You know what I miss? I miss myself, that time to just do things for myself.
Marcia Gay Harden
I love being a mother; I hate being a housewife - the cooking, the laundry - because it takes away time I could be with my kids.
I'm fortunate to have a team of people who help me. I've got an assistant, an office manager, a nanny - she's not full-time, but she's there when I need her.
Everybody says 'Good Morning' in Harlem because it's true! And that's lovely.
They tell us in magazines and in ads, 'Oh, you should look like this, you should wear this, you should look like this movie star, or you're nothing.' And so we're all totally unsatisfied.
We can be incredibly disconnected in this day and age with computers and cell phones.
I examine other people's characteristics, so when I'm playing characters, I don't always have to make them me; I can transform into others.
A New York casting director, who shall remain nameless, once said to me, 'Marcia, you have what I call the flaring-nostril look, and until you get something done about it, you will never, ever work.'
Sometimes I ride my bike to see the kids after a matinee and then ride back to do the show. That's the hard part, but I wouldn't have it any other way.
I loved playing Anne Bancroft, because she was so wonderfully arch.
Reading is a joy for my kids, and to swing in a hammock on a lazy summer day reading a good book just goes with summer.
I don't think any extremism is rational.
All those days of waiting on tables until I could get a role on Broadway, all that time going to school taking lessons, and all those years of being a nobody following a dream-and now here it is.
I think irrationality is one of the scariest things in the world.
It's very hypocritical to constantly say, 'We want to keep our kids close,' then send them home with so much homework that family time becomes nonexistent.
Harlem is a very family-oriented neighborhood, and it always has been.
I love it when ugliness is beautiful. I love character flaws.
In any film, there are 10 male roles for 1 female role, especially in the action films. They're heavy with the guys.
You want to know how I'm feeling? Just look at me, and I'll tell you how I'm feeling. Nothing is hidden. I'm all out there. I cry like a baby, I get upset, I stamp my feet. I'm not stoic.
You're over there in the corner either thinking about the dead dog or whatever, you're bringing up your personal life and you need the space, and then somebody throws you a joke. Especially if it's an emotional scene, you don't want the joke.
I relate to people and roles that are about the arc of human experience, things that everyday people deal with every day.
Everyone thinks offers are always pouring in. Offers have never poured in. Never. I was auditioning a lot, but I didn't get the jobs.
Oh, I just love being a character actress. You have a lot of fun, and not only that, you save tons on cosmetic surgery because you never have to have liposuction.
I do pottery.
In the theater, it's about taking time in a musical segment, a pause in a musical way and then moving on.
The important thing is that when you correct your children, they see what they've done wrong and why you're upset.
I had a science teacher in middle school who inspired me... simply because she acknowledged me and made me feel that what I had to offer was worthy.
I played Laura Bush in a Tony Kushner piece, and afterward, I think my phones got tapped.
I was always the child who wore her emotions on her sleeve.
I have a theory that there's almost this primal viewpoint on women in the business, that once you're beyond childbearing age, you are perceived as nonthreatening, nonsexual, noncastable. Sure, I already knew it before I got into it. I just didn't know I'd end up making my living from low-budget, independent films.
I'm always a little starstruck anyway. So to work with a movie star, which is Brad, I was excited about that; to work with a movie legend, which is Tony, I wouldn't have passed that up. Just to get to watch him and watch how he works.
The people who stood out in the Sandy Hook incident, the heroes, were the normal, ordinary people who went to save those children.
People have such false perceptions of how stardom really works.
Having a dad in the service was helpful. I was forever meeting new kids, going to new schools, moving to new neighborhoods. I was encouraged when I attended the American School in Germany.
I'm not a big fan of mediocre.
I think in terms of family, in terms of relationships, in terms of work, competition to be the favorite, to be the noticed, to be the one - I don't know if it exists for all personalities, but I know for sure it did with me.
In theater, you have a rehearsal period and you know just who to be.
I'm just a pack mule. I've played leads and I've played character roles. Any actress in Hollywood will tell you as your age climbs, the leads thin.
I was always an exhibitionist. I liked it when everyone laughed. But I didn't do plays in high school. I was too nervous.
Whether you win or not, the night the Oscars are over, the curtain goes down and you go back to the grind. Period.
As a mother, I love the Leapster handheld because it really delivers on educating children while they play. My daughter enjoys it because it's fun and touches on all of the activities she is interested in - videos, books and art.
In Hollywood, a lot of acting feels like grandstanding.
My work often takes me away from my family for long periods of time, so I've really come to appreciate the time I do spend with them.
I always wanted to be in movies.
So far, the thing I seem to have been rewarded for in film is leaving myself behind and transforming myself into other people.
There are certainly a billion, ker-trillion girls out there more attractive than I am.
In my opinion, Zac Efron is a total hero. Him seeking help encourages other people with addictive issues to seek help. It's brave of him.
I love physical comedy. I adore comedy of any kind.
Back in the days of Barbara Stanwyck and Bette Davis, beauty wasn't the be-all and end-all it is today.
My schools were quite diverse - those who serve their country come from every race and religion - and so the military schools I attended were a wonderful melting pot.
