We [he and his wife Trish Van Devere] don't talk politics. I'm an independent conservative; she's a radical Democrat. We never vote together.

Acting is characterization, the process of two entities merging-the actor and the role.

But when it became an international hoopla where careers lived and died on whether or not you did or didn't get an Oscar, then it got out of hand.

He had a winning smile, but everything else was a loser.

I think of myself as a fairly decent human being and it gives me great pain to be considered for all the mean S.O.B.s that come along. I've played bird decapitators, puppy stranglers, woman beaters, wife poisoners, child molesters - every goddamn thing you can think of. It was quite scene there for a while. But I think the image is changing...I hope to God the old image is fading from people's minds.

I think you have to be schizoid three different ways to be an actor ... You have to be a human being. Then you have to be the character you're playing. And on top of that you've got to be the guy sitting out there in Row 10, watching yourself and judging yourself. That's why most of us are crazy to start with, or go nuts once we get into it.

There is no question you get pumped up by the recognition. Then a self-loathing sets in when you realise you're enjoying it.