--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Irving Wallace wrote a bestselling novel…" description: "\"Irving Wallace wrote a bestselling novel, The Man, in the 1960s about a black man becoming president of the United States. We thought that such a possi..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b5/wayne-dyer-158_1960s_irving-wallace-wrote-a-bestselling-novel_1886350.png" --- # Irving Wallace wrote a bestselling novel, The Man, in the… ![“Irving Wallace wrote a bestselling novel, The Man, in the 1960s about a black man becoming president of the United States. We thought that such a possibility was thousands of years in the future. Some people may still have some difficulty with the idea, but that's a major cultural meme shift.” quote by Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b5/wayne-dyer-158_1960s_irving-wallace-wrote-a-bestselling-novel_1886350.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b5/wayne-dyer-158_1960s_irving-wallace-wrote-a-bestselling-novel_1886350.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b5/wayne-dyer-158_1960s_irving-wallace-wrote-a-bestselling-novel_1886350.png) > “Irving Wallace wrote a bestselling novel, The Man, in the 1960s about a black man becoming president of the United States. We thought that such a possibility was thousands of years in the future. Some people may still have some difficulty with the idea, but that's a major cultural meme shift.” [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A novel imagined a Black U.S. president long before reality, showing how cultural narratives can precede societal change. **In simple terms:** Imagining future possibilities can shift cultural expectations. Key Takeaway Envision inclusive futures. Themes culture progress representation imagination politics Mood reflective inspirational Type sociopolitical future‑oriented When to use this quote - political discourse - education - media representation - public policy Key Concepts social change visionary storytelling cultural memes Questions to Reflect On - How do stories influence political aspirations? - What role does media play in shaping societal expectations? A Different Perspective Visionary narratives may oversimplify complex systemic barriers. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [1960s](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/zz-1960s-426/) [Becoming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/becoming/) [Becoming president](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/becoming-president-16667/) [Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black/) [Black Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black-man/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Difficulty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difficulty/) [He man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/he-man/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Irving Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/irving-wallace-1127358/) [Majors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/majors/) [Man President](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man-president-1092411/) [May](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/may/) [Memes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memes/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Novel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novel/) [Novel Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novel-man-2279151/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Possibility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/possibility/) [President](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/president/) [States](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/states/) [Stills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stills/) [United](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/united/) [United states](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/united-states/) [Wallace Wrote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wallace-wrote-2697337/) [Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years/) ## Related quotes > [Irving Wallace family - they have preservatives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/calvin-trillin/irving-wallace-family-they-have-preservatives/) [Calvin Trillin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/calvin-trillin/) > [I think Donald Trump is now kind of in love with the idea of becoming president of the United States. I think he truly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-maddow/i-think-donald-trump-is-now-kind-of-in-love-with-the-idea-of-becoming/) [Rachel Maddow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-maddow/) > [Richard Nixon even before becoming president, before meeting Henry Kissinger, he said, "This is ridiculous. Communism is nationalist. The Chinese and Russian and Yugoslav…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-scheer/richard-nixon-even-before-becoming-president-before-meeting-henry/) [Robert Scheer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-scheer/) > [Since becoming President, I have come to know that the finest of Americans we have abroad today are the missionaries of the cross. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franklin-d-roosevelt/since-becoming-president-i-have-come-to-know-that-the-finest-of/) [Franklin D. Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franklin-d-roosevelt/) > [“I really didn't write it with any intention of being published. If I'd known that was going to happen, I would have written something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gideon-defoe/i-really-didn-t-write-it-with-any-intention-of-being-published-if-i-d/) [Gideon Defoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gideon-defoe/) > [Yeah, I just finished a novel. Man those things take forever to read.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-mull/yeah-i-just-finished-a-novel-man-those-things-take-forever-to-read/) [Martin Mull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-mull/) > [One man writes a novel. One man writes a symphony. It is essential that one man make a film.