John [Cassavetes] loved actors. He gave them a lot of freedom. So if something came up that a certain actor just felt at the moment and said - that kind of improvisation he would accept. He gave very little direction.

Of course, much easier to do a film when you're doing an extremely emotional part than it is doing it onstage over and over especially.

When I was in Middle of The Night, MGM came and offered me a contract and I said that when I got out of the play, I'd like to try it. I didn't know anything about making movies but I was certainly finding it interesting.

After you play a part, you think of it as your own.

When I went to my parents I was at the University of Wisconsin, and I just couldn't wait anymore to go be an actress.

Bette Davis had very strong opinions and was not afraid to express them. She wasn't afraid of anything that I ever saw. And she was so funny. She's just funny and she was laughing all the time.

You just can't complain about being alive. It's self-indulgent to be unhappy. When asked how she has coped since husband's death.