Dan Levy Quotes

“I often liken my love life to the pathetic fallacy found in a Bronte novel: a long and winding road tented by storm clouds and rain. Kidding.”

― Dan Levy

“The secret life of women is to men what the universe is to NASA – unimaginably infinite and completely undiscoverable.”

― Dan Levy

“It’s important to tell queer stories and to show queer relationships in a very normal setting.”

― Dan Levy

“It’s that stubborn fixation on details that has invariably prevented me from getting excited about celebrating each passing year. Which is why my friends know that doing things such as throwing me surprise parties would only serve to surprise me with an overwhelming sense of panic and anxiety.”

― Dan Levy

“I like to refer to my small social circle as ’boutique.’ And much like the hotels of the same ilk, my friends are all unique, high quality, and serve me good food. But more than that, they teach me things about the world and about myself that I couldn’t learn anywhere else.”

― Dan Levy

“A little confidence can make the simplest of T-shirts look like a million bucks.”

― Dan Levy

“Valentine’s Day is one of those tricky celebrations where you’re damned if you do and damned if you don’t. If you love it, you’re buying into a holiday created to sell greeting cards, bad bouquets, and shoddy love-themed stuffed animals. And if you’re opposed to it, you’re considered lonely and single and have clearly never had a valentine.”

― Dan Levy

“The sole forms of social interaction I was aware of as a kid involved a jungle gym and a sticker book. It was only in high school that ICQ – a prehistoric form of instant messaging – was first incorporated into my cultural vocabulary.”

― Dan Levy

“Ironically, fashion trends, be it denim or polka dots, have a tendency to perpetuate the contrary.”

― Dan Levy

“Despite probably needing one, I don’t have a therapist. Why spend the money on my mental health when I can do far more productive things such as purchase iPhone apps and pay off parking tickets?”

― Dan Levy

“To edit someone from your life must be a properly evaluated decision. After all, the act of distancing yourself is difficult and, if executed improperly, could prove even more troublesome than if you were to have done nothing at all. The key is to create the distance gradually – a ‘fade out’ as I like to call it.”

― Dan Levy

“Anxiety is my kryptonite.”

― Dan Levy

“Our phones have created what I like to call SADD – Social Attention Deficit Disorder.”

― Dan Levy

“I remember quite clearly a time when I knew exactly what I wanted to do with my life. I was six, I was worry-free, and I aspired to be an actor-slash-pizza maker. To me, the decision was simple; that is what would make me happy.”

― Dan Levy

“I will never have the willpower to completely swear off pizza or a good summer sale, but I’m working on realizing the difference between the occasional craving and the compulsion to mindlessly consume as a feeble means of self-medication.”

― Dan Levy

“There is a lot men don’t know about women. And I’m not just talking about how you manage to leave the bathroom smelling like a tropical rainforest after you shower or how you’re able to walk in shoes that rely on nothing more than the support of two five-inch toothpicks.”

― Dan Levy

“We’ve become accustomed to repurposing and living vicariously through other people’s work instead of going out and making our own.”

― Dan Levy

“My parents have always had this philosophy that overindulging your children is one of the worst things you could do as a parent. It’s something that was hammered into my head growing up. And while my mom and dad are not professional authorities on parenting, I can confirm from experience that they had a point.”

― Dan Levy

“Masculinity involves feminine qualities, and femininity involves masculine qualities.”

― Dan Levy

“I’d rather create something that gives people a very strong reaction than create a show that someone looks at and says, ‘Hmm. Fine.’”

― Dan Levy

“I always try, if I can, to travel before I start a writing project. For me, travelling is my education. It inspires me, and it clears my mind and allows me to come back with a cleansed palate.”

― Dan Levy

“I’ve never really turned to my dad for anything, I think out of fear of the label of nepotism.”

― Dan Levy

“’Real talk’ refers to the act of speaking the honest truth about something or someone without fear of consequence.”

― Dan Levy

“When it comes to birthdays, I think there are two camps. There are people like me, who choose to treat it like any other day, and then there are the ‘birthday people.’ You know, those people who claim the full month in which they were born as their own.”

― Dan Levy

“My mother was in labour for two full days before having me on a sunny August afternoon. She went into labour on the 7th, and I chose to make my big entrance on the 9th.”

― Dan Levy

“Quite simply, my friends inspire me to strive.”

― Dan Levy

“It’s pretty incredible to think that someone who once dreamed of a life in fashion could go from reading ‘Vogue’ during recess in elementary school to eventually seeing his designs grace those very pages.”

― Dan Levy

“No one does cool, catchy pop music like Robyn, and ‘Hang With Me’ is a testament to that.”

― Dan Levy

“Lauryn Hill quietly released ‘Lose Myself’ as part of the ‘Surf’s Up’ motion picture soundtrack – shocking, I know. It’s not only one of the best summer tracks you’ll add to your catalogue: it’s also one of the most honest and heartfelt songs she’s has ever written.”

― Dan Levy

“I’m a worrier by nature.”

― Dan Levy

“I had always been scared of the unknown, and I think it had a lot to do with a lack of self-confidence (and wearing thick, dark-rimmed glasses before they were considered cool).”

― Dan Levy

“There was a time in my life when people called me ‘Denim Dan.’ I didn’t like it. And fortunately for my self-esteem, it didn’t stick for very long. I was 12, and I was given the name by my classmates after I showed up to the first day of school in – wait for it – triple denim.”

― Dan Levy

“Following a trend too closely is a risky thing. If not properly executed, you could easily end up looking uncomfortable, over-styled, and downright foolish.”

― Dan Levy

“’Simply the Best’ has always been one of my favourite songs and a song that I’ve always thought was far deeper than what you imagine it to be at first listen. I found the lyrics to be really, oddly beautiful, considering you rarely stop and think about them.”

― Dan Levy

“A lot of queer characters get painted with either a caricature brush, or they’re used to teach, in a way.”

― Dan Levy

“It is important that we realize that words have meanings far beyond the dictionary definition.”

― Dan Levy

“When I was working at MTV, people would e-mail me asking where I bought my frames, and I always felt a little uneasy telling a teenager to go out and pick up a $400 pair of glasses.”

― Dan Levy

“I’ve always considered myself a master in the art of real talk.”

― Dan Levy

“What skills I lacked in, say, math or science, I like to think I made up for in my ability to read people and situations with great clarity. I therefore considered myself as a sort of valued soothsayer when it came to dispensing opinions to my friends about their life choices or relationships.”

― Dan Levy

“Thinking back, the majority of the conflicts I’ve had in my life have been a result of offering up my two unwelcome cents, crossing that line between constructive truth-telling and preaching.”

― Dan Levy

“Growing up, my height was faithfully tracked from infancy to my late teens on the door frame of my mom’s office – the only place in my family’s home in Toronto where writing on the walls was encouraged.”

― Dan Levy

“There is something transformative about the act of finding your own way without a to-do list.”

― Dan Levy

“The fact that I like to buy inessential things to make myself feel better is neither a secret nor something I’m particularly proud of. And I know I’m not alone.”

― Dan Levy

“The truth is, we are a culture built on a reward system, and our instinctive pursuit of pleasure can often lead us astray. We will rationalize anything into an excuse to indulge in whatever it is that makes us feel temporarily satiated.”

― Dan Levy

“When I feel like treating myself, I’ll either turn to food or clothes. Bad food. Expensive clothes. Ironically, I’m usually rewarding myself for a solid week of healthy eating or a nice paycheque.”

― Dan Levy

“Sometimes circumstance blinds us at first from seeing people for who they really are.”

― Dan Levy

“Don’t get me wrong: I’m a sucker for weddings. I’ll get misty-eyed watching the union of two perfect strangers. But in some cases – and I need to stress some cases – I feel like we’re getting blindsided by the spectacle of it all.”

― Dan Levy

“My name is Dan, and I’m a technoholic.”

― Dan Levy

“I was raised before the advent of DVD players in cars and iPads at the dinner table.”

― Dan Levy

“In my head, I’m a purist that doesn’t require anything but a group of good friends and a bottle of wine. In reality, I’m co-dependent on my iPhone and fully conscious of the fact that my attention span is corroding.”

― Dan Levy

“Personally, what scares me most is the thoughtlessness the Internet can perpetuate.”

― Dan Levy

“In many ways, the Internet is about diversification, and yet, in the wrong hands, the digital world can use those very examples to reinforce the narrowest of perspectives.”

― Dan Levy

“As a child, I seriously believed my family was going down the road to bankruptcy. I was denied virtually every popular trend, from heavily logoed Tommy Hilfiger windbreakers to amusement park season’s passes.”

― Dan Levy

“In an age where overindulgence seems to be the norm, I can’t help but look back and feel thankful that my parents chose to hold out on giving me everything that I wanted growing up.”

― Dan Levy

“Wise people, my parents.”

― Dan Levy

“Does Catherine O’Hara deserve an Emmy? Absolutely.”

― Dan Levy

“I was such a bad red-carpet host.”

― Dan Levy

“I have the utmost respect for red carpet interviewers; it is such a hard job.”

― Dan Levy

“Comedy is not easy to begin with, but comedy that also dances with drama – it’s so hard.”

― Dan Levy

“My dad made a conscious choice to keep my family in Canada. I think he wanted us to have a pretty normal life and one that wasn’t necessarily affected by the industry or all that comes with growing up in Hollywood.”

