Big breaks come from small fractures.
I pissed off Greeks, particularly in my family, for years to come, because I popularized the word "malaka," which hitherto had not been known outside of the community. It's basically "jack off," you know? Masturbator. So I remember my mother was not pleased at the time. She was, like, "Oh, John, couldn't you have used a better word?" There's no better word, Mom!
My dad was a lovely guy. I had great parents. But he was a conservative shopkeeper, and he said, "Look, I don't know how to help you as an actor, but if you want to be an actor, give it a go for a year. Get a job. And if you don't get a job, then we're going to reevaluate and you're going to go back to school." And I thought that was a fair thing.
If my parents were alive, they'd giggle "John was an actor since day one!".
I did some films in college, and I remember working with this director that wanted to shock me so that I'd give him an expression of shock, so he poured scalding hot water on my arm during the take. He splashed it on me. He got his expression of shock, but I also got, like, second-degree burns!
Acting time is like flight time: You can work on a simulator, you can rehearse, but unless you're really in front of the camera or on a stage - that's when you really learn how to work it.
I'm usually not the straight guy. I'm sometimes more the funny guy, depending on the situation.
Looking back, I have to say that I've been fortunate to work with a lot of great people. Unfortunately, a lot of them are gone. But I look back and, yeah, I have had a really great career!
Sometimes writers or writer-directors can get nuts about words, but you know and I know that it's the thought process behind the words that motivates the words, that conveys real communication and meaning.
I do think that failure begets success sometimes, but it's often looked upon in Hollywood as not a good thing.
It's always good to work where you're wanted. The times I've been where I wasn't wanted - that's just never a good experience.
Kids haven't changed - you have.
