Quotes

[on the reason he did not appear in The Godfather Part 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.

Everybody likes to win. One of the biggest disappointments was when I didn't get an Emmy for Lonesome Dove. It's political. It can be a popularity contest.

[1983 comment on Francis Ford Coppola] Coppola's talented. I'm pissed that he cut a scene that would have given the audience an insight into my character in Apocalypse Now (1979), but he's talented.

[on Lonesome Dove (1989)] I think I nailed a very specific individual guy who represents something important in our history of the western movement. After that, I felt I could retire, that'd I'd done something.

[on Bueno Aires] There's a place called La Biela, it's my favorite corner in the world. It's a coffee shop near the Recoleta where Evita's buried. You can go there and sit in the evening, at three in the morning there are hundreds of people in the streets. And you can get up at eight and go back and have your espresso. Going to Argentina, going to Buenos Aires, I like it more there than anyplace else.

I always considered myself as a character actor. I always try to be versatile to show different sides of human experience.

[on Governor Sarah Palin] About a year ago, I first saw this wonderful woman speak. I didn't know who it was. And I said who is this woman? And a year later, I said to myself about three or four weeks ago, why isn't she up for the vice presidency?

Well, our hero, coming up, was Brando. He kinda squandered it. But he was so revolutionary in so many ways.

The way Hollywood speaks out is absolutely beyond me. Some people are so ill-informed. I mean, why be so outspoken about it anyway? Does it help Sean Penn's career to go over to Iraq? Did it help Jane Fonda to go over to Vietnam years ago? I don't know. But sometimes when these guys speak out... I get embarrassed.

Marlon Brando had an innate shrewdness, finding ways to do things better than everyone else. One of the great tragedies is that Brando never developed his tremendous potential. He really was the godfather to young actors coming up in the seventies and even today. He was the guy, really, more than [Laurence Olivier], or anybody.

[on Jeff Bridges] There's the Actors Studio in New York, everybody sitting around talking about Stanislavski, but that's not Jeff. This is a guy off the beaches of L.A. He learned from his father (Lloyd Bridges), that was his mentor, and he always seems so loose and relaxed -- but he's always prepared, and he brings so many surprises, like good actors do.

Because my parents were so religious, I attended church regularly. I've always been a believer.

When I knew nothing, I thought I could do anything.

A friend is someone who many years ago offered you his last $300 when you broke your pelvis. A friend is Gene Hackman.

Making the first Godfather was more laughs than making Godfather II. That's because Jimmy Caan was in the first Godfather.

A young actor once asked me, What do you do between jobs? I said, Hobbies, hobbies, and more hobbies. It keeps you off dope.

Sometimes, when you look back on it, the $10-million-and-under movies are some of your favorites.

I feel like our country is just a big giant kid with tremendous talent - like an athlete. A big giant kid that's made mistakes, but there's a lot of potential.

You never know how reality is going to coincide with your dreams. You're optimistic, and you go from there.

Virginia is the last station before heaven.

Getting together with friends and holding court over a meal is one of the great things in life.

I'm not perceived as a traditional leading man, but I never aimed at that sort of thing either. I never straightened my front teeth, or whatever. I wan't cut out for that. Even if I did a 'big' movie, I'd still want to make it a real character.

[on other actor/co-stars] Brando was more of a respected actor than Wayne although Wayne wasn't as bad as some supposedly serious actors I've seen who trained at the Actors Studio and all that. The thing with Brando is that he reads his lines. He has for 14 years, He's a real method. Wayne was interesting to be around. He was pleasant and outgoing. I once took a part with Muhammed Ali because - not that he was a good actor - I wanted to be in his movie. I like to be around people who are famous to see what makes them tick. I worked with Olivier twice, and that was interesting. I wanted to work with De Niro again, so I did True Confessions (1981).

Method acting is a way of working internally as a substitute if something isn't happening for you; if you don't need it, it's like walking on a good leg instead of using a crutch or cane.

I think studying professionally helped although I had already done summer theater and had a lot of experience. I got right into acting and then studied. The best thing about the Playhouse was that I really learned to improvise, to change things, in films. Not in an indulgent way, but in a beneficial way. So from that point of view, Sndy was good for me. I might have learned it eventually - you learn from other actors, directors. The problem is so many people study but they don't get any better. It's up to the individual. And I don't think a teacher can manufacture talent. i guy can study all his life on a violin ad never play it well.

I got into acting because I wanted to act, not to become a star. The word 'star' is so strange, especially in this country, I think, I don't know. It has something to do with a whole scene. Like with The Great Santini (1979), when I shook the producer's hand for the first time - before I could even sit down in the chair - he said, "They're talking about Oscars." We hadn't even started rehearsals yet. I mean, the whole industry is so geared to that - Oscars, the star system.

[evaluating his career, 2018] I've done a lot of crap, but I've done a lot of good things too. You always wish there was one more. It's like the great jumping-horse riders - always looking for a horse, 'the' horse.

[on "True Grit"] The director and I didn't get along - I don't get along with a lot of directors, but I do OK! But John Wayne was great working with. He was a good man and a very good natural actor, a lot better than a lot of people gave him credit for. He was an institution unto himself. And that final film he did, The Shootist, it was wonderful what he did. So he was a good guy to work with, absolutely.

[when asked if there will ever be a fourth Godfather movie] No. And there shouldn't have been a third one either, but they wanted the money.