32 quotes
Commentary on Personal Belongings and Environment
Joe Buck
Yours was the only one left with a palm tree on it. The clothes are damn cheap here too, you know that?
Reflections on Hardship and Family Legacy
Enrico Salvatore "Ratso" "Rico" Rizzo
End up a hunchback like my old man? If you think I'm crippled, you should have caught him at the end of the day. My old man spent fourteen hours a day down in that subway. He come home at night, two to three hours worth of change stained with shoe polish. Stupid bastard coughed his lungs out from breathin in that wax all day. Even a faggot undertaker couldn't get his nails clean. They had to bury him with gloves on.
Rico's Approval of a Cowboy
Enrico Salvatore "Ratso" "Rico" Rizzo
Not bad, not bad for a cowboy. You're OK. You're OK.
Desire for Escape and Validation
Ratso
I gotta get outta here, gotta get outta here. Miami Beach, that's where you could score. Anybody can score there, even you. In New York, no rich lady with any class at all buys that cowboy crap anymore. They're laughin at you on the street.
Joe
Ain't nobody laughin at me on the street.
Ratso
Behind your back, I've seen em laughin at you, fella.
Joe
Aw, what the hell you know about women anyway? When's the last time you scored, boy?
Ratso
That's a matter I only talk about at confession. We're not talkin about me now.
Joe
And when's the last time you've been to confession?
Ratso
It's between me and my confessor. And I'll tell ya another thing. Frankly, you're beginning to smell. And for a stud in New York, that's a handicap.
Joe
Well, don't talk to me about clean. I ain't never seen you change your underwear once the whole time I've been here in New York. And that's pretty peculiar behavior.
Ratso
I don't have to do that kind of thing in public. I ain't got no need to expose myself.
Joe
No, I bet you don't. I bet you ain't never even been laid! How about that? And you're gonna tell me what appeals to women!
Ratso
I know enough to know that that great big, dumb cowboy crap of yours don't appeal to nobody except every jockey on 42nd Street. That's faggot stuff! You wanna call it by its name? That's strictly for fags!
Joe
John Wayne! You wanna tell me he's a fag? I like the way I look. It makes me feel good. It does. And women like me, god-dammit. Hell, only one thing I've ever been good for is lovin'. Women go crazy for me. That's a really true fact. Ratso, hell: Crazy Annie, they had to send her away.
Ratso
Then how come you ain't scored once, the whole time you've been in New York?
Joe
Cause, cause I need management, god-dammit. Cause you stole twenty dollars offa me. That's why you're gonna stop crappin around about Florida. And, and get your skinny butt movin. And earn twenty dollars worth of management which you owe me.
Fear of Vulnerability and Loss of Independence
Enrico Salvatore "Ratso" "Rico" Rizzo
I don't think I can walk anymore. I've been fallin down a lot. I'm scared...You know what they do to ya when, when they know you can't, when they find out that you can't walk-walk. Oh Christ.
Private Entrance and Personal Warning
Enrico Salvatore "Ratso" "Rico" Rizzo
Got my own private entrance here. You're the only one who knows about it. Watch the plank. Watch the plank. Break your god-damn skull. No way to collect insurance.
Understanding Condemnation and Rent Collection
Enrico Salvatore "Ratso" "Rico" Rizzo
The X on the windows means the landlord can't collect rent, which is a convenience, on account of it's condemned.
Dreams of a Fresh Start in Miami
Joe Buck
Everything we got only set us back ten and some... Hey you know, Ratso. Rico, I mean. I got this damn thing all figured out. When we get to Miami, what we'll do is get some sort of job, you know. Cause hell, I ain't no kind of hustler. I mean, there must be an easier way of makin a living than that. Some sort of outdoors work. What do ya think? Yeah, that's what I'll do. OK Rico? Rico? Rico? Hey, Rico? Rico?
Identity and Self-Perception in Midnight Cowboy
Enrico Salvatore "Ratso" "Rico" Rizzo
You know, in my own place my name ain't Ratso. I mean, it just so happens that in my own place, my name is Enrico Salvatore Rizzo...At least call me Rico in my own god-damn place.
The Ubiquity of Prayer in Life
Mr. O'Daniel
I've prayed on the streets. I've prayed in the saloons. I've prayed in the toilets. It don't matter where, so long as He gets that prayer.
Plans for a Warmer Future
Enrico Salvatore "Ratso" "Rico" Rizzo
It's not, not bad, huh? There's no heat here, but you know, by the time winter comes, I'll be in Florida.
Essentials for Life and Miami's Charm
Enrico Salvatore "Ratso" "Rico" Rizzo
The two basic items necessary to sustain life are sunshine and coconut milk. Did you know that? That's a fact. In Florida, they got a terrific amount of coconut trees there. In fact, I think they even got em in the, uh, gas stations over there. And ladies? You know that in Miami, you got, uh, you listenin to me? You got more ladies in Miami than in any resort area in the country there. I think per capita on a given day, there's probably, uh, three hundred of em on the beach. In fact, you can't even, uh, scratch yourself without gettin a belly-button, uh, up the old kazoo there.
Dreams of Easy Living and Financial Freedom
Joe Buck
We ain't gonna have to steal no more, that's what I'm tryin to tell ya. I've got eight bucks in my damn pockets, twenty more come Thursday, boy. We're gonna be ridin easy before very long, I'm gonna tell ya. She went crazy if you want to know the damn truth of it...She turned into a damn alley cat.
Communication and Misunderstanding in Conversations
Shirley
Maybe if you didn't call me ma'am, things might work out better.
Joe
That's the first god-damned time this thing ever quit on me. It's a fact. You think I'm lyin to ya?
