Chapter 14: Humor
Churchill had a lot of wit and humor, once when he had just stepped out of the shower, President Roosevelt was just being wheeled in to his room. Very embarrassed, Roosevelt quickly turned to leave, when Churchill said “The Prime Minister of Great Britain has nothing to hide from the President of the United States”.
When someone said “familiarity breeds contempt” in a argument against him, he said, “Without a degree of familiarity we could not breed anything”.
One time his friend George Bernard Shaw wired him about his show at the theatre saying “I am reserving two tickets for you for my premiere. Bring a friend-if you have one”. He wired back: “Impossible to attend the first performance, will attend the second- if there is one”.
He always had a comeback every time somebody tried to be witty, or just joking around.
He also had a very bad temper, leading to witty insults. He talked about John Foster Dulles “dull, duller, Dulles.” And when Lady Astor once said “Winston, if I were your wife, I’d put poison in your coffee”, he swiftly replied, “Nancy, if I were your husband, I would drink it”. He loved a good laugh with anyone.