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Did you Know? The pharse, "steal my thunder" was originated with Macbeth.
When you steal someone's thunder, you use their ideas for your own benefit without giving them credit. Shakespeare appears to have used a sound effect invented by fellow playwright John Dennis to create the thunder heard throughout Macbeth. Appius and Virginia, Dennis's failed production, was the first to feature the sound. Dennis then heard thunder during a Macbeth performance shortly after that one ended. He was enraged that his thunder had been stolen.