Shirley
No, no, I don't think you're lyin'. I just had this funny image. I had this image of a, um, policeman without his stick, and a, uh, bugler without his horn, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera. Well, I think I'm making it worse. Maybe we ought to take a little nap and see what happens.
Joe
I ain't sleepy.
Shirley
Oh! I know, scribbage.
A Promise of Shared Experiences
Mr. O'Daniel
I'm gonna use ya. I'm gonna run you ragged...You and me can have fun together. It doesn't have to be joyless.
[to Joe]
Ratso Rizzo's Iconic Reflection on Life
Enrico Salvatore "Ratso" "Rico" Rizzo
*Note: the bolded portion is ranked #27 in the ] in American cinema.
[[w:AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movie Quotes|American Film Institute's list of the top 100 movie quotations]
A Call to Action for the Cowboy
Joe Buck
You know what you gotta do cowboy.
[to himself, in the mirror]
Commentary on Relationships and Identity
Enrico Salvatore "Ratso" "Rico" Rizzo
You want the word on that brother and sister act. Hansel's a fag, and Gretel's got the hots for herself so who cares, right?
A Request for Financial Assistance
Cass
I hate to ask you, but you're such a doll.
Joe
You know, Cass, that's a funny thing you mentioning money. Cause I was just about to ask you for some.
Cass
You were gonna ask me for money? Huh?
Joe
Hell, why do you think I come all the way up here from Texas for?
Cass
You were gonna ask me for oney? Who the hell do you think you're dealing with? Some old slut on 42nd Street? In case you didn't happen to notice it, ya big Texas longhorn bull, I'm one helluva gorgeous chick.
Joe
Now, Cass, take it easy.
Cass
You heard it. At twenty-eight years old. You think you can come up here, and pull this kind of crap up here! Well, you're out of your mind!
Potential Earnings with Proper Management
Enrico Salvatore "Ratso" "Rico" Rizzo
You know, with proper management, you could be takin home fifty, maybe a hundred dollars a day, easy.
Questioning Intentions and Appearances
Joe Buck
You want me to stay here. You're after somethin'. What are you after? You don't look like a fag.
[to Ratso]
Identity and Confidence in a Complex World
Joe Buck
Well, sir, I ain't a for-real cowboy. But I am one helluva stud.
Confrontation and Defiance in Domestic Tasks
Joe Buck
You know what you can do with them dishes. And if you ain't man enough to do it for yourself, I'd be happy to oblige. I really would.
Negotiating Worth in Unexpected Situations
Ratso
She's hooked.
Shirley
Like why, cowboy?
Ratso
I'd say she was good for ten bucks, but I'll ask for twenty.
Shirley
Why cowboy whore? Did you know we were gonna make it?
Ratso
So, uh, do you really want to do business?
Shirley
Who is he? Don't tell me you two are a couple!
[referring to Ratso]
Gretel
Why are you laughing, Joe? Are you really a cowboy?
Joe
Well, I'll tell you the truth now. I ain't a real cowboy, but I am one helluva stud.
Ratso
A very expensive stud. And I happen to be his manager.
Shirley
Incidentally, how much is this gonna cost me?
Ratso
Twenty bucks.
Shirley
OK.
Ratso
And taxi fare for me.
Shirley
Oh, get lost, will ya?
Ratso
I agree, but for that service, I charge one buck taxi fare.
Navigating the Streets of Opportunity
Joe
You really know the ropes! Damn, I wish I'd bumped into you before.
Ratso
You're pickin trade up on the street like that. That's nowhere. I mean, you gotta get yourself some kind of management. You need my friend O'Daniel. He operates the biggest stable in town, in fact, in the whole god-damned Metropolitan area. It's stupid a stud like you paying. You don't want to be stupid.
Seeking Opportunity in a New Environment
Joe Buck
Lotta rich women back there, Ralph, begging for it, paying for it, too...and the men - they're mostly tutti fruttis. So I'm gonna cash in on some of that, right?...Hell, what do I got to stay around here for? I got places to go, right?
Emotional Confessions and Uncertainty in Transit
Annie
Do you love me Joe? Do you love me? Love me? You're the only one Joe. You're the only one. You're better Joe. You're better than the rest of em. You're better than any of them Joe. You love me Joe. You're better than all of em. You're the best Joe.
Shirley
Like, uh, say, hay, lay, hay, hey, lay, hmmm...gay ends in y. Hmmm? Do you like that?...Gay, fey. Is that your problem, baby?
Bus driver
Okay, folks, everything's all right. Nothing to worry about...Okay folks, nothin to worry about. Just a little illness. We'll be in Miami in just a few minutes.
Cooking Choices in Difficult Circumstances
Joe
Smells worse hot than it did cold.
[about Ratso's food]
Ratso
All right, startin tomorrow, you cook your own god-damn dinner. Or you get one of your rich Park Avenue ladies to cook for you in her penthouse.
A Transaction on 42nd Street
Joe
There you go boy, there's money for ya, that's nine dollars right there plus assorted change, minus 26 cents for milk, plus 5 cents for Dentyne - gum.
Ratso
Where you been, 42nd Street? That's where you've been.
Joe
Buy yourself some medicine before you die in my damn hands.
Assertive Defiance in Urban Life
Enrico Salvatore "Ratso" "Rico" Rizzo
HEY! I'm walkin here! I'm walkin here! Up yours, you son-of-a-bitch! You don't talk to me that way! Get outta here! Don't worry about that. Actually, that ain't a bad way to pick up insurance, you know.
[bangs hand on car; to Joe]
Compliment on a Shirt
Enrico Salvatore "Ratso" "Rico" Rizzo
Terrific shirt.
[to Joe]