My publishers are wonderful because they have let me write what I wanted to. They're wise enough to know that, with any author who's not simply writing formulas - who's trying to create something new - pressuring them to do something for market purposes almost always backfires. I can't imagine working under those circumstances, actually.
When I wrote the song, The Way It Is, I wanted to move people to take a stand on civil rights in this country.
In my mind, I never doubted whether I was going to achieve what I wanted to do. I just had to decide what it is I wanted to do.
'The Stepford Wives' was too big, and it was unsatisfying to do. Not that it was unsatisfying to do, but it was unsatisfying as a result because, as much as I loved parts of it, and I'm really proud of so much of it, the entire movie wasn't what I wanted it to be. It's my own fault; I didn't follow my instincts.
I was born on a full moon. Both my children were born on full moons, too. Some people say that's scary. It is what it is, man, I don't be trippin'. I couldn't tell God when I wanted to be born.
I definitely wanted the second record to be a much more grandiose thing. I wanted to push myself and make a big statement.
When we were at peace, Democrats wanted to raise taxes. Now there's a war, so Democrats want to raise taxes. When there was a surplus, Democrats wanted to raise taxes. Now that there is a mild recession, Democrats want to raise taxes.
I always wanted to shave. It is a very natural process. For my birthday I got a lot of shaving stuff.
I always wanted to understand the causes of happiness. I'm a bit of a scientist, I guess you could say.
My childhood may have been more demented than most, because I learned to read very early and was allowed to read whatever I wanted.
In every song, there is a vocal element that doesn't have any words. I wanted to play around with how emotive and expressive my voice could be.
I wanted to get out of Mississippi in the worst way. Go back? What I want to go back for?
I never wanted to see anybody die, but there are a few obituary notices I have read with pleasure.
I wanted to do a movie about being really good at something, yet being socially awkward and not as advanced in your personal life as you are in your creative life.
Some kids go walking in the mountains, but I just went to the cinema. So when I told my parents I wanted to be an actor, even though this wasn't normal for Arab kids or anyone in the town, they were sort of expecting it and were very supportive.
When I was eight years old I went to visit my brother who was working on a movie of the week with my mother and I saw how much fun he was having and I decided I wanted to try it too.
Every prop, every shot, every pearl that rolled across the floor was exactly how I wanted it to be.
I used to look like an American flag. The Padre uniform makes me look like a taco. Actually, the transition has been great. I've made 25 new friends, and I never thought I wanted to be anything other than a Dodger, but this is fun.
I wanted to clear all the lies and let the truth come out. I have hate crawling through my system.
My dad just wanted me to find something to do to keep me out of trouble. Boxing was the great escape.
I was a different kind of player as a kid and didn't do too much shouting and screaming. If things didn't go my way, I tended to get a bit overwhelmed. All I wanted to do was cry on my mom's shoulder. I didn't know how to handle defeat in front of a crowd, and I didn't want to be the loser.
I wanted to introduce a contemporary Asia to a North American audience.
In the past, if you did film, you couldn't do stage, and if you did film, you certainly didn't do television. You had to pick what you wanted to be. Now it seems like we can bounce around, not only between genres, but between mediums, and I like that. I like change and I like a good story.
The only person Henry Kissinger flattered more than President Richard Nixon was Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the shah of Iran. In the early 1970s, the shah, sitting atop an enormous reserve of increasingly expensive oil and a key figure in Nixon and Kissinger's move into the Middle East, wanted to be dealt with as a serious person.
We never really wanted to play in California.
When you have enough power to do what you always wanted to do, then you see what the guy always wanted to do.
I wanted to become a model and an actress.
'Changes in Latitudes' began when I was looking at a photograph of a sea turtle swimming underwater. I had such a strong feeling for the beauty of this ancient creature, at home in the sea. On the spot, I wanted to swim with that turtle. I began to imagine a character who would do just that.
The most climate friendly trip we are ever going to take is the trip we never had to take because we were close to what we wanted.
Initially, they wanted Columbo to wear a driving coat. I said: 'Are you kidding? He's not an English aristocrat.'
I think, in America, for a long time you had groups that wanted to be stars more than they wanted to make music.
I didn't want much. I wanted much more. In fact, I wanted everything.
The fashion business got boring. I was working with big companies, but the minute it became too formulaic, I got bored with it. I wanted to do a creative space where I could just make stuff - kind of like an atelier, where I could collaborate with other artists, drape geometric shapes on the body, make cushion covers, or whatever.
How many movies do you see when you can say this director really knew what film he wanted to make? I can count them on the fingers of one hand.
A reporter from 'The Times' wanted to arm-wrestle, and as I recall, he kept challenging me. So we went at it, and there was a pop. His arm broke. Very strange. He went into a kind of swoon.
I started making some proper decisions, getting things in order. It's kind of like cleaning up your house. I was looking for direction for what God wanted me to do - and that's when I got a call about The Passion.
