Bang the Drum Slowly Quotes

“The sky was just beginning to light up a little, the quiet time when all the air is clean and you can hear birds, even in the middle of New York City, the time of day you never see except by accident, and you always tell yourself, "I must get up and appreciate this time of day once in awhile," and then you never do. Don't ask me why.”
― Mark Harris, Bang the Drum Slowly

“From here on in I rag nobody.”
― Mark Harris, Bang the Drum Slowly

“Do you think you are going to live forever? Is life so long you rather rag somebody than be nice to them?”
― Mark Harris, Bang the Drum Slowly

“When I die,” he says, “the paper will write in their headline THE SON OF A BITCHES OF THE WORLD HAVE LOST THEIR LEADER,”
― Mark Harris, Bang the Drum Slowly

“called Goose Williams. I could not of sold Goose anything, and I knew it, but if I didn’t at least try I wouldn’t of had the nerve to list the trip deductible.”
― Mark Harris, Bang the Drum Slowly

“Maybe he thought up a cure by now which those jugheads out in Rochester, Minnesota, ain’t heard about yet. What kind of a place is that to have a goddam hospital, anyhow, out there in the wilds of nowhere? Does a man not freeze his ass off by the time they get him in bed?”
― Mark Harris, Bang the Drum Slowly

“There is no time to say, “Well, I been a heel all week but I will be better to him beginning Monday” because Monday might never come.”
― Mark Harris, Bang the Drum Slowly

“When your roomie is libel to die any day on you you do not think about bonus clauses, and that is the truth whether anybody happens to think so or”
― Mark Harris, Bang the Drum Slowly

“Everybody knows everybody is dying,” I said. “That is why people are nice. You all die soon enough, so why not be nice to each other?”
― Mark Harris, Bang the Drum Slowly

“I will keep a book,” he said. “Either in your head,” I said, “or better still on paper for awhile. You already have terrific power. But power plus brains is the difference between nobody and somebody.”
― Mark Harris, Bang the Drum Slowly

“The number of things I do not remember or maybe never knew or am only in the foggiest haze about is quite amazing.”
― Mark Harris, Bang the Drum Slowly

“he went with me to The Dayton Company and I bought a storm coat with a fur collar and earmuffs and gloves, $70, all deductible, business. I would not of needed them if I was not in Minneapolis and would not of been in Minneapolis except on business.”
― Mark Harris, Bang the Drum Slowly

“Probably everybody be nice to you if they knew you were dying," he said.
"Everybody knows everybody is dying," I said. "That is why people are nice. You all die soon enough, so why not be nice to each other?”
― Mark Harris, Bang the Drum Slowly