Stephen J. Cannell Quotes

I really hesitate to say that any of my shows influenced other writers.

Everyone starts out desperately trying to make a hit, but some people are just more mistake-prone than others. I happened to be fairly mistake-prone. Of the 40 shows I made, I'd say ten were hits, which is a pretty good average.

I flunked three grades before I got out of high school.

My dad was my best friend. I worshipped him. All of my success in life really comes from him. He believed that you get nothing from negativity.

So many people get involved with carrying grudges and having these moral battles with people, where they cast themselves as the righteous and the other guy is the dirtbag. They waste tons of energy on it, create all kinds of darkness around themselves and the other person. It gets you nothing.

I love it when a plan comes together!
- Hannibal Smith, A-Team

I finally get to the place where the book has matured in my mind and I can hardly wait to start writing it. Then I just sit down and I start. I hit the go button. I have an outline, which is 70 pages, but I don't look at it. I never have to look at it.

I never waited for my Irish Cream coffee to be the right temperature, with a storm happening outside and my fireplace crackling ... I wrote every day, at home, in the office, whether I felt like it or not, I just did it.

I've been very successful at selling my things, but I've also been getting up at 4 in the morning for 40 years.

I believed in the concept of over-performing. I believe anyone can achieve their goals in life if they over-perform, and that means you have to work ten times harder than anybody you see.

A few minutes later, a very slim, very directed black-haired woman with olive skin and a classic profile swept into the room. Her hair was pulled back in a bun. She was the executive assistant version of the beautiful librarian cliché. Severe suit, abrupt manner, glasses perched on her nose and secured on a no-nonsense chain around her neck. But you knew when she took those specs off and let down her hair, the results would be dazzling.

My dad was an interior design and furniture person. I started working with him for four years before my first TV writing break.

The first act is the easiest to plot. The second act is always the hardest to plot. Generally a good, you know, sometimes the third act can be difficult because you can get into a rut in the third act - everybody runs to their Corvette, has a chase, and you catch the bad guy.

I'm generally a very happy guy because I'm doing what I want. I'm willing to tell you that there are people who are much better than I am in writing. I don't have to be the fastest gun in the West.

The character's attitude is more important than plot.

Having a support system is huge for writers. My parents were always encouraging and told me they were behind me, whether or not I made it in the business. My wife was always there for my successes and failures.

I love 'Dexter.' The dark sense of humor is wonderful.

If ya let hornets rest in yer outhouse, it's hard t'get pissed when they buzz down and sting yer ass.

I'm hoping that these series, that originally aired in the 80's and 90's, prove to be as entertaining online and on portable devices as they were when first broadcast on network television.