Latest Michael Ian Black Quotes from Interviews

Quotes about:

• The thing about narcissistic people is that they don't think they're being narcissistic.

  Michael Ian Black

  Thinking, People, Narcissistic

  Source: www.ericspitznagel.com

• My goal is to work. That's the goal of most actors or performers: to work and keep working, and do the best you can, and keep growing and changing, trying to improve your craft.

  Michael Ian Black

  Goal, Trying, Actors

  Interview with Steve Heisler, www.avclub.com. July 16, 2008.

• Any time I am involved in something from conception to execution, that's obviously a lot more personal, and I'm going to be more invested in it than something where I just show up for a couple days, shoot, and leave.

  Michael Ian Black

  Couple, Execution, Shows

  Interview with Steve Heisler, www.avclub.com. July 16, 2008.

• Sometimes the criticism is actually useful and constructive and actually informs what I do, but most of the time, it's sort of mindless, or they're receiving something on a different frequency than I was sending it. They're just not getting what I'm doing, and that's fine.

  Michael Ian Black

  Criticism, Receiving, Different

  Interview with Steve Heisler, www.avclub.com. July 16, 2008.

• When you're writing something, and you're putting yourself out there, or you're performing and someone comes in and savages that, then of course it feels personal. It doesn't feel like it's just business, because there's no business - it's not like we're conducting business, this anonymous critic and I. It's just that this person is tearing me a new asshole.

  Michael Ian Black

  Writing, Savages, Conducting

  Interview with Steve Heisler, www.avclub.com. July 16, 2008.

• I think people hate me pretty much across the board, which is nice.

  Michael Ian Black

  Hate, Nice, Thinking

  Interview with Steve Heisler, www.avclub.com. July 16, 2008.

• I'm not sure what it would mean to have "made it." Made what? Yes, I can make a decent living in show business, so if that's the criteria, then I've made it. But that doesn't feel that important to me. The stuff that matters to me are the new challenges. I know that sounds hokey, but it's true.

  Michael Ian Black

  Mean, Yes I Can, Challenges

  "Michael Ian Black on Parenting, Pop Culture and His Worst Christmas Present Ever". Interview with Sarah Thyre, www.huffingtonpost.com. March 16, 2012.

• Part of what's exciting to me about my career is the constant looking forward. Whenever I finish one project, I am looking to what's next.

  Michael Ian Black

  Careers, Next, Looking Forward

  "Michael Ian Black on Parenting, Pop Culture and His Worst Christmas Present Ever". Interview with Sarah Thyre, www.huffingtonpost.com. March 16, 2012.

• I used to need the character but as I've gotten older I need it less and less - I prefer to play some version of myself. To approach any acting job as me just being me.

  Michael Ian Black

  Jobs, Character, Play

  "Michael Ian Black on Parenting, Pop Culture and His Worst Christmas Present Ever". Interview with Sarah Thyre, www.huffingtonpost.com. March 16, 2012.

• My tastes in all things lean towards the arty and boring. I like sports documentaries about Scrabble players, bands that play quiet, unassuming music, and TV shows that win awards. In that way, I am an elitist snob. And proud of it.

  Michael Ian Black

  Sports, Player, Winning

  "Michael Ian Black on Parenting, Pop Culture and His Worst Christmas Present Ever". Interview with Sarah Thyre, www.huffingtonpost.com. March 16, 2012.

• I'm very introverted, so it requires a huge effort for me to put on a smile and extend a hand and accept compliments. I would much rather be insulted than complimented any day.

  Michael Ian Black

  Hands, Effort, Compliment

  "Michael Ian Black on Parenting, Pop Culture and His Worst Christmas Present Ever". Interview with Sarah Thyre, www.huffingtonpost.com. March 16, 2012.

• Whatever I write I publish. Because that's where the money is.

  Michael Ian Black

  Writing, Publish

  The Washington Post Interview, www.washingtonpost.com. January 25, 2008.

• I'm trying to teach my children not to cry. That's the big thing. No crying. Because I think we can all agree that crying is, for the most part, for sissies. If my team loses, I'm going to cry. And I'm going to want my kids to see me crying. Not because I think sports are so important, but because I bet so much money on the game that we'll probably lose the house if my team doesn't win. That's something to cry about.

