Hail the Conquering Hero (1944)

Jimmy Conlin: Judge Dennis

Quotes 

• Judge Dennis : [notices that Woodrow is in civilian clothes]  Where are the medals?

  Woodrow Lafayette Pershing Truesmith : Oh, oh, the medals. Well, I just wore those to get off the train. I suppose I shouldn't have.

  Doc Bissell : What do you mean you shouldn't have? If all good men wore medals it wouldn't be so hard to tell the good from the bad.

• Woodrow Lafayette Pershing Truesmith : [to the crowd, trying to decline being nominated for mayor]  I've known all of you all my life. I've mowed your lawns. I delivered milk for your babies. I even know the dogs and cats.

  Judge Dennis : [aside to Doc Bissell & Rev. Upperman]  That milk and baby part is remarkable.

  Rev. Upperman : After that, he could be president!

• [Woodrow - in his scheme - has just announced that the Marines have called him back] 

  Judge Dennis : Why don't they leave you here where we need you?

  Libby : That's right.

  Doc Bissell : That's one of the weaknesses of the military viewpoint: doesn't always recognize the importance of civilians in wartime.

• Judge Dennis : [the crowd has re-gathered at the train station to see Woodrwow]  Naturally the nomination went back to Doc Bissell. But he got up and said...

  Mr. Schultz : "Ladies and gents..."

  Doc Bissell : Don't mis-quote me.

  Judge Dennis : What?

  Doc Bissell : I said, "ladies and gentlemen."

  Committee Chairman : Of course you did.

  Doc Bissell : I said, "Ladies and gentlemen, in all the years that I have been unsuccessfully mixed into politics, this is the first and only time that I have ever seen a candidate for office - given an opportunity to prove publicly, permanently and beyond peradventure of doubt that he was honest, courageous and veracious..."

  Judge Dennis : That means truthful. He likes those big words.

  Doc Bissell : I said, further, "that if to act out a little lie to save one's mother humiliation was a fault - in other words, if tenderness toward and consideration of one's mother was a fault - it was a fault any man might be proud of."