Sidney Poitier

I decided in my life that I would do nothing that did not reflect positively on my father's life.

I had to satisfy the action fans, the romantic fans, the intellectual fans. It was a terrific burden.

So I had to be careful. I recognized the responsibility that, whether I liked it or not, I had to accept whatever the obligation was. That was to behave in a manner, to carry myself in such a professional way, as if there ever is a reflection, it's a positive one.

To simply wake up every morning a better person than when I went to bed.

My father was very big on marriage.

I know how easy it is for one to stay well within moral, ethical, and legal bounds through the skillful use of words - and to thereby spin, sidestep, circumvent, or bend a truth completely out of shape. To that extent, we are all liars on numerous occasions.

History passes the final judgment.

So I'm OK with myself, with history, my work, who I am and who I was.

I come from a great family. I've seen family life and I know how wonderful, how nurturing, and how wonderful it can be.

My father was the quintessential husband and dad.

But my dad also was a remarkable man, a good person, a principled individual, a man of integrity.

I wouldn't change a single thing, because one change alters every moment that follows it.