I was trying to work, but I noticed that people, if they had any inkling of the idea that I was sick or had MS… people shunned me. No work after that. – Teri Garr
My agents have me in the Actors’ Protection Program. It seems to be working very well. Nobody can find me. – Teri Garr
Directors would tell me, ‘We want you to play a character a little less complex than you are.’ Yeah, sure. What they mean is, ‘You’re playing a dummy.’ – Teri Garr
I feel ashamed of how many houses I’ve actually crept inside of when they were up for sale. I’m not a snoop, but I love looking and imagining. – Teri Garr
There are several drugs out right now that can’t stop multiple sclerosis, but they can slow it way down. They also made me puff up like a balloon. So I looked horrible. I hated that. – Teri Garr
If there’s ever a woman who’s smart, funny, or witty, people are afraid of that, so they don’t write that. They only write parts for women where they let everything be steamrolled over them, where they let people wipe their feet all over them. – Teri Garr
I have heard all kinds of stories about telling employers about MS and I really don’t know what the answer is. I am a private person, but I have found support by talking to fellow MSrs in the community. – Teri Garr
This new movie, ‘Full Moon in Blue Water,’ I loved the idea of working with Gene Hackman, who is a great actor, but when I read the script, I threw it right into the trash can, because I didn’t like this woman. She was just a doormat. – Teri Garr
I didn’t tell people because I didn’t want pity, and I was afraid I wouldn’t get work. But others with MS need to know they are not alone. We don’t have to be victims. – Teri Garr
I was in an acting class taught by Eric Morris, and Jack Nicholson was in the class. He wrote the script for ‘Head’, so all of us in the class got little tiny parts in the movie. – Teri Garr
I think I look pretty good. And I know there are human beings my age who look the way I do. There must be stories about us – not just about people who are young and good-looking. – Teri Garr
When I was a dancer, I would see that dancers were treated like garbage. I mean like, like extras. – Teri Garr
If you get somebody laughing – and then stick in a point about something important – they’ll remember it. – Teri Garr
Being a successful Hollywood actress may be challenging, but little did I know that the very body that had always been my calling card would betray me. – Teri Garr
When you hear the word ‘disabled,’ people immediately think about people who can’t walk or talk or do everything that people take for granted. Now, I take nothing for granted. But I find the real disability is people who can’t find joy in life and are bitter. – Teri Garr
I’m wondering if they haven’t reported all the people with MS, because if all of the cases were reported, the government would have to step in and give more financial aid to us. – Teri Garr
I’ve always had this American-pie face that would get work in commercials… I’d say things like, ‘Hi, Marge, how’s your laundry?’ and ‘Hi, I’m a real nice Georgia peach.’ Sometimes this work is one step above being a cocktail waitress. – Teri Garr
Any movie I’ve ever made, the minute you walk on the set they tell you who’s the person to buy it from. – Teri Garr
Oddly enough, MS has made my life so much better than it was before. I now appreciate what I have and I am not running around like a rat in a maze. – Teri Garr
How come women are treated differently from men all the time? Not only handicapped people, but women – and handicapped women, forget it! – Teri Garr
I have worked enough and I am happy to be touring the country speaking about living with MS to give people inspiration and motivation to help themselves. – Teri Garr
Having to manage fatigue is something I and many people with MS have to deal with, and heat is no friend to my MS, either; it can be devastating. – Teri Garr
I started out in the 1970s doing the Wife, the Bimbo, and the Ditz, and if I somehow get a serious role, they all wanna know the same thing: When are you going back to comedy? – Teri Garr