I could depend a lot on my shaking, though I never shimmied vulgarly and only to express myself.

If I wanted pity, I got it because I'm illegitimate. And when I didn't want it I was mean and nasty.

We are all gifted. That is our inheritance.

I have no acting technique I act instinctively. That's why I can't play any role that isn't based on something in my life.

I am an isolationist.

The big compliment came from the beer drinkers who didn't know me. They wouldn't drink or move when I sang. If they had their glasses in mid-air, the glasses wouldn't come down.

Whenever I played Columbus, Ohio, I dropped in to see my close friend, a medium who had mysterious powers. Her Indian guide was Mohawk.