The Lost Battalion Quotes

Capt. McMurtry: Lieutenant Leak?

Lt. Leak: Yes, sir?

Capt. McMurtry: I'm Captain McMurtry. Welcome to the 308th

Lt. Leak: Captain, uh... there must be some mistake. I'm supposed to be in a Texas unit. Most of these boys are from New York and I just don't understand a word these city fellers are sayin'.

Capt. McMurtry: You don't have to understand them Lieutenant, they have to understand you.

Yoder: Hey, how come you guys from New York call everybody "buddy"?

Lipasti: You're not from the city?

Yoder: From Bigfork, Montana.

Lipasti: Never heard of it. I didn't know they let apple-knockers into this outfit.

Krotoshinsky: He...

[Lipasti]

Krotoshinsky: thinks you might want to buy a bridge.

Yoder: What bridge?

Lipasti: The Brooklyn Bridge. What other bridge is there? What kind of an army is this, we come all the way to France and they stick us with boys from Daisyville.

Lt. Leak: Morning, sir.

Maj. Whittlesey: We don't salut up here Lieutenant.

Lt. Leak: I'm sorry, sir.

Maj. Whittlesey: My officers of men shave everyday.

Lt. Leak: Oh, I'm sorry, sir.

Maj. Whittlesey: You're sorry about a lot of things.

Lt. Leak: Well, we got up here kinda late yesterday and...

Maj. Whittlesey: Is that and excuse or an explanation? I'm not interested in either on. I want you and your platoon squared away, make sure your men have full rations, plenty of ammo. And wear that uniform properly. Put on dry socks if you have them and straighten your helmet. Oh and Lt. Leak, welcome to the 308th.

Cepheglia: This is a French Cho-Cho.

Rosen: Chauchat.

Cepheglia: It's a piece of garbage, don't worry about it.

Rosen: Leave it to Henchman and Hollingshead.

Cepheglia: Don't worry about mortars, tanks and artillery.

Rosen: We don't have any of that either.

Cepheglia: Basically we're mud crunchers,

Rosen: Gravel agitators.

Cepheglia: Infantry.

Krotoshinsky: Where's the Cowboy going?

Lipasti: He must know something.

Krotoshinsky: You think so?

Lipasti: He's from Roadville, he grew up around trees. You've ever been around trees?

Krotoshinsky: They got trees in Union Square.

Lipasti: Those don't count.

Maj. Prinz: You Americans, you always have so much of everything. No matter. Eventually you have to surrender.

Lt. Leak: I don't think so.

Maj. Prinz: Are you officers so callous? You're surrounded. You have no chance of relief. Every night you send out patrols, and every night we kill them. We can hear the cries of your wounded Lieutenant. There is no dishonor in surrender.

Lt. Leak: Maybe for you, but my guys are different.

Maj. Prinz: What do you mean?

Lt. Leak: What you're up against Major, is a bunch of Mick, Pollack, Dago, and Jew boy gangsters from New York City. They'll never surrender. Never.

[Cooking soup]

Cepheglia: It's done.

Rosen: It's not done. Anyhow, why should I share this with you?

Cepheglia: Because I killed the guy you took it off.

Rosen: Minor detail.

Yoder: Hey, how come nobody ever calls me Bob?

Cepheglia: Who's Bob?

Rosen: He's Bob you dumb Dago. Haven't you ever heard of a first name?

Cepheglia: Your first name is Private. You're gonna be Private all your life Rosen. You'll never make Corporal.

Rosen: All I wanna make is civilian.

Maj. Whittlesey: Lieutenant Leak, fine officer, from Texas...

Capt. McMurtry: We lost over 60 men to our own fire today. We heave less then 200 able troops left. I don't know how they keep doing it.

Maj. Whittlesey: Don't sell them short, Captain. Two days ago we had a Chinese working our field-phone, an American-Indian for a runner; they're both dead now but that's not the point. These Italians, Irish, Jews, and Poles, they'd never hire me as an attorney; we wouldn't be seen at the same events. But we will never, in our lives, enjoy the company of finer soldiers or better men then we do tonight.

Capt. McMurtry: Major, I was with Teddy Roosevelt's Rough Riders. And I have never served with a finer officer then you. Do you know that your men would do anything, go anywhere for you?

Maj. Whittlesey: Thank you, George.

[last lines]

Gen. Robert Alexander: Major Whittlesey, there's going to be promotions and commondations for everybody! No wonder our airplanes couldn't find this place.

Lipasti: Well... your artillery certainly found it, General.

Gen. Robert Alexander: [to Whittlesey] Where's the rest of your battallion?

Maj. Whittlesey: [Whittlesee hands the General the collection of dog-tags] Sgt. Gaedeke we couldn't find enough to bury. Lt. Schenck's platoon is somewhere out there. I sent him to link with the French you said were on our flank, General.

Gen. Robert Alexander: [pulls Whittlesey aside] These are acceptable losses...

Maj. Whittlesey: Not to me, sir.

Gen. Robert Alexander: I understand your feelings for your men.

