William Boyd Quotes
Quotes to Explore
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At 21 years old, I could produce 400 people like that.
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I'm from New York. My grandparents were settlers of Long Island City. When they came here, there was no bridge, and they had to hire a boat across the river. They had a farm, and my grandmother had to go once a week to Manhattan to buy provisions - very primitive.
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Reason cannot calm the storm of emotion, and emotion usually wins, until it settles down and allows reason to rise again and apologize on behalf of it.
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What is extraordinary about contemporary art is the energy - it has our energy. New energy. Pieces hundreds of years old are beautiful from an aesthetic point of view, but without our modern energy.
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I don't feel that no big stone should be put over my head, saying he did this, he did that. Unless there's something that I really did do. I believe I'm just ordinary. And I'd like for people to think of me that way, as just a guy that tried. Wanted to be loved by other people because he loved people.
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Give the peasants neither life nor death.
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In Latin America, even atheists are Catholics.
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Ages when custom is unsettled are necessarily ages of prophecy. The moralist cannot teach what is revealed; he must reveal what can be taught. He has to seek insight rather than to preach.
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This is America, not a banana republic.
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I'm not terribly confrontational, but I've gotten better at holding my ground.
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I was at a book convention, in a cab. On one side of me was Arthur Schlesinger; on the other side was William Manchester - real heavyweights. All they were doing was asking me about Charles Manson. The only thing that enables me not to be bored is the people talking about it - they're so interested.
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I think that dwelling on other people's perception of you is the road to complete madness, unfortunately. I try and resist that.
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Sometimes you look at a movie and you can see that the actor or actress said, 'I'm taking this onboard because I'm making a ton of money, and not because it's going to be something special.'
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Climbing to the top demands strength, whether it is to the top of Mount Everest or to the top of your career.
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Likewise, education can direct people toward good or evil ends. When education is based on a fundamentally distorted worldview, the results are horrific.
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Once is happenstance. Twice is coincidence. Three times is enemy action.
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My own death threats have declined considerably.
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Jack Benny: Where's that big glass star I told you to pack away last Christmas?
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This goes to demonstrate the fact that John Howard established this inquiry in order to bring about his own absolution, not to bring about any form of accountability.
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I think the comfort of sneakers is really coming back. Everybody wants a cool pair of shoes, but they want to be comfortable.
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I liked the military life. They teach you self-sufficiency early on. I always say that I learned most of what I know about leadership in the Marine Corps. Certain basic principles stay with you - sometimes consciously, mostly unconsciously.
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Life is hard, and then you die.
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I think most people, and I'm talking vamp or human, are shitty. They put on an act. They pretend to be all nicey-nice, but are really just one step away from showing their true asshole-ness.
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I don't think they'll ever make a retro Bond.
