George Clooney Quotes

The government itself is running exactly like the Sopranos and they sit back and they make deals. And they say okay, 'I'm going do this: France, you're getting the pipelines.'

- George Clooney

Okay, Like, Going, Sopranos

I use my film-making to work through my deep questions and my deep problems. I think I could watch each film and tell you exactly which part of my psyche I'm trying to work out.

- George Clooney

Deep, Through, I Think, Psyche

There is a strange pecking order among actors. Theatre actors look down on film actors, who look down on TV actors. Thank God for reality shows, or we wouldn't have anybody to look down on.

- George Clooney

Anybody, TV, Film Actors, Reality Shows

I think you should automatically donate your organs because that would turn the balance of organ donation in a huge way. I would donate whatever anybody would take, and I'd probably do the cremation bit.

- George Clooney

Think, Organ, Organs, Automatically

There's a funny thing about fame. The truth is you run as fast as you can towards it because it's everything you want. Not just the fame but what it represents, meaning work, meaning opportunity. And then you get there, and it's shocking how immediately you become enveloped in this world that is incredibly restricting.

- George Clooney

Run, About, Immediately, Restricting

I'm a Method actor. I spent years training for the drinking and carousing I had to do in this film.

- George Clooney

Drinking, Method, Spent, Method Actor

When you first start out, you are just happy to get a job, any job. And as time goes on, either you move forward or screech to a halt.

- George Clooney

Forward, Goes, Move, Move Forward

I believe in all the qualities of being a liberal. I keep going back to all the great social events in our country's history, starting with the Salem witch trials, where the conservative view was that they're witches and should be burned at the stake, and the liberal view was there's no such thing as witches.

- George Clooney

Conservative, Country, Salem, Witch

It's not that I lead this oblivious life where I think I've got such a great personality that people want to spend time with me. If someone has a poster of you or asks for your autograph, clearly you can't take them out on a date. It's not that interesting if someone is just interested in you.

- George Clooney

Date, I Think, Your, Autograph

The loneliest you will get is in the most public of arenas: You will go to a place and end up in the smallest compartment possible, because it's a distraction to everybody, and you end up not getting to enjoy it like everyone else.

- George Clooney

Everybody, Everyone Else, Arenas

I had my Aunt Rosie, who was famous and then not, so I got a lesson in fame early on. And I understood how little it has to do with you. And also how you could use it.

- George Clooney

Famous, Could, Use, Aunt

The people I've respected most in the industry over the years - Paul Newman, for instance. I just loved the way he handled growing old on-screen. It's understanding that you're now basically a character actor. Which is fine, but you have to pay attention to it.

- George Clooney

Paul Newman, Instance, On-Screen

On an awards-show day, I can play basketball, go in, take a shower and put on a tux - it takes me three minutes to put on a tux - and be out the door in 15 minutes.

- George Clooney

Door, Play, Shower, Play Basketball

I certainly direct with confidence even if I'm not confident. I learned early on as an actor that confidence can be faked, and it's not always a terrible thing to do. A lot of times if people feel you're confident, then they're confident.

- George Clooney

Always, Certainly, Learned, Terrible Thing

I bought a piano once because I had the dream of playing As Time Goes By as some girl's leaning on it drinking a martini. Great image. But none of it worked out. I can't even play Chopsticks. But I've got a nice piano at my house!

- George Clooney

Play, Some, Chopsticks, Martini

I love my grey hair and wrinkles. I love the fact that my face has more of an edge and more character than it did when I was in my twenties and thirties. No Botox for me.

- George Clooney

Love, Fact, Twenties, Botox

After a while, you just want transportation, and things like cool cars or motorcycles are all about getting attention. I get all the attention I could ever need, so I kind of like being in a minivan and people not paying so much attention to me.

- George Clooney

About, Getting, While, Much Attention

Hollywood still makes things. We still export a couple billion dollars' worth of product overseas. Original, new product. Some people might not agree that it's original or new, but basically it is.

