10 Iconic Movie Quotes From Hollywood’s Golden Age

Films from old Hollywood are considered classics for a reason. Despite being decades old, these films feel timeless. They have a certain charm to them that seems to be invincible against time. There is just something about the feelings that older movies invoke that reminds us why we love movies.

Movies from the early decades of the American film industry are part of an era called the Golden Age of Hollywood, which is generally considered to be from 1927 through 1969. This revolutionary time period set the course for the way movies are made now and has influenced many filmmakers working today. Whether it be filming techniques or stylistic choices, Golden Age films have irrevocably left a lasting impression on the film industry.

One of the many reasons for that is that the dialogue in these films has given movie fans incredibly memorable lines. Numerous films from the time period have given audiences some of the most iconic movie quotes of all time. Whether it be because the line itself is unforgettable or the line delivery was simply spot on, Golden Age movie lines have provided some of the most recognizable quotes in media. Phrases that many of us say frequently, such as “Nobody’s perfect,” come directly from older movies. So, here are ten iconic movie quotes from Hollywood’s Golden Age.

Related: Timeless Quotes From Black and White Movies

10 “Frankly my dear, I don’t give a damn.” – Rhett Butler, Gone With the Wind (1939)

Gone With the Wind

Director

Victor Fleming, George Cukor, Sam Wood

Cast

Thomas Mitchell, Barbara O’Neil, Vivien Leigh, Evelyn Keyes, Ann Rutherford, George Reeves

Rating

G

Main Genre

Drama

Gone With the Wind has a plethora of quotable lines, such as “As God is my witness, I’ll never be hungry again!” or “After all, tomorrow is another day!” The nearly four-hour war drama/romance has been revered by the film industry for over 80 years and is considered to be one of the greatest movies of all time by many critics and film buffs alike.

The epic follows a sheltered and manipulative Southern belle named Scarlett O’Hara (Vivien Leigh) and a profiteer named Rhett Butler (Clark Gable) as they enter a tumultuous relationship during the Civil War and Reconstruction periods. The most famous line from the movie is undoubtedly Rhett’s line “Frankly my dear, I don’t give a damn.”

Why The Quote Is Iconic

This particular line is what most people associate the film with and is usually the first line to be quoted from the film when discussing it. While the word “damn” is not a taboo word by any means in today’s society, it was still somewhat of an off-limit word back in 1939, especially in a motion picture. The line is also said right after Scarlett begs Rhett to stay as he is about to walk out the door, and her life, forever. Rhett says it smoothly and calmly, but it holds a lot of emotional weight for Scarlett.

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9 “Why don’t you come up and see me sometime?” – Lady Lou, She Done Him Wrong (1933)

Mae West made herself a true Hollywood star when she took on the role of seductive New York City nightclub owner Lady Lou in She Done Him Wrong. Lady Lou has no shortage of male suitors, and one of those suitors happens to be an aggressive criminal who believes her to be his girlfriend, but Lou has not exactly been faithful to him.

Luckily, the handsome Captain Cummings (Cary Grant) is in town to help her. Lou was attracted to Captain Cummings from the moment she saw him, and eventually, she invited him to her room by saying the film’s most iconic line, “Why don’t you come up and see me sometime?”

Why The Quote Is Iconic

The movie was released a year before the Hays production codes were rigidly enforced by Hollywood studios, which meant the filmmakers didn’t have to follow the same restrictions that later Golden Age movies had to adhere to. The character of Lady Lou was unabashedly herself and satisfied her every desire. She enjoyed the company of more than one male companion, and not only was she secure in that, but the movie doesn’t villainize her for that.

Suggestive lines like that would not pass the censors in the production codes era, but in 1933 they were able to get away with it. Lines of this nature are obviously commonplace now, but back then it opened up the doors to allow women to more freely identify what they want.

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8 “We all go a little mad sometimes.” – Norman Bates, Psycho (1960)

Psycho

Release Date

June 22, 1960

Director

Alfred Hitchcock

Cast

Anthony Perkins, Vera Miles, John Gavin, Martin Balsam, John McIntire, Simon Oakland

Rating

R

Main Genre

Horror

There is no denying that Alfred Hitchcock’s classic film Psycho has been hugely influential in more ways than one. It forever changed the face of the horror genre by influencing horror films in nearly every subgenre with its storytelling, setting, and characters. There are also many iconic quotes that were born from this film that many people may not even realize come from it. One of the most famous lines comes from the main protagonist, Norman Bates, played to perfection by Anthony Perkins.

