Words matter. These are the best R. Lee Ermey Quotes, and they’re great for sharing with your friends.
The best part about the movie, and everybody seems to rave about it, is the boot camp part.
Kubrick ate it up. He loved it. He just let me go crazy.
Back in the old Corp, we weren’t training those privates to infiltrate into the peacetime Marine Corp. We were training those privates to go to Vietnam.
There’s a lot of whiners in every crowd.
That’s all I cared about too, was getting it right.
I was stationed at a marine recruit depot in San Diego from 1965 to 1967.
I try to get over to Iraq and Afghanistan as much as I can.
I’ve never had to spend any time in the VA hospital, so I really can’t speak for those guys.
The biggest problem was the politicians knew nothing about fighting a war.
Everybody respects the Vietnam Veterans of America.
I firmly believe that you live and learn, and if you don’t learn from past mistakes, then you need to be drug out and shot.
For me, it’s an honor for the military to ask me to go to Iraq, Afghanistan, or GITMO. I’m happy to go.
When you try to find funding for a VVA function, it doesn’t seem like it’s any trouble at all. People come out of the woodwork with their money to help out because we went over and fought a war.
I honestly do feel that I am a role model for young people.
It’s been a pretty fun ride, to tell you the truth.
I spend a lot of time with my characters.
Back in those days intimidation was the greatest tool the drill instructor had. Without that tool, he would not have had control.
Without discipline, there is no Marine Corps.
I got space from Travis Air Force Base, went back to the Philippine Islands and made it a point to meet the only American casting director in the Philippines. I was off and running.
I don’t have to be concerned about everybody else’s character.
America’s trying to do the best for its veterans.
Even though I disagree with many of the changes, when I see the privates graduate at the end of the day, when they walk off that drill field at the end of the ceremony, they are still fine privates; outstanding, well motivated privates.
You’d be surprised how many kids and young people come to the website and send me email that they are actually going into the Marine Corp because of something that I said or did.
Every character I’ve ever played, I always try to take him right to the edge and not allow him to fall over, but directors have a tendency to pull me back a little bit.
I’m never, like I say, I’m never happy, I’m never satisfied, it’s never good enough.
There have been a lot of changes in recruit training in the past twenty years.
I got to write most of everything I said.
Kubrick’s films have life – they just never die.
I disagree with a lot of those changes, however at the end of the day – I go down to recruit graduation at least once or twice a year.
There was a huge, tremendous amount of disabled veterans and the Veteran’s Administration just wasn’t geared up for it. I know for a fact that it’s getting better and better.
In order to be a good actor, I’m a firm believer that you need to bring something to the table.
I hate to hear ‘Less is more.’ It’s a crock of crap.
The bad news motivated the drill instructors that much more.