--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Being a writer in Hollywood is like going…" description: "\"Being a writer in Hollywood is like going to Hitler's Eagle Nest with a great idea for a bar mitzvah.\" — David Mamet" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0bd/david-mamet-1178_bar-mitzvah_being-a-writer-in-hollywood-is-like-goin_758817.jpg" --- # Being a writer in Hollywood is like going to Hitler's… ![“Being a writer in Hollywood is like going to Hitler's Eagle Nest with a great idea for a bar mitzvah.” quote by David Mamet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0bd/david-mamet-1178_bar-mitzvah_being-a-writer-in-hollywood-is-like-goin_758817.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0bd/david-mamet-1178_bar-mitzvah_being-a-writer-in-hollywood-is-like-goin_758817.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0bd/david-mamet-1178_bar-mitzvah_being-a-writer-in-hollywood-is-like-goin_758817.jpg) > “Being a writer in Hollywood is like going to Hitler's Eagle Nest with a great idea for a bar mitzvah.” [David Mamet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mamet/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Comparing Hollywood writing to a risky, absurd venture highlights its unpredictable, high‑stakes nature. **In simple terms:** Hollywood writing is risky and absurd. Key Takeaway Embrace bold ideas despite uncertainty. Themes creativity risk industry absurdity Mood cynical wry critical Type satire observational When to use this quote - pitch meetings - script development - network negotiations - creative brainstorming Key Concepts screenwriting creative risk industry satire Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance daring concepts with practical constraints? - What risks are worth taking in storytelling? A Different Perspective The analogy may exaggerate danger, discouraging cautious planning. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bar mitzvah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bar-mitzvah/) [Eagles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eagles/) [Film](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/film/) [Great idea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-idea/) [Hollywood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hollywood/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Mitzvah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mitzvah/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [I'm still working on my time machine. If I ever perfect it, I'm going back in time to prevent Ace Ventura 2 from being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-kindler/i-m-still-working-on-my-time-machine-if-i-ever-perfect-it-i-m-going/) [Andy Kindler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-kindler/) > [I didn't have a bar mitzvah, my family aren't practising Jews.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-rosenthal/i-didn-t-have-a-bar-mitzvah-my-family-aren-t-practising-jews/) [Tom Rosenthal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-rosenthal/) > [I met Evan Goldberg at bar-mitzvah class. It was called tallis and tefillin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-rogen/i-met-evan-goldberg-at-bar-mitzvah-class-it-was-called-tallis-and/) [Seth Rogen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-rogen/) > [When I celebrated my bar mitzvah, there was no cake. Today, there is no such thing as a bar mitzvah in the United States…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-ben-israel/when-i-celebrated-my-bar-mitzvah-there-was-no-cake-today-there-is-no/) [Ron Ben-Israel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-ben-israel/) > [I don't remember much about my bar mitzvah. The only thing I remember - I killed! That's what I remembered. Nobody could follow me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-kindler/i-don-t-remember-much-about-my-bar-mitzvah-the-only-thing-i-remember/) [Andy Kindler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-kindler/) > [I struggled with being a Latino growing up in Los Angeles. I felt very American. I still do. I went to 35 bar mitzvahs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/america-ferrera/i-struggled-with-being-a-latino-growing-up-in-los-angeles-i-felt-very/) [America Ferrera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/america-ferrera/) > [People need what they think of as a poem to be read at their bar mitzvah, their wedding, a funeral, whatever. And people are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-larkin/people-need-what-they-think-of-as-a-poem-to-be-read-at-their-bar/) [Joan Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-larkin/) > [I was one of those kids who had books on them. Before weddings, Bar Mitzvahs, funerals and anything else where you're actually meant to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/i-was-one-of-those-kids-who-had-books-on-them-before-weddings-bar/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [My parents would frisk me before family events. Before weddings, funerals, bar mitzvahs, and what have you. Because if they didn't, then the book…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/my-parents-would-frisk-me-before-family-events-before-weddings/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [There was a year straight where every weekend, I went to at least one bar mitzvah or bat mitzvah, and we would all go,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-rogen/there-was-a-year-straight-where-every-weekend-i-went-to-at-least-one/) [Seth Rogen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-rogen/) > [I was the - my trendsetting moment was my bar mitzvah had the first, like, temporary tattoo guy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evan-goldberg/i-was-the-my-trendsetting-moment-was-my-bar-mitzvah-had-the-first/) [Evan Goldberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evan-goldberg/) > [I am terminally sentimental about graduations. They are more individual than weddings, more conscious than christenings, or bar mitzvahs or bat mitzvahs. They