The Green Berets (1968)

Aldo Ray: Sgt. Muldoon

Photos 

Quotes 

• Gladys Cooper : It's strange that we've never read of this in the newspapers.

  Sergeant Muldoon : Well... that's newspapers for you, ma'am. You could fill volumes with what you don't read in them."

• Hugh Parkinson : I'm Hugh Parkinson. I happen to be a newspaper man. Since you've been in Vietnam perhaps you could answer a question that many of our subscribers asked.

  Sergeant Muldoon : We'll try.

  Hugh Parkinson : Why is the United States waging this ruthless war?

  Sergeant Muldoon : Foreign policy decisions are not made by the military. A soldier goes where he is told to go, and fight whomever he is told to fight.

• George Beckworth : How do you know we should be fighting for this present government? They've had no free elections. They've had no constitution. Six months ago, a committee was appointed to form a constitution... still no constitution.

  Sergeant Muldoon : The school I went to, Mr. Beckworth, taught us that the thirteen colonies, with proper and educated leadership, all with the same goal in mind, AFTER the Revolutionary War, took from 1776 to 1787, eleven years of peaceful effort, before they came up with a paper that all thirteen colonies would sign... our present Constitution.

  [the audience applauds] 

  George Beckworth : That's very good, Sergeant. But there are still a lot of people who believe that this is simply a war between the Vietnamese people! It's their war, let's let them handle it.

  Sergeant Muldoon : Let them handle it, Mr. Beckworth?

  [Points to a collection of weapons] 

  Sergeant Muldoon : Captured weaponry.

  [as Muldoon takes the weapons from the board, he names them, then drops them on the table in front of Beckworth] 

  Sergeant Muldoon : From Red China: Chicom K-50, Chinese communist! SKS Soviet-made carbine, Russian communist! Ammunition, Czechoslovakian-made... Czech communist! No sir, Mr. Beckworth! It doesn't take a lead weight to fall on me or a hit from one of those weapons to recognize that what's involved here is communist domination of the world!

• Sergeant Muldoon : [after seeing him in non-military issued pajamas]  Peterson, I worry about you. Three tours of duty and you're still acting like a civilian!

  Sgt. Petersen : Muldoon, I'm not a Marine. I believe in my comfort!

• Sergeant Muldoon : Are you sure that's what he wanted?

  Colonel Mike Kirby : Affimative! That's what he wanted and that's what he's gonna get.

  Sergeant Muldoon : We'll maybe he liked the idea of having so many men think about him every day.

  Colonel Mike Kirby : Besides that... It SINGS!

  [exits] 

  Sergeant Muldoon : [to himself]  It sings? That's what he said. Provo's Privy, It DOES sing!

• Doc McGee : How come you like blowing things up so much?

  Sergeant Muldoon : My dad gave me a chemistry set. It got bigger than both of us.

• Sgt. Petersen : [after being woken up by Sgt Muldoon]  3:30! Is that right, Sarge?

  Sergeant Muldoon : That's right, Soldier-boy. That's right!

  Sgt. Petersen : We'd better get some sleep! We've got a hell of a lot of work to do tomorrow!