Imitation, if noble and general, insures the best hope of originality.

How many of us have been attracted to reason; first learned to think, to draw conclusions, to extract a moral from the follies of life, by some dazzling aphorism.

The conscience is the most flexible material in the world. Today you cannot stretch it over a mole hill; while tomorrow it can hide a mountain.

He who writes prose builds his temple to Fame in rubble; he who writes verses builds it in granite.

Genius is but fine observation strengthened by fixity of purpose.

Men are valued, not for what they are, but for what they seem to be.

A fresh mind keeps the body fresh. Take in the ideas of the day, drain off those of yesterday.

A good cigar is as great a comfort to a man as a good cry to a woman.

Punctuality is the stern virtue of men of business, and the graceful courtesy of princes.

Love has no thought of self! Love buys not with the ruthless usurer's gold The loathsome prostitution of a hand Without a heart! Love sacrifices all things To bless the thing it loves!

A fresh mind keeps the body fresh.

Writing is the only art form where a good number of the artists make a slice of their living criticizing one another in print, in public.

Before, I was terrified on stage. I only play guitar during the acoustic songs. After a while, you can elicit certain responses from the crowd, like Elvis.

You win some and you lose some. Unless you're Virgil, then you lose them all.

What was given to us by the past is adapted to the possibilities of the future.

Victory is by nature superb and insulting.

My wife Mary and I have been married for forty-seven years and not once have we had an argument serious enough to consider divorce; murder, yes, but divorce, never.

The kids really enjoy what they do. I check with them constantly to make sure that they're really happy to be there.

The motto of all the mongoose family is, "Run and find out," and Rikki-tikki was a true mongoose.

In high school, I didn't get the chance to wrestle varsity until my senior year because I had an older brother who was better than me.

Gloomy calm of idle vacancy.