When I was growing up my mother would say, 'Your dad may have to learn about being a father because he lost his own and that would have affected him'.

If you look at Shakespeare's history plays, what the setting of monarchy allows is this extraordinary intensification of emotions and predicament.

I would say L.A. is more polite than London - it's a very careful place. People talk a lot in code.

I appear to be drawn to iconic characters and what they reflect back to our cultures.

In the 1950s and 1960s, many parents were generally standoffish with their male children and acted as if they were raising a generation of would-be soldiers. I remember some of my friends' parents who would shake their children's hands at bedtime.

I think we're really hungry for family in America, especially when I feel like people are really pulled apart from their families.

Virginia, like most states, has few guidelines about how closely parents are expected to supervise their children. As a result, I was charged not with leaving my son in the car, but with the misdemeanor of contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

The family teaches us about the importance of knowledge, education, hard work and effort. It teaches us about enjoying ourselves, having fun, keeping fit and healthy.