- George Clooney

New, Some, Still, Billion Dollars

I'd think, 'In a relationship, we should never have his kind of fight.' Then, instead of figuring out how to make it work, I looked for a way to get out of it. The truth is, you shouldn't be married if your that kind of person.

- George Clooney

How, Out, Your, Figuring

Directing is really exciting. In the end, it's more fun to be the painter than the paint.

- George Clooney

More, Exciting, Painter, In The End

When you first start out as an actor, you're just looking for a good part. As time goes on, if you're being held responsible for the movies themselves, you're looking for a good script all around.

- George Clooney

Goes, Part, Held, Just Looking

I just think there are a lot of celebrities who don't feel that they have a voice. A lot of actors come from a place of fear, and that's just a general statement about actors. You're terrified the casting director won't like you, you're terrified the producer won't like you, you're terrified the director won't like you, and on and on.

- George Clooney

Voice, About, Celebrities, Casting

I grew up in the world of bad television, on my dad's sets and then as a young schmuck on dating shows and so on.

- George Clooney

Young, Bad, Sets, Schmuck

I think anyone who is famous is a moron if they're on Twitter. It's just stupid.

- George Clooney

Stupid, Think, I Think, Moron

In doing the screenplay for 'Good Night, and Good Luck,' the most important thing for me was to constantly go back to wherever the opposition would argue. So I had to keep reading all the books and articles about why McCarthy is such a good guy.

- George Clooney

Luck, Doing, Important Thing, Wherever

I think the reason why a lot of young people are such screw ups... is oftentimes they didn't have the luxury I had of forming important relationships and opinions and life experiences before having success.

- George Clooney

Reason, I Think, Forming, Screw

There's no connection between al-Qaeda and Iraq.

- George Clooney

Connection, Al-Qaeda, Iraq, No Connection

Who would name their kid Jack with the last words 'off' at the end of the last name? No wonder that guy is screwed up.

- George Clooney

Last, Screwed, No Wonder, Jack

Directing is much more satisfying to me than acting.

- George Clooney

Me, More, Than, Satisfying

Growing old on screen is not for the faint of heart.

- George Clooney

Growing, Old, Screen, Faint

I know what my limitations are as an actor, but my strength is putting myself into a well-written part. When I get in trouble is when I have to fix it, or when I have to carry it on personality.

- George Clooney

Strength, Myself, Putting, Well-Written

It's very easy for people to be critical of President Obama's first term, but let's face it, he didn't exactly inherit the country in the best shape.

- George Clooney

Country, Critical, Very, Inherit

I'm only two years older than Brad Pitt, but I look a lot older, which used to greatly frustrate me. It doesn't anymore. I don't have to fit into that category and get trounced by Tom Cruise and Brad.

- George Clooney

Two, Used, Anymore, Frustrate

I don't believe in happy endings, but I do believe in happy travels, because ultimately, you die at a very young age, or you live long enough to watch your friends die. It's a mean thing, life.

- George Clooney

Die, Young, Very, Endings

I just found out about 10 days ago that I must live 300 or 400 yards from Britney Spears... so now I have to move.

- George Clooney

Move, About, Britney, Spears

I think people in Italy live their lives better than we do. It's an older country, and they've learned to celebrate dinner and lunch, whereas we sort of eat as quickly as we can to get through it.

- George Clooney

Think, Country, Through, Whereas

I'm the least metrosexual cat you've ever met. I've never had my fingernails or toenails done, and I've cut my own hair longer than other people have cut my hair.

- George Clooney

Other, My Own, Cut, Fingernails

You have to remember that in the microcosm of Cincinnati, Ohio, through northern Kentucky, my father was a big star, still is. So that made my sister and me really visible. Everybody knew us, talked about us.

- George Clooney

Big, Through, Everybody, Cincinnati

The idea that every time you do a film you're supposed to be tortured confuses me. I mean, guys who say, 'Oh, it's really tough, my character is really suffering' -come on. For us, even in the rotten ones we've had a good time. I don't think you have to suffer.

