Champion (1949)

Arthur Kennedy: Connie Kelly

Photos 

Quotes 

• Connie : Oh, this rotten business!

  Midge : Aw, lay off the business. It's like any other business, only here the blood shows.

• Midge : Look, you and me and the old lady. That's what's important. Nobody else.

  Connie : What's happened to you? Nothing stands in your way anymore, does it? First, Emma, then Johnny Dunne, now Haley. You've got your own way of destroying people and I don't want any part of it.

  Midge : Well, who's twisting your arm?

  Connie : Thanks, Midge. You've made it easy for me.

  [starts to leave] 

  Midge : OK, go on. Feed yourself for a change. Find yourself a job. Go with Haley. Ah, take your bleeding heart out of here.

  Connie : It's not that, Midge. It's just that I wouldn't get much sleep at nights wondering when it was going to be my turn.

  [he exits] 

• Connie : Hey, you're crazy. You don't know anything about boxing. You'll get your ears knocked off.

  Midge : Listen, for 35 bucks, I'd get my head knocked off.

• Connie : [entering the room holding a newspaper after Midge just dumped Haley as his manager]  Hey, did you see what Walker says?

  [pauses when he notices their dour expressions] 

  Connie : What's the matter?

  Haley : Nothing. This is a celebration. Midge is getting a shot at the title and he's got himself a new manager... a blonde.

• Connie : And I know you, but I didn't know you up in that ring. You looked as if you wanted to kill that guy. As if you would've killed him if they hadn't stopped you.

  Midge : Is that bad?

  Connie : I don't know. I really don't know. But I kept thinking you weren't just hitting that guy in the ring. I kept thinking you were hitting a lot of guys. Different guys. All the guys that ever hurt you. I can't put my finger on it but there's... there's something wrong about that.

• Connie : [to Midge]  Why did you do it? Because you were bored? Did you have to prove to yourself you're really the champion? You stink! You stink from corruption! You're worse than a murderer. You're a grave robber!

  [Midge knocks him down] 

• Connie : Why haven't you divorced him?

  Emma : I don't know. You know there's more loneliness than anything else in the world. You could be lonely in an awful lot of places - movies, dance halls, in your own room. People are funny.

  [she looks at her wedding ring] 

  Emma : One little piece of cheap gold can almost make you believe things are different than they really are. What do you want, Connie? Does Midge want a divorce? He can have it!

  [she cries and leaves] 

• Connie : You still love him. You know you do.

  Emma : Do I? I don't think so.

  Connie : Love isn't something you can put on or take off like an overcoat, you know.

• Connie : [taking the high road about Midge to a reporter]  He was a champion. He went out like a champion. He was a credit to the fight game until the very end.