English - Actor | March 21, 1958 -
I grew up in Deptford in south London, and at that time I used to wear toppers, loon pants and tonic suits from shops like Take 6 and Topman. I was a bit of a soul boy, but I had a very eclectic taste in music - I was into James Brown and Bowie; and I was the only kid in the neighbourhood who would also be listening to Chopin.
Gary Oldman
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As a drama student I got into Thirties and Forties suits.
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It's funny: I'm a lifelong musician, but because I principally play the piano it's been a solitary thing.
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And costume is so important for an actor. It absolutely helps to get into character; it's the closest thing to you, it touches you. Some actors like to go into make-up and then put their clothes on, but I like to dress first; that's my routine.
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I'm rarely asked to play the smartest man in the room.
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I still don't have a publicist. If I'm in a film, you have an obligation to promote it, I'll do as much as I can.
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Overall I enjoy a certain anonymity. I live a very normal, very ordinary life.
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On set I keep myself to myself; I'd rather the director speak up. I'm not gonna direct a younger actor. I think the power of example works best, actually.
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I took a bit of a back seat, I had kids and I wanted to focus on them. There's that period in the late '90s, the early 2000s, where I didn't do a great deal.
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That's what sets apart one actor from another, and that you can't teach. You can't give someone that. When you're working, putting a character together, or in a scene, that's where things will happen that you have to have the intuition to notice them, and to register them.
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I tend to read non-fiction.
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The building of America has had its fair share of mistakes, but it's a constitution that's the jewel of democracy, the envy of many, and it's the most generous nation in the world.
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