Leslie Caron

The most important thing is to remain active and to love what you are doing.

I had two children. I had a nanny to manage my kids.

James Ivory comes close to the actors for the first rehearsal. He more or less lets you direct yourself and then will only correct you if he finds it incorrect.

Fred Astaire was a more formal, trained dancer who loved waltzing and only danced with the girls.

The studio system collapsed only when Elizabeth Taylor charged $1 million for Cleopatra.

I know a lot of Americans in Paris who have married Frenchmen. They keep bringing up their experience, the clash of civilizations, the clash of personalities.

I longed to break out of the system and do different roles.

It’s very difficult to marry into another civilization.

We were all ruled by the studio system. I signed a contract for seven years.

I was trying to be very at ease in this arrogant person, and very worldly, but something human came into the part. I hate to say that. I wanted to be totally worldly.

I seemed to belong to three countries: I had an apartment in Paris, a house in Hollywood, and when I married British theater director Peter Hall, I moved to London.

I went to the Tokyo Film Festival in Japan because I love Japanese cinema.

I hate biographies which say, I was called to such and such an office, and he offered me so and so, and I got so and so money. I find that very tedious. The best biographies are written by other people.

No matter what you do, your person comes through. You can’t completely change yourself on the screen. I had in mind someone colder and more in control, but I couldn’t do it. This human note just crept in and maybe it’s better.

I regret not doing a film that I was offered with Clark Gable because the script was not good enough.

I toured the Middle Eastern countries with the ballet.

When I did small films like Lily and Buenos Vista, everyone thought my career would be ruined.

I think it’s the end of progress if you stand still and think of what you’ve done in the past. I keep on.

The American is wholeheartedly for love and romance at any cost.

I got as little as a $75 a week when I started.

It’s the first film that I made where the director was not present under the camera, and it threw me.

I went to Kerala in India, to learn Ayurveda, which was fantastic.

Cinema will always have an important role to play in society.

There were many good actresses in my time like Jane Powell and Debbie Reynolds, but I was the only dancer.

In order to have great happiness you have to have great pain and unhappiness – otherwise how would you know when you’re happy?

You have actresses like Meryl Streep and Julia Roberts, who have roles specially written for them.