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" People are composed of many things, and in my work, what influences me is the complexity of people - the chiaroscuro of dark and light. When I play a strong guy, I try to find, where is he weak? And, conversely, when I play a weak guy, where is he strong? "

Kirk Douglas

People

Work

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" If I have to speak in public, I am terrified. "

Kirk Douglas

Public

Terrified

" I studied Judaism a lot. I studied religion in general, and I have never imposed my Judaism on my kids. They are what they want to be. I think... you must care for others. That's the correct religion, I think. "

" I have been an actor for most of my life. When I started out, I didn't think about anything except what was good for me. Like many movie stars, I became all wrapped up in myself. "

Kirk Douglas

Myself

Good

" I have studied religion, and I have concluded that there is some power. We don't understand it. "

" Sometimes, the thing that ties you down sets you free. "

" I was living in a terrible time when people were being accused of being communists, and they attacked the movie industry, especially the writers. People couldn't work if they were on the blacklist. The studios banned them. It was the most onerous period in movie history. I don't think we have ever had a period so dark as that. "

" Listen - pacemaker, crash, stroke. What does it mean? God doesn't want me now. That's all. "

" When you have a stroke, you must talk slowly to be understood, and I've discovered that when I talk slowly, people listen. They think I'm going to say something important! "

" If you want to know about a man you can find out an awful lot by looking at who he married. "

" Too often, I have not been what I wanted to be; I've succumbed to pressures. Yes, I have. The things I've done that I liked, I've always done against advice. "

" I think religion has caused so much catastrophe in the world. "

" You know, sometimes an interviewer will look at me and say - you're bright! They're actually surprised I might be bright. "

Kirk Douglas

Look

Say

" Virtue is not photogenic. What is it to be a nice guy? To be nothing, that's what. A big fat zero with a smile for everybody. "

" The learning process continues until the day you die. "

" I was conscious of my father's fame from the time I was 6. "

" I don't need a critic to tell me I'm an actor. I make my own way. Nobody's my boss. Nobody's ever been my boss. "

Kirk Douglas

Nobody

Boss

" Sometimes an interviewer will look at me and say, 'You're bright!' They're actually surprised I might be bright. "

" I didn't start out to be a movie star. I started out to be an actor. "

" Cancer does give you a new rejuvenation. I know what it's like to be down. I lost a couple of good friends - Larry Hagman and Nick Ashford - who had the same type of cancer that I did, and that makes you think. "

" No matter how bad things are, they can always be worse. So what if my stroke left me with a speech impediment? Moses had one, and he did all right. "

Kirk Douglas

Matter

Bad

" Fear is a terrible thing. It makes you do awful things. "

" Acting is make-believe. I never believe I'm the character; I want you to believe. "

" You know, you have to have some inner philosophy to deal with adversity. "

" People are always talking about the old days. They say that the old movies were better, that the old actors were so great. But I don't think so. All I can say about the old days is that they have passed. "

" When you become a star, you don't change - everyone else does. "

" Being second generation in Hollywood is complicated: Success is expected, and yet the track record of the second generation is not great. Only a small group of us, like Jane Fonda, have succeeded. "

" God bless Dad, he came to every one of my shows. I was bad, and I had horrible stage fright. My dad was so relieved - he'd say, 'You were terrible; this kid is not going to be an actor.' Finally, I did a play and he said, 'Son - you were really good.' "

" My first job was on Broadway. Then I went into the Navy. When I came out of the Navy, I went back to Broadway and a friend of mine, Lauren Bacall, was in Hollywood filming with Humphrey Bogart. She told one of her producers I was great in my play, and he saw it and cast me in 'The Strange Love of Martha Ivers'. "

Kirk Douglas

Love

Great

" Now, what does an actor who can't talk do? Wait for silent pictures to come back? "

" In order to achieve anything you must be brave enough to fail. "