19 quotes
Cartoon Characters vs. Real Heroes Debate
Vern
You think ] could beat up ]?
[[Mighty Mouse; [Superman]
Teddy
What are you, cracked?
Vern
Why not? I saw the other day, he was carrying five elephants in one hand.
Teddy
Boy, you don't know nothing. Mighty Mouse is a cartoon. Superman is a real guy. No way a cartoon could beat up a real guy.
Vern
Yeah, maybe you're right. It'd be a good fight, though.
Teddy
Jesus.
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
The Transience of Friendship Over Time
The Writer
As time went on we saw less and less of Teddy and Vern until eventually they became just two more faces in the halls. That happens sometimes. Friends come in and out of your life like busboys in a restaurant.
[voiceover]
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Dreams of Escape and Friendship
Chris
I'm never gonna get out of this town am I, Gordie?
Gordie
You can do anything you want, man.
Chris
Yeah, sure. Give me some skin.
Gordie
I'll see ya.
Chris
Not if I see you first.
The Writer
Chris did get out. He enrolled in the college courses with me, and although it was hard, he gutted it out like he always did. He went on to college and eventually became a lawyer. Last week, he entered a fast food restaurant. Just ahead of him, two men got into an argument; one of them pulled a knife. Chris, who'd always made the best peace, tried to break it up. He was stabbed in the throat. He died almost instantly.
[voiceover]
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Confrontation Over Control and Bravery
Gordie
You're not taking him. An nobody is taking him.
[after shooting a gun into the air]
Ace
Come on kid, just give me the gun before you take your foot off. You ain't got the sack to shoot a woodchuck.
Gordie
Move Ace. I'll kill you I swear to God.
Ace
Come on, Lachance, gimme the gun. You must have at least some of your brother's good sense.
Gordie
Suck my fat one, you cheap dime-store hood.
[quietly, aiming the gun at Ace]
Ace
What are you gonna do, shoot us all?
[mocking]
Gordie
No, Ace. Just you.
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
A Moment of Grief and Confusion
Chris
Gordie?
Gordie
Why did you have to die?
[to himself]
Vern
What's the matter with Gordie?
Chris
Nothing. Why don't you guys just go for some branches, okay?
Gordie
Why did he have to die, Chris? Why did Denny have to die? Why?
Chris
I don't know.
Gordie
It should have been me.
Chris
Don't say that.
Gordie
It should have been me.
Chris
Don't say that, man.
Gordie
I'm no good. My dad said it, I'm no good.
Chris
He doesn't know you.
Gordie
He hates me.
Chris
He doesn't hate you.
Gordie
He hates me.
[begins to cry]
Chris
No, he just doesn't know you.
Gordie
He hates me. My dad hates me. He hates me oh oh God.
[cries]
Chris
You're gonna be a great writer someday, Gordie. You might even write about us guys if you ever get hard up for material.
Gordie
Guess I'd have to be really hard up, huh?
Chris
Yeah.
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
The Enduring Impact of Childhood Friendships
The Writer
Although I haven't seen him in more than ten years I know I'll miss him forever. I never had any friends later on like the ones I had when I was twelve. Jesus, does anybody?
[typing, about Chris]
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Discussion on Physical Changes Among Friends
Teddy
Have you guys been watching ] lately? I think ] tits are getting bigger.
[[w:The Mickey Mouse Club|The Mickey Mouse Club; [w:Annette Funicello|Annette's]
Gordie
Yeah, I've been noticing lately that the "A"and the "E" are starting to bend around the sides.
Vern
Annette's tits are great.
Chris and Teddy
Yeah.
Vern
This is a really good time.
Chris
The most.
Teddy
A blast.
The Writer
Vern didn't just mean being off limits inside the junkyard, or fudging on our folks, or going on a hike up the railroad tracks to Harlow. He meant those things, but it seems to me now it was more and that we all knew it. Everything was there and around us. We knew exactly who we were and exactly where we were going. It was grand.
