The Talk of the Town (1942)

Share this quote on facebook Stop saying "Leopold" like that, tenderly. It sounds funny. You can't do it with a name like Leopold.

Share this quote on facebook What is the law? It's a gun pointed at somebody's head. All depends upon which end of the gun you stand, whether the law is just or not.

Share this quote on facebook Well, it's a form of self-expression. Some people write books. Some people write music. I make speeches on street corners.

Share this quote on facebook I don't approve of, but I like people who think in terms of ideal conditions. They're the dreamers, poets, tragic figures in this world, but interesting.

Share this quote on facebook I've been thinking, Nora, that if someone were to take his hand and say "Leopold, my wreckless friend, here's love and companionship, forever." Well, some day that man would... You see what I mean, Nora?

Share this quote on facebook This is your law and your finest possession - it makes you free men in a free country. Why have you come here to destroy it? If you know what's good for you, take those weapons home and burn them! And then think... think of this country and of the law that makes it what it is. Think of a world crying for this very law! And maybe you'll understand why you ought to guard it. Why the law has got to be the personal concern of every citizen. To uphold it for your neighbor as well as yourself. Violence against it is one mistake. Another mistake is for any man to look upon the law as just a set of principles. And just so much language printed on fine, heavy paper. Something he recites and then leans back and takes it for granted that justice is automatically being done. Both kinds of men are equally wrong! The law must be engraved in our hearts and practiced every minute to the letter and spirit. It can't even exist unless we're willing to go down into the dust and blood and fight a battle every day of our lives to preserve it. For our neighbor as well as ourself.