John W. Hill

“This story is about Howard Beale, who was the news anchorman on UBS TV. In his time, Howard Beale had been a mandarin of television, the grand old man of news, with a HUT rating of 16 and a 28 audience share. In 1969, however, his fortunes began to decline. He fell to a 22 share. The following year, his wife died, and he was left a childless widower with an 8 rating and a 12 share. He became morose and isolated, began to drink heavily, and on September 22, 1975, he was fired, effective in two weeks.”
― Paddy Chayefsky, Network [Screenplay]

“Dealing with the Hippie is generally straightforward. His childlike nature will usually respond positively to drugs, sex, and/or rock and roll, although in which order these are to be deployed must depend on conditions specific to the moment.”
― Thomas Pynchon, Inherent Vice

“The past is a foreign country; they do things differently there.”
― L.P. Hartley, The Go-Between

“Why should things be easy to understand?”
― Thomas Pynchon