Debra Winger

“When you connect with a cause, it's like falling in love.”

“Granted there are only seven stories in the universe. And I agree with that. But give me a great variation of those stories. And literate.”

“I don't believe in careers. I believe in work. I'm not interested in some 'big picture that would be really good for me'.”

“I never thought I would start working again, and I did, but it was really hard, and I don't know that I would advise anyone to step back the way I did.”

“I was the all-American face. You name it, honey - American Dairy Milk, Metropolitan Life insurance, McDonald's, Burger King. The Face That Didn't Matter - that's what I called my face.”

“You see people on TV flying in to places just to pick up a baby, or brush some flies away. That's great if they can bring that issue to public attention. But that's not what I wanted to do. I was interested in committing to something that I could function in whether I was Debra Winger or not. Because nobody might care about that next week.”

“I think it's a little irresponsible for women who choose surgery to then say they can portray the average woman on the street, because if the average woman can't afford those treatments, then she's going to say, 'I'm 53 and I don't look like that,' and start thinking she's ugly or inadequate.”

“When I was younger I probably didn't understand something basic about tact, but I think it kept faint-hearted people at arm's distance and that's not such a bad thing, because life is short and I know the kind of people I want to work with.”

“I became an actor because I couldn't not.”

“A good marriage is different to a happy marriage.”

“People pay to see movies with women looking beautiful, but I think there will be a place for me to play women looking my own age.”

“An actress in a film starts every day with an hour and a half in front of a mirror, with hair and make-up and costumes.”

“Never say never, but the thought of electively cutting oneself is beyond my grasp, and I also object to it politically. Denying the lines on our faces makes a comment about age and wisdom I don't care to make.”

“Show me the story. I just want to tell a story that pulls me forward.”

“I just want to sleep, and eat, and learn about what's going on in the world.”

“I had a very insightful friend who warned me back when I stopped reading scripts, 'It's easier to change directions while you're still moving.' If you stop, it's harder to get started again. I still don't think I made the wrong decision, but he was right.”

“I just live in the truth and think that every moment counts.”

“It's no secret that I didn't love 'An Officer And A Gentleman' then, and I certainly don't love it now, so at least no one could accuse me of being inconsistent.”

“I tend to wear outfits that match the walls.”

“I was the all-American face.”