Ripper Quotes

"I got to be the hero in that one. It`s a very whimsical part, a wonderful part, H.G. running after Jack the Ripper (David Warner) and meeting this modern woman (Mary Steenburgen). Of course, it`s very special to me because I met Mary ((Mary Steenburgen), we got married, and we had two children. Even though we`re not together now, she is the mother of my children and that film is where we met. It`s also a damn good film!" - On Time After Time (1979)

I did a picture I loved called Time After Time (1979), and the people who saw it loved it. We had a big opening in Toronto at the Festival of Festivals - huge - and they gave us a fabulous reception. Great city, Toronto - Mary (Mary Steenburgen) and I loved it there. Great restaurants, great people. The studio hired these so-called `experts` to tell them how to market the film. And these silly asses took a poll to determine a `recognition` factor. And more people recognized Jack the Ripper, which was David Warner`s role in the movie, than H.G. Wells, who I played in the movie.

(on his cameos) "One of the earliest of these was in The Lodger (1927), the story of Jack the Ripper. My appearance called for me to walk up the stairs of the rooming house. Since my walk-ons in subsequent pictures would be equally strenuous - boarding buses, playing chess, etc. - I asked for a stunt man. Casting, with an unusual lack of perception, hired this fat man!"

I did a picture I loved called Time After Time (1979), and the people who saw it loved it. We had a big opening in Toronto at the Festival of Festivals - huge - and they gave us a fabulous reception. Great city, Toronto - Mary (Mary Steenburgen) and I loved it there. Great restaurants, great people. The studio hired these so-called `experts` to tell them how to market the film. And these silly asses took a poll to determine a `recognition` factor. And more people recognized Jack the Ripper, which was David Warner`s role in the movie, than H.G. Wells, who I played in the movie. Hardly anyone recognized the name H.G. Wells, in fact. So they decided to go with a campaign that stressed Jack the Ripper, which was all well and good except that people didn`t want to see another movie about Jack the Ripper, and they stayed away in droves. I`ve got a big piece of that film, but I haven`t seen a penny, and I probably never will. However, I did meet my wife making that movie, so I don`t really mind!

There is no female Mozart because there is no female Jack the Ripper.

The public is entitled to know whether or not I am married to Jack The Ripper.

Portrait of a Killer: Jack the Ripper - Case Closed