Blanche: Where in the world did you come from?
Dorothy: The coffee shop at the bus station. I went there from the hospital to think things out. But this toothless old wino who claimed he was Elvis kept hounding me for bus fare to Graceland. So I came home.
Rose: Blanche, call the police! I just saw a big, ugly man with a limp walk past my bedroom window! He was wearing Dorothy's coat! ... But then again, it was dark and I tend to over dramatize.

Rose: Dorothy, nobody likes being in the hospital, but it's natural to be afraid.
Blanche: She's right, darling. Everybody has fears. Now all of my life, I had an incredible fear of flying. And I missed out on a lot of things because of that fear! Then, one day-
Dorothy: No, don't tell me, don't tell me. You met a handsome pilot, he invited you into the cockpit. Of course you said yes, as you usually do in these stories. The two of you made passionate love and now you cannot get enough of the friendly skies.
Blanche: No, that's not what happened at all.
Rose: Well, then how did you get over your fear?
Blanche: I never did, but thanks to Dorothy, I now have new hope.

Bonnie: I hope my exercising doesn't bother you.
Dorothy: No. Not at all. What is it? Some kind of therapy you have to do?
Bonnie: No, I just like to stay healthy.
Dorothy: I hate to break this to you, Bonnie, you're in a hospital. The exercises aren't working.
Bonnie: Surgery today, huh?
Dorothy: Yeah. And I might as well warn you, I am not the best patient in the whole world.
Bonnie: I can put up with you for one night. Then tomorrow, it is my turn in the operating room.
Dorothy: You're having surgery too?
Bonnie: Yeah.
Dorothy: And you're smiling?
Bonnie: I've had this procedure before. The first time, I was as nervous as you are. This time I know what to expect.
Dorothy: You're having the same operation again? Don't they get it right around here the first time?
Bonnie: Oh, no, it's nothing like that. About three years ago, I had a mastectomy. And, well, now I'm in for another.
Dorothy: And you're not scared?
Bonnie: I'm petrified. No one's that brave, except in the movies and on television. But at least this time I know what I'm facing. I've gone through all the steps before. I have considered the alternatives, dealt with the reality.
The last time, I think I started crying the moment the doctor told me, and I didn't stop until they wheeled me off to surgery. And then later, I cried because there was so much pain, I didn't think it would ever go away. But it did. And it will again. You get through it. You go on. When it comes right down to it, what other choice do we have? It could have been a lot worse. I could have missed these last three years. Dorothy, you all right? How do you feel?
Dorothy: Like a fool. Like a damn fool.

Rose: I thought you went to dancing school.
Blanche: Oh, that was different. That was partner dancing, up close and personal. Rose, what I didn't tell you was, when I was five, Mama enrolled me in a tap-dancing class. For six months, we practiced. One hour a day, two days a week. And I was good. I was cute and I was good, real good. And then finally, it came time for the night of the recital. There were 13 little girls up there with our little Shirley Temple curls and our little starched white pinafores and our little Mary Jane shoes. Then they opened the curtain and the music started and 12 little girls started to dance. And one little girl wet her pants. That girl in the puddle was me. Oh, God, I have never told that to another living soul, Rose! You see, I thought I had overcome my fear, honey. But I just haven't, and performing is a nightmare for me.

Dorothy: Ma?
Sophia: What?!
Dorothy: What are you doing here?
Sophia: You were operated on, you're my daughter, where else would I be?
Dorothy: How long have you been here?
Sophia: Since they took you to surgery. I haven't left the room. Not for a newspaper, not for food, not for a cold drink. All day, I've been right here.
Dorothy: Oh, Ma. Ma, I love you. Could you fluff up my pillow a little, please?
Sophia: What, I look like an orderly? Push the button, wake up a nurse! I'm just here for moral support.

Sophia: Oh, my God! What is it? What happened?
Dorothy: Nothing, nothing, Ma. Don't worry, I'm just fine.
Blanche: It's nothing serious, Sophia. probably just a pulled muscle.
Rose: It happened in class when she tried to do a six-count Cincinnati riff with a double pullback. Goes something like this. [tap dances]
Sophia: Margaret Weinstein did the same thing when they changed her medication.

Dorothy: Oh, all right, all right, I'll go! For the sake of the act.
Blanche: If you really want to do something for the sake of the act, have one of those two left feet made into a right one.

Dorothy: It's a very small tumor, Ma. I've had it for about 20 years.
Sophia: A tumor? It sounds serious.
Dorothy: No, no, no! It's a very simple surgical procedure. As a matter of fact, I'd only be in the hospital overnight.
Sophia: That's it?
Dorothy: That's it.
Rose: Oh, what a relief.
Blanche: So when are you gonna have the surgery?
Dorothy: Never.
Blanche: Honey, you just now said yourself it's a very simple procedure.
Dorothy: Oh, it is, for the doctor. But it happens to be my foot that he wants to cut open.

Blanche: So you intend to limp around in pain when you could be completely cured in just one night? Dorothy, that doesn't make sense!
Dorothy: It makes sense to me. I don't like doctors, I don't like hospitals.
Rose: Nobody likes hospitals, but there's nothing to be scared of.
Dorothy: Oh, really, Rose? What about blood? What about death? What about those nighties that don't close up in the back?
Rose: Well, anybody can make it sound unpleasant.
Blanche: Dorothy, you are being irrational. Now the bottom line is we're talking about your health. That is a very precious thing. The longer you put this surgery off, the more you may be risking your health. I just don't think that's a risk worth taking, do you?
Dorothy: Yes.

Nurse: Visiting hours are over, ladies. Everybody will have to leave. Whoa, where do you think you're going?
Dorothy: You said everybody.
Nurse: Get back in bed.