I’m afraid of losing my obscurity. Genuineness only thrives in the dark. Like celery.

We all have a contract with the public—in us they see themselves, or what they would like to be.

What a heavy burden is a name that has become too famous.

Being a star has made it possible for me to get insulted in places where the average Negro could never hope to go and get insulted.

Possessions, outward success, publicity, luxury—to me these have always been contemptible. I believe that a simple and unassuming manner of life is best for everyone, best both for the body and the mind.

Now there is fame! Of all—hunger, misery, the incomprehension by the public—fame is by far the worst. It is the castigation by God of the artist. It is sad. It is true.