--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: My father had been disgusted and…" description: "\"“My father had been disgusted and heartsick over the fact that I wanted to act. Thought it a silly profession closely allied to street-walking.”\" — Kat..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9c9/katharine-hepburn-2026_parenting_my-father-had-been-disgusted-and-heartsi_1108090.jpg" --- # My father had been disgusted and heartsick over the fact… ![“My father had been disgusted and heartsick over the fact that I wanted to act. Thought it a silly profession closely allied to street-walking.” quote by Katharine Hepburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9c9/katharine-hepburn-2026_parenting_my-father-had-been-disgusted-and-heartsi_1108090.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9c9/katharine-hepburn-2026_parenting_my-father-had-been-disgusted-and-heartsi_1108090.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9c9/katharine-hepburn-2026_parenting_my-father-had-been-disgusted-and-heartsi_1108090.jpg) > ““My father had been disgusted and heartsick over the fact that I wanted to act. Thought it a silly profession closely allied to street-walking.”” [Katharine Hepburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katharine-hepburn/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker describes familial disapproval of acting, equating it with disreputable work, highlighting societal stigma. **In simple terms:** Family disapproved of acting, seeing it as low‑status. Key Takeaway Recognize and challenge stereotypes about creative careers. Themes family career stigma art Mood defiant thoughtful Type motivational philosophical When to use this quote - family expectations - career counseling - artistic pursuits Key Concepts social perception gender roles career choice Questions to Reflect On - Why do some view artistic work as inferior? - How can one overcome familial criticism? A Different Perspective Stigma may be personal bias rather than universal truth. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Actor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actor/) [Heartsick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heartsick/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) ## Related quotes > [“...he hadn't wanted to go through life heartsick for something he could not have.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norah-lofts/he-hadn-t-wanted-to-go-through-life-heartsick-for-something-he-could/) [Norah Lofts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norah-lofts/) > [“Perhaps this is what the stories meant when they called somebody heartsick. Your heart and your stomach and your whole insides felt hollow and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juliet-marillier/perhaps-this-is-what-the-stories-meant-when-they-called-somebody-2/) [Juliet Marillier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juliet-marillier/) > [“I'm so..." Heartsick. You took my insides and left me a little broken. ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-hanson/i-m-so-heartsick-you-took-my-insides-and-left-me-a-little-broken/) [Caroline Hanson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-hanson/) > [And yet here I am. Broken and bleeding on the inside, heartsick, I am here.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-scott/and-yet-here-i-am-broken-and-bleeding-on-the-inside-heartsick-i-am/) [Elizabeth Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-scott/) > [“I'm sick in the heart," Blister aid, climbing into the car. "I don't need the doctor." "Heartsick is the worst," Daisy G. said.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-richards-shreve/i-m-sick-in-the-heart-blister-aid-climbing-into-the-car-i-don-t-need/) [Susan Richards Shreve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-richards-shreve/) > [“Milena's eyes seemed to go hot and heavy. Praise made her heartsick; she was so unused to it, and needed it so badly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoff-ryman/milena-s-eyes-seemed-to-go-hot-and-heavy-praise-made-her-heartsick/) [Geoff Ryman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoff-ryman/) > [“He smelled like soap and sleep and bare skin. He smelled familiar. Not the deja vu familiar of Guy or Mel. Familiar like... the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-lanyon/he-smelled-like-soap-and-sleep-and-bare-skin-he-smelled-familiar-not/) [Josh Lanyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-lanyon/) > [I finished 'Heartsick' with my daughter asleep in her bassinet by my desk, a feat that any new mother will tell you cannot be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chelsea-cain/i-finished-heartsick-with-my-daughter-asleep-in-her-bassinet-by-my/) [Chelsea Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chelsea-cain/) > [Perhaps this is what the stories meant when they called somebody heartsick. Your heart and your stomach and your whole insides felt empty and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/perhaps-this-is-what-the-stories-meant-when-they-called-somebody/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“But I can’t help myself. And there he is, larger than life on the screen, looking every bit as tortured and handsome as he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-mccafferty/but-i-can-t-help-myself-and-there-he-is-larger-than-life-on-the/) [Megan McCafferty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-mccafferty/) > [Whenever my heart strikes upon the beat it becomes my heartbeat, whenever I see you on the street i'm heartsick.