Merman: an autobiography
A source page for quotes linked to Ethel Merman.
“I am known to be able to take care of myself when I become angry. I don't mince words.”
“I can hold a note as long as the Chase National Bank.”
“Mom claimed that I could carry a tune at 2 or 3 years of age. Maybe she was a little prejudiced.”
“Be yourself -- it's the one thing you can do better than anyone else.”
“Everything's coming up roses - for me.”
“At a flea market I always head for the junk jewelry table first.”
“I've never cooked. I can't do much more in the kitchen than make a cup of tea and some toast.”
“Music, in the past few years... anything singable or understandable is square.”
“Broadway has been very good to me. But then, I've been very good to broadway.”
“Any audience that gets a laugh out of me gets it while I'm facing them”
“I'll admit - I was honored to be on the cover of Time”
“In my case, things have pretty much been handed to me”
“Of my four marriages, the one to Bob Levitt is the only one I don't regret”
“I have been ambitious to be a somebody from the time I was 5 years old”
“Cole Porter had a worldwide reputation as a sophisticate and hedonist”
“Eisenhower was my war hero and the President I admire and respect most”
“I wouldn't trust any man as far as you can throw a piano”
“When I'm asked how to succeed in show business, I always say I haven't the foggiest”
“I've made a wonderful living playing that theatrical character - the professional brassy dame”
“My beloved Mom and Pop always rated tops with each other, and that's the way it will always be”
“There's such a thing as theater discipline. One player doesn't appropriate another's inventions”
“I've never suffered stage fright. That fascinates people.”