Success and failure. We think of them as opposites, but they're really not. They're companions - the hero and the sidekick.

- Laurence Shames

I never intended to be a journalist. Frankly, I don't think I ever was a journalist. I backed into it.

- Laurence Shames

I listen to the Beatles all the time - in my car, at the gym. The Beatles are still part of my life. And because of that, John Lennon - in life and i…

- Laurence Shames

When it became clear that Lennon was not going to speak with me, it really became a how-I-didn't-get-the-story story. It was a caper.

- Laurence Shames

To write an article about someone and then to have that person murdered is disturbing.

- Laurence Shames

Why are we inspired by another person's courage? Maybe because it gives us the sweet and genuine surprise of discovering some trace, at least, of the…

- Laurence Shames

I've never written a hard journalism piece in my life. I've never wanted to do that.

- Laurence Shames

I loved seeing my name in print, I loved seeing my words in print. I felt really privileged to be in the kind of company I was in at Esquire, but I d…

- Laurence Shames

All of us ambitious young writers hoped to have a cover story in Esquire, of course. The idea was to write the best, most entertaining article that y…

- Laurence Shames