[voiceover]
Vern
Great! Spit at the fat kid. Real good. What time is it, Gordie?
Gordie
Um... It's 1:15.
[checks his watch]
Vern
We better go get the food. Junkyard opens at 3:00. Chopper will be here.
Chris
Ooh, sic balls.
Teddy
You go. You can pick us up on the way back.
[to Vern]
Vern
I'm not going alone. We should all go.
Teddy
I'm stayin right here.
Gordie
Yeah, man, I'm not goin'. I'm not goin all the way out there.
Chris
Girls, girls, girls, cool it. We'll flip for it.
Gordie
Okay, odd man goes?
Teddy
That's you, Gordie, odd as a cod.
Gordie
Flip or eat lead.
[to Chris]
Vern
Four tails! Oh, Jesus, man, that's a goocher.
Chris
Oh, come on, Vern. That doesn't mean anything. Let's go again.
Vern
No, man, a goocher. That's really bad. Remember when Clint Bracken and those guys got wiped out on Weed Hill in Durham? Billy told me they was flippin for beers, and they came up with a goocher before they got into the car. And bang! They all got totaled! I don't like this, man, sincerely.
Teddy
Vern-o, nobody believes that crap about moons and goochers. It's baby stuff! Now come on, flip again. You gonna flip, or not?
[to Vern]
Teddy
You lose, Gordie! Gordie loses! Oh, Gordie just ]!
[cackles; [screw the pooch|screwed the pooch; laughs]
Gordie
Does the word "retarded" mean anything to you?
Teddy
Gordie, go and get the provisions, you ]!
[[w:hermaphrodite|morphadite]
Gordie
Don't call me any of your mother's pet names.
Teddy
What a wet end you are, Lachance!
Gordie
Shut up!
Teddy
I don't shut up.
Vern, Chris, and Teddy
I grow up, and when I look at you, I throw up!
[They point at each other's open mouths making gagging sounds]
Gordie
And then your mother goes around the corner and she licks it up.
Vern, Chris, and Teddy
Ooh!
The Writer
Finding new and, preferably, disgusting ways to degrade a friend's mother was always held in high regard.
[voiceover]
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Unexpected Items for a Night Outdoors
Vern
Well, what do we need a pistol for anyway?
Chris
It's spooky sleeping out at night in the woods. We might even see a bear.
Gordie
Or a garbage can.
Vern
I brought a comb.
Chris
What do we need a comb for?
Vern
Well, if we get on TV, we wanna look good, don't we?
Gordie
That's a lot of thinking, Vern.
Vern
Thanks.
Teddy
Two for flinching.
[punches Vern in the arm twice]
Vern
Ow.
Teddy
How far do you think it's gonna be?
Chris
If we follow the tracks all the way into Harlow, it'd be about 20 miles. Sound about right to you, Gordie?
[exhales]
Gordie
Yeah. Yeah, it might even be 30.
Vern
Gee, maybe we should just hitchhike.
Teddy
No way, that sucks.
Vern
Why not? We could go out to Route 7 to the Shiloh Church, then down the Back Harlow Road. We'll be there by sundown.
Teddy
That's pussy.
Vern
Hey, it's a long ways.
Teddy
Did your mother ever have any kids that lived?
Vern
What do you mean?
Teddy
Jesus.
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Debate Over Train Timing and Safety
Vern
Any of you guys know when the next train is due?
Chris
We could go down to the Route 136 bridge.
Teddy
What are you, crazy? That's five miles down the river! You walk five miles down the river, you gotta walk five miles back. That could take til dark. We go across here, we could get to the same place in ten minutes.
Vern
Yeah, but if a train comes, there's nowheres to go.
Teddy
Hell, there isn't. You just jump.
Chris
Teddy, it's 100 feet.
Vern
Yeah, Teddy.
Teddy
Look, you guys can go around if you want. I'm crossing here. And while you guys are dragging your candy asses halfway across the state and back, I'll be waiting for you on the other side, relaxing with my thoughts.
