Storytelling was a way to see the world bigger than the one you were looking at, and that had great appeal for me. I think since that was part of my upbringing, it became part of me, and I wanted to pass it along to my kids and my grandkids.

If we want energy security, then we have to reduce our appetite for fossil fuels. There's no other way. Other issues may crowd the headlines, but this is our fundamental challenge. Big challenges require bold action and leadership. To get the United States off fossil fuels in this uneasy national climate of terrorism and conflict in the Persian Gulf, we must treat the issue with the urgence and persistance it deserves. The measure of our success will be the condition on which we leave the world for the next generation.

I think the environment should be put in the category of our national security. Defense of our resources is just as important as defense abroad. Otherwise what is there to defend?

The world around us is in a sea change, and I think the glory of art is that it cannot only survive change, it can lead it

Whenever there's chaos, there's ambiguity, and where there's ambiguity, there's fear. And fear gets manipulated.

The entertainment person gets a certain credibility, and the politician gets a certain notoriety. I'm against it.

Be careful of success; it has a dark side.