Shirley Jones Quotes

I worked with Ismail Merchant on 'The Mystic Masseur,' I did 'Sakina's Restaurant,' I've done plays, I've been on Broadway, I've done movies, I've done TV... but nothing has had the pop culture penetrative impact as 'The Daily Show' has. It's the nature of the beast.

As a matter of fact - it'll probably ruin my movie career - but I think better storytellers are in television.

My retirement is both voluntary and involuntary. One reason, and this is voluntary, is the impact of television. All old movies are turning up on television, and frankly, making pictures doesn't interest me anymore. Another reason is that the film industry is in a declining state.

I have great respect for actors like Jodie Foster and Natalie Portman who went to school the entire time they were acting. All I did was one small little independent film, and I realised I couldn't balance both lives.

I thought that making movies was drab. I'd lived through that. And I didn't want to use my parents, ever... They didn't want to push me into this business.

I loved doing 'Pennies from Heaven.' Because you have to understand that I'd been doing comedy for 15 to 20 years, and suddenly along came the opportunity to do this beautiful film. It was so emotional to me. I loved it. I don't think it was a good career move, but I have no regrets about doing it.

The money is better in films and television. But in terms of acting, theatre is more rewarding.

I would love to do more movies, but the reality is women have many more opportunities on television to play a greater variety of characters.

I turned down the opportunity to be in some films that went on to be blockbusters.

My television and movie career has also taken me all over the world. I've had great times in the Far East, Russia, South America and Sweden - where I met my wife of 55 years, Maj.

I'm used to American actors who have a movie career thinking television acting is beneath them.

Television is often out ahead on social issues. With film, we've only recently proved that one of the oldest misconceptions in the book is wrong, which is the idea that girls will see films with boys as protagonists, but boys won't see movies with girls as protagonists.

People now tell me it's a good thing I stayed away from teen films. Well, it wasn't my choice. I wasn't hired.

I ventured into a world of sitcom, and I have no regrets. I loved it.

Television really has been responsible for everything that I've done successfully.

I have no regrets in going into politics or leaving the Tollywood for a while.

After having acted in films down south, I always wanted to work on the small screen but couldn't say yes to everything that was being offered to me.

My college life was brief because I started working for my debut film when I was in eleventh standard. But I have no regrets, as I stayed in touch with my friends who keep briefing me about the drama in the college. The opportunity to get into showbiz was so exciting that I couldn't let it pass by.

Television is as much a part of my journey as film.

Around the time that Girls Aloud was at its biggest, I was offered some huge acting roles in America. I decided to stay loyal to the band rather than take those other opportunities. Sometimes I wonder whether I should have just taken them.

I went on the Andy Williams show, the Smothers Brothers show, and maybe I shouldn't have. But regrets - I don't think I have any.

There came a time when I had to decide between show business and devoting my full time to medical training. I chose show business.

Television has usurped everybody from film. And so have commercials, by the way.

Nobody ever said, "Well if you want to be in movies, you should go to L.A." Everybody else was going to New York. So I went to New York with them. And then I was like, "How am I supposed to get a movie?"

I feel like I turned down a lot of things that I wish I hadn't. But you never know when you're younger. I don't have regrets about certain things I turned down. Those films would have required things of me that would have been challenging, and they ended up being really good movies. But I was never a careerist, I never thought in those terms. I'd be like, "Oh, I'm tired. I don't want to work."