Jay Parini Quotes
We are a nation of immigrants, a quilt of many colors, and we've managed over more than two centuries to create a way of life that allows for a reasonable degree of upward mobility, that prizes individual liberty, promotes freedom of religion and genuinely values equal rights for all citizens.

Quotes to Explore
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After the success of my first album and the success of 'Flow Joe' kind of faded, I was struggling to make some money and make ends meet.
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Sometimes I like to watch TV, though I never get to watch any of the shows in real time. I'm a fan of 'Downton Abbey,' 'Boardwalk Empire,' and 'Boss.' There's a British series called 'Luther,' but in England, they think a series means four episodes. And I like 'Mad Men.' Otherwise, it's always good to unwind with a book.
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Weddings are really good for making you feel terrible about yourself if you're not where you want to be in life.
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The best time to expand is when people are asleep at the wheel.
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To be a great actor, you really don't need to go to acting school or learn dance classes or work on your body. You have to be intelligent. You have to draw on a lot of emotions that you go through in life that you can tap into once you work on a set.
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I can go back to poverty if a situation comes. I have sailed through the worst days of my life, and I am prepared for any crisis.
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By the time I got to Bournemouth Art College, I'd been so inspired by Sam Raimi and Robert Rodriguez and their tiny, no-budget films that I decided to do a feature-length version of 'Fistful Of Fingers.'
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Even an animal, if you show genuine affection, gradually trust develops... If you always showing bad face and beating, how can you develop friendship?
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And my friends, you ain't seen nothin' yet.
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By helping readers understand these mechanics, I hope they will appreciate why freedom is for everyone, why it is essential for our security and why the free world plays a critically important role in advancing democracy around the globe.
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I've always been busy, but I wasn't always successful.
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Movies don't have borders.
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I'm a stand-up. I'm never worried about getting my next role. That's never distressing to me.
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Writers are always critical of themselves and I'm no exception. I always feel that maybe I could have done better.
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Despotism is a long crime.
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I used to buy records in high school. Mainly dancehall: Super Cat, Buju Banton.
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I'm not gonna play a part that doesn't instill some kind of fear in me. If I read a part, and suddenly, I'm thinking halfway through, 'I'm not sure I could get away with this,' I think of everything I can think of to keep me from doing it, that's the one I should do.
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It would have been easy for me to bring out a real cheesy pop song, but 'Please Don't Let Me Go' isn't your typical 'X Factor' single, and it's a grower, not a shower.
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We have a lot of people that are oppressed. We have a lot of people that aren't treated equally, aren't given equal opportunities. Police brutality is a huge thing that needs to be addressed. There are a lot of issues that need to be talked about, need to be brought to life, and we need to fix those.
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I could give a flying flip about doing promo because, no disrespect, nobody put me in the position that I'm in.
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Life is measured in love and positive contributions and moments of grace.
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My mom, Clida, taught my four brothers and me about her father's work to organize black voters in rural Louisiana in the 1950s. We carried her dad's legacy of activism with us. The Civil Rights Movement was present in the daily life of my family in Detroit in the 1970s.
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I got to see all these incredible blues players, like Jimmy Reed.
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We are a nation of immigrants, a quilt of many colors, and we've managed over more than two centuries to create a way of life that allows for a reasonable degree of upward mobility, that prizes individual liberty, promotes freedom of religion and genuinely values equal rights for all citizens.