Charles Reade

"Well, every one for himself, and Providence for us all--as the elephant said when he danced among the chickens."

"The fortunate man is he who, born poor, or nobody, works gradually up to wealth and consideration, and, having got them, dies before he finds they were not worth so much trouble."

"What young woman is not, more or less, a mirror?"

"Art is not imitation but illusion."

"First, think in as homely a way as you can; next, shove your pen under the thought, and lift it by polysyllables to the true level of fiction"

"In players, vanity cripples art at every step."

"It must be confessed that a sort of halo of personal grandeur surrounds a great actress."

"Not a day passes over the earth, but men and women of no note do great deeds, speak great words, and suffer noble sorrows."

"...even Christians loved one another at first starting."

"Lower a bucket into a well of self-deception, and what comes up must be immortal truth, mustn't it?"

"Courage, mon ami, le diable est mort! / Take courage, my friend, the devil is dead!"

"When love and skill work together, expect a masterpiece."

"Make 'em laugh; make 'em cry; make 'em wait."

"Sow an act, and you reap a habit. Sow a habit and you reap a character. Sow a character, and you reap a destiny."