It's hard to act with just your jaw.
The musicians in Chicago gave me my vocation, but New York calls to a jazz musician, for sure. You want to test your mettle.
Running back-to-back races requires a certain tactical prudence. Going too hard in any one race might jeopardize your performance in another. Maintaining proper hydration and caloric equilibrium also becomes increasingly critical.
One of the downsides of money is if there's no money, there are very few real jerks who are attached to your project. And if there is money, you do attract some very difficult, unhelpful people.
There are terrible jerks, and there are an unusually large concentration of them in the workplace. And that means that you do have to make some changes in your behavior, but there is absolutely no need for you to give them power over your happiness.
Rap is supposed to be about keeping it real and not relinquishing your roots in the community. Without that, it's just posturing. Somebody who claims to speak for the 'hood don't need no private jet.
I was not a very good Jew. I never practised what Judaism tells you to do, to teach your kids all about Judaism.
If I could be granted a wish, I'd shine in your eye like a jewel.
As a minority, no sooner do you learn to polish and cherish one chip on your shoulder than it's taken off you and swapped for another. The jewellery of your struggles is forever on loan, like the Koh-i-Noor diamond in the crown jewels.
I guess everything having to do with your background has some influence on how you tell stories but it's hard to parse how growing up in a Jewish community in Minnesota really affected it.
To fight against the infidels is Jihad; but to fight against your evil self is greater Jihad.
Lana Turner was adorable and funny. Jimmy Stewart was such a nice person. I quickly realized that if you're not a nice person, you're not going to last in this business. I mean, once your box office starts to drop off, like Veronica Lake, they'll get rid of you fast.
To become a big movie star like Joan Crawford, you need to wear blinders and pay single-minded attention to your career. Nobody paid attention to me, including me.
Nowhere in the job description of an artist is the requirement that I must validate your taste.
Do your job; be the best at whatever your job description is.
When Mike Tyson was only 18, his managers used to market him on posters, reminding you that if your grandfather had missed Joe Louis, or your father Muhammad Ali, don't you miss Tyson.
I did 'Lonely Hearts' with John Travolta and James Gandolfini. Talk about getting over your fears. These guys were amazing! Also, Cuba Gooding, Jr. is one of my favorites. We've made 3 films together. He is such a generous, giving actor.
I didn't have the sensibilities of your ordinary filmmaker, let alone your ordinary African-American filmmaker. My heroes were John Waters, Pedro Almodovar, and actors that were part of that world.
Somebody said to me, 'You should keep a journal of this period in your life and really write down this stuff.' But that makes me a little uneasy.
Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy.
