29 October 2007

Shark Stakeout?

Richard Dreyfuss turns 60 today! Coincidentally, I was talking to someone just the other day about one of my favorite film moments, which included Mr. Dreyfuss. I don't know why I get such a kick out of this, but Richard Dreyfuss was in a film back in 1987 called Stakeout, which some of you may remember. One of the recurring comedic elements in this movie was the trivia game that Dreyfuss' character (Chris Lecce) and Emilio Estevez' character (Bill Reimers) played to pass the time during their stakeouts. I pulled the exact exchange that sticks in my mind from IMDB:

Chris Lecce (Richard Dreyfuss): [Chris and Bill are whiling away the time playing trivia questions] Okay, I got one, name the 16th President.
Bill Reimers (Emilio Estevez): I don't know.
Chris Lecce: Here's a hint...
Bill Reimers: Abraham Lincoln.
Bill Reimers: [His questions are identifying quotes] Okay, "This was no boating accident!"
Chris Lecce: No idea.
Bill Reimers: Man, you suck at this.

Astute members of the audience attending a screening of Stakeout back in 1987 remembered this quote from the most popular movie of 1975 (also taken from IMDB):

[Hooper (Richard Dreyfuss) is examining the remains of the first victim - describes the post-mortem into his tape recorder]
Hooper: The height and weight of the victim can only be estimated from the partial remains. The torso has been severed in mid-thorax; there are no major organs remaining...
Hooper: Right arm has been severed above the elbow with massive tissue loss in the upper musculature... partially denuded bone remaining...
Hooper: [to the m.e. and Brody] This was no boat(ing) accident!

Pure scripting genius, IMHO!

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