I would say the most help I got was from my dad. My dad is a civil engineer in Switzerland he's 90 years old now so he's no longer active as a civil engineer but still a very active person.

My dad was a singer in a band and neither of my parents went to college and I ended up getting into Harvard and was the first person in my family that went to college and it happened to be Harvard.

My mother's incredibly giving almost too giving at times. And my dad is a real logical person. He's got logic for every situation. They've been married for 24 years so there was that stability also. I really learned to think on my own at a very young age.

From time to time I'll look back through the personal journals I've scribbled in throughout my life the keepers of my raw thoughts and emotions. The words poured forth after my dad died when I went through a divorce and after I was diagnosed with breast cancer. There are so many what-ifs scribbled on those pages.

I was who I was in high school in accordance with the rules of conduct for a normal person like obeying your mom and dad. Then I got out of high school and moved out of the house and I just started for lack of a better term running free.

My dad came out of the Roosevelt era and the Depression. One person and one party made a difference in his life. That's what everybody forgot when they called my father and other people political bosses.

I often talk with other actors about that time when you've just finished a job because I think you do take on the characteristics of some of the characters you play. Sometimes it can be a great thing and sometimes it's a bit haunting because you're not quite sure how to leave it on set. My dad talks about it as being 'de-personalised.'

My dad had a personal style which was very attractive. It was quite reserved and quite elegant and it was infectious.

My dad worked two jobs and moved us to the suburbs and just being a black person I went through a lot of racism and being called names and being bullied every single day. And it was hard. I didn't have any friends.

My dad is like a cactus - introverted and tough. I'm a people person like my mom but I got my competitiveness from my dad. He came to this country from Belarus with nothing and built a real business. He's my hero for giving me that need to run a business and for having enormous confidence in me.