Movie narration in the forties was radically different than the narrative involved in books.

New York was big enough and wide enough that it allowed for reasonably eccentric people like me to thrive. It was a perfect place for me.

It's interesting that there are places that words can't get to.

Style is a way of talking about yourself.

There was a kind of cultural life in New York that wasn't as solidified as it is now, it wasn't as money-driven. If you look at the size of the successful art galleries compared to the size of galleries now - there was no such thing as the Gagosian Gallery or Pace Gallery. But it was a time when magazines were a vital part of American life, and Esquire gave me a free pass to every world - I could get to the art world, the theater world, the movie world. It allowed you to roam through the cultural life of New York City.

Style is the most ephemeral thing I know. It's not about how effective you are it's about how you are effective.

Style and taste do not have anything to do with the other. It's the difference between wit and humor.