“Sicily is a blessed land. First, because of its geographic position in...” — Marcello Giordani Quote

“Sicily is a blessed land. First, because of its geographic position in the Mediterranean. Second, for its history and all the different peoples who have settled there: Arabs, Greeks, Normans, the Swedes. That has made us different from others. We exaggerate, we overdo. We love Greek tragedy. We cry, we fight, sometimes for nothing.”

“I learned my profession onstage. I didn't have a musical background. I had no conservatory training. I don't play an instrument.”

“I want my wife and children to travel always with me and share good things and bad things. That's what the family is for.”

“I quit my job in the bank when I was 19. I took a chance. I went to Milan to study opera and singing. My father really supported me economically.”

“God smiled on me in every sense. I was born a tenor, and you know what that means. Tenors are a rare commodity.”

“The Italians are not indulgent, as Americans are. They don't have the patience to teach young singers how to move. They think you should learn in school.”

“Each and every day, I take pride in my heritage and my family and community's history.”

“Every library should try to be complete on something, if it were only the history of pinheads.”

“The greatest tragedy in mankind's entire history may be the hijacking of morality by religion.”

“Writing historical novels can be dangerous. We need to be as accurate and as fair about the historical record as we can be, at the same time as creating our fictional characters and, hopefully, telling a good story. The challenge is weaving the fiction into the history.”

“India is a curious place that still preserves the past, religions, and its history. No matter how modern India becomes, it is still very much an old country.”

“Presidents have a right to certain prerogatives, including the expectation of a certain deference. He's the president; this is history. But we seem to have come a long way since Ronald Reagan was regularly barked at by Sam Donaldson, almost literally, and the president shrugged it off.”