I was wondering if Quote Callouts could work as an off-the-shelf option?
Just as an extra tidbit for the OP edit history - if you make use of the schedule publishing or shared draft features, the post revisions are deleted on publish (which may be useful as hiding lots of edit revisions can be a chore 
)
Alternatively, there’s also the hidden can permanently delete site setting which (once enabled) will allow you to purge all the post revisions in a button press. You need to hide one first, and then the ‘delete’ button turns up.
There’s a bit more info on how to enable hidden site settings here: Using Hidden Site Settings