The Eminently Quotable Shirley MacLaine
In her interview with Ron Bostwick after receiving the BIFF Lifetime Achievement Award, the irrepressible Shirley McClaine shared pearls of wisdom with an appreciative audience.
On receiving the Kennedy Center Honors: “I felt the award recognized a life well-lived and I was coming home to get it.” (Shirley grew in around Washington, D.C.)
On the importance of film: “Nothing is more important than film. Even the smallest film is important to maintain balance in the world. The art of moviemaking is the human attempt to preserve the imagination against time.”
On today’s film industry: “Materialism. It’s all about the red carpet, popularity, ratings, what dress you are wearing and what dress you can sell.”
On making it: “If your moment comes, it is your responsibility to be ready.”
On her insatiable creativity: “I have to be creative or I am bereft of enthusiasm.”
On her spiritual seeking: “When I was 10 years old, I asked for a cross and a telescope for my birthday. I wanted guidance. I wanted to see beyond.” (Shirley showed the audience the cross.)
On acting and dancing: “Movement came before the word.”
On the Rat Pack (Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis, Jr.): “They were authentically talented and celebrated their defects. They were always well-dressed. They didn’t care about how they were perceived and were friends with the gangsters.”
On politics and politicians: “I’ve always been on the left side of the issues.” “Politicians are like a box of chocolates. The ones on the left are soft and gooey and the ones on the right are full of nuts.”
On world violence and environmental problems: “The feminine (yin) is unseen and missing from the masculine (yang). We have to have both, the masculine and feminine, the moon and the stars.
On Ron Bostwick: “Nice hair.”
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