A violinist had a violin, a painter his palette. All I had was myself. I was the instrument that I must care for.

You must get an education. You must go to school, and you must learn to protect yourself. And you must learn to protect yourself with the pen, and not the gun.

I love performing. I shall perform until the day I die.

I wasn't really naked. I simply didn't have any clothes on.

I spent 30 minutes each morning rubbing my body with half a lemon to lighten my skin.

Let us stop saying 'white Americans' and 'colored Americans,' let us try once and for all saying... Americans. Let human beings be equal on Earth as in Heaven.

Each time I leaped I seemed to touch the sky and when I regained earth it seemed to be mine alone.