Charlotte Rae

“I saw I wasn't an ingenue like Debbie Reynolds.”

“I'm not a religious freak, but I do believe that there is a higher power.”

“I know I was influenced by Beatrice Lillie. I must have been.”

“When I started out, I wanted to be a serious actor. I never thought I'd get into comedy.”

“Superstitions actually played a big role in my life. I wouldn't even go on a casting call if I had a hunch that it was an 'unlucky' day.”

“Composers, artists, actors, singers - all of them, I think, unconsciously learn from others. I'm sure it's not conscious, but they can't help it.”

“I was doing a lot of drama until I took the comedy role in the series 'Car 54, Where Are You?,' and I've been tagged as a comedian ever since.”

“Because of the power of television, I was visible to everybody all over the world. But there are many things in the theater that are more fulfilling and that I look forward to doing more. But really, I love it all: theater, film, television.”

“At 91, every day is a birthday.”

“I'd like for 'Facts of Life' to include more stories about Mrs. Garrett. But I wouldn't want to do a spin-off built around her.”

“I always like to do serious plays.”

“Television does devour you because you have all sorts of responsibilities, and I really needed to renew myself. I think I owed it to myself. So I honored myself and quit. I think that's a wonderful way to put it.”

“They very seldom let me lose my cool. They made me like I was Polly Perfect, which was ridiculous so that when I bump into kids on the street they'd say 'I wish my Mom were like you.'”

“So many of the people who I played opposite, or just worked with, became friends forever.”

“There's nothing wrong with making people laugh. We all need to laugh. Sometimes I get all these laughs inside of me, and there's no place to let 'em out.”

“I want to tell everybody to celebrate every day, to savor the day and be good to yourself, love yourself, and then you can be good to others and be of service to others.”

“I wanted to be a serious actress and do all the classics.”

“I felt inferior. I had this tremendous need to perform. I wanted to be acceptable to my peers. I thought if I could just be a big star, I'd feel like somebody, too.”

“When I moved to New York to start my acting career, I was always very, very careful to walk way around ladders, and black cats could ruin my day. There were many silly things that brought fear into my life.”

“Gee whiz, I know that some movie stars don't like to be bothered, but I don't mind. I think it's part of the package, and it's not a bother.”