Russell Baker Quotes
The old notion that brevity is the essence of wit has succumbed to the modern idea that tedium is the essence of quality.

Quotes to Explore
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I have changed so much as an actor over the years.
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It is nasty. You can think that you know someone in this business and you really don't. You can be stabbed in the back very easily. You can be praised very easily. It doesn't matter who you are or what you do.
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I'd call my music rock but with pop hooks.
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If you respect a language and culture, it shows in your work.
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Famous people feel that they must perpetually be on the crest of the wave, not realising that it is against all the rules of life. You can't be on top all the time, it isn't natural.
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A lizard is a perfect pet for a model. They only need feeding once a fortnight. And I'm always travelling, so it's perfect. If I had a dog, it would drop dead of starvation.
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I ran the Iditarod twice. I finished once. I came in 42nd or 43rd place out of 70 plus teams the first time, and I scratched 80 miles from Nome the second time. You can read about my experience in the race in my books 'Woodsong' and 'Winterdance.'
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The dream, alone, is of interest. What is life, without a dream?
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I don't take money seriously, so I can't keep any.
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I needed something to challenge myself a little more. I found fighting, and it completely fit my personality.
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Youth is really in your attitude, not in what you look like.
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I was a jazz drummer, and it was my life for a while: what I lived and breathed every day.
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Republicans and blacks had an unlikely alliance around 'max black' after the 1990 census. By concentrating black voters in some districts, the strategy elected a record number of black congressmen in 1992. But the remaining 'bleached' districts were more likely to elect white Republicans.
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I am really passionate about my career and my music and I am so lucky to be able to do what I do for a job, so for all the early morning starts and long days, I could never trade it all in.
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China was the worst place I've ever been in my life.
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I have a thick skin, but I have a heart.
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I still miss the days when a haircut was just a haircut. It was only your mates you had to face. Now there's a whole industry centred around people analysing your 'look'. I just cannot understand how anyone could get so worked up by... hair.
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If you can't, you must. If you must, you can. Most people fail in life because they major in minor things. Quality questions create a quality life. Successful people ask better questions, and as a result, they get better answers. It is in your moments of decision that your destiny is shaped.
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I hate to express political ideas directly in a book. I don't want my books to be seen as an expression of this or that political idea. At the same time I want to show a kind of rebellion and transgression, something further.
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I think...I think sometimes that's how it is. Sometimes people have to go before you get stuff. Before you can really get it.
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The old notion that brevity is the essence of wit has succumbed to the modern idea that tedium is the essence of quality.