Down went the owners — greedy men whom hope of gain allured: oh, dry the starting tear, for they were heavily insured. – W. S. Gilbert

A great calamity is as old as the trilobites an hour after it has happened. – Oliver Wendell Holmes

Tragedy is a representation of action that is worthy of serious attention, complete in itself and of some magnitude – bringing about by means of pity and fear the purging of such emotions. – Aristotle

What the American public wants in the theater is a tragedy with a happy ending. – William Dean Howells