"Dinky" Dean Riesner

Posted by ESC on January 28, 2005

In Reply to: More Dirty Harry posted by SR on January 27, 2005

: : : : What does the famous quote "GO HEAD, MAKE MY DAY" mean? Do people use this in day to day life? and if yes in what context

: : : "Go ahead, make my day." Spoken by Det. Harry Callahan played by Clint Eastwood, in Dirty Harry, written by Joseph Stinson.

: : : It means that the speaker would be very happy if you continue on with your actions or behaviour because he/she could react in a manner that would be extremely pleasurable to them.

: : : SR

: : However, there is no suggestion of co-operation between the parties. The anti-social or antagonistic activity of one will give the other the opportunity to retaliate using unreasonable measures and quite possibly excessive violence.

: I agree that the original quote was used as Henry has described, but recently it has taken on a less menacing meaning, sometimes even used sarcastically or whimsically. At least around these parts it has.

: Harry Callahan was famous for quotable quotes in his movies.
: Harry Callahan: "I know what you're thinking. Did he fire six shots or only five? Well, to tell you the truth, in all this excitement, I've kinda lost track myself. But being as this is a .44 Magnum, the most powerful handgun in the world, and would blow your head clean off, you've got to ask yourself one question: 'Do I feel lucky?' Well, do ya punk?"

: [Harry Callahan has to explain why he shot a man.]
: Harry Callahan: "Well, when an adult male is chasing a female with intent to commit rape, I shoot the bastard. That's my policy."
: The Mayor: "Intent? How did you establish that?"
: Harry Callahan: "When a man is chasing a woman through an alley with a butcher's knife and a hard-on, I figure he isn't out collecting for the Red Cross!"

: SR

From the archives:

GO HEAD, MAKE MY DAY/ DO I FEEL LUCKY?/ GET MEDIEVAL -"Make my day" is a line from "Sudden Impact" starring Clint Eastwood. The movie was the fourth in the Dirty Harry series. The author of the line was "Dinky" Dean Riesner, screenwriter, 1918-2002. An online obitutary says: "'Dinky' Dean Riesner, who has died aged 83, was a child star of the 1920s and later a successful screenwriter, best known for the Clint Eastwood films 'Dirty Harry' and 'Play Misty for Me' (both 1971). But it was not until the early 1970s that Riesner became more widely known for his screenplays. It was he who wrote such lines as "You have to ask yourself one question: 'Do I feel lucky?' Well, do ya, punk?'* (Dirty Harry) and 'Go ahead, make my day' after being brought in by the director Don Siegel as the fifth screenwriter on Dirty Harry. He also came up with the original 'They'll tie you naked to a chair and get medieval with you' line in 'Charley Varrick' . From online article "Child star wrote, 'Go ahead, make my day'", September 19 2002. Accessed May 1, 2003. Sidney Morning Herald. www.smh.com.au/articles/2002/09/18/1032054864912.html The medieval line was reprised in "Pulp Fiction : "I'm gonna get medieval on your a**."