I think that if you shake the tree, you ought to be around when the fruit falls to pick it up.

I used to go and flatten my nose against that window and absorb all I could of his art. It changed my life. I saw art then as I wanted to see it.

Why do people so love to wander? I think the civilized parts of the World will suffice for me in the future.

I think that if you shake the tree, you ought to be around when the fruit falls to pick it up.

Well, Nigeria has played a constructive role in peacekeeping in various parts of West Africa. But unless and until Nigeria itself is democratic and respects human rights, it too may well be a source of much greater instability as political repression limits the ability of the people of Nigeria to achieve their full potential.

Whether you're talking about Shakespeare or, you know, if you look at Greek tragedies. I mean, every playwright, every songwriter, every artist who's ever sat down and been moved to create something, has been living in a context. A political moment that's most often reflected in their work. Even if you're, you know, kind of a nature poet.

I'm not a policymaker, I'm not a pundit. In fact, I don't have any interest in it. It's not on my agenda.

The problem that I have is with the music business. For some reason it seems almost impossible to get anything, any music, released which includes improvisation or soloing.

I grew up in Palestine, West Virginia, which is mostly a farming community; there aren't a lot of jobs.

Those too impressed with material things cannot hold their place n the world of culture; they are relegated to inferiority and ultimate death.

I do not take up a responsibility unless I am sure of putting my heart and soul into it.

As a preacher who has spent significant time in churches and houses of worship all across the country, I can tell you firsthand that religious liberty and freedom are principles that can never be infringed upon.

Patience and perseverance have a magical effect before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish.

Young people need models, not critics.

Washington is still very much a male-oriented culture. Being from Los Angeles, I think it is less so there - there is less attachment to tradition, perhaps, there is more flexibility, more acceptance of change generally. That is partly because of Hollywood.

We in the West walked away from Afghanistan at the end of the Cold War and left it as a country devastated socially and armed to the teeth. If we do that again, there will be consequences.

A lot of newsrooms have thought very carefully about how they cover race. I don't think the same conversations have gone on regarding women.

I'm always a little worried when people have met me in person because I'm worried they'll be disappointed.

If you watch what people watch and read what people read, you are on the way to get the same results.

I hate trends, but I love fashion.

She was a great lady. We raised three boys, were together as long as she lived, and now she's passed on.

When I start writing a novel, I have no sense of direction, no idea, really nothing.

Whenever one pulls the trigger in order to rectify history's mistake, one lies. For history makes no mistakes, since it has no purpose.

Well, when you're relaxed, your mind takes you to the whole reality. There's no such thing as time when you're really relaxed. That's why meditation works.

The truth is that from the age of 14, I felt about 40, and for that reason, I felt that I would never succeed as an actor until my looks caught up with my actual age.

Playing live is really the art form. You're a lot freer, a lot looser. You've got people there that can give you feedback, and then you can play off of that. There's so much more energy.

What the purpose of my life is about is I want to become the kind of person that God wants me to become, and through my study of the scriptures I can articulate the kind of person that God would be happy if I become.

There's a way in which 'The Illusion' is a play about the theater.