- George Clooney

Suffering, Idea, Confuses, Every Time

My father ran for Congress in 2004, and I got a sense that there is no way to achieve much success without a certain amount of compromise.

- George Clooney

Achieve, Congress, Amount, Ran

I watch 'Batman & Robin' from time to time. It's the worst movie I ever made, so it's a good lesson in humility.

- George Clooney

Humility, Movie, Made, From Time To Time

I enjoy going on motorcycle trips and stopping in small towns and enjoying drinks with the locals.

- George Clooney

Motorcycle, Small, Going, Trips

I probably wouldn't be a good spokesman for an electric car, because I'll still get on a private jet, and one flight on a private jet undoes all my electric-car good deeds.

- George Clooney

Flight, Private, Still, Jet

If people see me having dinner with a beautiful woman, they immediately believe that I'm having a love affair with her. Of course that's rubbish. I'm not a playboy!

- George Clooney

Love, Woman, Having, Affair

I do know something about the news world. I was sitting on the floors of newsrooms since I was seven years old, and I've been around them my whole life. I understand that someone looks at a story with famous people in it, and you want to put it out.

- George Clooney

Seven, Been, About, Sitting

In the '60s, when I was growing up, one of the great elements of American culture was the protest song. There were songs about the civil rights movement, the women's rights movement, the antiwar movement. It wasn't just Bob Dylan, it was everybody at the time.

- George Clooney

Everybody, About, Antiwar, None

The first thing that I learned - and I understood it at a really young age - was that I could get a laugh. Really early. Because my mother and father are funny.

- George Clooney

Mother And Father, Learned, Understood

I grew up in a family of storytellers, but Google has destroyed us because you can fact-check everything. We'd always like the stories to be a little better than they were.

- George Clooney

Always, Like, Stories, Storytellers

One of my favorite films is 'Big Fish,' which I think is a masterpiece.

- George Clooney

Big, Which, Films, Favorite Films

I'm so lucky to have been raised the way I have, because my parents believed that everyone had the right to their own feelings, opinions, and existence; as long as they weren't harming others, you had to defend those rights.

- George Clooney

Lucky, Own, Been, Feelings

I think one of the major misconceptions about me is that I live my life the way people think I lead my life, with hot and cold drinks running everywhere and a party all the time. They think of my life in terms of certain excesses that don't really exist. Things are actually fairly simple.

- George Clooney

My Life, I Think, Drinks, Misconceptions

I have a real interest in pushing some of the limits of things that studios don't want to make.

- George Clooney

Interest, Some, Studios, Limits

I've certainly done some turkeys along the way and made some dumb choices in my career, mostly early on. I'm one of the lucky ones who got to make a lot of mistakes very early when no one was paying attention.

- George Clooney

Lucky, Some, Very, Turkeys

An acting career usually has about a shelf life of ten years before people get sick of seeing you. It's a good thing to have a job to fall back on and I really do enjoy directing.

- George Clooney

Career, Before, About, Acting Career

Shutting down the government is not how you make government work.

- George Clooney

Work, Government, How, Shutting

I've walked with very famous people down red carpets over to the crowd of thousands of people, and you'll reach out to shake their hand and they've got a camera in their hand. And they don't even get their hand out, because they're recording the whole time.

- George Clooney

Crowd, Shake, Very, Camera

After doing One Fine Day and playing a pediatrician on ER, I'll never have kids. I'm going to have a vasectomy.

- George Clooney

Doing, Pediatrician, Going, Fine Day

Without question, I wake every night five times.

- George Clooney

Question, Times, Wake, Every Night

I'm really white trash.

- George Clooney

White, Really, Trash

Hosting is work. It means you don't get to go up to your room and disappear and take a nap. Like everybody else does after lunch. I'm talking about hosting, not hosting a dinner party, but hosting people staying in your home.

- George Clooney

Lunch, Hosting, Everybody, Nap

My biggest fear is doing the same things 10 years from now. That would be a failure. It's something you have to constantly reassess, and asking yourself what you are going to do next makes it a good, long full journey.

