# Coincidence? I think not

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coincidence-i-think-not/995985>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [January 12, 2024, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coincidence-i-think-not/995985 "2024-01-12T01:49:31Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\
**Post date:** [January 12, 2024, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coincidence-i-think-not/995985/1 "2024-01-12T01:49:31Z")

</div>

Where does this phrase originate from? Google says The Incredibles but that’s impossible since we said this when I was a kid. I have a vague memory of someone either in a suit or lab coat saying it , maybe in a parody of an In Search Of type show. Does anyone know for sure?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\
**Post date:** [January 12, 2024, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coincidence-i-think-not/995985/2 "2024-01-12T02:32:29Z")

</div>

Here’s a previous thread (quite old, but has some good research).

> [@Origin of "Coincidence -- I think not!"](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-coincidence-i-think-not/324262/2):
>
> Okay, I know I first heard it in one of the stoner comedies. Maybe “Bill and Ted’s Great Adventure.”

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\
**Post date:** [January 13, 2024, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coincidence-i-think-not/995985/3 "2024-01-13T00:35:27Z")

</div>

As an old person, I remember it long before Bill and Ted.
