Mike Hammer: We're gonna steer away from these penny-ante divorce cases for a while. I've got a line on something better. That girl I picked up was mixed up in something big.
Velda: And a cut of something big could be something big.
Mike Hammer: I want you to find out all you can about her.
Velda: First, you find a little thread, the little thread leads you to a string, and the string leads you to a rope, and from the rope you hang by the neck. What kind of a girl was she, this friend of yours, Christina?


--Maxine Cooper (as Velda) in Kiss Me Deadly

Mike Hammer: You're never around when I need you.
Velda: You never need me when I'm around.


--Maxine Cooper (as Velda) in Kiss Me Deadly

Velda: Do me a favor, will you? Keep away from the windows. Somebody might... blow you a kiss.


--Maxine Cooper (as Velda) in Kiss Me Deadly

Velda: You want to avenge the death of your dear friend. How touching. How sweet. How nicely it justifies your quest for the great whatsit.


--Maxine Cooper (as Velda) in Kiss Me Deadly

[Lily is hiding in Mike's apartment]
Mike Hammer: *They* tried to get her last night.
Velda: They? A wonderful word. And who are they? They're the nameless ones who kill people for the great whatsit. Does it exist? Who cares? Everyone everywhere is so involved in the fruitless search for what? Why don't you turn her over to Pat? It's his job to protect her, if she needs protection. Or to question her if that's what's needed. Why are you always tryin' to make a noise like a cop?


--Maxine Cooper (as Velda) in Kiss Me Deadly