My parents were very well read. They were both New Englanders, not highly educated, but they had a sophisticated... they were both very humanistic, and they were sophisticated readers.

Those were the things on my mind [stay healthy, take care of my kids and reestablish a relationship with the people], not career, money, drugs, sex, alcohol or fun. Not that there's anything wrong with any of those things, but they aren't in the film [Dream of Life], because that wasn't my life at the time.

I learned from him that often contradiction is the clearest way to truth

Hung-up women can't produce anything but mediocre art, and there ain't no room for mediocre art.

John Coltrane, he talks to god. He starts playing his solo, he might play for 14 minutes. For 14 minutes, it seems like he's talking to god, but he always takes a hold of the melody.

As I grew up, one of my strongest allies has been my sister.

Please, no matter how we advance technologically, please don't abandon the book. There is nothing in our material world more beautiful than the book.