Charles Durning Quotes

I would rather do a play because it's instantaneous. You go on the stage, and you know whether it's happening or not. Somebody asked me 'What is acting?' And I said, 'Acting is listening.' And if you ain't listening, nobody's listening.

In order for your dreams to come true, you've got to stay awake.

I was born looking older - and I've been aging since I was a teenager.

I think I've done 200 plays and 125 movies, so I've been very lucky to have made a living at acting.

I was born a character actor.

I can't count how many of my friends are in the cemetery at Normandy, the heroes are still there, the real heroes.

You're out there on a high wire without a net, and that's the way actors operate. They have to be fearless about how they work and they have to create a life for the audience in 90 minutes and make them believe.

You make the money in movies and TV so you can do theater. I do a play a year ... somewhere.

I lack confidence as an actor.

There are many secrets in us, in the depths of our souls, that we don't want anyone to know about.

Acting is ephemeral. You can't hang it on a wall. You can't throw it off. And you can't bring it out of a closet. It's there one night and it's gone the next, at least with stage acting anyhow.

There's no nobility with war. It's tear-'em-up destruction that leaves you frustrated, bitter and angry ... If you really knew what it was like for an hour, you wouldn't want anyone to go through it.

I was doing judo before anybody knew it existed in this country.