After you play a part, you think of it as your own. Gena Rowlands More Quotes by Gena Rowlands More Quotes From Gena Rowlands John [Cassavetes] had shot a great deal of Shadows and I had to go fulfill my contract in California, so he and all the rest of the Shadows cast came out to California and they finished it off and he cut it. He turned the garage into an editing room and he was by then a director of Shadows. That's the only thing he'd directed. But, he loved it. Gena Rowlands california cutting editing When I was in Middle of The Night, MGM came and offered me a contract and I said that when I got out of the play, I'd like to try it. I didn't know anything about making movies but I was certainly finding it interesting. Gena Rowlands play night interesting So many people mistakenly think that the rest of his [John Cassavetes] pictures and the ones we did were improvised, which isn't true. He wrote all the rest of them. Gena Rowlands people thinking John Cassavetes was there at night while I was working. After they [with his friends] discussed as much live TV as they felt they needed to, they started improvising scenes just for the fun of it and one of those scenes everybody got very interested in and it turned into Shadows [1959]. That movie was entirely improvised. Gena Rowlands shadow fun night He[John Cassavetes] was just being an actor. A very successful actor, especially in live TV. He did many wonderful performances. Gena Rowlands just-being actors successful I got a part opposite Edward G. Robinson in a play called Middle of The Night, which Paddy Cheyafsky had written. It played for a long time because everybody just loved Edward G. Robinson, everybody in New York wanted to see it. John and I were married at the time and put into a position where I was working very long evening hours and he was working in the daytime and so there was a lot of spare time. Gena Rowlands new-york opposites night Every sacred cow in the business has to do with economics. Gena Rowlands movie cows hollywood Paddy Chayefksy was writing and it was a time where everybody was happy to be there [on TV]. Gena Rowlands paddy tvs writing Because John Cassavetes was so terrific in live TV, a lot of his friends had not been able to participate in that yet and so they asked if he would gather with them at night when I was at the play and tell them what live TV was like, what you had to adjust to because it was its own medium - it had many things you had to be aware of. Gena Rowlands able play night Of course, much easier to do a film when you're doing an extremely emotional part than it is doing it onstage over and over especially. Gena Rowlands easier film emotional So I went home and I told my mom that I wanted to quit and be an actress and she said, “Huh, that sounds fascinating. It’s wonderful!” And I told my father and he literally said, “I don’t care if you want to be an elephant trainer if it makes you happy.” Gena Rowlands mom home father Bette Davis had very strong opinions and was not afraid to express them. She wasn't afraid of anything that I ever saw. And she was so funny. She's just funny and she was laughing all the time. Gena Rowlands saws strong laughing I just loved Bette Davis and the fact that I had a chance to work with her [on the 1979 TV movie Strangers: The Story of a Mother and Daughter] was momentous. Gena Rowlands daughter mother stories I loved Bette Davis when I was little and when I was big and when I got old. Gena Rowlands bigs littles I think that I was lucky to have that period of time [ like coming to New York] because everything was so exciting and new. Gena Rowlands lucky new-york thinking It was a period when live TV was just starting and getting popular and they took it seriously too. Not so much like TV now. They did Hemingway and Faulkner - and they’re all wonderful artists and it just was very creative at that time. Gena Rowlands tvs creative artist Of course I would change anything if John Cassavetes said so - it's his script. But he was very easy about that. Gena Rowlands scripts easy said The thing about acting is you don't want to let on how enjoyable it is or then everybody would want to become an actress. But it really is. It's a pleasure to go and exchange your identity. Gena Rowlands your go you identity I like subtitles. Sometimes I wish all movies had subtitles. Gena Rowlands i-wish movies wish sometimes I can never have a poker face. Anybody looking at me can tell exactly what I'm thinking. Gena Rowlands face looking me thinking
