1000 WordsWilliam Randolph Hearst, always in search of sensational stories, once sent a telegram to a leading astronomer: "Is there life on Mars?" it read. "Please cable 1000 words."
The astronomer's reply? "Nobody knows" - repeated 500 times.
[Trivia: The famed 19th century mathematician Karl Friedrich Gauss once proposed that ten-mile strips of trees delineating the Pythagorean Theorem be planted in the Siberian steppes - so that they might be visible to alien beings on other planets. In 1840, the Austrian Joseph Johann von Littrow recommended setting immense geometrical fires in the Sahara for the same purpose.]
Hearst, William Randolph (1863-1951) American newspaper and magazine publisher, art collector [noted for his creation of the world's largest publishing empire (comprising 28 major newspapers), and for his role in the creation of "yellow journalism"]
[Sources: M. Driscoll, ed., 5087 Trivia Questions & Answers; Isaac Asimov's Book of Facts]More William Hearst anecdotesRelated Anecdote Keywords:
Witty Replies Literal Journalism Science Mars Space Aliens Extraterrestrial Life Presumption Demands Surprises
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