- Berlyn: I was developing the white face and undereye circles of a movie geek. But as Sam Goldwyn said of Ronald Colman, "He looks better when he's a little dissipated."
- Berlyn: It occurred to me that in many ways Rasputin, the advisor and friend to the last Empress of Russia, resembled Joan Crawford.
- Berlyn: [referring to Joan Crawford] Someone said that she could discuss the arts with a Phi Beta Kappa.
- Bette Davis: The tarts?
- Berlyn: Rasputin couldn't write until he was an adult, but by the latter part of his life he was giving advice to the Tsarina on strategy for World War I.
- Bette Davis: Who did he think he was, George Cukor?