  Michael Ian Black

  Sports, Children, Team

  The Washington Post Interview, www.washingtonpost.com. January 25, 2008.

• Kids love to be silly, they love to laugh, so I think it was natural for my kids to like the sort of books that I write - and it's the only kinds of books I'm capable of writing.

  Michael Ian Black

  Silly, Book, Writing

  "Michael Ian Black on his surprising turn as a noted children's book author". Interview with Kyle Ryan, www.avclub.com. October 13, 2015.

• You can't write a children's book that takes more than five or six minutes to read, because it will drive the parents batty. It has to be compact. Nobody thinks about the parents when they write these stupid books. I could write longer children's books, but it would actually be bad if I did.

  Michael Ian Black

  Children, Stupid, Book

  "Michael Ian Black on his surprising turn as a noted children's book author". Interview with Kyle Ryan, www.avclub.com. October 13, 2015.

• If I revise a children's book, if I'm spending three hours on the first draft, I'm probably spending 30 minutes revising it. I mean, come on! But to redo a painting? That's hard work.

  Michael Ian Black

  Children, Book, Hard Work

  "Michael Ian Black on his surprising turn as a noted children's book author". Interview with Kyle Ryan, www.avclub.com. October 13, 2015.

• The illustrators work so much harder on the books than the writers do. I mean, that's so much work doing what they do, and it's terrible for them.

  Michael Ian Black

  Book, Mean, Terrible

  "Michael Ian Black on his surprising turn as a noted children's book author". Interview with Kyle Ryan, www.avclub.com. October 13, 2015.

• I feel no obligation to teach my readers anything, to impart any sort of wisdom, to teach any sort of lesson, to instill any sort of morality. All I'm trying to do is make them and their parents laugh.

  Michael Ian Black

  Laughing, Parent, Trying

  "Michael Ian Black on his surprising turn as a noted children's book author". Interview with Kyle Ryan, www.avclub.com. October 13, 2015.

• My process is surprisingly straightforward. I find myself with little to do over a stretch of time and I say, "I should write children's books today." Then I sit down and write a children's book, and if it takes more than, realistically, three hours, I feel like I've done something wrong.

  Michael Ian Black

  Children, Book, Writing

  "Michael Ian Black on his surprising turn as a noted children's book author". Interview with Kyle Ryan, www.avclub.com. October 13, 2015.

• I don't really read children's books or deal with children's books, so I don't have any relationship with them other than my own.

  Michael Ian Black

  Children, Book, Deals

  "Michael Ian Black on his surprising turn as a noted children's book author". Interview with Kyle Ryan, www.avclub.com. October 13, 2015.

• I imagine there's a level of narcissism that goes into thinking you're enough.

  Michael Ian Black

  Thinking, Levels, Narcissism

  "The Best-Laid Plans Of Michael Ian Black". Interview with Royal Young, www.interviewmagazine.com. February 27, 2012.

• There's things I know I'm good at, and those things interest me less and less. I learn a lot more from doing it wrong than I do from doing it right.

  Michael Ian Black

  Interest, Knows

  "The Best-Laid Plans Of Michael Ian Black". Interview with Royal Young, www.interviewmagazine.com. February 27, 2012.

• That's been my fear all along. That I'm not enough, and I still don't trust at all that I am.

  Michael Ian Black

  Enough, Don't Trust, Stills

  "The Best-Laid Plans Of Michael Ian Black". Interview with Royal Young, www.interviewmagazine.com. February 27, 2012.

• My fear is if I expose myself, not so much that I'll be hurt, but that the reaction will be "Is that all there is? Is that the entirety of you? Because it's boring."

  Michael Ian Black

  Hurt, Boring, Reactions

  "The Best-Laid Plans Of Michael Ian Black". Interview with Royal Young, www.interviewmagazine.com. February 27, 2012.

• If you say "I'm going to be an actor, but I'll get a teaching degree just in case," when things get hard, you'll just be a teacher and that's how you get stuck.

  Michael Ian Black

  Teacher, Teaching, Degrees

  "The Best-Laid Plans Of Michael Ian Black". Interview with Royal Young, www.interviewmagazine.com. February 27, 2012.