Patricia Clarkson

The majority of work I do is in independent films, where you're lucky if you have five takes.

I think it kind of took being a character actor to kind of now enter into leading ladies.

But no, had I been successful in my 20s I would have been just fine. But it is nice to defy the odds.

I'm awkward at these things. Just being nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for Karate Kid was a real surprise and I was a little uncomfortable.

A sagging economy, a soaring national debt, and an increasingly restive Congress pushed Obama to order troop reductions that are both deeper and faster than recommended by his military commanders.

I like to catch fish and release them. I probably haven't killed a fish that I've caught in sport fishing for 20 years. No reason to kill it. You know, just take it and release it.