Naturally, the nearer the character you play comes to the character you are, the more authenticity you give it. You are not acting so much as being. The result is realism.
You`ve got to have a fire under you, and when you`re beginning, you`ve got one all the time. After you get established, you have to create your own fire, and it`s never easy.
[in April 1961] "Please make sure everyone knows how much their messages mean to me. They have added greatly to my peace of mind. I only wish some of the writers would take a more positive approach to the menace of cancer. I`ve got it, sure; but I`m not a...
[On Sergeant York (1941)] "I liked the role because I was portraying a good, sound American character."
