My dad was always such a frustrated artist. He always worked very hard to support his family doing a bunch of ridiculous jobs. He wanted to be a painter but then he also wrote science-fiction novels in his spare time.

My dad is a Jack Nicholson lookalike and a frustrated performer my mother's into reading and poetry. I suppose the thing I owe them most is my confidence.

My dad's a doctor and when I was 8 I went to one of his medical conferences where they were demonstrating laser surgery on a chicken. I was so mad that a chicken had to die I never ate meat again.

In this work I have received the opposition of a number of men who only advocate the unobtainable because the immediately possible is beyond their moral courage administrative ability and their political prescience.

President Obama and our all-of-the-above energy strategy is the real deal. We are proud of the fact that we are importing less oil than at any time in modern history and it has been because of the president's vision and courage.

Sep-11 2001 revealed heroism in ordinary people who might have gone through their lives never called upon to demonstrate the extent of their courage.

In strife who inquires whether stratagem or courage was used?

If you work in casting it's sort of not cool to want to act. A lot of people think that casting directors are frustrated actors but it wasn't true with any of the casting people I knew.

The frustrating part of it is that you're generally known for what you did last. I've had the privilege of doing some very cool independent films that a lot of the time the general public doesn't see unless you're at a film festival or you're into that kind of movie.

And I now think that Stratocasters and Telecasters are way cool.