Our Film Stars

Even I though I'm 80, I still want to finish my PhD. I have six more units at USC. No matter what age you are, learning never stops, you still keep learning.

Life is not easy. There's lots of obstacles and things that you have to overcome, but you have to be strong enough and have a positive way of thinking so that you could overcome anything that comes your way.

Probably the most important thing in a relationship is absolute honesty and absolute respect of the other.  What I've learned is never try to change anyone, not one iota. The only person who can adjust is yourself.  Leave the other person totally alone, that's very important to know. I wish I had known that when I was very young. You try to help, or try to change, none of that works. We are each the imperfect beauty that we are.

When I was 50, it was like suddenly there were doors that were opening and I was walking through them. That's when I really started to find out what was important to me? What did I want to do and to go and do it and not wait for permission to do it.

Life goes by so quickly and most young people are in such a hurry to get to the next part of their life or whatever they're doing, that they don't really take time to just enjoy what's happening right now.

My secret for a happy life is maintaining a good relationship with my wife. What do you think is the secret to being married for over 50 years?Getting along I think is probably the most important...sometimes you want to have your way. And sometimes you're entitled to have your way, but recognizing that there are areas of compromise.

 A life isn't well lived unless the quality of life is important and that's the most important thing.  You can live to be a 110 years old but if you're in a hospital bed for the rest of your life and in pain, or you have Alzheimers and you don't even know who your relatives are, that's not good quality.  So I think that probably the most important thing for a person who is older is to work on the quality of ones age and that means exercise and that means daily.

It's not your numerical age, it's your biological age.  So think young, act young, feel young, forget the number.  

What is really important in life is taking chances, risking, facing new situations, learning new skills and not getting in a rut. The attitude you have about life is really the only thing you have control over, and that is what determines how you are going to live your life.

I look forward to the next hour, next day, and no plans. I take what comes and absorb it as much as I can, mentally, physically, emotionally, visually, audibly. I drink it up.

My secret for a happy life is…to be able to enjoy the senses when they’re working. To be able to hear incredible music, to be able to listen to wonderful poetry, to be able to see wonderful paintings, to be able to eat and really enjoy a meal because it tastes good. And to know that that’s not to be taken for granted.

Work a little less, spend a little less. Enjoy life a little more.

My secret to a happy life is to live life to the fullest everyday of your life, be good to everybody you know, do a good deed when you can. Be happy.

Happiness is a state of mind. You can be happy with what you have, or miserable with what you don’t have. You decide.

An Indian chief once said, "You will be remembered by the tracks you leave behind," and I'm trying to leave good tracks.

It’s really important that you make the most out of every day, you never know what tomorrow will bring. You can't get out of life if you don't put anything into life. It's like anything else, there's no free ride.

I realize that I've got far less life ahead of me than behind me, but I'm not at the stage where I'm particularly concerned with that. I'm much more concerned with trying to get the most out of life as it is for me today.

To me a life well lived is attaining the satisfaction of family, friends, professional achievement and looking around and saying I contributed to something.

I think the biggest thing people should not worry about is failure.  I think failure is a great teacher.

Don't sweat the little things. Do the best you can.

I love photography, I love beauty, and to be able to do that every day…what more could someone want? 

A life well lived for me, means having lived life to the fullest. I think I was always moving ahead, never stagnating, always trying to look for something different. And trying to achieve a goal that sometimes was not achievable. I’ve often said that I thank God for putting obstacles in my way because I think I learn from overcoming every obstacle. 

Live one day at a time. Tomorrow comes soon enough.

I know that I find it difficult to live alone, so I never did live alone. I always had a partner and sought to have a partner. And was quite successful with it I must say.

I don't think people should worry about getting old because they're going to get old.  You can't stop birthdays and you're going to keep getting older every year.  But you don't have to be old mentally. 

I wished when I was younger, I would not have been as rowdy and causing my mother a lot of headaches and what not. I outgrew that because as you grow older you become more tolerant and more compassionate.

The best advice I ever got was from my mother. She told me to stick to the fundamentals of life. Love and respect your parents, always be gainfully employed, always plan for the future, and be positive about what you have.

My definition of a life well lived? Well after 95 years there are so many things to tell. I live in a place that I love and I'm still working on my artwork which I think is very important if you're going to have a long and happy life. Also, doing something useful, having a social conscience, and trying to work for a better world in whatever way you can. 

Luck has the aroma of perspiration.  You don't get lucky without working very hard for things.

I remember as a kid all I wanted to do was play ball…and I always felt that one day I would play ball for the Yankees and guess what? I played ball for the Yankees, briefly…but I played ball. When people ask me what do you dream about, my answer is often, I live my dreams. Because that’s just the truth.

I think younger people are a little wary of the future because they have not become a part of it yet. And if they could only know that there’s a lot of excitement in discovering new things. They will be meeting new people that will become part of their lives. It’s really quite fun.

I've always felt you need to sit loosely in the saddle of life as you go down that long trail.

I think if I had known a little more as a younger person, I would've thought that nothing is the same forever. And so you can get in and out of things a little easier if you think that nothing is so permanent that you're going to be there forever.

I think the key to a person living a long time is being happy and not to worry so much about things, because worrying can kill anybody. I am happy raising my own vegetables and being out in the garden, enjoying work, watching my vegetables grow everyday. And that’s real important…if you’re happy, you’re contented, you live life. 

A life well lived? Perhaps knowing when to say no to certain opportunities and when to say yes to certain ones that might sound a little iffy.

I wish younger people would understand that you need to be more tolerant. Different people have different points of view about the world.  You can't just impose your views on everyone else.

One of my favorite songs is ‘Enjoy Yourself, It’s Later Than You Think.’ The years go by really quickly, so—enjoy it while you’re still in the pink as they say in the song.

A happy life with me I think is my true faith in God, my love for my family, friends, people I meet. I love to meet new people. And I phrase it, I don’t meet strangers.

I think young people need to learn to be patient and understanding. I think they should appreciate life. They’ve been given a chance in this world to accomplish [great things] and don’t be so angry about things that they can’t help, just try to do better for themselves.

What do I enjoy? I like the interaction I have with the colleagues that I've known for a long time…the accessibility to really sensitive and intelligent people who have a lot of experiences so you are asking people advice that you can trust.

At 81, I think I’m probably more comfortable in my own skin. I think it’s too bad if you reach this age and you’re not. You worry so much when you’re younger about what other people think, needless worry. When you’re 81, you can be a little outrageous now and then and get by with it. You should have fun!

I think you should know that I'm terminally optimistic.  When I wake up in the morning, I expect something good to happen.  I don't know exactly what it would be and sometimes it's postponed until the next day or the day after.  But inevitably there's something wonderful that will happen.

The best advice that I ever received came from my Sunday school teacher and she said, "There's so much good in the worst of us, and so much bad in the best of us, it hardly behooves any of us to talk about the rest of us". And I think that I've lived my life with that realization, and always looked for the good in people.