More from Who the Hell’s in It: Conversations with Hollywood’s Legendary Actors
Any time there was a chance for a reaction — which is the most important thing in a motion picture — he [John Ford] always took reactions of me, so I’d be a part of every scene. Because I had a great deal of time in the picture when other people were talking, and all my stuff was just reactions. They become very important throughout a picture, they build your part. They always say I’m in action movies, but it’s in reaction pictures that they remember me — pictures that are full of reactions, but have a background of action.
