Home
/
RELIGION & LIBERTY ONLINE
/
Michael Keaton And The Golden Globes: ‘Work Hard, Don’t Quit’
Michael Keaton And The Golden Globes: ‘Work Hard, Don’t Quit’
Nov 2, 2026 2:48 PM

It is award season in Hollywood. Nearly every weekend for the next few months, there will be a parade on some red mentators bashing some actress on her wardrobe choice, and self-aggrandizing speeches from people who seem to know little about life outside of a West Coast mansion and an East Coast apartment.

Last night, at the Golden Globes, one speech stood out. Michael Keaton has worked steadily for years as an actor, but has never been recognized as one of the greats in his field. He’s best known for a regrettable turn as Batman, and as an obnoxious ghost in Beetlejuice. However, Keaton has garnered acclaim for his role in Birdman, playing a washed-actor who attempts a eback on Broadway. Last night, Keaton won best actor in a motion edy or musical at the Golden Globes.

His acceptance speech clearly came from a man raised with a set of values seldom seen in celebrity culture:

In the household in which I was raised, the themes were pretty simple: work hard, don’t quit, be appreciative, be thankful, be grateful, be respectful. Also to never whine, ever. plain.And always, for crying out loud, keep a sense of humor.”

My name is Michael John Douglas. I’m from Forrest Grove, Pennsylvania. I’m the seventh child of George and Leona Douglas.

And I don’t ever remember a time when my father didn’t work two jobs, when my mother wasn’t saying the rosary or going to Mass or trying to take care of seven kids in a rundown farmhouse as she was volunteering at the Ohio Valley hospital where I was born — in a hallway.

Keaton also thanked his best friend: his son, Sean. Keaton said in a previous interview that he keeps acting in perspective:

I’ve never seen the virtue in not being courageous in acting. It’s not like coal-miner bravery or Doctors-Without-Borders-going-into-Ebola-stricken-villages bravery. I mean, what’s gonna happen? People are going to laugh at you and make fun of you? Okay, fine. If that happens, I’ll go on to the next thing.

It’s great that Keaton won an award for his work. It’s even better that he called attention to the values that got him to that award stage. Work hard, be appreciate and respectful. Don’t whine, and remember to laugh. That’s an award-winning life.

Comments
Welcome to mreligion comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.
Sign up to post
Sort by
Show More Comments
RELIGION & LIBERTY ONLINE
Economy of Wonder: Buzz Aldrin Takes Communion in Space
Today marks the 46th anniversary of the day we landed on the moon, and as we look back on that monumental moment, it’s worth remembering the efforts taken by one astronaut topause and recognize hiscreator. Prior to the lift-off of Apollo 11, Buzz Aldrin spoke with his pastor about finding the “right symbol for the first lunar landing.” After some discussion, they agreed it was munion service, and the scripture passage he’d use would be John 15:5: “I am the...
Video: Jayabalan on Pope Francis and Economic Globalization
Kishore Jayabalan, director of the Istituto Acton in Rome, talked to Voa News yesterday about the flaws in Pope Francis’s pronouncements on free markets and globalization, as articulated in the recent encyclical Laudato Si’. “When the pope says that this economy kills, that this economy destroys the environment, I’m not quite sure what economy he’s talking about,” said Jayabalan. Read the full article here. ...
Book Review: ‘Under the Same Sky: From Starvation in North Korea to Salvation in America’
North Korea has been cut off from the rest of the world for nearly 70 years and few people outside of its borders – especially in the West – have a realistic picture of how life really goes on. Yes, we know it’s a horrible place, essentially a giant concentration camp, but how do North Koreans live their lives? Joseph Kim’s memoir, with contributions from Stephan Talty, Under the Same Sky: From Starvation in North Korea to Salvation in America...
What if we redistributed all profits to workers?
A plaint by the political left is that the CEOs of panies earn too much money. The implication is not, however, that the “excess” money should be distributed to the shareholders (who actually own pany). Instead, the ideais that “fairness” requires that much of theprofitthat normally goes toward the CEO’s pay should be redistributed to the rest of pany’s employees. But what if we took it a step further: What if we redistributed all corporate profits to workers? What if...
Laudato Si’ and the ‘less is more’ philosophy
Michael Severance, operations manager for Istituto Acton in Rome, wrote an article for Catholic World Report examining the economic concept of scarcity in light of Laudato Si’ and Pope Francis’s trip to South America. Severance focuses on the pope’s efforts to promote a culture of self-control and asceticism and specifically analyzes the implications of paragraph 222 of the encyclical, where Francis writes: “We need to take up an ancient lesson, found in different religious traditions and also in the Bible....
Senator Scott’s Passionate Speech on School Choice
Last week Senator Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) proposed an amendment to the reauthorization of No Child Left Behind bill that would allow Title I funds–the funds the federal government allocates to districts with high-poverty populations–to follow students out of their assigned district schools to schools of choice. Democrats in the Senate (joined by six Republicans) successfully fought to keep the portability amendment as well as school vouchers out of the legislation. As Think Progress explains, the White House and Senate...
Did America Invent Religious Tolerance?
Allowing people to think what they want about God and religious beliefs is a considered a cornerstone of a liberal society. But religious toleration hasn’t historically been considered a prized virtue. In fact, as Larry Schweikart says, it’s a historical aberration—an ideological revolution created by the Puritans and pre-1776 Americans. ...
An overview of the riots of the 21st century
Back in April I wrote about the Baltimore riots and noted the long term impactriots have historically had on cities. At the time I wrote, “Within a few weeks the riots in Baltimore will subside and the country’s attention will shift to other problems. But the economic damage caused by the violence and looting will affect munity for decades e.” Most of us who weren’t directly affected have indeed moved on to other problems. But in the wake of the...
Jeb Bush Says Work Harder; Americans Respond By Complaining
During a recent interview, presidential candidate Jeb Bush outlined his economic plan, which included a goal of achieving 4 percent economic growth. As for how we might achieve thatgrowth, Bush went mita grave and sinful error, daring implythat Americans might need to work a bit harder: My aspiration for the country —and I believe we can achieve it —is 4 percent growth as far as the eye can see,” he told the newspaper. “Which means we have to be a...
The Greatest Country in the World: What is it to You?
I believe that greatness, if defined by power, economic and cultural influence, requires us to acknowledge that the United States of America was once the greatest country in the world. However, as it ceases to lead the world in these areas – as one survey after another shows – and other countries take its place, it can no longer be considered the greatest. If we change our definition of “greatest” however, America might still be great. I believe we need...
Related Classification
Copyright 2023-2026 - www.mreligion.com All Rights Reserved