Since the time of the ancient Greeks a democracy has depended on its philosophers and creative artists. It can only flourish by continuous probing, prodding, and questioning of the social conditions under which man exists and tries to better himself. One of the first moves of a dictatorship is to stifle the artists and thinkers who have the ability to stir up dissent from any prescribed dogma which might enslave them. Because the artist can arouse the curiosity and conscience of his community, he becomes a threat to those who have taken power.

We were not allowed to say, Screw, but we could say, Hump the hostess, because hump is in Shakespeare.

We must overcome the notion that we must be regular... it robs you of the chance to be extraordinary and leads you to the mediocre.

I won't go to England because they won't let my dog in.

The need to be loved and protected is at a peak when we feel abandoned and are particularly vulnerable to difficult circumstances.

I think, by and large, the level of acting is mediocre. When I go to the theatre, I get so angry. I don't go.

One cannot demand of art that it pay you in any other way than in the satisfaction of the work itself.