Charles Durning Quotes & Sayings

If I had my druthers, I would do only stage work. — Charles Durning

That place that no one knows about - horrifying things we keep secret. A lot of that is released through acting. — Charles Durning

Dancing came easy for me. Acting came hard. — Charles Durning

Sometimes you succeed and sometimes you don't. — Charles Durning

I'd like to have a decade of my life back. I dropped into a void for almost a decade. — Charles Durning

I never turned down anything and never argued with any producer or director. — Charles Durning

I can't count how many of my friends are in the cemetery at Normandy, the heroes are still there, the real heroes. — Charles Durning

I was doing judo before anybody knew it existed in this country. — Charles Durning

I was born looking older - and I've been aging since I was a teenager. — Charles Durning

I was born a character actor. — Charles Durning

In order for your dreams to come true, you've got to stay awake. — Charles Durning

You make the money in movies and TV so you can do theater. I do a play a year ... somewhere. — Charles Durning

You're out there on a high wire without a net, and that's the way actors operate. They have to be fearless about how they work and they have to create a life for the audience in 90 minutes and make them believe. — Charles Durning

I would rather do a play because it's instantaneous. You go on the stage, and you know whether it's happening or not. Somebody asked me 'What is acting?' And I said, 'Acting is listening.' And if you ain't listening, nobody's listening. — Charles Durning

I lack confidence as an actor. — Charles Durning

There are many secrets in us, in the depths of our souls, that we don't want anyone to know about. — Charles Durning

There's no nobility with war. It's tear-'em-up destruction that leaves you frustrated, bitter and angry ... If you really knew what it was like for an hour, you wouldn't want anyone to go through it. — Charles Durning

I think I've done 200 plays and 125 movies, so I've been very lucky to have made a living at acting. — Charles Durning

Acting is ephemeral. You can't hang it on a wall. You can't throw it off. And you can't bring it out of a closet. It's there one night and it's gone the next, at least with stage acting anyhow. — Charles Durning

Of course, I'm not often the top dog, but sometimes it's better not to be top dog, because you last longer. If a movie or play flops, you always blame the lead. They say, 'He couldn't carry it.' They always blame him. But they rarely blame the second or third banana. — Charles Durning