“I don’t feel any pressure from fans. But I’m always in some kind of state of emotional turmoil. I would not describe myself as happy-go-lucky. That’s not to say that I’m not happy.”

It’s very helpful to start with something that’s true. If you start with something that’s false, you’re always covering your tracks. Something simple and true, that has a lot of possibilities, is a nice way to begin.

We’re living in a certain time, and we’re aware of it. And that’s part of what we’re aware of, along with our own personal aches and pains.

I met my old lover on the street last night, she seemed glad to see me.

I don’t very often think I’ve done a good job. I don’t like the majority of what I do. I shouldn’t say I don’t like it, but I’m not satisfied with almost everything that I do.

The trick is, as I know it, is to care like hell and not give a damn at the same time.

A lot of talent is a gift, but a lot is also luck. I’m very aware of that. I was born in the right place at the right time. I am also blessed because I’ve never been a sex symbol. I’m spared the embarrassment of acting young.

One man’s ceiling is another man’s floor.

Anthony Heilbut has been a guide and a mentor to me. I know of no one who has the love and depth of knowledge of this extraordinary author.

Breakdowns come, and breakdowns go.

How can you live in the Northeast?

Take me. I’m an ordinary player in the key of C. And my will was broken by my pride and my vanity. Who’s gonna love you when you’re looks are gone? God will. Like he waters the flowers on your window sill.

I’ve got nothing to do today but smile.

The degree of customization possible through your Preferences screens is awesome.

I don’t think [Dylan and the Beatles] influenced me a lot. I think it was inevitable; they were so powerful that you couldn’t really escape the influence.

If you can get humor and seriousness at the same time, you’ve created a special little thing, and that’s what I’m looking for, because if you get pompous, you lose everything.

Far above the golden clouds, the darkness vibrates. The earth is blue. And everything about it is a love song. Everything about it.

However exquisitely human nature may have been described by writers, the true practical system can be learned only in the world.

Savage, despicable evil. That’s what we were fighting in Iraq. That’s why a lot of people, myself included, called the enemy ‘savages.’ There really was no other way to describe what we encountered there.

No; I did not hate him. The word is too weak. There is no word in the language strong enough to describe my feelings. I can say only that I knew the gnawing of a desire for vengeance on him that was a pain in itself and that exceeded all the bounds of language.

The word is too weak. There is no word in the language strong enough to describe my feelings.

What pen can describe this scene of marvellous horror; what pencil can portray it?

Corporate types love to pretend their life is exciting. The whispers, fist-pumping and animated hand gestures are all designed to lift our job description from what it really is – that of an overpaid clerk.

Corporate types love to pretend their life is exciting. The whispers, fist-pumping and animated hand gestures are all designed to lift our job description from what it really is – that of an overpaid clerk.

I can’t please everyone. That’s not in my J.D., you know, not in my job description.