Alan Arkin Quotes

I am still seeking to become firmly established as an actor.

I knew I wanted to be an actor but didn't know how to go about it. That's why my ambition, initially, was not to play a lead role in a Bollywood film.

A friend of my mom's was a casting director so, really as kind of a lark, I had a couple of acting jobs that had just enough exposure to give me the option to continue if I wanted to. I followed through with it.

Being an actor, you have to be working even when you're not working. You never really get to relax because anytime you're relaxing in between jobs, you're just worried that you're not going to get another job.

My goal has always been to be a working actor.

As a struggling actor, you're not looking for parts that define you; you're just looking for work.

I've been just like any other working actor, out there looking for stuff.

It's just the acting side of things. It's not like music, where you can go out there and be independent. It's a bit more difficult to get out there on your own and be an actor. It takes time.

If you aspire to be an actor, go ahead. But do have a backup plan because you can't predict your future in the industry.

I left acting school really hoping that I could be on a television show of some sort, working in movies in Hollywood.

As a theater actor I always wondered, 'Is there a place for me in Hollywood?'

I've been very lucky. I wanted to be an actress, but I didn't really have the drive to sell myself. Fortunately I had a terrific agent in New York who kept me going from job to job.

My plan was to be able to make a living as an actor.

Sometimes when you're starting out with acting, you have to take what you can get to get experience and meet people.

It can be tough as a jobbing actor.

I've only ever really been in shows of friends, so I don't know exactly what happened. I think I'm incredibly cheap to hire. That can buy some traction. I'm as cheap as it's possible for an actor to be legally.

I don't often get recognized for my work, but I look familiar. I'm just a working-man actor. I go and audition, and you just hope the work keeps coming.

I would do anything for a part, nearly anything. Being in movies doesn't mean being pretty.

One of the tough things about being an actor, probably the hardest thing, is getting your foot in the door, and my father handled that for me at a very early age.

I was an actor... or, at least, I was trying to be an actor.

I just wanted to be a guy who could earn a living as an actor, and I did that for a long time.

I'm not interested in going to casting after casting, trying to get into that game. So there is a part of me that knows that I will do more characters, even if I have to produce those projects myself to get those projects out there. If the right characters come along, I would love to. I would jump at the chance.

I've always wanted to be an actor, but I didn't know how to become one.

Unless you have a long-running series, most actors just go job to job if you're lucky to keep working. You just do a movie or a play or a TV thing, and it's over at some point.

I had no idea how to make it as an actor. But I knew I wanted to.