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-kubrick/one-man-writes-a-novel-one-man-writes-a-symphony-it-is-essential-that/) [Stanley Kubrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-kubrick/) > [My first novel, 'Man Walks Into a Room,' is about a man who's lost his memory and has to start a second life. On…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-krauss/my-first-novel-man-walks-into-a-room-is-about-a-man-who-s-lost-his/) [Nicole Krauss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-krauss/) > [Wrote a science fiction novel about a man who wins an argument with his wife, but it was rejected for being too farfetched.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dana-gould/wrote-a-science-fiction-novel-about-a-man-who-wins-an-argument-with/) [Dana Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dana-gould/) > [“Literary Fiction and Reality Towards the beginning of his novel The Man Without Qualities, Robert Musil announces that 'no serious attempt will be made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-kermode/literary-fiction-and-reality-towards-the-beginning-of-his-novel-the/) [Frank Kermode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-kermode/) > [I think the most common meme is that it's too difficult to change. It's too risky to change. My nature doesn't allow me to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/i-think-the-most-common-meme-is-that-it-s-too-difficult-to-change-it/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [Most people tell themselves these excuses - I've always been this way, how can I possibly change, this is my nature, I can't help…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/most-people-tell-themselves-these-excuses-i-ve-always-been-this-way/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [Most people tell themselves these excuses - I've always been this way, this is my nature, I can't help it - that are just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/most-people-tell-themselves-these-excuses-i-ve-always-been-this-way-2/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [I wonder: Would there be a black president if people hadn't already begun imagining, through film and television, that a black man is president?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynn-nottage/i-wonder-would-there-be-a-black-president-if-people-hadn-t-already/) [Lynn Nottage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynn-nottage/) > [Since I came here I have learned that Chester A. Arthur is one man and the President of the United States is another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chester-a-arthur/since-i-came-here-i-have-learned-that-chester-a-arthur-is-one-man-and/) [Chester A. Arthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chester-a-arthur/) ## More by Wayne Dyer > [Remember that your natural state is joy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/remember-that-your-natural-state-is-joy/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [Be in a state of gratitude for everything that shows up in your life. Be thankful for the storms as well as the smooth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/be-in-a-state-of-gratitude-for-everything-that-shows-up-in-your-life/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [While the world of reality has its limits, the world of your imagination is without boundaries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/while-the-world-of-reality-has-its-limits-the-world-of-your/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [Trusting yourself is trusting the wisdom that created you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/trusting-yourself-is-trusting-the-wisdom-that-created-you/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [It's only a thought and a thought can be changed. Choose good ones.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/it-s-only-a-thought-and-a-thought-can-be-changed-choose-good-ones/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [When I get on the dance floor, my purpose in being on the dance floor is not to end up at another spot when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/when-i-get-on-the-dance-floor-my-purpose-in-being-on-the-dance-floor/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [Everyone in Life does Exactly what they Know How to Do Given the Conditions of their Lives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/everyone-in-life-does-exactly-what-they-know-how-to-do-given-the/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [You can't go around being what everyone wants you to be, living your life through other people's rules, and expect to be happy and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/you-can-t-go-around-being-what-everyone-wants-you-to-be-living-your/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [When you have the choice between being right and being kind just choose kind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/when-you-have-the-choice-between-being-right-and-being-kind-just/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [If you want to be confident, but don't normally act that way, today, just this once, act in the physical world the way you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/if-you-want-to-be-confident-but-don-t-normally-act-that-way-today/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [We make weapons now that, if we ever used them, would kill ourselves. How do you explode a weapon with so much radiation in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/we-make-weapons-now-that-if-we-ever-used-them-would-kill-ourselves/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [What you feel is wrong or missing in your relationships is an indication that something is amiss within you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/what-you-feel-is-wrong-or-missing-in-your-relationships-is-an/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [The truth is that there is no actual stress or anxiety in the world; it's your thoughts that create these false beliefs. You can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/the-truth-is-that-there-is-no-actual-stress-or-anxiety-in-the-world/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [It is impossible to need excuses when the focus of your life shifts from 'What's in it for me?' to 'How can I serve?'