- George Clooney

Doing, Asking, Next, Same Things

It's possible for me to make a bad movie out of a good script, but I can't make a good movie from a bad script.

- George Clooney

Bad, Possible, Movie, Bad Movie

Most of the films I've done haven't done particularly well. I'm surprised I'm continuing to work.

- George Clooney

Most, Films, Particularly, Continuing

There is something very unsettling about being with someone when they die. People say it's peaceful. It's not peaceful. It's the most personal thing you can do, is die, and you feel almost like you're invading someone's most personal moment by being there.

- George Clooney

Die, Very, Invading, Being There

You never really learn much from hearing yourself talk.

- George Clooney

Yourself, Learn, Never, Hearing

I was watching 'Up In The Air' and I thought, 'Jesus, who's the old gray-haired guy?' And it was me. I never wear makeup for movies and now it's starting to show.

- George Clooney

Makeup, Thought, Old, Starting

Honestly, as you can imagine, it really isn't all that fun directing yourself, running back and forth to the monitors to see if you're terrible or not.

- George Clooney

Back, Imagine, Honestly, Terrible

I did a lot of terrible TV shows and was really terrible in them, and I've done terrible films I was terrible in, but nobody really noticed.

- George Clooney

TV, Noticed, Films, Terrible

My grandparents back in Kentucky owned a tobacco farm. So, to make money in the summer, we could cut and chop and top and house and strip the tobacco.

- George Clooney

Grandparents, Could, Cut, Tobacco

I've been my most happy and my most unhappy in relationships. I have family and friends and people I care very much about. I've got a really, really, really good life.

- George Clooney

Happy, Been, Very, Family And Friends

For me, the definition of a patriot is someone who is willing to constantly question the government; that's what separates us from other countries.

- George Clooney

Question, Other, Willing, Separates

Run for office? No. I've slept with too many women, I've done too many drugs, and I've been to too many parties.

- George Clooney

Been, Too, Parties, Slept

On Christmas morning, before we could open our Christmas presents, we would go to this stranger's home and bring them presents. I remember helping clean the house up and putting up a tree. My father believed that you have a responsibility to look after everyone else.

- George Clooney

I Remember, Before, Putting, Believed

If I had been with all the women that I was said to have been with, I wouldn't have had the time to shoot a single movie!

- George Clooney

Single, Movie, Been, Shoot

I don't go on that many dates, because the truth is, anytime you go out in public with a girl when you're well-known, there are pictures of you everywhere, and it's like you're a thing.

- George Clooney

Go, Like, Well-Known, Dates

I don't care. Charlton Heston is the head of the National Rifle Association. He deserves whatever anyone says about him.

- George Clooney

Association, About, Deserves, Charlton

I've had some success at writing and directing, and I like it. It's infinitely more creative than just acting, and I have things I want to say and do.

- George Clooney

Some, Like, Infinitely, Directing

My life isn't focused on results. My life is really focused on the process of doing all the things I'm doing, from work to relationships to friendships to charitable work.

- George Clooney

My Life, Process, Doing, Charitable

My father was and is a great journalist. Thirty years ago, I was studying broadcasting in college, and the problem was I wasn't nearly as good as my father. I wasn't as quick or as smart as my old man, and I realized it would be a long time before I was ever going to be, and I decided to do something else.

- George Clooney

College, Quick, Before, Old Man

You have only a short period of time in your life to make your mark, and I'm there now.

- George Clooney

Now, Period, Short Period, Mark

I've been lucky enough to do a few films that will last longer than an opening weekend and those films are the ones I'm proud of.

- George Clooney

Lucky, Been, Films, Opening

It's not about an opening weekend. It's about a career, building a set of films you're proud of. Period.

- George Clooney

Career, Films, Period, Opening

I was very lucky to get well known much later in life. You need to have flopped quite a few times to get a sense of how little any of it has to do with you.

- George Clooney

Lucky, Need, Very, Get Well

I'm the flavor of the month.

- George Clooney

Month, Flavor

I don't tweet, I don't go on Facebook. I think there's too much information about all of us out there. I'm liking the idea of privacy more and more.

