One is born with good taste. It's very hard to acquire. You can acquire the patina of taste. But what Elsie Mendl had was something else that's particularly American––an appreciation of vulgarity. Vulgarity is a very important ingredient in life. I'm a great believer in vulgarity––if it's got vitality. A little bad taste is like a nice splash of paprika. We all need a splash of bad taste––it's hearty, it's healthy, it's physical. I think we could use more of it. No taste is what I'm against.

Truth is a hell of a big point with me. Now I exaggerate—always.

Don't look back. Just go ahead. Give ideas away. Under every idea there's a new idea waiting to be born.

I have always felt that the only great thing about an interview is the questions that are asked.

Elegance is innate. It has nothing to do with being well dressed. Elegance is refusal.

God was fair to the Japanese. He gave them no oil, no coal, no diamonds, no gold, no natural resources — nothing! Nothing comes from the island that you can sustain a civilization on. What God gave the Japanese was a sense of style—maintained through the centuries through hard work and the disciplines of ambition.

You've got to have style, it helps you get out of bed in the morning.