Where did the quote "stop and smell the roses" originate?

Question

Where did the quote "stop and smell the roses" originate??

Answer 1

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker

As waynea says.

But it might be a variant on a similar saying, "Stop and smell the flowers" - which is a misquote of advice from the golfer Walter Hagen that appeared in the 1956 book "The Walter Hagen Story":

You're only here for a short visit. Don't hurry. Don't worry. And be sure to smell the flowers along the way.

Source(s):

Yale Book of Quotations http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=w5-GR…

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Asker's Comment:

thanks to all for the answers! all were "the best" for me!

Answer 2

The origin is apparently unknown. It's discussed at the following website:
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article…

It was the title of an album by Ringo Starr in 1981, but I'm sure it is older than that.

See also: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_the_or…

One bit of evidence that it's an old expression is the fact that if it had originated with Ringo's album (or the song by that name, by Mac Davis), then the expression would have been copyrighted ... but in fact it has been used as a book title and elsewhere, which it would not have been if copyrighted.