A handful of works in history have had a direct impact on social policy: one or two works of Dickens some of Zola 'Uncle Tom's Cabin' and in modern drama Larry Kramer's 'The Normal Heart.'

The general consensus among historians among the ones who can handle the fact that 'Lincoln' is in fact historical fiction is that we demonstrate enormous fidelity to history and that beyond that we've actually contributed a line of thinking about Lincoln's presidency that's somewhat original.

Accuracy is paramount in every detail of a work of history. Here's my rule: Ask yourself 'Did this thing happen?' If the answer is yes then it's historical. Then ask 'Did this thing happen precisely this way?' If the answer is yes then it's history if the answer is no not precisely this way then it's historical drama.

Revolutions are the periods of history when individuals count most.

Crimes of which a people is ashamed constitute its real history. The same is true of man.

'Days' has always been strong as an icon in TV history and it's still going on strong and represents the genre of daytime drama so well. I'm proud to be a part of it.

More people have more access to more readers for less money than ever before in history. It means a lot of dross but it means a lot of very talented people can find and nurture a readership in ways that were not possible twenty years ago. From a creative perspective that is all that writing is about.

The whole history of civilization is strewn with creeds and institutions which were invaluable at first and deadly afterwards.

Secretly I'm a real big nerd. I'd rather stay home and play Scrabble than go to a Hollywood party any day of the week. And I love reading about history and watching the Discovery Channel.

The great drama of Russian history has been between its state and society. Put simply Russia has always had too much state and not enough society.