― Dan Levy

“After getting the job at MTV, the challenge was, ‘How do I start my career as a television host without people holding my dad’s career over my head?’ It’s a very easy thing for people to look to my dad and say, ‘Well, he got his job because of this.’”

― Dan Levy

“I hated working red carpets, I hated the whole celebrity interview process. I just realized I’d rather be the person somebody wanted to ask questions to than the person asking the questions.”

― Dan Levy

“I think because there is the constant looming threat of nepotism and judgment, I really tried to separate what I was doing at MTV, my auditions, anything I was doing creatively, from my family.”

― Dan Levy

“I’ve read about actors trying to prevent their kids from getting into it, and I think that’s from what they themselves experienced in the industry.”

― Dan Levy

“Gay relationships have historically not been treated the same as straight relationships.”

― Dan Levy

“I wasn’t necessarily aware of what my dad did, but I was aware that wherever we’d go, there would be attention. I was never comfortable with it.”

― Dan Levy

“My mom asked me one day at lunch in a very lovely and respectful way. I was finally comfortable enough to say yes, I was gay, and it really was never talked about again.”

― Dan Levy

“Very few ideas are better than Catherine O’Hara’s ideas when it comes to acting.”

― Dan Levy

“I have no patience for homophobia.”

― Dan Levy

“I’ve been a lover of fashion my whole life.”

― Dan Levy

“So often, I think shows get into these grooves where they know the characters hit, and they just write for it over and over and over again.”

― Dan Levy

“A lot of queer relationships on television and in films are met with extreme tragedy.”

― Dan Levy

“I’ve never really learned anything when I feel like it’s being forced down my throat.”

― Dan Levy

“I know that in writer’s rooms across North America, there are still conversations about how much is too much when it comes to intimacy between, in my case, two men. That’s an insane conversation to be having.”

― Dan Levy

“I’ve never really loved mean comedy.”

― Dan Levy

“The best TV that I watch, I always feel safe when I’m watching it. And that could be like ‘Homeland’ or ‘The Americans’; by ‘safety,’ I mean the show knows its parameters.”

― Dan Levy

“As a Canadian, we are sort of inherently built with an unshakable humility that at times can work against you.”

― Dan Levy

“I went to private school and then chose to go to public school because I didn’t like the private school experience; I didn’t like that vibe.”

― Dan Levy

“There was a commonality in a lot of the private school experiences that I had of children whose lives were not their own. They thought they were their own, but they were essentially gifted this life by their parents. So they were spending money; they were going on trips – I guess, in a way, it is their life, but they didn’t earn it.”

― Dan Levy

“My parents have – my dad has managed to succeed at his craft. So, you know, it’s not like I was struggling in my life.”

― Dan Levy

“I never felt comfortable hosting TV.”

― Dan Levy

“I came from a theater background and always wanted to act.”

― Dan Levy

“You often forget, because you’re so inside it, that television has power.”

― Dan Levy

“Shopping for guys in Toronto is a really tough thing because there’s not a huge market for it.”

― Dan Levy

“People always ask about my dad and his comedic influence. It’s funny because my mom is really the comedian of our household.”

― Dan Levy

“It’s quite common for a television show to start off as one thing and end up as something completely different. There are so many cooks in the kitchen – the network, the studio.”

― Dan Levy

“I remember, before I started high school, I was really intrigued by the Buddy Holly/James Dean style of glasses. This was a long, long time before they were sold at every Urban Outfitters.”

― Dan Levy

“I think I’d always been interested in performing.”

― Dan Levy

“The Canadian audience is very critical, particularly of their own content.”

― Dan Levy

“I’m clueless when it comes to flowers.”

― Dan Levy

“I’m good with furniture, very bad with plants.”

― Dan Levy

“I love food, and I’m a foodie; I try to hit as many restaurants as I can.”

― Dan Levy

“I never pictured L.A. as a hub for amazing food, which I learned quite quickly is sheer naivete. The restaurants here are insane.”

― Dan Levy

“Entertainment seems to be the only arena where children who pursue the work of their parents, which is an inherently natural thing to do, is met with a lot of skepticism.”

― Dan Levy

“I’ve grown up around some incredibly funny people, which has been a blessing and curse because now I’ve been completely spoiled in terms of what I find funny.”

― Dan Levy

“I grew up with my dad sitting us down at the holidays and putting on ‘The Honeymooners.’”

― Dan Levy

“I’ll take a carb any day of the week, but if I’m being pressed, then I’m sort of into the standard bagel.”

― Dan Levy

“What I loved about ‘The Beverly Hillbillies’ was that it was about family love and growth and understanding. The riches-to-rags premise is just the wallpaper.”

― Dan Levy

“At the end of the day, I’m from Canada, and so there will never be a time when I’m suddenly not Canadian.”

― Dan Levy