And even then when you take it, you've got to take it with your whole heart. |
And if real life was like the movies, I should have lived happily ever after. |
As far back as I can remember, I've had only one real ambition: to be an actress. |
Back then, everyone was Lana and Rock. No one had ethnic names. |
Believe me, when an actress is told that her very name is synonymous with bad acting, she's had it. |
But then I became so disillusioned.... I had very little life experience and certainly no technique to deal with comedy with any flair. |
I dropped the script in the fireplace, called my agent and said, they can jail me, sue me, but I'm never acting again, unless I can do something worthwhile. |
I never forget, remember that. Not an action, not a name, not a face. |
I was so flattered to be asked to be in the movies - the idea of being paid to act was heady stuff. |
I've always felt robbed of something by people not knowing I was a Jew. |
If I had stayed in Hollywood, I would have killed myself. Or someone would have done it for me |
If you can see what the outside is like, it stimulates the imagination, it frees you in a way, to think and feel the way a character might. |
Instead of changing my name, I would change Piper Laurie. That was the beginning. |
It took a long time, but I have learned that you just can't take anything you want out of life without putting something back in exchange. |
One thing is certain. The old Piper Laurie is no more. |