I remember that Jack Lemmon, who is one of my favorite actors of all time, says that the day he stops being nervous is the day he should leave the business.

I'm a very determined businesswoman... I've got lots of things to do, and I don't have time to be classified as difficult, and I don't have time.

I feel there are two people inside me - me and my intuition. If I go against her, she'll screw me every time, and if I follow her, we get along quite nicely.

I love to be nervous before a scene.

My priorities had been changing before I had Addie but after she was born they changed completely. I don't count - my daughter sort of owns me.

I think any girl who comes to Hollywood with sex symbol or bombshell hanging over her has a rough road.

You have to be a little unreal to be in this business.

I'm a very determined person.

You lose your anonymity just like a helium balloon with a string. Therefore people are going to have their own opinion and they're going to write in whatever clever manner they desire.

I remember that Jack Lemmon, who is one of my favorite actors of all time, says that the day he stops being nervous is the day he should leave the business.

There's no doubt that becoming a mother was the greatest thing I'll ever do.

I'm not a real social person - I'm shy - and a lot of the business is just social.

Clarity keeps you from boredom.

I don't live by a lot of society's rules; I can't pattern myself after the herd.

I grew up on soul music. I was a dancing little creep.

I just absolutely, totally hated school. It was like a prison to me. I just could not stand that structured, absolute disciplined way of having to deal with life.

I just thank God that I didn't grow up with so much money or privilege because you had to create ways to make it happen.

I like to see a driven kid: somebody who wants to come from the ground up. I love to see somebody who wants to be the best they can be.

I never really saw my dad as entertained as when he was just completely blown away by somebody on the television screen or at the movies. I think that's the real reason that I went into acting.

I'm extremely competitive with myself. But I'm not actively competitive with other women in the business. Which may have been a mistake. I've never had someone in my life, agent or otherwise, fighting for me.

I've been to fights, and I've seen them on television, but no, I would not call myself a fan of the sport, that particular sport, no.

I've just always believed you can get anything you want in this life - anything you want.

In this business, you can be at the top of the world and at the bottom of the barrel, and you're grape juice. I've been at both ends. It can make you become what you really are.

It always takes the truth a little bit longer to cross the finish line.

My hand still shakes when I sign autographs. I still go and sit in the movies like everyone else and look up there and go 'God! Movie stars! Wow!' And I'm in this business. I walk out there just fascinated, and I always want to stay like that. I'm just a little kid going to these movies, and I don't ever want to change.

The smartest thing you can do in this business is get connected with a great agent to help you. Get connected with people who will form a family around you, or a moat.

With every project I've ever done, I've always treated it like I'm still in school. Each time you try to go a little further, get a little deeper, feel a little more, sculpt it a little better.

I didnt really like my birthday as a kid. My mother used to say Sometimes wed have a birthday party and you would just wander off. But she said it was just my way in the world. It wasnt anything that I was truly interested in.

One realizes how we take water for granted and how important it is to have it in order to stay alive. Beyond the drinking of it lets not forget the hygiene.

If you could see or feel the suffering you wouldn't think twice. Give back life. Don't eat meat.

Actors love mental disorders, dialects, and corsets. Give them one of the three and they're happy.

What's fascinating is that when you write a script, it's almost a stream of consciousness. You have an idea that it means something, but you're not always sure what. Then when you get on the set, the actors teach you.

Young actors often don't think of the consequences of doing nudity or sex scenes. They want the role so badly that they agree to be exploited, and then end up embarrassing family, friends, and even strangers.

I've seen many actors go awry by making the wrong choices early on.

Actors are able to trick themselves into treating anything as if it's fantastic. It's a kind of madness really.

David Cronenberg knows what we actors do as artists.

I like doing them and they're ridiculous and the actors can improvise a lot, and they don't have to be really realistic characters that hit a very specific tone as in a feature film. They're really fun, I want to make more of them definitely.

I'm not in the business of becoming famous. And that's the advice I give to younger aspiring actors. Work onstage and do the little roles. In the end it's not important to be seen. It's important to do. There's a lot of disappointment in this business, but my family keeps me grounded.

Actors get pigeonholed very quickly, particularly movie actors. In the theater, one is more used to casting people against type and trusting that their talent and skill will get them through.

Comedians are not usually actors, but imitations of actors.

I was very pleased you know, and I was afraid that I might stick out, but I didn't. My happiest thing about that picture is that I proved that American actors can speak as well and also fit in with an ensemble like that.

I've worked with a lot of really fine actors, both on stage and on screen. The level of their game lifts me up and brings the level of my game up to theirs. Always. It's like a constant upgrade.

I feel like I'm the most well-adjusted character on the show, even though I'm sure the other actors would tell you the same thing about their characters.

There's a constant flow of child actors. It's kind of funny to watch the new crew come through. I think, You poor little things. You're going to have to struggle for a long time.

I'll miss the relationships I have built with these actors. I'll miss the devotion we have to this work. Over this length of time, the tendency is to think it will never end.

After the war, there was no industry. We lost the war. We had our whole city destroyed. No money. No studio. No film. No camera. No equipment. We would shoot in the street. We had no actors. Nothing. But we wanted to do movies. And we did the best movies in the world.

An actors' tribute to me is in his work.

A few nights ago I went to a Hollywood screening of a small independent film made by Sally Kirkland, an old friend of mine who also did terrific job acting in it. There were other actors in it and they were all terrific.

This friend of mine said he was surprised to find that - I don't think it's quite a majority - a bigger percentage of actors are introverts than extroverts. It was a big surprise to him. Now, I know me, and I'll do anything if I'm playing a character. Or anything that's true to the character, anyway. But in real life I'm a little more withdrawn.