are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/i-am-terminally-sentimental-about-graduations-they-are-more/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [My bar mitzvah, I went to my nan's, and she made kugel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-rudd/my-bar-mitzvah-i-went-to-my-nan-s-and-she-made-kugel/) [Paul Rudd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-rudd/) > [When 1:45 came, half the class left, and Danny Hupfer whispered, "If she gives you a cream puff after we leave, I'm going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-d-schmidt/when-1-45-came-half-the-class-left-and-danny-hupfer-whispered-if-she/) [Gary D. Schmidt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-d-schmidt/) > [Ironically, my rabbi was a bar mitzvah Nazi. So I got bar mitzvahed. And though I didn't want to, the theme of my bar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-eichner/ironically-my-rabbi-was-a-bar-mitzvah-nazi-so-i-got-bar-mitzvahed-and/) [Billy Eichner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-eichner/) ## More by David Mamet > [If, indeed, a firearm were more dangerous to its possessors than to potential aggressors, would it not make sense for the government to arm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mamet/if-indeed-a-firearm-were-more-dangerous-to-its-possessors-than-to/) [David Mamet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mamet/) > [Culture exists and evolves to relegate to habit categories of interactions the constant conscious reference to which would make human interaction impossible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mamet/culture-exists-and-evolves-to-relegate-to-habit-categories-of/) [David Mamet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mamet/) > [When I started out I was a failed actor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mamet/when-i-started-out-i-was-a-failed-actor/) [David Mamet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mamet/) > [We must have a pie. Stress cannot exist in the presence of a pie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mamet/we-must-have-a-pie-stress-cannot-exist-in-the-presence-of-a-pie/) [David Mamet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mamet/) > [“We cannot live in peace without Law. And though law cannot be perfect, it may be just if it is written in ignorance of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mamet/we-cannot-live-in-peace-without-law-and-though-law-cannot-be-perfect/) [David Mamet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mamet/) > [Films have degenerated to their original operation as carnival amusement - they offer not drama but thrills.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mamet/films-have-degenerated-to-their-original-operation-as-carnival/) [David Mamet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mamet/) > [The Oscars demonstrate the will of the people to control and judge those they have elected to stand above them (much, perhaps, as in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mamet/the-oscars-demonstrate-the-will-of-the-people-to-control-and-judge/) [David Mamet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mamet/) > [I know very well what it is to be out of work and to be cheated by employers and I know what it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mamet/i-know-very-well-what-it-is-to-be-out-of-work-and-to-be-cheated-by/) [David Mamet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mamet/) > [Hitchcock denigrated American films, saying they were all 'pictures of people talking' - as, indeed, most of them are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mamet/hitchcock-denigrated-american-films-saying-they-were-all-pictures-of/) [David Mamet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mamet/) > [“Life in the movie business is like the beginning of a new love affair: it's full of surprises, and you're constantly getting fucked.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mamet/life-in-the-movie-business-is-like-the-beginning-of-a-new-love-affair/) [David Mamet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mamet/) > [“How was her crumbcake? oh.. from the store... …”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mamet/how-was-her-crumbcake-oh-from-the-store/) [David Mamet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mamet/) > [A dramatic experience concerned with the mundane may inform but it cannot release; and one concerned essentially with the aesthetic politics of its creators…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mamet/a-dramatic-experience-concerned-with-the-mundane-may-inform-but-it/) [David Mamet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mamet/) > [The product of the artist has become less important than the fact of the artist. We wish to absorb this person. We wish to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mamet/the-product-of-the-artist-has-become-less-important-than-the-fact-of/) [David Mamet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mamet/) > [In a world we find terrifying, we ratify that which doesn't threaten us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mamet/in-a-world-we-find-terrifying-we-ratify-that-which-doesn-t-threaten-us/) [David Mamet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mamet/) > [“As a youth I enjoyed — indeed, like most of my contemporaries, revered — the agitprop plays of Brecht, and his indictments of Capitalism.