recitation of it that became an international hit; interestingly, he wasn't the first to release a recitation of it set to music--that was none other than Creator/LeonardNimoy, who recorded it in 1968 under the title "Spock Thoughts". The success of Crane's version helped establish Ehrmann's authorship once and for all. Like most people, Crane thought it was an old public domain text, and Ehrmann's family sought royalties. Ironically, a 1975 court ruling placed it the public domain after all; it was decided that since Erhmann had twice authorized its publication without a copyright notice while he was alive, he'd forfeited the copyright.

It's an interesting example of pre-internet MemeticMutation. It spread throughout America in TheSixties, with people passing on the text of the poem without being aware of its source. Discovery of a copy by the bedside of UsefulNotes/AdlaiStevensonII when he died in 1965 helped it gain notice. It became a popular poster in the aftermath. In 1971, Anmerican talk show host Les Crane recorded a recitation of it that became an international hit; interestingly, he wasn't the first to release a recitation of it set to music--that was none other than Creator/LeonardNimoy, who recorded it in 1968 under the title "Spock Thoughts". The success of Crane's version helped establish Ehrmann's authorship once and for all. Like most people, Crane thought it was an old public domain text, and Ehrmann's family sought royalties. Ironically, a 1975 court ruling placed it the public domain after all; it was decided that since Erhmann had twice authorized its publication without a copyright notice while he was alive, he'd forfeited the copyright. A ''Film/NationalLampoon'' parody called ''Deteriorata'' (written by Creator/ChristopherGuest) was a minor hit in 1972 and became a longstanding ''[[Creator/DrDemento Dr. Demento Show]]'' favorite.

It is now out of copyright. The full text can be found (amongst other places) [[http://www.davidpbrown.co.uk/poetry/max-ehrmann.html here]].

* AffectionateParody: Almost as many as ''{{Literature/Casabianca}}''.

'''Desiderata''' (Latin for "things to be desired") is a 1927 poem by Creator/MaxEhrmann, commonly used (often without attribution, or with the false attribution in the next sentence) on inspirational posters. It is usually erroneously believed to date from the 17th century (despite its very modern language and style) and to have been found in St. Paul's Church, Baltimore, Maryland, in 1692. This myth arose because the rector of St. Paul's (which was ''founded'' in 1692) was in the habit of circulating a flyer of devotional materials to his congregation each Christmas, and in Christmas 1956 that year's flyer included ''Desiderata''. The flyer naturally also gave the date of the church's founding, and many mistook this as the date of the poem.

'''Desiderata''' (Latin for "things to be desired") is a 1927 poem by Creator/MaxEhrmann, commonly used (often without attribution, or with the false attribution in the next sentence) on inspirational posters. It is usually erroneously believed to date from the 17th century (despite the very modern language and style in which it is written) and to have been found in St. Paul's Church, Baltimore, Maryland, in 1692. This myth arose because the rector of St. Paul's (which was ''founded'' in 1692) was in the habit of circulating a flyer of devotional materials to his congregation each Christmas, and in Christmas 1956 that year's flyer included ''Desiderata''. The flyer naturally also gave the date of the church's founding, and many mistook this as the date of the poem.

* YouAreBetterThanYouThinkYouAre: "You are a Child of the Universe/No less than the trees or the stars/You have a right to be here."

It is now out of copyright. The full text can be found (amongst other places) [[http://www.cs.columbia.edu/~gongsu/desiderata_textonly.html here]].

* StockAesops: Plenty, including "Be yourself".

'''Desiderata''' (Latin for "things to be desired") is a 1927 poem by Creator/MaxEhrmann, commonly used (often without attribution, or with the false attribution in the next sentence) on inspirational posters. It is usually erroneously believed to date from the 16th century (despite the very modern language and style in which it is written) and to have been found in St. Paul's Church, Baltimore, Maryland, in 1692. This myth arose because the rector of St. Paul's (which was ''founded'' in 1692) was in the habit of circulating a flyer of devotional materials to his congregation each Christmas, and in Christmas 1956 that year's flyer included ''Desiderata''. The flyer naturally also gave the date of the church's founding, and many mistook this as the date of the poem.

* YouAreBetterThanYouThinkYouAre: "You are a Child of the Universe/No less than the trees or the stars/You have a right to be here.

It is now out of copyright. The full text can be found [[http://www.cs.columbia.edu/~gongsu/desiderata_textonly.html here]].

'''Desiderata''' (Latin for "things to be desired") is a 1927 poem by Creator/MaxEhrmann, commonly used (often without attribution) on inspirational posters. It is usually erroneously believed to date from the 16th century (despite the very modern language and style in which it is written) and to have been found in St. Paul's Church, Baltimore, Maryland, in 1692. This myth arose because the rector of St. Paul's (which was ''founded'' in 1692) was in the habit of circulating a flyer of devotional materials to his congregation each Christmas, and in Christmas 1956 that year's flyer included ''Desiderata''. The flyer naturally also gave the date of the church's founding, and many mistook this as the date of the poem.