Having had to encounter single-handed during his period of eclipse many physical dangers, he was well aware of the most dangerous element common to them all: of the crushing, paralysing sense of human littleness, which is what really defeats a human struggling with natural forces, alone, far from the eyes of his fellows.
- Joseph Conrad(On playing real life characters) "There`s a lot of shame that goes on when you`re playing someone who has really lived and has passed. You`re struggling with it all the time. I am, anyway. When I played "Robert Howard" in The Whole Wide World (1996), I was struggling with it. There`s this dual thing where you feel real good about being able to play this juicy part, and then there`s constant shame. Who am I to pretend to know who this guy was? Who am I to represent this guy for people who never knew him? The pressure is unbelievable, I can`t tell you".
- Vincent D'Onofrio