There must have been murderers out there who wanted to kill, with no way of finding those who wanted to be dead. If there had been some way of contacting them, a date-with-death line, I would have called them to set up a meeting. The current ways of death seemed too haphazard; it was all left up to chance. Had Chance come up, tapped me on the shoulder, said ‘Oi, you – long black tunnel, white light, off you go,’ I wouldn’t have complained.
It was like having frostbite all over – feeling numb and in pain at the same time. Helena Dela, The Count
Rosencrantz: We might as well be dead. Do you think death could possibly be a boat?
Guildenstern: No, no, no ... Death is ... not. Death isn’t. You take my meaning. Death is the ultimate negative. Not-being. You can’t not-be on a boat.
Rosencrantz: I’ve frequently not been on boats.
Guildenstern: No, no, no – what you’ve been is not on boats. Tom Stoppard, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead
Death isn’t peaceful; it is just nothing. Everything is gone. No more sunrises, no more hopes, no more fears. Nothing. Linda Howard, Kill and Tell
What will I be doing in twenty years’ time? I’ll be dead, darling! Are you crazy? Freddie Mercury
What we have done for ourselves alone dies with us; what we have done for others and the world remains and is immortal. Albert Pike
From my rotting body, flowers shall grow and I am in them and that is eternity. Edvard Munch
When you’re dead, you’re dead. That’s it. Marlene Dietrich
The idea is to die young as late as possible. Ashley Montagu
It’s better to die laughing than to live each moment in fear. Michael Crichton
It’s true, I am afraid of dying. I am afraid of the world moving forward without me, of my absence going unnoticed, or worse, being some natural force propelling life on. Is it selfish? Am I such a bad person for dreaming of a world that ends when I do? I don’t mean the world ending with respect to me, but every set of eyes closing with mine. Jonathan Safran Foer, Everything is Illuminated
He is terribly afraid of dying because he hasn’t yet lived. Franz Kafka
Dissecting cadavers would have connected him [da Vinci] with death. He would have been familiar with its forms. He would have seen death at an early age too. Professor Christopher L C E Witcombe, Sweet Briar College
He [Turner] looked at Venice and saw death. Simon Schama’s Power of Art: Turner, BBC 2006
Death on a Pale Horse, 1825-1830: But Turner paints his way out of the nightmare. Look closely: the skeleton is limp; Death is dead. Turner lives to paint on. ibid.
The idea of untimely death fascinated Victorian artists. Poets often got the worst of it. Andrew Lloyd Webber, Perspectives, ITV 2011
I’ve always made artwork about death. Damien Hirst, interview Damien Hirst: Thoughts, Work, Life, 2012
The belief that the dead can rise from their dreamless slumbers ... predates the most famous resurrection story. Excavating the Empty Tomb, 2014
He’s very definitely dead. Father Ted s1e6: Grant Unto Him Eternal Rest, Nun to Ted & Dougal, re Jack, Channel 4 1995
Apparently not. The floor polish brought about all the symptoms of death such as no heartbeat, rigor mortis, decomposition. But he was lucky – the effects just wore off him. ibid.
Die with a degree of dignity. Lay down your life with dignity. Don’t lay down with tears and agony. There’s nothing to death. Jim Jones
I just want to die. Kip Kinkel, police interview
You think you’re the first person I’ve dealt with whose woken up with a dead body. Ray Donovan s1e1: The Bag or the Bat starring Liev Schreiber & Paul Malcomson & Jon Voight & Eddie Marson & Dash Mihok & Steven Bauer et al, Donovan, Showtime 2013
I’m not afraid of death. Not if it’s for something. The Sopranos s1e3: Denial, Anger, Acceptance starring James Gandolfini & Lorriane Bracco & Edie Falco & Michael Imperioli & Dominic Chianese & Steven van Zandt & Tony Sirico & Robert Iler et al, Tony to Dr Melfi, HBO 1999
The only absolute truth is death. The Sopranos s2e7: D-Girl, Dr Melfi
Everybody’s gonna get old and die. The Sopranos s4e8: Mergers & Acquisitions, Tony to Pauli
It’s not only the dirt, the stench of death clings to you. Romanzo Criminale s1e2 starring Francesco Montanari & Vinicio Marchioni & Alessandro Roja & Marco Bocci & Daniela Virgilio & Andrea Sartoretti et al, Gangsta burying bodies, Sky 2005
‘It’s like the dead killing the dead.’ The Wild & Wonderful Whites of West Virginia, male clan member, 2009
Michael: Where are all the men?
Sidekick: Dead from vendettas. The Godfather 1972 starring Marlon Brando & Al Pacino & James Caan & Richard S Castellano & Richard Duvall & Sterling Hayden & John Marley & Richard Conte & Diane Keaton et al, director Francis Ford Coppola
When I’m dead I’m going to be really smart. The Godfather III 1990 starring Al Pacino & Andy Garcia & Diane Keaton & Talia Shire & Sofia Coppola & George Hamilton & Bridget Fonda et al, director Francis Ford Coppola, Michael to Kay
Marla’s philosophy of life is that she might die at any moment. The tragedy, she said, was that she didn’t. Fight Club ***** 1999 starring Edward Norton & Brad Pitt & Helena Bonham Carter & Meatloaf & Zac Grenier & Richmond Arquette & David Andrews & George Maguire & Christina Cabot & Rachel Singer & Tim de Zarn et al, director David Fincher
I’d pray for a crash or a mid-air collision – anything. ibid.
One can make all kinds of explosives using simple household objects. ibid. Pitt
Blessed are the dead that the rain falls on. F Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby