There I was on the front page of the 'London Times' as speaker of the House with an animal on top of my head. I liked it, but it was not what my staff thought was appropriately dignified.
I had to come out on stage with my little staff and robe and I had this sun on top of my head that my mom made - that was the first time I was ever on stage singing in front of anybody. I realized that I was one of the best acts of the night but I didn't give singing much thought after that. I was really into playing baseball.
The first comedy screenplay that I wrote was Animal House and I always thought I could and should be a director but no one was about to give me that opportunity on Animal House.
I knew immediately something was terribly wrong, but you can know that and not allow the thought in your head, at the front of your head. It dances around at the back, where it can't be controlled. But the front of the head is where the pain begins.
The government shut down 12 times under Democratic House Speaker Tip O'Neill. It was only shut down twice while I was speaker.
I was Speaker of the House in Florida, first Republican speaker in 120 years. And I totally dismantled the way this House worked and turned it around to what I believe is right.
One of the things that I did before I ran for president is I was a professional speaker. Not a motivational speaker - an inspirational speaker. Motivation comes from within. You have to be inspired. That's what I do. I inspire people, I inspire the public, I inspire my staff. I inspired the organizations I took over to want to succeed.
After Nancy Pelosi became Speaker, we were told, 'She's the first female speaker of the House, so whether we like it or not, we've got to handle this with kid gloves. Don't go after Speaker Pelosi. You can go after other people, but you'll be branded as mean and evil if you go after the first female Speaker of the House.'
I liked my father's work. But above all I liked the idea of doing something concrete and useful. Building a house is a metaphor that I like, it's at the core of my life philosophy: starting from the bottom and reaching the top.
On '24,' it says on the front page of your script: 'This script is for the production staff and cast. Please don't show it to anybody else.'
Paul Ryan is speaker of the house and that - that is up to members of the caucus. Donald Trump is not running for a congressman from Manhattan where he would actually vote on the speaker. But I appreciate the good wishes that we're actually going to be the next president of the United States and that we'll have to work with the speaker.
I was a really big - I was a big fan of pitching staffs in general growing up, not necessarily teams. So I liked the Braves pitching staff of Maddox, Glavine, and Smoltz, and I liked the A's pitching staff with Zito, Hudson, and Mulder.
I think Nancy Pelosi is extremely qualified to be speaker of the House, because she has been speaker of the House. I trust her leadership. I trust her judgment.
I have come to accept that if I have a new haircut it is front page news. But having a picture of my foot on the front page of a national newspaper is a bit exceptional.
The Florida Gator head - It's not only heavy, it's kind of awkward in the front. It had that long beak. I put it on, and it rubbed the top of my head raw.
I liked the idea of architectural games - you're always building and rebuilding. And I still thought of myself in opposition. I thought, If architects build a dream house, then I want to build a bad-dream house. My piece was called Bad Dream House.
I never aspired to be Speaker simply so I could say, 'I am the Speaker of the House of Commons,' and tell my children that.