- Pattie-Cake Spencer: [Pattie-Cake prays at the dinner table] Thank you for the food we eat, thank you for the world so sweet, thank you God for the birds that sing, thank you God for everything, including getting Clayboy graduated, Amen!
- Man in back of bus: [Last lines: Clayboy has boarded the bus, leaving home for college] Goin' far, son?
- Clayboy Spencer: Right far.
- Olivia Spencer: Must you, we got company!
- Clay Spencer: [drunk] Come open your arms because I'm going to kiss those ruby lips right off you
- [attempting to kiss her]
- Olivia Spencer: Oh Clay Stop it! Behave yourself the minister and Ms Parker are in there
- Clay Spencer: Oh good for Ms Parker
- [continues to kiss and grab his wife]
- Olivia Spencer: Clay Stop Clay!
- Clay Spencer: I love you woman
- Dean Beck: What do you have against preachers?
- Clay Spencer: It's what they preach *against* I'm against.
- Dean Beck: I'm afraid I don't understand?
- Clay Spencer: They're against everything I'm for. They don't allow drinkin' or smokin', card playin', pool shootin', dancin', cussin' - or huggin', kissin' and lovin'. And mister, I'm for *all* of them things.
- Clayboy Spencer: They think they can give me a college education
- Olivia Spencer: Well, I vow sometimes educated people has less brains than fools
- Clayboy Spencer: Wouldn't you want me to go?
- Olivia Spencer: I'd rather you go to college than anything in the whole world, but just where they think we can raise that kind of money when your father even worked overtime to get you a graduation ring, did you ever see university boys, they're rich boys, their daddys have money or they wouldn't even let them inside the gates.
- Clay Spencer: I can now all I need was the boy being accepted, he's my Collateral
- [he leaves]
- Clay Spencer: [Dean's secretary leaves]
- Dean's Secretary: You must live for days like this.
- [to the Dean]
- Olivia Spencer: It wouldn't surprise me at all if the good lord Himself kept Clayboy from gettin' that scholarship.
- Clay Spencer: Why'd the Lord wanna' do that?
- Olivia Spencer: Well, after the graduation we were all so puffed up, and braggin' about him so, and, well, pride cometh before a fall. If the Lord put you on this earth to be poor, poor you're going to be. And if you're born ignorant, well then you're destined to *die* ignorant!
- Clay Spencer: Where the hell did you pick up a piece of information like that?
- Olivia Spencer: In the Bible, and you stop swearing!
- Clay Spencer: Show me where it says something like that!
- Olivia Spencer: Well, I, I can't exactly show you *where,* but I heard a preacher...
- Clay Spencer: Woman, you been listening to too many preachers!
- Preacher, Mountain Church: [concerned about the new preacher's supposed drinking] I've heard rumors that...
- Clay Spencer: Bah! He never had a drink in his life before *I* poured it on him. I'd sure hate to see your whole congregation get stunk up tonight. Once them skunks start sprayin' their skunk juice around, they say you *never* get the stink out.
- Clayboy Spencer: [to all his younger siblings] What are you kids doing here? Back to bed, all of you!
- Clayboy Spencer: [to Patty-Cake] And if you get up another time tonight, I'm gonna' spank your behind so shiny you can see yourself in it!
- Clay Spencer: [looking at portrait paintings on the wall outside the dean's office] Well, they look smart, but I wonder if any of 'em ever did an honest day's work?
- Clay Spencer: Papa dead?
- Dr. Campbell: No, he's alive, Clay, but it can't be for long. He's broken nearly every bone in his body. I gave him enough morphine to get him down the mountain.
- Clay Spencer: [to Clayboy] Better get down there, son. Prepare the women for bad news.
- Grandma Spencer: [as Clayboy prepares to leave for college] Don't take up any fancy ways, Clayboy. Trust in God and go to church.
- [Clay returns Preacher Goodman intoxicated in front of the welcoming committee]
- Clay Spencer: It's all my fault. Seems your preacher's never had a bottle to his lips before.
- Preacher Clyde Goodman: Bless you all. *HIC*
- Mother Ida: Merciful heavens! He's drunk!
- Clayboy Spencer: Well, you've grown.
- Claris Coleman: 34-22-34.
- Clayboy Spencer: What's that stand for?
- Claris Coleman: What you're gawking at.
- Claris Coleman: The two most important books in the whole world are the Bible and the unexpurgated dictionary.