Maj. Whittlesey: You said our flanks were supported and you ordered my men to attack. You said supply would catch up to us... which it did not! Is that acceptable to you?

Gen. Robert Alexander: Yes, that's acceptable to me. We were able to break through the German line because you held on here... because you held on here like a thorn in their belly. Major, you did an incredible job out here, but you had 600 men to worry about and I had 20,000 sent into action. I have to live with that...

[pause]

Gen. Robert Alexander: I sent for trucks to bring your men back. They've been through hell.

Maj. Whittlesey: You'll never know what they've been through, or what they can and can't do. They're better then you, General. They're better then me, they always are.

Gen. Robert Alexander: Let me take you and your officers back in my staff car.

Maj. Whittlesey: That's not acceptable, Sir. I'll stay with my men.

Gen. Robert Alexander: I understand.

Maj. Whittlesey: [the General salutes and Whittlesey just turns away] Men, we're moving out!

Maj. Prinz: [speaking German; subtitled] We learned at Chateau-Thierry and Belleau Wood that these Americans are unpredictable. They don't retreat when they're supposed to.

Gen. von Sybel: [in German] How inconsiderate of them, Major.

Capt. McMurtry: What's your name?

Lipasti: Private Lipasti, sir.

Capt. McMurtry: Where'd you learn to run like that?

Lipasti: I used to take a shortcut home through a Mick neighborhood, had to outrun a lotta your "Irish confetti", sir.

Capt. McMurtry: Well, I'm glad one of my cousins didn't bean you with a brick.

[after an incoming artillery round lands dangerously close to the trench]

Cepheglia: That's just some traveling salesman throwing iron cigars.

Rosen: Translation: German artillery.

Cepheglia: Which brings me to stuff. There're two kinds of stuff.

Rosen: Stuff going out, ours. Stuff comming in, theirs.

Cepheglia: Mud crunchers must learn to judge between different kinds of stuff. If you here something that whistles and knocks, that there is a whiz-bang. Get on the ground. Sometimes Herr whiz-bang brings along his lady friend, Minnie Waffer.

Rosen: Minenwerfer.

Cepheglia: Minnie Waffer sounds like one of those whining hot corn ladies on 10th Avenue.

Rosen: Nah, it's more like the B.R.T. coming out of the tubes.

Cepheglia: The thing is that they're real hard to judge. So just hit the ground anytime you hear something like that. And don't worry if it hits you, 'cause they got a lot of other stuff. Like Jack Johnsons, Whimpering Willies...

Rosen: G.I. Cans, airplane bombs, machine guns...

Cepheglia: And all sorts of potato masher grenades. Don't worry about any of that 'cause it all comes down to that...

[shows the troops his rifle with a fixed bayonet]

Rosen: When you go face-to-face with a mud crunching heinie bastard with one of these at the end of his rifle. You better stick it in him before he sticks it in you!

Cepheglia: That... you gotta worry about.

Capt. Nelson Holderman - Co. K, 307th: Captain McMurtry was telling me you used to be a lawyer before the war.

Maj. Whittlesey: Yes, I was. I, uh, dealt with contracts and regulations.

Capt. Nelson Holderman - Co. K, 307th: You know, Major, uh... people like me and McMurtry, we're professional soldiers. You know, if we weren't here, we'd be someplace else. But you could be in legal affairs, Sir, on the General's staff.

Maj. Whittlesey: I don't think I'd enjoy working with General Alexander.

Capt. Nelson Holderman - Co. K, 307th: You don't think we should be here, do you?

Maj. Whittlesey: No.

Capt. Nelson Holderman - Co. K, 307th: Well, given that's the way that you feel, why are you here?

Maj. Whittlesey: Huh. Life would be a lot simpler if we could choose our duties and obligations. But we can't. We shouldn't. That's why I'm here.

Capt. McMurtry: Lieutenant.

Lt. Leak: Captain.

Capt. McMurtry: The Major lay into you today?

Lt. Leak: Like a hot brandin' iron. He West Point?

Capt. McMurtry: New York lawyer.

Lt. Leak: You never know, do ya?

Capt. McMurtry: No, you never do. Boy, we really lucked out, didn't we. It would be a hell of a thing to come all the way to France and not having anything to tell our children and grandchildren about. Now, tomorrow... when you go over the top. You pick a point straight ahead and you walk to it. Now don't worry about where everybody else is. These are good men. They'll follow you. Now you go ten yards, then ten more.

Lt. Leak: Ten yards?

Capt. McMurtry: Ten yards at a time, and you can make the whole trip that way.

Lt. Leak: What about the Germans?

Capt. McMurtry: The boys know what to do with them. You'll figure it out pretty damn quick.

Lt. Leak: Most of my men have never been in combat before.

Capt. McMurtry: Yeah, we planned it that way. You've never been in a fight, have you?

Lt. Leak: Nothin' like this.

Capt. McMurtry: That's why you walk in front of the troops. See, you'll get there before they do. That means you'll be the one with the most experience. You can tell them what to do.

Lt. Leak: Yeah. That's right. Ain't it?

Capt. McMurtry: You'll do just fine.