- Maj. John D. 'Mac' McGillis: How's the interview going?
- Gunnery Sgt. Alva 'Gunny' Bricker: I'm spilling my guts, sir.
- Polly Cooper McGillis: Alva, "Yes", "No", and "Cold" do not an indepth story make.
- Lt. Eugene 'Gene' Holowachuk: Oh, I don't know. I think Gunny got kind of personal; she told you her favorite color is khaki, favorite movie is "The Sands of Iwo Jima", favorite tune is: "The Stars and Stripes Forever".
- Maj. John D. 'Mac' McGillis: [completely serious] Who's isn't?
- Maj. John D. 'Mac' McGillis: Gunny, you love Chesty, I broke Chesty, you must be mad as Hell about that.
- Gunnery Sgt. Alva 'Gunny' Bricker: I really should be going, sir.
- Maj. John D. 'Mac' McGillis: Look, Gunny, I know that this thing has been eatin' at you for three days now, now go on - yell at me. Call me names. Here, take your best shot!
- [turning a shoulder to her and pointing at it]
- Maj. John D. 'Mac' McGillis: Go on!
- Gunnery Sgt. Alva 'Gunny' Bricker: Major, I am enlisted, you are an officer, that would be in direct violation...
- Maj. John D. 'Mac' McGillis: - -Oh, I know the rules! I was jsut hoping for this once that we could bend the rules.
- Gunnery Sgt. Alva 'Gunny' Bricker: [look of confusion] Sir?
- Maj. John D. 'Mac' McGillis: Okay, okay, I lost my head for a minute. All right, look - let's just, let's look at this thing as a hypothetical situation. Now, we can do that, can't we?
- Gunnery Sgt. Alva 'Gunny' Bricker: I know of no rule against hypothication, sir.
- Maj. John D. 'Mac' McGillis: Good. Good. All right, let's just, ah, imagine you're not a Gunny, and I'm not a Major. Oh, let's go the whole nine yards: let's imagine we're not Marines.
- Gunnery Sgt. Alva 'Gunny' Bricker: I don't know if I have that much imagination, sir. I don't know Jules Verne had that much imagination.
- Polly Cooper McGillis: Do you have a favorite eagle?
- Gunnery Sgt. Alva 'Gunny' Bricker: Well, I know I shouldn't but I can't help myself. Chesty.
- Polly Cooper McGillis: Chesty?
- Gunnery Sgt. Alva 'Gunny' Bricker: He was once owned by "Chesty" Puller.
- Maj. John D. 'Mac' McGillis: The "Chesty" Puller?
- Gunnery Sgt. Alva 'Gunny' Bricker: The one and only, sir.
- Lt. Eugene 'Gene' Holowachuk: Wow.
- Polly Cooper McGillis: Just for my notes, who is "Chesty" Puller?
- Lt. Eugene 'Gene' Holowachuk: [McGillis and Holowachuk reply together] Who is "Chesty" Puller?
- Gunnery Sgt. Alva 'Gunny' Bricker: Lieutenant General Lewis Burwell Puller.
- Maj. John D. 'Mac' McGillis: [McGillis points to photo of "Chesty" Puller] Right here. He's the corps most decorated marine.
- Lt. Eugene 'Gene' Holowachuk: 5 Navy crosses.
- Gunnery Sgt. Alva 'Gunny' Bricker: And I've got his eagle.
- Maj. John D. 'Mac' McGillis: Gunny. How, in the world, did you get Chesty's eagle?
- Polly Cooper McGillis: Excuse me, John, but this is my interview.
- Maj. John D. 'Mac' McGillis: Oh, I'm sorry, Polly. Go ahead.
- Polly Cooper McGillis: In what manner did you acquire Chesty's eagle?
- Gunnery Sgt. Alva 'Gunny' Bricker: My grandfather and he were stationed together in Peking in '37. During a poker game, one night, Chesty ran out of money but smug with his 3 Jacks. So he signed the bottom of the eagle and used it as his marker. Grand daddy had a full house.