“Everybody in boxing probably makes out well except for the fighter.”

“Why don't they make the whole plane out of that black box stuff?”

“The spirit makes you a great fighter not drugs or anything … the smartest fighter, the fighter that's more determined, the fighter that's dedicated, the fighter that wants it the most.. you have to have the desire to hurt him [to be the best fighter].”

“Nearly everybody has his box of secret pain, shared with no one.”

“[On boxing] [For] The Chicago Code, I did some boxing. It makes you stand differently when you know you can punch someone out.”

“Carter had been doubtful about using the black box, pointing out that this was not a Vigils meeting. How can we make Archie try for the marbles? Obie had the answer, the kind of answer Archie himself would have given. "Because there are four hundred kids out there yelling for blood. And they don't care whose blood it is anymore. Everybody in the school knows about the black box- how can Archie back down?"”

“Everybody has a heart. Except some people.”

“Before you can think out of the box, you have to start with a box”

“I don't like records that are the same from beginning to end, that are too styled and slick. Everything is so designed and airbrushed and Botoxed, it makes us think, 'Oh, everybody's perfect except me. Everything's smooth except me.”

“If the law is bad and unpopular, it is for the people through the ballot box, to show their displeasure. But in a democracy, it is not the business of the military, however well-intentioned, to interfere with the law-making process.”