Robert Duvall

Was roommates and good friends with Dustin Hoffman and Gene Hackman while all were struggling stage actors in New York before any of them succeeded. Among the three, Hoffman and Duvall were known for their ways with the women, and Duvall and Hackman were known for their short fuses, which led to numerous bar fights. The three often bonded over elaborate practical jokes.
Owns a large estate in rural Virginia, where some skirmishes of the Civil War were fought (he has found shells and other artifacts on the property). Some scenes in Gods and Generals (2003) were filmed on his land.
He says the work he is most proud of by far is his role as the former Texas Ranger Augustus McCrae in the miniseries Lonesome Dove (1989).
Fractured several ribs after falling off a horse while rehearsing for a role in L'ouest sauvage (2003).
Joined the Neighborhood Playhouse in New York and studied under Sanford Meisner for two years. Dustin Hoffman, James Caan and Gene Hackman were classmates.

[on the reason he did not appear in Le parrain III (1990)] If they paid Pacino twice what they paid me, that's fine, but not three or four times, which is what they did. (Francis Ford Coppola) came to my farm, parked his car... went in the kitchen. (I) said: "I know you always wanted the crab cake recipe, let me cook it for you." Oh, he loves to eat, so I cooked the crab cake... and he wrote it down... and he forgot it, so he called twice. He was... more concerned that he forgot the crab cake recipe than would I be in Godfather III. [January 8, 2004]
[on Hollywood political activists] They should keep their mouths shut.
Being a star is an agent's dream, not an actor's.
[on James Dean] I don't think he was that great. He was good, but there was Brando, and there was founding member Steven Hill in the Actors Studio, those were the two guys. James Dean came in third. Dean was talented, obviously. But he died at a good time.
One guy asked me, "How can you be an actor and be a Republican?". I can vote either way. But how can you boil it down to political affiliation? All the atrocities against blacks in the South were committed by Democratic sheriffs.