JAMES GARNER (1928 – 2014)                

[The star who memorably portrayed Bret Maverick in the ‘Maverick’ series for Warner Bros in the sixties spoke about smoking marijuana for most of his adult life]: ‘I started smoking it in my late teens. I drank to get drunk but ultimately didn’t like the effect. Not so with grass. It had the opposite effect from alcohol. It made me more tolerant and forgiving. I did a little bit of cocaine in the Eighties, courtesy of John Belushi, but fortunately I didn’t like it. But I smoked marijuana for fifty years and I don’t know where I’d be without it. It opened my mind and now it eases my arthritis. After decades of research I’ve concluded that marijuana should be legal and alcohol illegal.’

[On actor Steve McQueen]: ‘Steve was my neighbor for some time. I called him ‘Crazy McQueen’, because, quite frankly, he was crazy. We were friends, but he wanted to play my part in Grand Prix (1966) and because of that we didn’t talk for four years! He wasn’t a great actor, but he was a star. McQueen had probably the highest amount of star quality I’ve ever seen in an actor.’

‘Too many actors have run for office. There’s one difference between me and them: I know I’m not qualified. In my opinion, Arnold Schwarzenegger wasn’t qualified to be governor of California. Ronald Reagan wasn’t qualified to be governor, let alone president. I was a vice-president of the Screen Actors Guild when he was its president. My duties consisted of attending meetings and voting. The only thing I remember is that Ronnie never had an original thought and that we had to tell him what to say. That’s no way to run a union, let alone a state or a country!’

‘I’m a Spencer Tracy – type actor. His idea was to be on time, know your words, hit your marks and tell the truth. Most every actor tries to make it something it isn’t or looks for the easy way out. I don’t think acting is that difficult if you can put yourself aside and do what the writer wrote.’

[On the death of Marlon Brando]: ‘America has lost its leading film star. He was the best. As far as I’m concerned, he was also a very good friend. The world will miss him.’

ROD TAYLOR (1930 – 2015)                                 

[The Australian-born leading man spoke of his reputation as a ‘ladies’ man’]: ‘I make love to as many women [as] will let me. If a girl gives me half a chance, I’ll bed her down, and that’s the truth.’

‘When I arrived at L.A. airport, to be met by some Hollywood promoters, they were expecting some six-foot, pretty guy. Instead, they were shocked to see a five foot ten punk with a broken nose.’

VICTOR MATURE (1913-99)                                

‘Cecil. B. DeMille hired the best people in town for his films, and since we were all professionals he didn’t feel he had to direct us too much. He figured we knew our jobs. He’d say a few words to us, then shoot the scene. But he didn’t miss a trick. In a scene with three thousand extras, if one guy in the back was picking his nose, Mr. DeMille would spot it and stop everything to chew him out.’

DAVID BOWIE (1947-2016)                       

‘I think Mick Jagger would be astounded and amazed if he realized, to many people he is not a sex symbol, but a mother image.’

[On declining the Royal honor of Commander of the British Empire in 2000, and turning down a knighthood in 2003] ‘I would never have any intention of accepting anything like that. I seriously don’t know what it’s for It’s not what I spent my life working for.’

[On turning down the chance to record a James Bond film theme] ‘To be honest I haven’t watched a James Bond film since Sean Connery was in them. I don’t really like them.’

RHONDA FLEMING (1923 – 2020)          

[On Bing Crosby and Bob Hope] ‘Bing was so easy-going and very relaxed and Bob would rehearse and rehearse. I wondered, ‘How did they make all those ‘Road’ pictures together, because their styles were so different?’ [Bing] would be telling a story right before the director would say ‘Action’ and he’d go right on with the joke directly into the scene without missing a beat. And I wouldn’t know where I was because I was so focused on the joke!’

‘I’m glad I was a star back then and not now. I never had to take my clothes off to appear sexy. It was a certain look. My only regret is I didn’t get to make a truly great movie like Casablanca (1942) to be identified with. Fans come up and they keep mentioning stuff like Yankee Pasha (1954) or Those Redheads from Seattle (1953). Now come on!’

CLAUDIA CARDINALE (1938 – )                        

‘I never felt scandal and confession were necessary to be an actress. I’ve never revealed myself or even my body in films. Mystery is very important. If you’re not English, you’re a foreigner – so you must be sexy. It’s an old British cliché. I wasn’t speaking a word of Italian until I was eighteen. [She was born in Tunis]. They had to dub my voice in my first Italian picture.’

KELLY PRESTON (1962 – 2020)              

[She was married to John Travolta from 1991 until her death from breast cancer in 2020. They had three children] ‘Everything about my husband is sexy, especially his lips. When I married him, I put my career on hold to be a wife and to have a child. Before that I didn’t have a fabulous career, but I was working. When I decided to resume acting, I had become Mrs. Travolta in many people’s eyes so I had to prove myself all over again.’

‘There’s the jiggle factor in Hollywood. Once I was at an audition and they told me, ‘You must show your breasts!’ And I was like ‘Get outta town!’ I just laughed and slammed the door on my way out.’