- George Clooney

Think, Idea, I Think, Liking

I find that as you get older, you start to simplify things in general.

- George Clooney

Find, Get, General, Simplify

My parents were disappointed I didn't finish college, and they were really upset when I went to Hollywood to become an actor. I was a big disappointment to them.

- George Clooney

College, Big, Upset, Parents

They say I was a bad Batman, that it was my fault, that I buried the franchise. But the truth is, it was a big project. I was pretty intimidated in that world. I did the best I could in the situation I was given.

- George Clooney

Big, Given, Franchise, Situation

I'm the old-fashioned type who prefers to meet a woman in a more normal setting. I don't like to feel that I'm being hunted down. I've always liked to do my own hunting when it comes to meeting women.

- George Clooney

Woman, Own, Old-Fashioned, Meeting

Anytime there's an actual grassroots movement that isn't funded by people trying to create a grassroots movement, I find that interesting.

- George Clooney

Trying, Find, Actual, Anytime

I'm kind of comfortable with getting older because it's better than the other option, which is being dead. So I'll take getting older.

- George Clooney

Kind, Other, Which, Option

But I'm kind of comfortable with getting older because it's better than the other option, which is being dead. So I'll take getting older.

- George Clooney

Kind, Other, Which, Option

I love children and I get along with them great. It's just that I believe if you're going to be a parent, there has to be something inside you that says, 'I want a family.' I don't feel that sense of urgency.

- George Clooney

Love, Family, Parent, Urgency

We're picking on people we can beat.

- George Clooney

People, Beat, Picking

Over the years, over the history of our country, liberals have stood on many of the right sides of the issues.

- George Clooney

Country, Over, Stood, Sides

The simple truth is that everyone has an opinion, everyone has the right to voice it, and they should if they want to.

- George Clooney

Truth, Voice, Everyone, Simple Truth

'Ides of March' I did for scale - scale as a director, scale as an actor, scale as a writer.

- George Clooney

Actor, Director, Scale, March

You don't want to try to look younger, because you'll look wrong. You dye your hair, you look wrong. You wear a bad toupee, you look wrong. You wear makeup to hide things, you get your eyes done, you look wrong.

- George Clooney

Makeup, Bad, Younger, Dye

I was in a bar and I said to a friend, 'You know, we've become those 40-year-old guys we used to look at and say, 'Isn't it sad?'

- George Clooney

Look, Say, Used, Guys

I rarely tell anybody what they should be doing with their life.

- George Clooney

Doing, Tell, Anybody, Rarely

I think it's the most responsible thing you can do, to have kids. It's not something to be taken lightly. I don't have that gene that people have to replicate.

- George Clooney

Think, I Think, Gene, Replicate

I enjoy living in a nice house and having a nice life. So I do two or three commercials overseas a year to sort of fill in, because they pay pretty well.

- George Clooney

Living, Pretty, Having, Overseas

Republicans are good at standing by their candidate.

- George Clooney

Good, Standing, Republicans, Candidate

Having 'Oscar winner' on your tombstone is a great thing.

- George Clooney

Winner, Oscar, Having, Great Thing

Anyone would be lying if they said they didn't get lonely at times.

- George Clooney

Times, Would, Anyone, Lying

I've been working with Pat Robertson on Africa debt-relief, and we disagree on virtually everything except certain very specific, inalienable rights, and the truth is that morality and patriotism come in all shapes and sizes.

- George Clooney

Been, Pat, Very, Inalienable

I had to stop going to auditions thinking, 'Oh, I hope they like me.' I had to go in thinking I was the answer to their problem.

- George Clooney

Like, Going, Auditions, Oh

I like owning dirt. You know, I spent a lot of time broke when I moved to California. So deep in my soul is still this idea of being unemployed. To me, owning land means you could sell it at some point and have money.

- George Clooney

Deep, Soul, Some, Unemployed

There's a certain cruelty to being on a big screen as your eyelids start to sag and your hair falls out and turns gray that you either have to be able to handle or not. What you can't do is try to force yourself into roles that you could have played or would have played ten years earlier.

