Steve Jobs polishing rocks

"When I was a young kid, there was a widowed man who lived up the street. He was in his 80s and a little scary looking and I got to know him a little bit, he might have paid me to cut his lawn or something like that. One day he said “come into my garage, I want to show you something.” He pulled out this dusty old rock tumbler. It had a motor and a coffee can and a little band between them. We went out into the backyard and collected some rocks; just some regular old, ugly rocks. We put them into the can with a little bit of liquid and little bit of grit powder. We closed the lid up and turned it on and he said “come back tomorrow”. The can was making a racket as the stones were tumbling around. I came back the next day and we opened the can and we took out these amazingly beautiful, polished rocks. Those common stones that had gone in, through rubbing up against each other (Steve starts slapping his hands, emulating the stones hitting each other), creating a bit of friction, a bit of noise, had produced these beautiful, polished rocks. And that’s always, in my mind, been my metaphor for a team that is working really hard on something they’re passionate about. It’s through the team, through that group of incredibly talented people, bumping up against each other, having arguments, having fights sometimes. Making some noise. And, working together, they polish each other and they polish the ideas and what comes out are really beautiful stones."

Meryl Streep

One day during the production of 'Sophie's Choice', Meryl Streep was required to shoot the pivotal scene in which her character, standing with her young son and daughter in a "selection line" in a Nazi concentration camp, is forced by a German guard to choose one of the children to be sent for extermination. 

As the scene came to an end Streep, who later called it the most emotionally grueling of her career, was surprised that Pakula, for whom she felt a great emotional kinship, had not called 'cut.' "I thought, 'My God, he's overwhelmed...'" 

Streep promptly looked over to where the director was sitting with his cinematographer - and was shocked to find that both men, with their heads tilted back, had fallen sound asleep!

Emil Zátopek gold medal

Emil Zátopek was a giant of long distance running. His record still stands as the only person to win gold in the 5000 metre, the 10000 metre and the marathon at the 1952 Helsinki Summer Olympics. Apparently running the marathon was a last minute decision.

In 1968 Australian runner, Ron Clarke, visited Emil in his home country of Czechoslovakia. Emil respected Ron’s abilities. He had broken many of Emil’s records but had a string of bad luck. In Mexico City Ron suffered from altitude sickness and nearly died on the track. So despite being the world record holder he never won an Olympic gold. The two runners became friends and as Emil said goodbye at the airport, he gave Ron a hug and put a small parcel in his hand and said “this is because you deserve it, not because we are friends. Open it when you get to London.”

Ron immediately started to wonder what was in the parcel. Was it contraband? Was it a message Emil wanted smuggled out to the West. After the plane took off Ron went to the lavatory to open the parcel. When he unwrapped the box, there, with his name and the day’s date inscribed inside, was Emil’s 10000 Olympic gold medal. Ron just sat there and wept.

Alfred Hitchcock

Driving through a Swiss city one day, Alfred Hitchcock suddenly pointed out of the car window and said, "That is the most frightening sight I have ever seen."

His companion was surprised to see nothing more alarming than a priest in conversation with a little boy, his hand on the child's shoulder.

"Run, little boy," cried Hitchcock, leaning out of the car. "Run for your life!"

Peter O'Toole

O'Toole met up with an old friend, and they went to a bar.

O'Toole and his friend get EXTREMELY drunk and decide that they are going to leave the pub.

They decide to go watch a play, and get seats in a theatre on the West End. The lights go down and the overture begins playing.

At that moment O'Toole's friend hears Peter swear loudly and rush off, saying "I'm in this play!"

Oscar Pearl Harbour

Akira Kurosawa, John Huston and Billy Wilder are presenting best picture at the 1985 Oscars. Kurosawa is nearly blind, Huston has been attached to an oxygen machine while seated because of his emphyzema, only Wilder is fairly spry.

The nominees are listed, and they get the envelope. Huston doesn't even try to open it, hands it to Kurosawa. It is beyond his capacity to tear it open. Wilder grabs it, rips it open, announces Out of Africa as the winner.

Sydney Pollack returns to the stage, makes his speech. He then goes with the three titans as they go offstage.

He then hears Billy Wilder say, loud enough only for the four of them to hear - "They had no problem bombing Pearl Harbor, but they can't tear open a fucking envelope." Pollack bursts out laughing, not at all certain if Kurosawa's limited English caught what Wilder was saying.

Very polite suicide

Following the Nazi annexation of Austria, the famed Viennese author, critic, and theatre director Egon Friedell died when he hurled himself through an office window to avoid capture by Gestapo agents. 

His last words? "Watch out, please!"