In Praise of the Paraprosdokian

A paraprosdokian is a very underutilized rhetorical device. What is it? Basically it is a phrase where the ending makes you rethink the beginning. For example:

"If I am reading this graph correctly—I'd be very surprised." - Stephen Colbert
"On the other hand, we have different fingers." - Jack Handey

While a paraprosdokian lends itself well to comedians and humorists, there have been world leaders who utilized the potential for biting sarcasm.  Sir Winston Churchill was a master as this. Consider:

"You can always count on Americans to do the right thing - after they've tried everything else."
"A modest man, who has much to be modest about."

Librarians don't get to throw out too many paraprosdokians. There is one, however, that I like to use when I can. It is probably from the "king" of paraprosdokians, Groucho Marx.

“Outside of a dog, a book is a man’s best friend. Inside of a dog it’s too dark to read.”

Want to see more?  Examples are all over the web!