- George Clooney

Big, Screen, Roles, Ten

You can't legislate good taste.

- George Clooney

Good, Taste, Good Taste, Legislate

If you're famous, I don't - for the life of me - I don't understand why any famous person would ever be on Twitter.

- George Clooney

Famous, Understand, Why, Famous Person

The last real movie stars were probably Redford and Newman. And things were different then. There wasn't this amazing amount of magazines and information about them.

- George Clooney

Movie, Last, Amount, Movie Stars

America can't beat anyone anymore.

- George Clooney

America, Beat, Anyone, Anymore

The hardest thing is trying not to correct everything on the Internet. It'd be night and day - wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong. So you just have to say, 'All right, I'll take it, bring it on.'

- George Clooney

Night, Bring, Correct, Hardest Thing

I get asked a lot about getting into politics. I say, 'Take a look at politics. You tell me what seems appealing about that.'

- George Clooney

Politics, Tell, About, Asked

I'm not out trying to prove anything. I'm sort of finished with that, so I get to play in other sandboxes and try and figure out what I like and I'm interested in.

- George Clooney

Play, Other, Figure, Finished

The problem is, we elected a manager and we need a leader. Let's face it: Bush is just dim.

- George Clooney

Leader, Face, Problem, Elected

I do happen to have a good life... But I also like to work. I feel like I got the brass ring and I got very lucky in this.

- George Clooney

Lucky, Happen, Very, Brass

It's incredibly unfair. You don't see a lot of 60-year-old women with 20-year-old men onscreen.

- George Clooney

Women, See, Lot, Unfair

As you get older and ease your way into being a character actor you have to be comfortable with where you are in life and career, and I'm very comfortable with what I'm doing - working on projects I'm proud of.

- George Clooney

Career, Ease, Very, Comfortable

When you're young you believe it when people tell you how good you are. And that's the danger, you inhale. Everyone will tell you you're a genius, which you are not, and if you understand that, you win.

- George Clooney

Young, Everyone, Which, Inhale

I'm not smart enough and I don't know enough about what's going on.

- George Clooney

Know, Going, About, Smart

Failures are infinitely more instructive than successes.

- George Clooney

More, Failures, Infinitely, Successes

I don't like to share my personal life... it wouldn't be personal if I shared it.

- George Clooney

Personal, Like, Shared, Share

I don't know if winning at any cost is wrong or not. There are times I've thought that the end justified the means.

- George Clooney

Winning, Cost, Means, Justified

I go on YouTube when somebody says to look something up.

- George Clooney

YouTube, Go, Up, Somebody

Directors are the captains of the ship, and it's your job as the lead actor to make sure that the rest of the cast understand that by doing whatever he says.

- George Clooney

Rest, Doing, Sure, Lead

I had a Tesla. I was one of the first cats with a Tesla. But I'm telling you, I've been on the side of the road a while in that thing.

- George Clooney

Been, Side, Telling, Tesla

I can't give you 150 takes. I can't even give you 30 different ways of doing it! I don't have the talent or the range for it.

- George Clooney

Doing, Give, Different Ways, Range

Fame can be very dangerous, because you can start to enjoy that part of it. And that's not the good part of what I do for a living. The good part is the making of films. The unpleasant part is the fame part, if you're not careful.

- George Clooney

Making, Very, Films, Fame

You make a lot of films, do you? You make a lot of films yourself? Yeah, I'd like to see you make a film first before you get to talk about it. What a jerk.

- George Clooney

Like, Before, Films, Yeah

You get better as an actor over time if you're growing. Like singers.

- George Clooney

Better, Actor, Over, Singers

Yes, I slouch. My mother tells me that.

- George Clooney

Mother, Me, Tells, Yes

I'm certainly the last person to give advice on, well, anything.

- George Clooney

Give, Last, Certainly, Advice

The only failure is not to try.

- George Clooney

Try, Only, Failure

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