"No two dramatists think or write alike. Ten thousand playwrights can take the same premise, as they have done since Shakespeare, and not one play will resemble the other except in the premise. Your knowledge, your understanding of human nature, and your imagination will take care of that."

"Everything has a purpose or premise. Every second of our life has its own premise, whether or not we are conscious of it at the time. That premise may be as simple as breathing or as complex as a vital emotional decision, but it is always there."

"Immortality. We all want to be remembered: We want to do things that will make people say, 'Isn't he wonderful?'"

"Although you should never mention your premise in the dialogue of your play, the audience must know what the message is. And whatever it is, you must prove it."

"I never really feel like just standing there and telling jokes. I want to move around. In fact, it's hard for me to write a joke where I don't end up on the ground for some reason. Hey, at least that way, I know no comics will steal my jokes. Too many bruises."

"My advice is: if you've got to be miserable to write great music, then drive a truck."

"When 'Catch Me If You Can' was published back in 1980, I never dreamed that it would become a bestseller, much less a major motion picture and now a big Broadway musical. What's amazing about the book is that it has never gone out of print."

"Real programmers can write assembly code in any language."