Gordie
Do you use your left hand or your right hand for that?
Teddy
You wish.
Vern
I lost the comb.
[disappointedly]
Gordie
Forget it, Vern. TRAAAAIN!!!
[they continue walking along; Gordie suddenly hears a distant sound and looks back the way they came; he then feels the tracks again, and as he does so, he hears a chugging sound; he looks back in the opposite direction again and sees black smoke coming up from the trees; realizing a train is coming, Gordie stands up to alert the others; Chris and Teddy turn around just in time to see a train coming around the corner from the opposite end of the bridge]
Vern
Oh, shit!
[crawls as fast as he can]
Chris
Move it, man! Go on, move it!
[to Teddy]
Gordie
Get up, Vern! Damn it! GET UP! MOVE IT! Shit, Vern! Get up! Come on, man!
[furious with desperation; gets Vern on his feet as the train starts to come onto the bridge; Vern immediately cowers]
Vern
I don't wanna! We're gonna fall!
Gordie
WE'RE GONNA DIE, DAMN IT! GET UP!!!! GO! GO!
[looking back at the oncoming train; Vern gets to his feet; the two run as fast as they can]
Chris
Go, man! Go!
Gordie
DAMN IT, VERN, GO FASTER!!!!
Vern
I can't, Gordie!
Gordie
Go!
[the train gets closer to Gordie and Vern]
Chris
Run! Run! Run. Run, man! Move your ass, man!
[he and Teddy get off to the side of the tracks as the train gets just inches away from Gordie and Vern]
Gordie
Move it! Move it! Go, Vern! Come on, man! Vern! Go!
Chris and Teddy
Run! Goddamn it! Run!
Gordie
RUN, VERN!
[Chris and Teddy watch with horror; Gordie, thinking quickly, grabs Vern, and the two jump off the side of the bridge just as the train is about to hit them; as the train passes, Chris and Teddy run over to the end of the bridge and see Gordie and Vern disheveled but unharmed]
Chris
Hey, at least now we know when the next train was due.
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Embracing Individuality in Friendship
Gordie
Do you think I'm weird?
Chris
Definitely.
Gordie
No man, seriously. Am I weird?
Chris
Yeah, but so what? Everybody's weird.
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Chasing Danger and Misunderstanding
Milo
HEY! Hey, you kid! What are you doing there?! Come over here! You! You come back here! COME BACK HERE, GODDAMMIT! I'LL SIC MY DOG ON YOU!
[Gordie starts running]
Vern, Chris, and Teddy
RUN, GORDIE, RUN! RUN, GORDIE!
Milo
Chopper! Sic him! Sic him, boy!
The Writer
Now he said, "Sic him, boy." But what I heard was, "Chopper, sic balls.
[voiceover]
Gordie
That's Chopper?
The Writer
Chopper was my first lesson in the vast difference between myth and reality.
[voiceover]
Teddy
Come on, Choppy! Kiss my ass, Choppy, kiss my ass! Come on! Bite shit!
[Chopper starts biting Teddy's shirt]
Gordie
Come on, Choppy! Sic balls, Choppy!
Milo
Hey, you kids! STOP TEASING THAT DOG! YA HEAR ME?! STOP TEASING HIM! Sonny, I'm gonna beat your ass, teasing my dog like that!
[to Teddy]
Teddy
Yeah? I'd like to see you try to climb over this fence and get me, fat-ass!
Milo
Don't you call me that, you little tin weasel. Peckerwood loony's son.
Teddy
What did you call me?
Milo
I know who you are. You're Teddy Duchamp. Your dad's a loony. A loony up in the nuthouse at Togus. He took your ear and he put it to a stove and he burnt it off.
Teddy
My father stormed the beach at Normandy.
Milo
He's crazier than a shithouse rat. No wonder you're acting the way you are, with a loony for a father!
