When did I realize I was God? Well, I was praying and I suddenly realized I was talking to myself.
Peter O'TooleRead
A few years back I was asked if I would go and meet a director and his various acolytes, and it occurred to me halfway through the meeting that what I was doing was auditioning. And I thought, 'Well, hang on buddy. I've done half a century of this.'
Interpretation
The quote reflects on the experience of auditioning despite a long career in acting.
Peter O'Toole's quote illustrates the irony of being asked to audition for a role after decades of established work in the film industry. It highlights the ongoing nature of evaluation and performance in the arts, where even seasoned professionals can find themselves in the position of needing to prove their worth.
In practice
This quote can be used in a speech about the perseverance needed in the arts industry.
When did I realize I was God? Well, I was praying and I suddenly realized I was talking to myself.
No one should ever know where conduct ends and acting begins. Conduct unbecoming. That's what acting is.
I put steam on the table by being an actor. That is how I live. The longer I live, the more expensive it becomes. So I do my work. And I can't be immensely picky. How many beautiful scripts come in one's lifetime? I have had more than anybody, practically.
I have no intention of uttering my last words on the stage. Room service and a couple of depraved young women will do me quite nicely for an exit.
Acting is just being a man. Being human. Not forcing it.
It is time for me to chuck in the sponge. To retire from films and stage. The heart for it has gone out of me: it won't come back.
And for the first time in hundreds of years, the night came alive with the music of dragons.
I hate pretty. It’s a very empty word. It gives a bad name to beauty.
I am writing for myself and strangers. This is the only way that I can do it.
Write about what really interests you, whether it is real things or imaginary things, and nothing else. (Notice this means that if you are interested only in writing you will never be a writer, because you will have nothing to write about...)
You can have a movie with hardly any cuts, or very few cuts, that is fascinating, you can't take your eyes away from it... Look at some of the long takes in Citizen Kane.
I would build a cloudy House For my thoughts to live in; When for earth too fancy-loose And too low for Heaven! Hush! I talk my dream aloud - I build it bright to see, - I build it on the moonlit cloud, To which I looked with thee.
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