Reba McEntire

I have talked to Debbie Hammond quite a bit, Jim Hammond’s wife, his widow. I’ve seen their kids. And last time we played Dallas, a lot of them came over. It’s hard for them to come see the show. It’s still hard.

Be different, stand out, and work your butt off.

I’ve got CDs in my car, listening all the time for that next song, because everybody’s looking.

When onstage, I always try to take my audience through as many emotions as I possibly can. I want them to go from laughter to tears, be shocked and surprised and walk out the door with a renewed sense of themselves – and maybe a smile.

So, I took lessons, and I love to shoot now. It’s a lot of fun.

I think it’s the way I talk. I think they thought I was too country. And I’m not ashamed of that by any means.

I don’t care how small the game. I want to win.

If I could be anyone, I’d choose the lead singer of Arcade Fire, Win Butler.

[on Edward Cullen in ‘Twilight’] He’s a poet, and very deep and profound. He’s just extraordinarily troubled.

I think the world has too many actresses.

What I’m doing is making sure that I have a balance, and that allows me, I think, to be a better actor and to more easily and quickly access all of the emotions on the scale. I make sure that I read a book on the weekend or read something or do my knitting or do the things that I need to do for myself, like ‘Game of Thrones.’ Get that balance.

I like to write about women, not so much about the way they relate to men, but about the way they relate to each other.

I always thought that was so strange that people would try to corral you and pigeonhole you in one category and not play you anywhere else.

I forgot better shit than you ever thought of.

You just have to play every scene honestly and forget about a reaction and what the audience is going to think. I think the more seriously you take something, the more funny it might be.

Trump’s presidency is like one of his handshakes: it pulls you in whether you like it or not.

I want to try a lot of things that I haven’t tried. You know, I did a thriller (Red Eye) after this, because it was so different and it was a genre I hadn’t worked in yet. Then I did a beautiful family ensemble drama. And next? I don’t know. I might go off to do a small independent in New York. I’m not sure. The quality of material is important but, basically, I’m open to anything. I like to stay open to anything.

I think the best analogy for where we are right now is that America is Elvis Presley – the most beautiful, talented, rebellious nation in the history of Earth. And now, you’re in your Vegas years. You’ve squeezed yourself into a white jumpsuit, you’re wheezing your way through ‘Love Me Tender’ and you might be about to pass away bloated on the toilet. But you’re still the King.

When Yale reached out, I thought it was a hoax, but they really followed through.

I believe I was definitely sent down here to take people away for a little while, to make them happy.

I don’t want to be a babe. I don’t want vanity to ever get in the way, because I think to maintain that, you have to be aware of yourself all the time, and that gets in the way of acting. My job’s not to be the beautiful person. My job is to be the best actor I can be.