Power Quotes in Black Mass: Whitey Bulger, the FBI, and a Devil's Deal

How we cite our quotes: (Part.Chapter.Paragraph)

Quote #7

Roger Wheeler may have been a multimillionaire [...] but [...] Wheeler was just another guy in Whitey Bulger's way. (2.10.11)

The assassination of Roger Wheeler is Bulger's boldest move ever. He's killed plenty of people already, but none were as prominent or as well-connected as Wheeler. It just goes to show how powerful this project-born ex-con has become.

Quote #8

By this time John Connolly had emerged as the kind of quintessential public figure for the 1990's, a decade increasingly obsessed with style and celebrity. (3.20.108)

Whitey isn't the only one gaining steam: Connolly's making major moves himself, emerging as a minor celebrity. Okay, okay, so he might not break C-tier, but that's pretty impressive for an FBI agent. And you can believe that Connolly is going to milk his 15 minutes for everything they're worth.

Quote #9

He was sentenced to forty years in prison [...] all the bluster had gone out of the Connolly balloon. (e.51)

And then, just like that, it's all gone. All that bravado, all that swagger, all that bullying and macho posturing—gone in an instant. A lifetime sentence in federal prison will do that to a guy.