"How nice — to feel nothing, and to be a fair sample of a sturdy American boy."

"People say, 'What is the most important thing for a writer?' I say, 'Don't be boring.'"

"The America I grew up in was a country that made things. It made cars and steel and refrigerators and washing machines and television sets. Now we make money. We make money by moving money around."

"Peculiar travel suggestions are dancing lessons from God."

"The arts are not a way to make a living. They are a very human way of making life more bearable."