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mamet/as-a-youth-i-enjoyed-indeed-like-most-of-my-contemporaries-revered/) [David Mamet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mamet/) [Explore all 278 David Mamet quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mamet/) ## More Bar mitzvah quotes > [My parents were Orthodox Jews but not very regular Orthodox Jews. I was bar mitzvahed and all that. But God was hardly ever mentioned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nat-hentoff/my-parents-were-orthodox-jews-but-not-very-regular-orthodox-jews-i/) [Nat Hentoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nat-hentoff/) > [Ironically, my rabbi was a bar mitzvah Nazi. So I got bar mitzvahed. And though I didn't want to, the theme of my bar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-eichner/ironically-my-rabbi-was-a-bar-mitzvah-nazi-so-i-got-bar-mitzvahed-and/) [Billy Eichner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-eichner/) > [When 1:45 came, half the class left, and Danny Hupfer whispered, "If she gives you a cream puff after we leave, I'm going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-d-schmidt/when-1-45-came-half-the-class-left-and-danny-hupfer-whispered-if-she/) [Gary D. Schmidt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-d-schmidt/) > [My bar mitzvah, I went to my nan's, and she made kugel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-rudd/my-bar-mitzvah-i-went-to-my-nan-s-and-she-made-kugel/) [Paul Rudd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-rudd/) > [I am terminally sentimental about graduations. They are more individual than weddings, more conscious than christenings, or bar mitzvahs or bat mitzvahs. They are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/i-am-terminally-sentimental-about-graduations-they-are-more/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [I've studied Kabbalah, as you know, for many years, so there are a lot of things I do that one would associate with practising…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madonna-ciccone/i-ve-studied-kabbalah-as-you-know-for-many-years-so-there-are-a-lot/) [Madonna Ciccone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madonna-ciccone/) > [“The ceremony was fast so we wouldn't be caught. When it was over, the men all whispered 'Mazel tov' and climbed back onto their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-gratz/the-ceremony-was-fast-so-we-wouldn-t-be-caught-when-it-was-over-the/) [Alan Gratz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-gratz/) > [The loss of my father marked my life. I'm 88 years old and I'm still mourning him because it's such a drama for me.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-lowy/the-loss-of-my-father-marked-my-life-i-m-88-years-old-and-i-m-still/) [Frank Lowy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-lowy/) > [“Theo, Celery doesn't think you should invite Lulu to your hypothetical Bar Mitzvah.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gitty-daneshvari/theo-celery-doesn-t-think-you-should-invite-lulu-to-your-hypothetical/) [Gitty Daneshvari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gitty-daneshvari/) > [I was the - my trendsetting moment was my bar mitzvah had the first, like, temporary tattoo guy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evan-goldberg/i-was-the-my-trendsetting-moment-was-my-bar-mitzvah-had-the-first/) [Evan Goldberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evan-goldberg/) > [Steven Spielberg's mother, who said to E.T., I don't care where you're from, you're here and you're gonna get bar mitzvahed! Never got a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/red-buttons/steven-spielberg-s-mother-who-said-to-e-t-i-don-t-care-where-you-re/) [Red Buttons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/red-buttons/) > [“I had survived the work gangs in the ghetto. Baked bread under cover of night. Hidden in a pigeon coop. Had a midnight bar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-gratz/i-had-survived-the-work-gangs-in-the-ghetto-baked-bread-under-cover/) [Alan Gratz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-gratz/) > [There was a year straight where every weekend, I went to at least one bar mitzvah or bat mitzvah, and we would all go,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-rogen/there-was-a-year-straight-where-every-weekend-i-went-to-at-least-one/) [Seth Rogen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-rogen/) > [My parents would frisk me before family events. Before weddings, funerals, bar mitzvahs, and what have you. Because if they didn't, then the book…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/my-parents-would-frisk-me-before-family-events-before-weddings/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [He shall be like a tree planted by waters sending forth its roots by a stream. -Jeremiah 17. 8](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bible/he-shall-be-like-a-tree-planted-by-waters-sending-forth-its-roots-by/) [Bible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bible/) [Browse all 113 Bar mitzvah quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bar-mitzvah/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Being a writer in Hollywood is like going to Hitler's Eagle Nest with a great idea for a bar mitzvah.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "David Mamet" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mamet/being-a-writer-in-hollywood-is-like-going-to-hitler-s-eagle-nest-with/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Bar mitzvah" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mamet/being-a-writer-in-hollywood-is-like-going-to-hitler-s-eagle-nest-with/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0bd/david-mamet-1178_bar-mitzvah_being-a-writer-in-hollywood-is-like-goin_758817.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0bd/david-mamet-1178_bar-mitzvah_being-a-writer-in-hollywood-is-like-goin_758817.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0bd/david-mamet-1178_bar-mitzvah_being-a-writer-in-hollywood-is-like-goin_758817.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Being a writer in Hollywood is like going to Hitler's Eagle Nest with a great idea for a bar mitzvah.” — David Mamet", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "David Mamet", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mamet/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Being a writer in Hollywood is...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mamet/being-a-writer-in-hollywood-is-like-going-to-hitler-s-eagle-nest-with/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mamet/being-a-writer-in-hollywood-is-like-going-to-hitler-s-eagle-nest-with/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```