Strange but true
Encyclopedia
Strange but true is a phrase often used to refer to a tabloid newspaper column (such as the Weekly World News
) that features unusual ("strange") stories. The circa 1937 True magazine
had a "Strange But True" section on the back cover.
Perhaps the earliest use of "strange but true" in a published work is in Shakespeare's Macbeth
(~1599), act III, scene IV (Ross and Old Man outside of Macbeth's castle):
The 1859 Notes and Queries by Martim de Albuquerque
in a reprinted 1704 account by Edward F. Rimbault ("printed for R. Smith near Spittle-Fields Market") titled A most Strange but True Account of a very Large Sea-Monster.
A "Strange But True" column, authored by brothers Bill Sones and Rich Sones, is currently distributed to U.S. newspapers.http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/features/strange/
Weekly World News
The Weekly World News was a supermarket tabloid published in the United States from 1979 to 2007, renowned for its outlandish cover stories often based on supernatural or paranormal themes and an approach to news that verged on the satirical. Its characteristic black-and-white covers have become...
) that features unusual ("strange") stories. The circa 1937 True magazine
True (magazine)
True, also known as True, The Man's Magazine, was published by Fawcett Publications from 1937 until 1974. Known as True, A Man's Magazine in the 1930s, it was labeled True, #1 Man's Magazine in the 1960s. Petersen Publishing took over with the January 1975, issue...
had a "Strange But True" section on the back cover.
Perhaps the earliest use of "strange but true" in a published work is in Shakespeare's Macbeth
Macbeth
The Tragedy of Macbeth is a play by William Shakespeare about a regicide and its aftermath. It is Shakespeare's shortest tragedy and is believed to have been written sometime between 1603 and 1607...
(~1599), act III, scene IV (Ross and Old Man outside of Macbeth's castle):
- Ross: "And—strange but true!—Duncan's horses, beautiful and swift, the best of their kind, broke down their stalls and ran wild They refused to obey, as if they were at war with mankind."
- 'Tis strange — but true; for truth is always strange; Stranger than fiction —Don Juan by Lord ByronDon Juan (Byron)Don Juan is a satiric poem by Lord Byron, based on the legend of Don Juan, which Byron reverses, portraying Juan not as a womanizer but as someone easily seduced by women. It is a variation on the epic form. Byron himself called it an "Epic Satire"...
(Canto 14), 1819
The 1859 Notes and Queries by Martim de Albuquerque
Martim de Albuquerque
Martim de Albuquerque was a contributor to Notes and Queries, the Medium of Inter-Communication, for Literary Men, Artists, Antiquaries, Genealogists, etc., a periodical published in London in the 1850s and 1860s....
in a reprinted 1704 account by Edward F. Rimbault ("printed for R. Smith near Spittle-Fields Market") titled A most Strange but True Account of a very Large Sea-Monster.
- It is strange, but true as strange, that imitation generally interests us more than reality. —Richard Grant WhiteRichard Grant WhiteRichard Grant White was one of the foremost literary and musical critics of his day. He was also a prominent Shakespearen scholar, journalist, social critic, and lawyer who was born and died in New York USA.-Biography:...
, Life and Genius of Shakespeare, 1865
A "Strange But True" column, authored by brothers Bill Sones and Rich Sones, is currently distributed to U.S. newspapers.http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/features/strange/