You learn from the mistakes you make and from the mistakes other people make. The truth is, you don't learn from success; you learn from failure.

What did Bush do on 9/11? He ran away and hid. Even Reagan knew more about leadership than that, and he was as bad a symbol of America as I can think of, off-hand. But at least he's been in enough cowboy movies to know he had to come out and stand on top of the rubble and be seen shaking his fist or something.

Acting is one element in a film. Directing is sort of the painter using all of those elements - sound and music and camera and putting it all together. And that can be fun and exciting. If you fail, it's incredibly upsetting - much more upsetting than when you're an actor. But when you succeed it's incredibly, incredibly exciting, so I like the risk of it all.

Both of my grandparents died of lung cancer. So I got quite a lesson in the payback later in life of smoking, and if you keep it up how bad it can be.

Whatever you do, don’t wake up at 65 years old and think about what you should have done with your life.

If I had been with all the women that I was said to have been with, I wouldn't have had the time to shoot a single movie!

I don't care. Charlton Heston is the head of the National Rifle Association. He deserves whatever anyone says about him.