Teddy
You call my dad a loony again, and I'll kill you.
Milo
Loony, loony, loony.
[mockingly]
Teddy
I'M GONNA RIP YOUR HEAD OFF AND SHIT DOWN YOUR NECK!!!! I'M GONNA KILL HIM!!!!
[yells and jumps on the fence; the other boys restrain him]
Milo
You come on and try it, you little slimy bastard!
Chris
He wants you to go over there so he can beat the piss out of you and then take you to the cops!
Milo
You watch your mouth, smart guy! Let him do his own fighting!
Gordie
Sure, you only outweigh him by 500 pounds, fat-ass!
Milo
I know your name. You're Lachance. I know all you guys. And all your fathers are gonna get a call from me, except for the loony up in Togus.
Teddy
I'M GONNA KILL YOU!!!!
[lunges again, but the others restrain him again]
Milo
You little foul-mouthed whoremaster!
Teddy
YOU SON OF A BITCH! I'LL KILL YOU!
[the boys begin walking away]
Milo
Come back here! Come back here, you hear me?!
Teddy
Nobody ranks out my old man!
Milo
Come back here!
Teddy
My father stormed the beach at Normandy!
Milo
I said come back here!
Teddy
HE STORMED THE BEACH, YOU FAGGOT!
Milo
Come back here!
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Childhood Adventures and Local Legends in Castle Rock
Gordie
Hey, Vern, looks like your mom's been out driving again.
Vern
That's so funny, I forgot to laugh.
Teddy
Stand back, men! Paratroops, over the side!
[the boys toss their bags over the fence, then begin scaling it]
The Writer
No trespassing" was enforced by Milo Pressman, the junkman, and his dog, Chopper, the most feared and least seen dog in Castle Rock. Legend had it that Milo had trained Chopper, not just to sic, but to sic specific parts of the human anatomy. Thus, a kid, who had illegally scaled the junkyard fence, might hear the dread cry, "Chopper, sic balls." But right now, neither the dread, Chopper, nor Milo was anywhere in sight.
[voiceover]
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Dreams of College and Self-Doubt
Gordie
Maybe you could come into the college courses with me.
Chris
Yeah right, that'll be the day.
Gordie
Why not? You're smart enough.
Chris
They won't let me.
Gordie
What do you mean?
Chris
It's what everyone thinks of my family in this town. It's what they think of me. I'm just one of those low-life Chambers kids.
Gordie
That's not true.
Chris
Oh wait, it is. No one even asked me if I took the milk money that time. I just got a three day vacation.
Gordie
Did you take it?
Chris
Yeah, I took it! I mean, you knew I took it. Teddy knew I took it. Everyone knew I took it. Even Vern knew it, I think. But maybe I was sorry and I tried to give it back.
Gordie
You tried to give it back?
Chris
Maybe. Just maybe. And maybe I took it to Old Lady Simmons and told her, and the money was all there. But I still got a three day vacation because it never showed up. And maybe the next week, Old Lady Simmons had this new suit on when she came to school.
Gordie
Yeah, yeah! It was brown and it had dots on it.
Chris
Yeah. So let's just say that I stole the milk money, but Old Lady Simmons stole it back from me. Just say that I told this story. Me, Chris Chambers. Kid brother to Eyeball Chambers. Do you think that anyone would've believed it?
Gordie
No.
Chris
And do you think that that bitch would have dared try something like that if it had been one of those douchebags from up on the view, if they had taken the money?
Gordie
No way!
Chris
Hell no! But with me?... I'm sure she had her eye on that skirt for a long time. Anyway, she saw her chance, and she took it. I was the stupid one for even trying to give it back. I just never thought a teacher... Oh, who gives a fuck anyway? I just wish... that I could go some place... where nobody knows me. I guess I'm just a pussy, huh?
[begins to cry]
Gordie
No way. No way.