When discussing his mother, he says that she needs him and that she’s not a maniac, that she just goes a little mad sometimes. He concludes this discussion by saying “We all go a little mad sometimes.”

Why the Quote is Iconic

The line has been quoted countless times throughout film and TV. Perhaps its most notable instance is in the first Scream movie, when the Ghostface killer Billy Loomis (Skeet Ulrich) quotes Norman Bates to Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) after revealing himself to her as just one of the killers responsible for the Woodsboro murders. The way in which Perkins delivers this line as Bates is slightly off-putting, and it’s indicative of the atrocities that will take place later in the film.

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7 “Fasten your seatbelt, it’s going to be a bumpy night.” – Margo Channing, All About Eve (1950)

All About Eve

Release Date

October 6, 1950

Director

Joseph L. Mankiewicz

Cast

Bette Davis, Anne Baxter, George Sanders, Celeste Holm, Gary Merrill, Hugh Marlowe

Rating

NR

Main Genre

Drama

All About Eve follows seemingly innocent Broadway fan Eve (Anne Baxter) after she waits backstage to meet her favorite aging star Margo Channing (Bette Davis). Margo and her friends take Eve under their wings when Eve explains that she has seen every performance of hers.

Only theatre critic Addison DeWitt (George Sanders) sees through Eve’s plan, which is to steal all of Margo’s roles and her fiancée Bill (Gary Merill). The famous line “Fasten your seatbelt, it’s going to be a bumpy night” is spoken mischievously by Margo at a dinner party she is hosting after downing a martini.

Why The Quote Is Iconic

It is one of the most famous movie lines ever written, although it is often misquoted. The wording is usually slightly altered when the line is quoted, as the word “night” is often confused with the word “ride.” Margo does, in fact, say “night,” as she is referencing the night of the dinner party she is hosting. The line has become a phrase that is still said today, albeit the misquoted version, and has been said in many movies and shows over the years.

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6 “That’s the stuff dreams are made of.” – Sam Spade, The Maltese Falcon (1941)

The Maltese Falcon

Release Date

October 18, 1941

Director

John Huston

Cast

Humphrey Bogart, Mary Astor, Gladys George, Peter Lorre, Barton MacLane, Lee Patrick

Main Genre

Crime

Humphrey Bogart was one of the top leading men during the Golden Age, and he had a very distinctive presence in his movies. John Huston’s The Maltese Falcon is a film noir that sees Bogart playing private detective Sam Spade, who gets caught up with a mysterious woman and two criminals after his partner is murdered. It’s a classic murder mystery that features many twists and turns, and the most well-known quote from the film comes right at the end.

Sam is talking with Brigid (Mary Astor) about the death of his partner before the authorities come to take her away. One of the men asks Sam what the statute of the Maltese falcon is, and Sam replies hesitantly with “the stuff that dreams are made of.”

Why The Quote Is Iconic

It completely encapsulates the movie and the line delivery was near perfect. It’s regarded as one of the best lines and best movie endings of all time. It’s rare to have a film end in such a way that it is still highly regarded over 80 years later, and the reason the ending to this film is still so memorable is because of this quote.

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5 “I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.” – Rick Blaine, Casablanca (1942)

Michael Curtiz’s Casablanca is one of the best movies of all time according to basically every film institute and movie list out there. The World War II set romantic drama holds many iconic lines of dialogue that are still referenced today.

At the end of the movie, Rick (Humphrey Bogart) ends up helping Ilsa (Ingrid Bergman) and her fiancée escape Morocco, leaving him without the love of his life. Still, he knows he did right by her. As he is walking away with Captain Renault (Claude Rains), Rick says to him “I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.”

Why The Quote Is Iconic

It is a triumphant line spoken by a man who knows he made the right decision for the woman he loved. Helping Ilsa and her fiancée escape may not have been what he wanted for himself, but he would do anything for her. The line is one of the most quoted and referenced in cinema. It is a timeless quote that movies and TV shows still reference today. Even commercials today still love to reference the quote, as heard in Regal’s movie quotes ad.

