The tragic hero prefers death to prudence. The comedian prefers playing tricks to winning. Only the villain really plays to win.

Pain narrows consciousness; pleasure blurs it.

When Medusa looks in the mirror, she sees the Lady of Sorrows.

My passions have never jumped out of the fireplace and set fire to the carpet.

Retirement requires the invention of a new hedonism, not a return to the hedonism of youth

The sewing machine joins what the scissors have cut asunder, plus whatever else comes in its path.

Clothes make a statement. Costumes tell a story.

The laughter of the aphorism is sometimes triumphant, but seldom carefree.

'Be faithful to your roots' is the liberal version of 'Stay in your ghetto.'

Every day begins with an act of courage and hope: getting out of bed.

Totem poles and wooden masks no longer suggest tribal villages but fashionable drawing rooms in New York and Paris.

I never want to be away from you again, except at work, in the restroom or when one of us is at a movie the other does not want to see.

Data that comes subliminally and is acted upon will look like luck or inspiration.

Always remember: everything you do uses a portion of someone else's life.

My mother used to say "He who angers you conquers you."

Actors may know how to act, but a lot of them don't know how to behave.

I don't face any particular problems as a woman president because I have been a professional for a long time. I keep telling people: I am a technocrat who happens to be a woman.

The United States is not a Christian nation. It is a great nation with Christians, among others, in it. But our greatness is based on the fact that there is no official religion.

I studied and performed and even taught mime years ago.

We benefited from living with [Bernard] Leach, because suddenly all of his friends became our acquaintances.

Though Fortune's malice overthrow my state, My mind exceeds the compass of her wheel.