[comforting]
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
First Encounter with Death in Childhood
The Writer
I was 12 going on 13 first time I saw a dead human being. It happened in the summer of 1959. A long time ago. But only if you measure in terms of years. I was living in a small town in Oregon called Castle Rock. There were only 1281 people, but to me it was the whole world.
[voiceover]
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Confronting Uncomfortable Truths Among Friends
Teddy
I'm sorry if I'm spoiling everybody's good time.
Chris
It's okay, man.
Gordie
Maybe it shouldn't be a good time.
Chris
You saying you wanna go back?
Gordie
No. We're going to see a dead kid; maybe it shouldn't be a party.
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Confrontation Among Friends on an Adventure
Vern
Told you we should've stuck to the tracks.
[looking at a pond in their way]
Teddy
Is it me, or are you the world's biggest pussy?
Vern
I suppose this is fun for you.
Teddy
No... but this is. You want some more?!
[reaches up and dunks Vern while laughing crazily]
Vern
Aah! Stop that! Come on!
Chris
Come on Teddy, act your age!
Teddy
This is my age. I'm in the prime of my youth and I'll only be young once!
Chris
Yeah, but you're gonna be stupid for the rest of your life.
Vern
All right, get him!
[grinning]
Teddy
All right, Chambers, you just signed your own death warrant. You die, Chambers! Get him! Get Vern! Vern's gonna die!
[Teddy and Vern both lunge at Chris, dunking him and laughing loudly, as Gordie disgustedly wades off]
Vern
Teddy, you're gonna die!
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
A Group Faces Hunger on Their Journey
Vern
Hey, I'm kinda hungry. Who's got the food?
Teddy
Oh, shit! Did anybody bring anything?
Chris
Not me. Gordie?
[Gordie shakes his head]
Teddy
Oh, well, this is great! What are we supposed to do, eat our feet?
Chris
You mean, you didn't bring anything either?!
Teddy
Shit, this wasn't my idea, it was Vern's idea! Why didn't you bring something?!
[to Vern]
Vern
What am I supposed to do, think of everything?! I brought the comb!
Teddy
Oh, great, you brought the comb! What do you need a comb for?! You don't even have any hair!
Vern
I brought it for you guys...
Gordie
HEY, HEY, HEY, HEY, HEY! Let's see how much money we got. Okay, I got $1.02. 68 cents from Chris. 60 cents from Teddy. Seven cents, Vern?
[the boys sit down to count their money; Chris and Teddy hand Gordie their money; Vern hands Gordie his money; he looks at Vern in disbelief]
Vern
I haven't found my pennies yet.
Gordie
Well, 2.37's not bad. Quidaciolu's is at the end of that little road that goes by the junkyard. I think we can get some stuff there.
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Struggles with Identity and Parental Expectations
Chris
I mean, you could be a real writer someday, Gordie.
Gordie
Fuck writing! I don't wanna be a writer. It's stupid. It's a stupid waste of time!
Chris
That's your dad talking.
Gordie
Bullshit!
Chris
Bulltrue! I know how your dad feels about you, he doesn't give a shit about you. Denny was the one he cared about, and don't try to tell me different! You're just a kid, Gordie...
Gordie
Oh, gee, thanks, Dad!
Chris
I wish the hell I was your dad. You wouldn't be going around talking about taking these stupid shop courses if I was. It's like God gave you something man. All those stories that you can make up, and He said, "This is what we got for you kid, try not to lose it." But kids lose everything unless there's someone there to look out for them. And if your parents are too fucked up to do it, then maybe I should.
Vern
Come on, you guys, let's get moving!
Teddy
Yeah, by the time we get there, the kid won't even be dead anymore.
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
The Mystery of Goofy's Identity
Gordie
Mickey's a mouse, Donald's a duck, Pluto's a dog. What's Goofy?
Teddy
He's a dog, he's definitely a dog...
Chris
He can't be a dog, he wears a hat and drives a car...
Vern
Yeah, that is weird. What the hell is Goofy?
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.