Jill Clayburgh

A woman came up to me after one of the screenings with tears pouring down her face and sobbed, You’ve defined my entire life for me on the screen.

There was just this amazing individuality. It’s just a whole different world of optimism and fearlessness, women taking off their bras and dancing around naked, and a political hopefulness and involvement.

What bugs me is that movies don’t reflect how interesting and vibrant women are. We don’t treasure women as they get older.

I came from dinner, went downtown with my friends, the elevator was down, I ran down the hall toward my room at 10 at night, having had two glasses of wine.

I don’t like sitting around in my dressing room very much. It feels a lot like theater.

There’s something about soft, unstructured arms that’s very beautiful.

People always seem to see echoes of their own lives in my films.

I like to run, to go down the stairs, I’m one of those kind of people.

Clothes are part of the character. They can’t but help inform who you are.

I just didn’t work that much while the kids were growing up.

I love to swim for miles; I could just go back and forth.

I notice now, whatever character in whatever movie you’re watching, they have these toned arms and muscles.

Well, this would be nice if it worked out, but I’m not selling the farm.

I wasn’t very good about juggling family and my career. I was interested in who was coming to the children’s birthday party, what my son was writing. I was thinking about Legos.

I want to be an actress, not a personality.

There’s no environment. Use your imagination. There’s no fourth wall, whether it’s the first time you’ve told this story about her life, or the sixth time.

I no longer say nice things about yoga. I was doing yoga so long before everybody else.

I just read that Time magazine cover story with all this information about how you have to have your kids by the time you’re 12 or it’s all over. Please.

I don’t theorize too much. I sort of let the experience sink in, and I have to discover what the character is by doing it, and having those thoughts that she’s thinking.