Top 12 Mercedes Ruehl Quotes

It’s from people seeing you even in classes and talking about you that eventually your name and what you do gets known, if you care passionately enough about the art of acting.

It’s hard to get a job after that, People think you want more money.

I do occasionally read for things, and I have to say that I feel like every other young actor who is nervous before an audition. Even now, I still hate auditioning. I never liked auditioning.

I don’t like to go over territory that I’ve explored before. And I’d never played a peasant woman.

And if you can stay open through a long run and not get too rigidly identified with how you're doing certain lines, the process of discovering goes on through the length of the performance of the piece.

Obviously it’s very different because this is the great cathedral of nature, but it’s calming to my spirit and restful and refocuses you on what is beautiful and important.

I’m not sure I started out as a great mother. I think I learned how to be a good mother.

When you’re suddenly in the limelight, you can make a few mistakes. Success has a way of distorting people: distorting your expectations, distorting your personality, distorting your sense of your own value. It takes a very strong sense of character to not let that happen or to notice that it’s happening.

All the great roles are tough-cookie roles, They’re the women you meet and can’t forget. They’ve got stuff! They’re generally women who have met and not allowed themselves to be overcome by challenges.

You have to keep pressing through despair.

It may have to do with my ego, wanting to be famous, wanting to be adored, wanting to be loved. ... Maybe I associated some sort of romance with the theater.

I am not scared to death facing it. It will certainly give me a card to play with at the poker game of Hollywood. That can't hurt at all.