A Message to Garcia: Being a Preachment

A Message to Garcia is a best-selling inspirational essay written in 1899 by Elbert Hubbard that has been made into two motion pictures. Felix Shay, Hubbard's personal assistant, wrote "A Message to Garcia was the first of a series of essays on business problems, which, when placed in the proper hands, have helped to lighten the burden on the businessman's shoulders." A Message to Garcia was originally published as a filler without a title in the March 1899 issue of the Philistine magazine which he edited, but was quickly reprinted as a pamphlet and a book. It was wildly popular, selling over 40 million copies, and being translated into 37 languages. It also became a well-known allusion in American popular and business culture until the middle of the 20th century. According to language expert Charles Earle Funk, "to take a message to Garcia" was for years a popular American slang expression for taking initiative and was used by many people who were unaware of its origins.