Daily Dialogue — March 20, 2014

The Johnsons load their guns and point them at Bart. Bart then points his own pistol at his head.

Bart: [low voice] Hold it! Next man makes a move, the nigger gets it!
Olson Johnson: Hold it, men. He’s not bluffing.
Dr. Sam Johnson: Listen to him, men. He’s just crazy enough to do it!
Bart: [low voice] Drop it! Or I swear I’ll blow this nigger’s head all over this town!
Bart: [high-pitched voice] Oh, lo’dy, lo’d, he’s desp’it! Do what he sayyyy, do what he sayyyy!

Townspeople drop their guns. Bart jams the gun into his neck and drags himself through the crowd towards the station.

Harriet Johnson: Isn’t anybody going to help that poor man?
Dr. Sam Johnson: Hush, Harriet! That’s a sure way to get him killed!
Bart: [high-pitched voice] Oooh! He’p me, he’p me! Somebody he’p me! He’p me! He’p me! He’p me!
Bart: [low voice] Shut up!

Bart places his hand over his own mouth, then drags himself through the door into his office.

— Blazing Saddles (1974), screenplay by Mel Brooks & Norman Steinberg & Andrew Bergman & Richard Pryor & Alan Uger, story by Andrew Bergman

The Daily Dialogue theme for the week: Standoff. Today’s suggestion by JasperLamarCrab.

Trivia: While filming, Burton Gilliam was at first having a difficult time saying the word n****r, especially to Cleavon Little because he really liked him. Finally after several cuts, Cleavon took him off to the side and told him it was okay because these weren’t his words. Cleavon jokingly added “if I thought you would say those words to me in any other situation we’d go to fist city but this all fun. Don’t worry about it.”

Dialogue On Dialogue: Commentary by JasperLamarCrab: “On paper, the dialogue is almost completely straight. Only the visual of Bart holding a gun to his own head makes the scene howlingly funny.”

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