“The mayor was the most dangerous of individuals. He possessed, in equal amounts, unhealthy doses of charm and ambition. He was a driven opportunist.”

“Valeria," the mayor's wife asked. "Are you all right this morning? My husband has been asking about you.""Yes, desire. Quite. Don't you look lovely today.”

“A man could settle down and still be inspired," he said. "That's all it is. She's a woman who inspires.”

“And tell your wife whatever you want, but don't make promises you're not going to keep. And don't knock yourself out over it; you didn't invent infidelity.”

“Make ethical choices in what we buy, do, and watch. In a consumer-driven society our individual choices, used collectively for the good of animals and nature, can change the world faster than laws.”

“When you actually meet the devil and he offers you a deal most artists eventually negotiate.”

“Stop swimming around in your own mind. That is a dangerous neighborhood that you should not go into alone.”