I have to do popcorn for movies. I can do more important things for television. You're going down when you're making a movie, not going up.
My main contribution has been that I have educated and entertained people at the same time.
You need an actor who can maintain a character over a long period of time. If you have a weak actor, it won't be obvious in two hours, but you'll begin to see his weaknesses over four or five days.
I don't call four hours a miniseries.
'Roots' did show that the audience would be receptive to black talent and a black story.
What prevailed was that it was a family story, so it didn't matter what the color. It was also the perfect subject matter for a miniseries: A best-selling book, a generational story, a social problem - they all made 'Roots' what a miniseries should be.
Continuity is a wonderful thing, and it is a very rare thing in show business.
My definition of a producer is 'the man with the dream.'
I've asked every grammar schoolteacher in the nation to have their students write on the meaning of the Statue of Liberty. Wouldn't it be wonderful if the winning kid got up to the microphone and, in front of the world, had to dig into a pocket to pull out a crumpled sheet of paper containing the words that would move us all?
When they did the Olympics in Seoul - or elsewhere - didn't each host country try to show its greatness to the world viewing audience?
People don't buy and sell art based on the personality of the artist. Or there wouldn't be much art bought and sold.
We couldn't predict what would happen with 'Roots.' You knew there were powerful moments that were going to affect people. We were making the film while the book was being completed. We were fortunate because the hardcover book was out and on the best-seller list. The heat was still on.
I had been an independent entrepreneur from the beginning, and I felt I could do it myself. I didn't want to get a job.
I don't want to make an 'Animal House.' I'm not interested in making 'Ghost Busters.'
Television is like a library. There are a lot of library books in it, and you have to pick and choose what you take out of it.
I believe a mini-series has two audiences. The first is the media. Then I go for the television audience.
I couldn't get my first film on the air. The first film I did was called 'The Race For Space,' about the U.S.-Soviet space race. The networks had a policy that I found out about the hard way. I even had a sponsor for my program, but the networks wouldn't put it on because it was independently produced.
My roots are documentaries.
I was the first independent to walk in with a documentary.
I make the money, and I don't have to take the abuse some of the stars do, opening up their personal life. I can go into a restaurant, sit down, and have a nice meal without being harassed. Arnold Schwarzenegger can't do that.
