Q. Can you help me with the origin of this phrase: “If you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all?” A friend thinks it was first used in Disney’s “Bambi.”
A . In the 1942 film, Thumper does restate his mom’s advice: “If you can’t say something nice, don’t say nothin’ at all.” Felix Salten’s original book, “Bambi,” was published in 1929. I skimmed the first 50 pages. In chapter 4, Bambi does meet a hare, but there is no similar conversation so it seems likely that “If you can’t say something nice…” was added by Disney’s writers.
A Google search brought up a variation: “If you haven’t got anything nice to say about anybody, come sit next to me.” That quote was attributed to Teddy Roosevelt’s eldest daughter, Alice Roosevelt Longworth (1884-1980.)
