Bankrate: When was the first time you really knew you could be successful in the arts at some point?
Katey Sagal: You know, I never thought I wouldn't be, and that's not being arrogant. ... So it was harder for me when I wasn't being successful because to me, this was just how it was going to be. And you have to define what success is. Success to me in my 20s was being able to do what I did, and it didn't necessarily mean monetary success and it didn't necessarily mean fame. But it meant being credible with my peers, which was always very important to me. I didn't really know how to do anything else. So if I could be successful at what I wanted to do, that was fine with me.
Bankrate: How did it feel to be a part of a TV show that has become a part of American culture?
Katey Sagal: I never really think about it like that until somebody says something like that. We went to the TV Land Awards and were honored there recently. I still have a pretty big fan base from that show. I'm flattered by it and I feel very grateful for it. It was a life-altering experience to be on a show like that.
Bankrate: You say success in life came later and at 55, you now have a 2-year-old daughter. What are your feelings on being an older mom?
Katey Sagal: I always say men do this all the time. When a woman does this, it's like "Wow, how do you do this," and I say, "Well, Michael Douglas has young ones." But I'm a much better mom 'cause I had them later in life. The first two I had at 38 and 40. I feel like I'm less distracted. I let things roll off my back easier. Having a third one, I know she's going to survive, eventually get out of her diapers and brush her teeth on her own, whereas with the first one, you're not sure anything is going to work out.
Bankrate: Esme was born via surrogacy. Was that a difficult decision to make?
Katey Sagal: I think it mostly came out of love for my husband. He had never had his own kids and was step-parenting my own two. I thought it certainly might have happened a little sooner than it did (laughs) and I sort of said to him when we started dating maybe he should think about this. He's seven years younger than I am. I think that's good anyway -- keeps me on my toes. So he came to it a little bit later, and I was very supportive of it.
Bankrate: Being a mom to three kids, do you ever think of going into a more secure line of work in order to provide for them?
Katey Sagal: I have those thoughts, especially when there's no work around. And I've definitely gone through those periods where I thought, "What am I doing?" But I never, ever knew what else to do. And there have been times in my life that I wracked my brain about what else I could be qualified to do. And I literally cannot come up with anything.
Bankrate: How have you instituted cost saving measures into your everyday life?
Katey Sagal: I try not to use the credit card that much; I try not to use it at all. Of course, if you talk to my accountant, she'd say I was a big, fat failure. But I try, and I try to use cash instead of the credit card, which does help me think twice before making a purchase. And I shop sales. Both of my older kids go to private schools so they wear uniforms, which are great for the pocketbook. I don't have to buy that many kids clothes. And Esme is wearing some of Sarah's 2-year-old clothes that I saved. We just try to be smart.
Bankrate: What would be the title of the song you would write about your life?
Katey Sagal: "Work In Progress," because I feel like I'm still learning stuff. "Sons of Anarchy" is such a great creative stretch for me, and it's so what I was looking to do because it's just different from what I did before. Everyday I go to work, I'm using a part of me I haven't been able to access as much, and it makes me very excited.
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