Pride of the Marines (1945)

John Garfield: Al Schmid

Photos 

Quotes 

• Al Schmid : You know, I bet it would be more fun to shoot Japs than bears.

• Ruth Hartley : What makes men do such crazy things?

  Al Schmid : Women!

• Al Schmid : Well, there's nothing wrong with a shotgun wedding if you own a shotgun.

  Ella Mae Merchant : [Hearing news on the radio]  Jim, where's Pearl Harbor?

  Jim Merchant : Pearl Harbor? Oh, it's down the Jersey Coast near Atlantic City someplace.

• Al Schmid : Probably see a lot more action before this is over.

  Lee Diamond : Looks that way. My arm's comin' along good now.

  Al Schmid : Funny... sittin' around thinkin' of you landing on a beachhead again.

  Lee Diamond : When I hit the beach, I'll mark the first nip for you, Al.

  Al Schmid : [Bitterly]  Get him in the eyes! Right in the eyes!

• Lee Diamond : No, no, this is their chance. They've been gettin' reinforcements/ We haven't. They'll come sooner or later.

  Johnny Rivers : I'll take sooner.

  Al Schmid : I'll take later.

• Al Schmid : Lucy, I want a kiss that'll last me me the duration. You got one like that?

  Ruth Hartley : I'll do my darnedest.

• Al Schmid : Just for luck, maybe the ship'll come in tomorrow with some mail on it.

  Lee Diamond : Why is it that everything good is always gonna happen tomorrow?

• Ruth Hartley : [after Al has kissed her]  That's the second time you've kissed me without warning.

  Al Schmid : Want a warning next time?

  Ruth Hartley : Like what?

  Al Schmid : Oh, something like, uh, "Hello".

  Ruth Hartley : That's a fair enough warning.

  Al Schmid : Hello.

  [he leans in and kisses her again] 

  Ruth Hartley : You brown-eyed devil.

• Al Schmid : You know, you acted just like you didn't like my looks.

  Ruth Hartley : Oh, you're not so bad-looking.

  Al Schmid : You'd say so even if you didn't think so.

  Ruth Hartley : You'd think so even if I didn't say so.

  [Al chuckles] 

• [first lines] 

  Al Schmid : [voiceover as the camera pans through the city]  This is Philadelphia, 1941. Everybody's got a hometown, this one's mine. My name is Schmid - Al Schmid. Maybe you've heard of me, maybe not. Anyhow, one way or another, what I've got to tell you starts here in Philly. I grew up here, used to go to places like Independence Hall - that's where the Liberty Bell is and where the Declaration of Independence was signed. When I went to school, we used to visit the museums and the famous places like Constitution Hall - our first Congress met right here - and Tun Tavern where the US Marines were founded back in seventeen seventy-five. And this is where Betsy Ross lived. You heard about her, I guess. She made the first American flag. None of these things meant a whole lot to me then. When you grow up with something, you kind of take it for granted, and the reason you're seeing these place now is just because this is where my story begins, but it could have begun anywhere. It could have begun in your hometown, maybe, and what happened to me could have happened to you.

• [last lines] 

  Cabbie : [as Al and Ruth settle into the back seat of the cab]  Where to folks?

  Al Schmid : [contentedly]  Home.

• Lee Diamond : Believe me, you ain't been a sucker. There ain't a guy who's been killed or disabled in this war who's been a sucker. I know it's a stinkin' war, but it has to be won. And you're one of the guys who lost some chips in the winning. Everybody's got problems. I know you're in a tough spot, but it ain't peaches 'n' cream for everybody else.

  Al Schmid : What problems have you got? You're in one piece, ain't ya? Your wife don't have to turn over her insides when she sees you. When you go for a job, there ain't nobody going say, 'We got no use for ex-heroes like you.'

  Lee Diamond : That's what you think. Sure, there will be guys who won't hire you, even when they know you can handle a job. But there are guys who won't hire me because my name is Diamond instead of Jones. Because I celebrate Passover, instead of Easter. Do you see what I mean? You and me, we need the same kind of a world, we need a country to live in where nobody gets booted around for any reason.