Actors Quote by Gena Rowlands
![“He[John Cassavetes] was just being an actor. A very successful actor, especially in live TV. He did many wonderful performances.” quote by Gena Rowlands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/d83/gena-rowlands-15239_actors_he-john-cassavetes-was-just-being-an-act_2407874.jpg)
“He[John Cassavetes] was just being an actor. A very successful actor, especially in live TV. He did many wonderful performances.”
About This Quote
Source Interview: Film History, 1995
John Cassavetes excelled as a live TV actor, delivering many great performances.
In simple terms: Cassavetes was a talented live TV actor.
Key Takeaway
Study his acting techniques.
Themes
acting
television
craft
Mood
appreciative
analytical
Type
biographical
cinematic
When to use this quote
- acting workshops
- historical research
- media studies
- career inspiration
Key Concepts
method acting
performance art
Questions to Reflect On
- What made his TV work stand out?
- How can modern actors learn from him?
A Different Perspective
Live TV constraints differ from film.
![“John Cassavetes was there at night while I was working. After they [with his friends] discussed as much live TV as they felt they needed to, they started improvising scenes just for the fun of it and one of those scenes everybody got very interested in and it turned into Shadows [1959]. That movie…” quote by Gena Rowlands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/8fc/gena-rowlands-15239_felt_john-cassavetes-was-there-at-night-while_425534.jpg)
![“John [Cassavetes] had shot a great deal of Shadows and I had to go fulfill my contract in California, so he and all the rest of the Shadows cast came out to California and they finished it off and he cut it. He turned the garage into an editing room and he was by then a director of Shadows. That's…” quote by Gena Rowlands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/ac3/gena-rowlands-15239_california_john-cassavetes-had-shot-a-great-deal-of_2280824.jpg)
![“It was more freedom than I think most people get when they're starting out - or even when they're not starting out. He [John Cassavetes] did his thing and I did whatever I thought.” quote by Gena Rowlands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/fb7/gena-rowlands-15239_freedom_it-was-more-freedom-than-i-think-most-pe_2110721.jpg)
![“John [Cassavetes] loved actors. He gave them a lot of freedom. So if something came up that a certain actor just felt at the moment and said - that kind of improvisation he would accept. He gave very little direction.” quote by Gena Rowlands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/dd6/gena-rowlands-15239_accepting_john-cassavetes-loved-actors-he-gave-the_1891504.jpg)
![“So many people mistakenly think that the rest of his [John Cassavetes] pictures and the ones we did were improvised, which isn't true. He wrote all the rest of them.” quote by Gena Rowlands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/78b/gena-rowlands-15239_people_so-many-people-mistakenly-think-that-the_896716.jpg)
![“It was a very hard play [Woman Under the Influence] to do every night. And John Cassavetes said, "Don't worry. Don't even think about it, you're right. I hadn't thought of that." He said, "Just forget it."” quote by Gena Rowlands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/d9a/gena-rowlands-15239_every-night_it-was-a-very-hard-play-woman-under-the_196187.jpg)
![“I'd wanted to be [an actress] all my life.” quote by Gena Rowlands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/82a/gena-rowlands-15239_actor_i-d-wanted-to-be-an-actress-all-my-life_375002.jpg)