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/it-is-impossible-to-need-excuses-when-the-focus-of-your-life-shifts/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [The problem with using force in our lives is that we always create a counterforce. For example, If you're with a child and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/the-problem-with-using-force-in-our-lives-is-that-we-always-create-a/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) [Explore all 1,079 Wayne Dyer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) ## More 1960s quotes > [We do need different types of propulsion to get to Mars. I wrote one of the first Ph.D. theses on that in the 1960s.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-mitchell/we-do-need-different-types-of-propulsion-to-get-to-mars-i-wrote-one/) [Edgar Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-mitchell/) > [Each year more than 100,000 high school graduates, with proved ability, do not enter college because they cannot afford it. And if we cannot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lyndon-b-johnson/each-year-more-than-100-000-high-school-graduates-with-proved-ability/) [Lyndon B. Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lyndon-b-johnson/) > [Nearly all the writing of our time is likely to disappear in a hundred years. Certainly most readers - and nearly all critics -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-dirda/nearly-all-the-writing-of-our-time-is-likely-to-disappear-in-a/) [Michael Dirda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-dirda/) > [Sometimes a party must sail against the wind. We cannot heed the call of those who say it is time to furl the sail.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-kennedy/sometimes-a-party-must-sail-against-the-wind-we-cannot-heed-the-call/) [Edward Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-kennedy/) > [ \[In the 1960s\]...you could take LSD but you couldn't wear a pantsuit. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsey-johnson/in-the-1960s-you-could-take-lsd-but-you-couldn-t-wear-a-pantsuit/) [Betsey Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsey-johnson/) > [Is it a coincidence that stories from the private life became more popular just as the grand hope for public redemption through revolution was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-griffin/is-it-a-coincidence-that-stories-from-the-private-life-became-more/) [Susan Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-griffin/) > [I think the general anxiety of the 1960s - '70s spawned our interest in the living dead. When people worry about the end of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-brooks/i-think-the-general-anxiety-of-the-1960s-70s-spawned-our-interest-in/) [Max Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-brooks/) > [“A friend once told me a story about a former Black Panther leader in a Midwest community who in the 1960s had his phone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luis-j-rodr-guez/a-friend-once-told-me-a-story-about-a-former-black-panther-leader-in/) [Luis J. Rodríguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luis-j-rodr-guez/) > [I was never bothered about my position in the industry. If I had believed in it, I wouldn't have allowed anyone to get ahead…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dharmendra/i-was-never-bothered-about-my-position-in-the-industry-if-i-had/) [Dharmendra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dharmendra/) > [Under the system that we now have to nominate presidential candidates, for instance, I would prefer that we have a system that is closer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-beschloss/under-the-system-that-we-now-have-to-nominate-presidential-candidates/) [Michael Beschloss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-beschloss/) > [My son Bill, who came to me in 1960-he was 14 then, quoted the old parable to me: "It is not by their words,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madalyn-murray-o-hair/my-son-bill-who-came-to-me-in-1960-he-was-14-then-quoted-the-old/) [Madalyn Murray O'Hair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madalyn-murray-o-hair/) > [There is a book called San Francisco Tape Music Centre:1960s Counterculture and the Avant-Garde and this book describes everything that you want to know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pauline-oliveros/there-is-a-book-called-san-francisco-tape-music-centre-1960s/) [Pauline Oliveros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pauline-oliveros/) > [Much of the art of the 1960s, from body art to video and direct performance, was concerned with similar issues. And then there was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valie-export/much-of-the-art-of-the-1960s-from-body-art-to-video-and-direct/) [Valie Export](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valie-export/) > [I went through college in the 1960s without having any idea that I was going to have to make a living. When I graduated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francine-prose/i-went-through-college-in-the-1960s-without-having-any-idea-that-i/) [Francine Prose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francine-prose/) > [“At the beginning of a decade when everything was beginning to seem possible, nothing seemed impossible.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-lee-shetterly/at-the-beginning-of-a-decade-when-everything-was-beginning-to-seem/) [Margot Lee Shetterly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-lee-shetterly/) [Browse all 486 1960s quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/zz-1960s-426/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Irving Wallace wrote a bestselling novel, The Man, in the 1960s about a black man becoming president of the United States. We thought that such a possibility was thousands of years in the future. 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