I'm not an actress who can create a character. I play me.

Well, Rhoda was, I think, the last actress that we saw. There had been so many wonderful actresses who were close, really close. But there was no magical epiphany.

Diets are for those who are thick and tired of it.

And that's what the audience was feeling too, as they watched the show and as they watch it now. And overriding all of that is the way it was written. It was written honestly. There was never any manufactured laugh. There was never compromising of character.

There are certain things about me that I will never tell to anyone because I am a very private person. But basically, what you see is who I am. I'm independent, I do like to be liked, I do look for the good side of life and people. I'm positive, I'm disciplined, I like my life in order, and I'm neat as a pin.

I am a professional actress, and that is what I do. I learn about a character, and then I play that character.