I was 23, and all sorts of people were coming in and out and watching me, like Steve Allen and Bette Midler. David Brenner certainly took me under his wing. To drive home to my little dump in New Jersey often knowing that Steve Allen said, 'You got it' - that validation kept me going in a big, big way.

I know what my sweet spot has been. It's personal stuff, dysfunction, fear of intimacy, family stuff, psychology stuff. I eviscerate myself onstage.

I certainly wouldn't be a dental hygienist - they should get the Medal of Honor just to look at people's gums.

I was way more comfortable in front of strangers than I was in front of relatives. So when they would laugh at my dysfunctions or my anxiety, I felt less alone, and I still do it for the same reason.

I never gave much thought to anything since I was 22 years old, when I got into the arts, so when Larry David came to my house in 2000, I didn't even think about it - I just thought about showing up on the set.

I'm 70; I'm just glad I'm on top of the ground. Honest to God.

When you do something in the moment, it may just be for that stage, that audience, that head space that you're in.

My family - it wasn't an abusive family - they meant well, but they were in their own world.

For 45 years I’ve worked without an audience.

I like to read biographies of authors that I love, like Richard Yates. I also like to see what non-fiction authors are out there. My bible is Something Happened. It’s one of the greatest books I’ve ever read. But if I don’t read a Dostoevsky soon I’m going to kill myself.