Stephen J. Cannell > Quotes

“I never waited for my Irish Cream coffee to be the right temperature, with a storm happening outside and my fireplace crackling ... I wrote every day, at home, in the office, whether I felt like it or not, I just did it.”
― Stephen J. Cannell

“If ya let hornets rest in yer outhouse, it's hard t'get pissed when they buzz down and sting yer ass.”
― Stephen J. Cannell, Cold Hit

“I don’t struggle because I was always the stupidest kid in the class and the idea that I would ever be brilliant was knocked out of me in the third grade. So I’m not sitting around trying to be brilliant, or Shakespeare. I’m just trying to get the work I have in my head down on the page in the best way I possibly know how without putting that horrible pressure on myself of saying I’m going to write it today and in 200 years at Princeton they will be studying these words.” Yeah, I want my stuff to be as good as I can conceivably make it, but I am not going to put that on my head”
― Stephen J. Cannell

“I love it when a plan comes together!
- Hannibal Smith, A-Team”
― Stephen J. Cannell

“A few minutes later, a very slim, very directed black-haired woman with olive skin and a classic profile swept into the room. Her hair was pulled back in a bun. She was the executive assistant version of the beautiful librarian cliché. Severe suit, abrupt manner, glasses perched on her nose and secured on a no-nonsense chain around her neck. But you knew when she took those specs off and let down her hair, the results would be dazzling.”
― Stephen J. Cannell, The Prostitutes' Ball

“Something you get unless you let it go, povýšíš by humiliating and things znásobíš if the divide .”
― Stephen J. Cannell

“nodded but still didn’t speak.”
― Stephen J. Cannell, The Tin Collectors / The Viking Funeral

“And life’s defining moments are usually played under the shadow of doubt.”
― Stephen J. Cannell, White Sister

“In the animal kingdom, the predators are easy to spot. They all have their eyes in the front of their heads to facilitate an attack. Lions, tigers, and wolves are designed by nature to kill. Antelopes, deer, and rabbit all have their eyes on the side of their heads. These prey animals are designed for flight and their vision allows them to see things coming at them peripherally. In the wild there are no exceptions to this rule. With people, it was a lot harder to tell.”
― Stephen J. Cannell, Three Shirt Deal

“I must not take joy from status or power, but from my accomplishments, and the way I chose to accomplish them.”
― Stephen J. Cannell, Hollywood Tough

“my room and fell onto the bed with”
― Stephen J. Cannell, On The Grind

“In L.A., emotions over undocumented immigrants are high and conflicted. Our schools and hospitals have become swamped with non-English-speaking illegals. Liberals want their votes, conservatives want their sweat, but nobody wants them.”
― Stephen J. Cannell, On The Grind

“retried beans and rice.”
― Stephen J. Cannell, On The Grind

“just take the deal and get on”
― Stephen J. Cannell, The Tin Collectors / The Viking Funeral

“phreaked”
― Stephen J. Cannell, Runaway Heart