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Related: The 15 Best Hits from Hollywood’s Golden Age

4 “They call me Mister Tibbs!” – Detective Virgil Tibbs, In the Heat of the Night (1967)

In the Heat of the Night

Release Date

August 2, 1967

Director

Norman Jewison

Cast

Sidney Poitier, Rod Steiger, Warren Oates, Lee Grant, Larry Gates, James Patterson

Rating

NR

Main Genre

Crime

Starring Sidney Poitier, In the Heat of the Night follows Det. Virgil Tibbs (Poitier), who is mistakenly suspected of a local murder while passing through a racist town in Mississippi. Once it’s determined that he is innocent, the police chief reluctantly asks him to investigate the case. Undoubtedly, the most famous quote from this movie is “They call me Mister Tibbs!”

Why The Quote Is Iconic

This is another movie quote that has inextricably been parodied countless times over the years. For Millennials and Gen Z audiences, this line will sound familiar because Pumba from the animated Disney movie The Lion King spoofed the quote by saying “They call me Mister Pig!”

The people of this small town obviously didn’t treat Det. Tibbs with the same decency they treated everyone else with, and in the scene in which he says this line was no different. Det. Tibbs was letting the police there know that he had respect back home in Philadelphia, and the delivery of the line is both forceful and calm.

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3 “I’m ready for my close-up.” – Norma Desmond, Sunset Boulevard (1950)

If you love movies, then chances are you probably love movies about movies. Billy Wilder’s acclaimed film Sunset Boulevard is perhaps one of the most famous movies about movies. It follows an out-of-work screenwriter named Joe Gillis (WIlliam Holden) who is unable to sell his screenplay.

He ends up meeting former silent movie star Norma Desmond (Gloria Swanson) after getting a flat tire, and she convinces him to live with her and write a screenplay together for what she thinks will be her return to cinema. Her line toward the end of the film, “I’m ready for my close-up”, is one of the most quotable from the movie and has become a common phrase.

Why The Quote Is Iconic

Norma is a bit delusional in thinking she still has a career in film, which makes her line even more impactful. She has convinced herself that there is still a place for a silent movie star in an industry that has long since transitioned to talkies. She believes she is still the star of the show, and that the cameras should always be rolling for her. Now, the phrase is used frequently, usually as a joke.

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2 “How dare he make love to me and not be a married man!” – Anna Kalman, Indiscreet (1958)

Indiscreet

Release Date

July 16, 1958

Director

Stanley Donen

Cast

Cary Grant, Ingrid Bergman, Cecil Parker, Phyllis Calvert, David Kossoff, Megs Jenkins

Main Genre

Comedy

Hollywood’s superstars Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman had already proven that they had palpable on-screen chemistry together in Alfred Hitchcock’s Notorious, so they were once again paired together 12 years later in Stanley Donen’s comedy Indiscreet.

Grant was no stranger to comedies, but this was the first full-fledged comedy Bergman ever did. Bergman plays an actress named Anna who has given up on love until she meets a suave banker named Philip (Grant) and begins flirting with him, even though he’s married. The best line from the entire movie is without a doubt “How dare he make love to me and not be a married man!”

Why The Quote Is Iconic

Bergman’s delivery of the line and comedic timing is perfect. When Anna finds out that Philip is indeed not married, it infuriates her. Bergman expertly delivered the line with just the right amount of irritation and exasperation before storming off into her room. The line is funny on its own, but the comedic performance behind the line is the reason it is so memorable.

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1 “Here’s looking at you, kid.” – Rick Blaine, Casablanca (1942)

Casablanca

Release Date

November 26, 1942

Director

Michael Curtiz

Cast

Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, Paul Henreid, Claude Rains, Conrad Veidt, Sydney Greenstreet

Rating

PG

Main Genre

Drama

Quite possibly one of the most romantic quotes in all cinema, Humphrey Bogart’s suave delivery of Rick’s “Here’s looking at you, kid” to Ingrid Bergman’s Ilsa in Casablanca is perhaps the most famous movie line ever. Rick and Ilsa’s love story is both beautiful and heart-wrenching, as their love for each other was incredibly strong, but life during a time of war kept them apart. The demise of their relationship is only partially due to the war-torn world they were living in as it is also because of the passage of time after they were separated.

Why The Quote Is Iconic

The line is unique to just them, and fully encapsulates the feelings they have for one another. The words he speaks to her are full of affection and admiration. Ilsa was everything in the world to Rick, and he would have done anything for her, which he did by the end of the film. The quote is something special just for the two of them, making it even more romantic.

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