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Who really said it

Yeah, but I have something he’ll never have: enough

A reported reply, with wording variants Joseph Heller 1923–1999
Attributed In copyright

Anecdote about Joseph Heller, retold in John C. Bogle’s “Enough” address (2007)

Last verified 9 Nov 2026 · how we verify · spot an error?

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Unconfirmed quote & credit

“Yeah, but I have something he’ll never have: enough” — Joseph Heller, in a reported conversation retold by others; exact wording varies and the original exchange is not independently confirmed.

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In context

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Provenance

The source

Source
Anecdote about Joseph Heller, retold in John C. Bogle’s “Enough” address
Evidence
Bogle’s inspected prose retelling reports a close reply by Heller; the exact “Yeah … he’ll” wording is a later variant, not a checked transcript of the exchange.

Yes, but I have something he will never have Short excerpt

How we verified this

  • Bogle’s 18 May 2007 Georgetown address opens with a story of Heller and Kurt Vonnegut at a wealthy host’s party, using “Yes” and “he will” in the reply.
  • In his inspected 2009 address, Bogle explicitly says he is summarizing Vonnegut’s short poem, so this is a chain of retellings rather than an independent transcript of Heller speaking.
  • Wikiquote supplies the “Yeah … he’ll” version through a 2007 Money reference. No original recording or contemporaneous record of the party conversation was established; no poem is reproduced here.
In copyright

Only a short excerpt is reproduced; identification and commentary do not grant permission to reuse the complete work.

Rights status is our research, not legal advice — and copyright varies by country and edition. For commercial or published use, confirm with the rightsholder. See terms.

Fact-check

The attribution question

Bogle’s inspected prose retelling reports a close reply by Heller; the exact “Yeah … he’ll” wording is a later variant, not a checked transcript of the exchange.

Joseph Heller Wording or transmission context

Retellings credit him with the reply, but differ in wording; the original private exchange is unconfirmed.

— Joseph Heller, in a reported conversation retold by others; exact wording varies and the original exchange is not independently confirmed.

Context

Why it mattered

The anecdote contrasts a rich host’s earnings with Heller’s sense that he already has enough. Bogle used the story to frame a commencement address about business values and limits on the pursuit of money. That later use gives the reply a clear circulation history, while leaving the exact words of the original private conversation uncertain.

Explore

Filed under

More provenance-checked quotes on the same theme, each with its reuse status.

Gratitude Simplicity Happiness

Go further

Dig deeper

Trusted places to keep pulling the thread — primary archives, fact-checks, and scholarship. We show how we used each one before you leave.

Bogle’s 2007 addressjohncbogle.com

Opening prose retells the Heller/Vonnegut party anecdote, using a close “Yes … he will” reply.
Bogle’s 2009 explanationjohncbogle.com

Bogle explicitly identifies his anecdote as a prose summary of Vonnegut’s short poem; no poem is reproduced in this dossier.
Wikiquote: Helleren.wikiquote.org

Provides the “Yeah … he’ll” formulation via a 2007 Money reference, rather than a direct Heller transcript.
Heller biographyen.wikipedia.org

Documents his dates and Catch-22; biographical context only.

The author

About Joseph Heller

Joseph Heller

1923–1999

Joseph Heller (1923–1999) was an American novelist and screenwriter. His debut novel Catch-22 (1961) satirizes war and bureaucracy; its title became a familiar term for a self-defeating or contradictory predicament.

For writers & researchers

Cite this

Source reference and evidence

Anecdote about Joseph Heller, retold in John C. Bogle’s “Enough” address. 2007.

This verification page

Quotle.info. Who really said 'Yeah, but I have something he’ll never have: enough'? Last verified 9 Nov 2026. https://quotle.info/who-said/yeah-but-i-have-something-hell-never-have-enough/

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