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agou/whenever-my-heart-strikes-upon-the-beat-it-becomes-my-heartbeat/) [Agou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agou/) > [Heartsick, heartbroken - to know love is to know pain. What could be more common? Even so, each broken heart is so singular that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/heartsick-heartbroken-to-know-love-is-to-know-pain-what-could-be-more/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [Paul Taylor's 'Offenbach Overtures' has lots of zip and charm, and its pair of dueling soldiers in red, who end up starry-eyed about each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-gottlieb/paul-taylor-s-offenbach-overtures-has-lots-of-zip-and-charm-and-its/) [Robert Gottlieb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-gottlieb/) > [I am profoundly in the D's - discouraged, depressed, disheartened, disgusted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-dunbar-nelson/i-am-profoundly-in-the-d-s-discouraged-depressed-disheartened/) [Alice Dunbar Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-dunbar-nelson/) > [“But young men have not only this frivolous ambition of being thought masters of execution, inciting them on the one hand, but also their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/but-young-men-have-not-only-this-frivolous-ambition-of-being-thought/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Katharine Hepburn > [I'm what is known as gradually disintegrating. I don't fear the next world, or anything. I don't fear hell, and I don't look forward…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katharine-hepburn/i-m-what-is-known-as-gradually-disintegrating-i-don-t-fear-the-next/) [Katharine Hepburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katharine-hepburn/) > [You give because you love and cannot help giving.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katharine-hepburn/you-give-because-you-love-and-cannot-help-giving/) [Katharine Hepburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katharine-hepburn/) > [It's a bore - B-O-R-E - when you find you've begun to rot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katharine-hepburn/it-s-a-bore-b-o-r-e-when-you-find-you-ve-begun-to-rot/) [Katharine Hepburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katharine-hepburn/) > [Why slap them on the wrist with feather when you can belt them over the head with a sledgehammer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katharine-hepburn/why-slap-them-on-the-wrist-with-feather-when-you-can-belt-them-over/) [Katharine Hepburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katharine-hepburn/) > [Our Constitution was not intended to be used by ... any group to foist its personal religious beliefs on the rest of us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katharine-hepburn/our-constitution-was-not-intended-to-be-used-by-any-group-to-foist/) [Katharine Hepburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katharine-hepburn/) > [The only time I am ever miserable is when I do something just for the money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katharine-hepburn/the-only-time-i-am-ever-miserable-is-when-i-do-something-just-for-the/) [Katharine Hepburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katharine-hepburn/) > [When I started out, I didn't have any desire to be an actress or to learn how to act. I just wanted to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katharine-hepburn/when-i-started-out-i-didn-t-have-any-desire-to-be-an-actress-or-to/) [Katharine Hepburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katharine-hepburn/) > [You don't pick who you fall in love with. There are so few people to love. It's hard for one adult to even like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katharine-hepburn/you-don-t-pick-who-you-fall-in-love-with-there-are-so-few-people-to/) [Katharine Hepburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katharine-hepburn/) > [Love has nothing to do with what you are expecting to get . . . Only with what you are expected to give. . . . Which is everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katharine-hepburn/love-has-nothing-to-do-with-what-you-are-expecting-to-get-only-with/) [Katharine Hepburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katharine-hepburn/) > [Life is full of censorship. I cant spit in your eye.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katharine-hepburn/life-is-full-of-censorship-i-cant-spit-in-your-eye/) [Katharine Hepburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katharine-hepburn/) > [I could peel you like a pear and god himself would see the justice in it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katharine-hepburn/i-could-peel-you-like-a-pear-and-god-himself-would-see-the-justice-in/) [Katharine Hepburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katharine-hepburn/) > [It is the plain women who know about love; the beautiful women are too busy being fascinating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katharine-hepburn/it-is-the-plain-women-who-know-about-love-the-beautiful-women-are-too/) [Katharine Hepburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katharine-hepburn/) > [Acting is a nice childish profession - pretending you're someone else and, at the same time, selling yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katharine-hepburn/acting-is-a-nice-childish-profession-pretending-you-re-someone-else/) [Katharine Hepburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katharine-hepburn/) > [Who is Katharine Hepburn? It took me a long time to create that creature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katharine-hepburn/who-is-katharine-hepburn-it-took-me-a-long-time-to-create-that/) [Katharine Hepburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katharine-hepburn/) > [“The country is like a great sponge—it finally absorbs you. Eventually you will get malaria or you will get dysentery and whatever you do,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katharine-hepburn/the-country-is-like-a-great-sponge-it-finally-absorbs-you-eventually/) [Katharine Hepburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katharine-hepburn/) [Explore all 190 Katharine Hepburn quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katharine-hepburn/) ## More Actor quotes > [I actually think acting is a form of self-hypnosis. You have to be hyper, hyper aware of what's going on around you. