Because good writing in a TV cartoon is so rare, I think the animation on The Simpsons is often overlooked.
There was definitely a lack of any sort of villain in the Clinton era, which is why, when Columbine happened, it was easy to pick on me. My face was around, and it made good TV.
And dialogue, I'm good at it, and it's because it's the only thing you have to work with in TV writing.
I've never been driven to just be a celebrity or just get me on TV. Never ever. What's always driven me is being successful and being good at what I do.
I think you can make perfectly good television just from people who are genuinely interested, talking to people who genuinely know - simple as it sounds, it can be riveting.
I like the Sci Fi channel and 'Science Fiction Theatre.' I've been doing a lot of television-watching and thinking about good songs to write.
I always say if you've seen good acting on television, those actors are really good. Because there's just not enough time. You don't have any preparation.
I think 'Oz' is the type of show that makes you turn away in fear and in horror, so for a television show, that's pretty intense.
I think there are a lot more writers who are actors than you know; they just don't have roles on famous TV shows that you recognize.
I wanted to be a political science professor and go to school in Boston. I never wanted to be a big, famous movie star and TV star. It kind of found me.
Being famous has changed a lot, because now there's so many outlets, between magazines, TV shows, and the Internet, for people to stalk and follow you. We created the monster.
In my 20s, I was a monk. I was obsessed with theatre, not being famous, not with television. I was 20 years on the stage before I set foot in front of a camera.
TV is easier: it's all planned out for you and the audience is there to see a show and they are all pumped up but when you are in a comedy club, you have to be really funny to win them over.
I've played villains on stage - you know, the Iagos and so on - but I think of myself as a funny person. I mostly did comedies before I did TV work.
Right now my favorite TV show - because it's too close to home - is 'My Name Is Earl.' That show kills me. There's some funny stuff in there.
Louis Freeh said on national TV that actionable intelligence could have allowed us to stop the hijackings.
All I know, is that I feel extremely blessed to be on TV. It's a hard job, but real life is harder. Truth be told, playgrounds can be war zones.
Everyone, when you're a teenager and you're growing up, you do feel like your life is dramatic enough to be on a TV screen, but we know that it's not.
I ended up with my life slanted toward television, and I just accept that. I think you play the hand the way it's dealt, that's all.
In my whole life, when I've watched TV and movies, I've almost always felt, 'I could do that better,' and I thought everyone felt that way.
A successful television series can chain you to a schedule of long hours and can put your personal life on hold. But after it is all over, if you survive, then anything is possible.
