I presumably lost $150,000 in the depression of 1937โon my one stock investmentโbecause I did everything Lehman Brothers told me. I said, well, this is a foolโs procedure . . . buying stock in other peopleโs businesses.
Studs TerkelWhen I put the plate down, you don't hear a sound. When I pick up a glass, I want it to be just right. When someone says, "How come you're just a waitress?" I say, "Don't you think you deserve being served by me?"
Studs TerkelThe issue is jobs. You can't get away from it: jobs. Having a buck or two in your pocket and feeling like somebody.
Studs TerkelOrdinary people are capable of doing extraordinary things, and that's what it's all about. They must count.
Studs TerkelOne night a guy hit his head on a welding gun. He went to his knees. He was bleeding like a pig, blood was oozing out. So I stopped the line for a second and ran over to help him. The foreman turned the line on again, he almost stepped on the guy. That's the first thing they always do. They didn't even call an ambulance. The guy walked to the medic department -- that's about half a mile -- he had about five stitches put in his head. The foreman didn't say anything. He just turned the line on. You're nothing to any of them.
Studs Terkel