You cannot have fun with anything that you don't love or admire or respect.

The final test of fame is to have a crazy person imagine he is you.

Immortality is a by-product of good work. Masterpieces are not for artists, they're for critics. Critics can't even make music by rubbing their back legs together. My message to the world is 'Let's swing, sing, shout, make noise! Let's not mimic death before our time comes! Let's be wet and noisy!'

Writing is simply one thought after another dying upon the one before.

When I was a little kid at home, I thought the whole world was Jewish. For years I thought Roosevelt was Jewish. I loved him. I thought of him as my father. I'm always stunned when I find out that people like Roosevelt and Tolstoy weren't Jewish. How could I love them so much?

I know how to make it a great musical. I've got to. It's like I've got to see it on stage.

I only direct in self-defense.