NELL CARTER

When I first found out I had diabetes I denied it.

I was a weirdo to want to be in show business. Most kids wanted to be teachers or nurses.

Rich means you have to stay there to maintain it.

You have to put on more faces to pretend who you are.

Being diabetic was not what I thought of as being normal, and I feared the stigma of having to take medicine and having people stick me with a needle.

Rich is not better.

I think that anyone who denies their heritage doesn't deserve their destiny. My grandmother was a maid. She put nine children - eight of them - through college; I did not finish college.

'Gimme a Break' ran for six years and gave me the kind of money and freedom that I'd dreamed would make me happy. It didn't.

Of all the unhappiness I went through, you must know I wouldn't live a moment of my life differently for what I have now. Would I do it all again? I wouldn't want to, but if it got me to the same place, yeah, I'd do it. Because I realize now that God would not give more than I could handle.

No matter what part of the business you want to be in, live performances are the most thrilling.

You can get by on four hours' sleep, but you're not very exciting.

I'm at my best when there's distance between me and a man.

Most performers don't get a chance to sing in Los Angeles.

One bad review can destroy me. It hurts so bad.

I had to want to lose weight myself.

There's nothing worse than working with an orchestra who looks down on working with a conductor who doesn't want to conduct for you. You need to be with an orchestra that can follow you and respect you.

I had a pretty rough life. I got caught up in the star syndrome. It's not something I'm proud of, but it's something that I'm glad is over.

I think when you're happy, emotions are right near the top - mine definitely are. I cry easily, I laugh easily, I lose my temper easily... and I beg for forgiveness easily.

I've managed to completely reeducate myself into making eating secondary. I used to eat all the time because the food was there. Now I feel like a kid in school who is gaining points for behaving. And I love myself for it.

I think music and laughter are the two things that can keep you alive. Someone who is really depressed, tell them a joke, and they may come out of it for even just a moment. Or play them something.

My marriage is very important to me.

If I'm with someone for too long, I begin feeling trapped.

I'm not very kind about marriage. I will never get married again.

New York is a good city for not having to get fat.

Because I've always had a strong personality, I've always thought I knew what was best.