Bill Maher Quotes

I like to do talk show appearances where I get to just be myself, and I do stand-up where I can completely be myself. That's what I've always loved the most, of anything.

I always say that the stand-up world is the arena of the unwell, and it is.

Part of doing stand-up is to get things off your chest. It's a bit like being in a psychiatrist's chair - but more enjoyable.

When I was doing stand-up, there were a lot of things I talked about that seemed very silly but were therapeutic.

I kind of see it as my personal therapy to get on stage and do characters.

I think anybody in front of a crowd is a comedian.

I never used to tell jokes on stage. Now I'm cutting up jokes all night long.

My routines come out of total unhappiness. My audiences are my group therapy.

I've always loved singing and the catharsis of it.

I tend to a lot of improvisational ranting, and that's fun. For me, stand-up has been, performance-wise, a really good outlet.

I want to show the world my humor.

I have a wonderful psychiatrist that I see maybe once a year, because I don't need it. It all comes out onstage.

Comedy's my outlet for my ridiculous emotions.

I had enough therapy to know when I broke it down, it became clearer to me: Yes, comedy was kind of a cleansing thing for me to do.

I thought of Second City as just the greatest therapeutic job anybody could ever dream of having.

I was a class clown. I realized early on feeling very comfortable in front of people.

I'll never stop doing stand-up. There's nothing better than getting in front of 2,500 people and making an entire room laugh.

I go where people are hurting. I stand on the stage, and I make people laugh for an hour and a half.

I love the privilege of looking back on my life every three years, turning it into a comedy show, and sharing it with an audience. It's incredibly cathartic.

I like stand-up. I've done it since I was a teenager, so it's kind of my first job and first kind of creative way to express myself.

That's one thing about my shows. I tell people, I'm not a comedian, I'm just a really funny reporter. I put my life out there and make it entertaining. By putting it out there, it helps me to deal with it, you know, so I don't snap and so I don't go off the handle when I get home.

Comedy's easy for me now - it's all about timing and the way you deliver lines. I use facial expressions to get the point across.

I didn't really get into comedy until a couple months before I started doing comedy.

I grew up fascinated with comedy and with people who could capture someone's attention.

When you are doing stand-up comedy, you are the writer, producer, director, sometimes bouncer.