Steve Buscemi: Who alive today do you admire most, and what draws you to them?

The question

Who alive today do you admire most, and what draws you to them?

Originally asked

The Guardian, to a different person each week, The Q&A

The Guardian's Q&A repeatedly uses this prompt, sometimes dropping 'living' while retaining the same comparative judgment.

You answer as yourself. Nobody on FLAPSS answers as anybody else.

Steve Buscemi

Recorded said elsewhere, not written here

Gabby Giffords. She’s a survivor of gun violence and a relentless champion of sensible gun safety measures.

Vanity Fair, The Proust Questionnaire, Vanity Fair, September 2025 source ↗

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Björk Guðmundsdóttir Icelandic singer

I find most children quite inspiring.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 31 August 2013 source ↗

Sam Ryder

Brian May, because of his love of wildlife and love of music. He’s a kind, gentle soul.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 26 August 2023 source ↗

Rory Kinnear English actor

My mother. Any child of a single parent, if they are in a relationship when they become a parent, thinks, “How the hell did you do it alone?”

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 12 August 2017 source ↗

Tommy Hilfiger American fashion designer

Jeffrey Sachs, director of the Earth Institute. The work he and the team are doing to reduce extreme poverty is phenomenal.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 2 December 2011 source ↗

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Question Which quality in your friends matters most to you? Relationships

Being there for each other during good times and bad.

Recorded The Proust Questionnaire, Vanity Fair, 2 September 2025 source ↗

Question What period or moment in your life brought you the most joy? Time & hindsight

Playing the Cowardly Lion in our fourth-grade production of The Wizard of Oz. Thank you, Mr. Riccobono.

Recorded Vanity Fair, The Proust Questionnaire, Vanity Fair, September 2025 source ↗

Question Which trait in yourself do you like least? Identity & self

Being judgmental.

Recorded Vanity Fair, The Proust Questionnaire, Vanity Fair, September 2025 source ↗

Question What do you fear most? Identity & self

Losing family, friends, and loved ones.

Recorded Vanity Fair, The Proust Questionnaire, Vanity Fair, September 2025 source ↗

Question If you could alter one thing about yourself, what would it be? Identity & self

Procrastinating. I saved answering this questionnaire until the very last minute.

Recorded The Proust Questionnaire, Vanity Fair, 2 September 2025 source ↗

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