[about the Hotel Marmont on Sunset Blvd., a piece of Hollywood history] I would rather sleep in a bathroom than in another hotel.

The more subtle and elegant you are in hiding your plot points, the better you are as a writer.

Hindsight is always twenty-twenty.

I had one life. And what did I do? Wasted it in some palooka preliminaries in Spain, just before Hitler and Chamberlain warm up for the main event.

I'd worship the ground you walked on if only you walked in a better neighborhood.

The only pictures worth making are the ones that are playing with fire.

The ultimate trick is to convince, persuade. Every single person out there is an idiot, but collectively they're a genius.