My mother was an introvert and quite religious. And we were brought up in the church. And when she learned that I wanted to act, she simply said: ‘You cannot live here and do that.’
CICELY TYSONMy mother was an introvert and quite religious. And we were brought up in the church. And when she learned that I wanted to act, she simply said: ‘You cannot live here and do that.’
CICELY TYSONWhen I told my mother that I wanted to be an actress, she said, you can’t live here and do that, and so I moved out. I was determined to prove her wrong because she was so sure that I was going to go astray. And that’s the juice that kept me going.
CICELY TYSONNow, I am perfectly willing to just enjoy my career by choosing roles simply because I consider them to be a challenge and doing the best possible job I can.
CICELY TYSONI don’t think you can measure wealth in dollars and cents. I really don’t believe that at all because there are some things that money cannot buy. One of them is health. And the other is security in your relationships and friends.
CICELY TYSONUnless a piece really said something, I had no interest in it. I have got to know that I have served some purpose here.
CICELY TYSONI think when you begin to think of yourself as having achieved something, then there’s nothing left for you to work towards. I want to believe that there is a mountain so high that I will spend my entire life striving to reach the top of it.
CICELY TYSONWe have to support our own films. If we don’t, how can we expect others to support them?
CICELY TYSONHow do you project a character if you don’t have a sense of where she is from? I’ve always just gotten on a plane to go to the area to get a sense of what it is like, to smell it, feel the earth, hear people talk, go to the marketplaces.
CICELY TYSONI have learned not to allow rejection to move me.
CICELY TYSONYou never know what motivates you.
CICELY TYSONAge is just a number. Life and aging are the greatest gifts that we could possibly ever have.
CICELY TYSONIn my early years, there were a number of experiences that made me decide I could not afford the luxury of just being an actress. There were a number of issues I wanted to address. And I wanted to use my career as a platform.
CICELY TYSONThe choices of roles I made had to do with educating and entertaining. And as a result I found myself working only every two or three years.
CICELY TYSONOne lady told me that before she saw ‘Sounder’ she didn’t believe black people could love each other, have deep relationships in the same way as white people.
CICELY TYSONMy gratification in working comes from the preparation and the building of the character.
CICELY TYSONI don’t condemn anyone for making their choices. If someone chooses those roles, fine. But not for me. When someone stops me and says, You’re the reason I became an actress, that lets me know I made the right decision.
CICELY TYSON