Bea Arthur Quotes

Even in comedy, you have to be real. It's all about being real. It's how real can you be? That's the challenge. How much are you willing to take on for your character?

Earlier on in my career I felt that I had to hide behind a lot of different masks, and showboat ways of performing. Now, that's a lie. The less I have to hide, the less I have to act.

I've always been taught to just play the truth of the situation. If comedy comes out of that, or drama, whatever comes out of it, at least I'm playing the truth of the moment-to-moment reality.

I want really badly to just be funny in a movie but be close to myself.

On some level in acting, what you're trying to find is truth, because when it's true is when it's also funny.

I never want to fake it. That's my whole thing.

I think comedy stems from being honest, often painfully so. I hope I can achieve that perspective in my own life and also have fun.

I believe in the importance of sincerity and emotion and honesty in TV, even when it's goofy comedy.

I think comedy I've learned is really just about relaxing and trusting yourself and allowing yourself to fail.

I love stand up and it keeps me grounded, to say the stuff I have been thinking without anyone changing it.

I could do nice, but it's just not as much fun. Being nice isn't my biggest goal in life. I'm trying to be honest about who I am, and that's not always nice. I'm not always the world's cheerleader.

Strive to be authentic all the time. That's sort of my philosophy on life, which applies to acting.

My goal is to be exactly how I am offstage - although I realize I'm supposed to punctuate it with jokes.

I think you have to be honest and not try to be somebody that you really aren't.

I am the same on camera as I am off. I can't imagine being any other way.

I think it's because my comedy is in your face, and it comes from a place that's real.

I don't believe in acting. I think that people in life act, but when you are on the stage or, in my case, also on screen, you have to be true.

A good actor is someone who knows how to take the part and make it real and make it honest and be effective in it. If it's in a funny movie and, as long as they are cast in an appropriate way, humor will come from it.

When you're true to yourself - not the audience that reads about me in the newspaper or sees a clip someplace, but the audience that actually comes and watches, just like Oprah - they get to know you and they sense something genuine.

If the writing is good, then the writing is already funny. All you have to do is make this funny writing true to the very deepest of your heart, and the fact that you are capable of making this true will be hysterical.

I think a lot of people think I'm doing kind of a character onstage, but what you're really getting is just me.

All I'm ever looking for in my work in general is honesty and truth and people being real to themselves.

It's a challenge, writing about actors, especially a good actor, because you can't always tell when they're being honest and when they're pretending - that is, when they're acting. The really good ones don't always seem to know themselves.

You can over-think things. If the script's good, everything you need is in there. I just try and feel it and do it honestly. I also don't learn things for auditions, because I feel like it's just a test of memorising rather than being real.

I wanted to be a dramatic actor. I never realized I was funny until I was 20-something.