Bob Newhart

I made people laugh as a kid, but that's not how you make a living. ”

I don't think of myself as an American Master. I've just been making a living. ”

Well I was much too practical to presume to have a career in comedy. ”

I wasn't the class clown. I wasn't that obvious. There would be a circle of guys, and they're watching the class clown. And I'm standing in the back, and I turn to the guy next to me and I say something funny to him, and he starts to laugh. And the guy next to him says, 'What did he say?' ”

You shouldn't get too close to the truth, because then maybe you stop being funny. ”

I think that what comes through in Chicago humor is the affection. Even though you're poking fun at someone or something, there's still an affection for it. ”

I worked in accounting for two and a half years, realized that wasn't what I wanted to do with the rest of my life, and decided I was just going to give comedy a try. ”

Richard Pryor introduced me to the world of the inner city, and the urban world, and did it hysterically. My favorite comedian, even though we work 180 degrees differently, but funny is funny is funny. ”

The best advice I was probably given and the best advice I could give someone who is trying to get into the comedy field is to take advantage of every opportunity you have to work to hone your skills. ”

I really don't know what makes a comedian. I think it's a family background and environment. Yet if you put the same ingredients in another person, he may never utter a funny line. ”