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Never Quotes

Quotes on what never happens.

This page gathers quotes centered on absence and limits - books that stayed unpublished, and a pointed line arguing that secrecy is fundamentally undesirable, merely tolerated when unavoidable. Related reading includes Life Quotes.

When I left Africa in 1966 it seemed to me to be a place that was developing, going in a particular direction, and I don't think that is the case now. And it's a place where people still kid themselves...

Quotes by Paul Theroux

There's books that are about places we will never go, and then there's books that inspire us to go.

Quotes by Paul Theroux

I think people read travel books either because they intend to take that trip, or because they would never take that trip. In a sense, as a writer you are doing the travel for the reader.

Quotes by Paul Theroux

Economics has never been a science - and it is even less now than a few years ago.

Quotes by Paul Samuelson

Self-deception ultimately explains Japan's plight. The Japanese have never accepted that change is in their interest - and not merely a response to U.S. criticism.

Quotes by Paul Samuelson

In well-functioning markets, price equals opportunity cost. Meaning that the proper way to price out and charge us for things is to charge us what those resources could otherwise have produced. This is a lesson the Soviet Union never learned...

Quotes by Paul Samuelson

I'm married, and my wife has set out very limited Xbox limits. But if I had my druthers, I'd be playing all the time and never see any of my friends or do any work.

Quotes by Paul Scheer

The best goalkeeper I played with at United was Schmeichel. He was a phenomenon in training, never mind on match days. He just never wanted to concede, and he would do everything to stop you scoring.

Quotes by Paul Scholes

As a club, there was never any middle ground with Newcastle. They were as high as the sky or in a pit of despair.

Quotes by Paul Scholes

I teach a course in screenwriting at Columbia, but I've never taken a course and I've never read a book about it!

Quotes by Paul Schrader

I've never had a plan for the future.

Quotes by Paul Shaffer

Writing never had the immediate gratification I was looking for.

Quotes by Paul Shaffer

We made this movie for $17, and nobody got anything. So it never dawned on me that we would get real people.

Quotes by Paul Reiser

I'd never directed before and this movie's too important to me to put in the hands of some guy who has never directed. Even if it's me.

Quotes by Paul Reiser

But the two of them together, broke my heart. Olympia and Peter, those scenes... When they're kissing in their 20s and then kissing in their 70s, that's what it is. And they had never met five minutes before they shot...

Quotes by Paul Reiser

I've always felt like a kid, and I still feel like a kid, and I've never had any problem tapping into my childhood, and my kid side.

Quotes by Paul Reubens

Animals don't have anyone to protect them. If we don't stand up, the people who are harming animals will never get stopped.

Quotes by Paul Rodriguez

'Anchorman' was never supposed to be a popular, like, hit movie. That movie was a cheap movie - it felt like we were working on a weird independent comedy in a way.

Quotes by Paul Rudd

There are so many really good comedians, and I would never be as good as they are. It's not my calling.

Quotes by Paul Rudd

I was never much into knights and sorcery and that kind of thing. It's not because I was into anything cooler. I certainly wasn't. I played with LEGOs. I played with LEGOs way past when most people played with LEGOs.

Quotes by Paul Rudd

Frequently Asked Questions

What kind of quotes are gathered under "Never"?
These quotes explore things that haven't happened, aren't wanted, or weren't anticipated — unpublished books that never found a marketing angle, the idea that secrets are "never desirable" even when needed, and a reflection on how it "never occurred" to anyone that private conversation might need protecting.
Are these quotes mostly about regret?
Not exactly regret, more observation — noticing gaps, oversights, or things that didn't come to pass, like unpublished books or an unanticipated need for privacy protections.
Is there a quote about problem-solving here?
Yes — one notes that "people constantly face problems they've never seen before" and have to improvise solutions, which is a nice contrast to the other, more resigned quotes on this page.
How is "Never" different from <a href="/always-quotes">Always</a> quotes?
They're natural opposites — "Always" quotes are about consistency and long-held habits, while "Never" quotes are about absence, gaps, and things that haven't happened.
What should I read if I want something more upbeat?
Good quotes or Like quotes lean lighter, while "Never" quotes tend to be more contemplative. For a broader reflective read, Life quotes is also worth checking.

Other quotes touch on constitutional rights never explicitly written down, and the constant stream of new problems people have never faced before. See also Always Quotes and Good Quotes.