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-moore/i-actually-think-acting-is-a-form-of-self-hypnosis-you-have-to-be/) [Julianne Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-moore/) > [When you step out and do a song in a musical, the easier thing to do is make it funny. But when those transitions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelli-o-hara/when-you-step-out-and-do-a-song-in-a-musical-the-easier-thing-to-do/) [Kelli O'Hara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelli-o-hara/) > [I once told someone I could act. They totally bought it. I've been getting away with it ever since.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/akshay-kumar/i-once-told-someone-i-could-act-they-totally-bought-it-i-ve-been/) [Akshay Kumar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/akshay-kumar/) > [There has got to be a way for me to have a role on TV or in film that is just as normal as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adeel-akhtar/there-has-got-to-be-a-way-for-me-to-have-a-role-on-tv-or-in-film-that/) [Adeel Akhtar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adeel-akhtar/) > [I love casting against type and doing things you wouldn't expect, because I think you get more interesting performances that way. Hollywood loves to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-s-goyer/i-love-casting-against-type-and-doing-things-you-wouldn-t-expect/) [David S. Goyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-s-goyer/) > [I'm an actor, so I'm never going to feel like I've done enough.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italia-ricci/i-m-an-actor-so-i-m-never-going-to-feel-like-i-ve-done-enough/) [Italia Ricci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italia-ricci/) > [I am tired of our characters being so incomplete. When do we ever save the day in a film? When does a Latino actor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esai-morales/i-am-tired-of-our-characters-being-so-incomplete-when-do-we-ever-save/) [Esai Morales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esai-morales/) > [When I was 13, I auditioned for the theater school, and I was there for four years. In the meantime, I did my first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ana-de-armas/when-i-was-13-i-auditioned-for-the-theater-school-and-i-was-there-for/) [Ana de Armas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ana-de-armas/) > [If you stood me in a costume next to a computer graphic of the same-looking character, I think there would be a difference. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warwick-davis/if-you-stood-me-in-a-costume-next-to-a-computer-graphic-of-the-same/) [Warwick Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warwick-davis/) > [failure in the theater is more public, more brilliant, more unreal than in any other field.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lillian-hellman/failure-in-the-theater-is-more-public-more-brilliant-more-unreal-than/) [Lillian Hellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lillian-hellman/) > [I'm a character actor - always have been, always will be - and historically, character actors don't come into their own until later in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-potts/i-m-a-character-actor-always-have-been-always-will-be-and/) [Annie Potts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-potts/) > [Actors don't hate acting. Most people don't hate acting! Whether you're a child mucking around with your friends or a grown up being paid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liv-hewson/actors-don-t-hate-acting-most-people-don-t-hate-acting-whether-you-re/) [Liv Hewson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liv-hewson/) > [It was only when I went to acting school that I was like, "You are absolutely such a pigheaded freak show that you thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giles-matthey/it-was-only-when-i-went-to-acting-school-that-i-was-like-you-are/) [Giles Matthey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giles-matthey/) > [I never planned to do female roles. It just happened. I was typecast.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/divine/i-never-planned-to-do-female-roles-it-just-happened-i-was-typecast/) [Divine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/divine/) > [Once I committed to acting, this has been it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernie-hudson/once-i-committed-to-acting-this-has-been-it/) [Ernie Hudson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernie-hudson/) [Browse all 21,590 Actor quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actor/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“My father had been disgusted and heartsick over the fact that I wanted to act. 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