I’ve heard variations of this quote in numerous movies and TV shows (my favorite is from ST:NG where Worf says, “Today would indeed be a good day to die… but the day is not yet over!”)
Anybody know where this quote originated? Did it first appear in a movie, or is it just an old saying, or what?
Regards,
Barry
My WAG: Little Big Man starring Dustin Hoffman, from 1970.
Didn’t they say something like that in the movie “Flatliners”?
Yep, Grandfather. “Little Big Man” it is.
Well, they may have said it in “Flatliners” (1990), but “Little Big Man” (1970) beat it by 20 years. Unless somebody can come up with an earlier cite, it looks like we have a winner…
Barry
Have no idea if this is true or not, but it was well written…
DeVena: Well, seeing as how the story appears on a website devoted to cycling enthusiasts, I’m going to assume that it’s tongue-in-cheek.
Barry
The Sioux war cry Hoka-hey! is believed to translate as “It’s a good day to die!”
I had assumed it was supposedly uttered by the Indians Custer attacked at Little Bighorn. Supported by this site.
http://www.pbs.org/weta/thewest/program/episodes/six/goodday.htm
Also the title of an excellent book by Jim Harrison.
It’s been attributed to Crazy Horse. Accounts of the Battle of Little Bighorn have him saying:
“It is a good day to fight! It is a good day to die! Strong hearts to the front! Weak hearts and cowards to the rear!”
I’ll second (fourth) the last few posts. I believe it was a popular Lakota (Sioux) battle cry for some time, but it entered into the general American consciousness with the Battle of Little Bighorn. So that predates Little Big Man by nearly a century. I’m pretty sure the phrase appeared in old Westerns too, but I can’t think of any offhand.
It was a little surprising to me to realize that there are people who don’t know the origin of this phrase, since I rarely remember encountering it except in a Native American/Old West related context. As a matter of trivia, “It is a Good Day to Die” is the title of a Robbie Robertson song about the Battle of Little Bighorn, and an instrumental piece by R. Carlos Nakai and Peter Kater.
In reference to the Star Trek use of this line, it seems like Warf uttered it every other episode.
I liked that joke cycling site. It would make a wonderful test along the lines of “how many historic errors can you find buried in the piece?”
Just to start:
There was an absolutely prohibition on directly quoting the president that lasted until well into the 20th century. So there was no presidential quote of the day, no matter how transmitted. Nor was there a press room in the west wing, because the west wing itself wasn’t built until the 20th century. And no white house press corps or pool reporters either.
I won’t even comment on the “letter board”.
In a modern story, a tool-and-die shop hired a full-blooded Lakota as an inspector. The man was taciturn, working in silence until the end of each job, when he would solemnly proclaim, “It is a good die today.”
I think the line Worf uses is actually “Today IS a good day to die.”
I have heard few lines in TV history that are more fun to spoof. I’ll usually turn it into something like “Today is a good day to die. But Wednesday will be even better. It will be fair and warmer, with a high of 72 degrees, with a low of 65 in the late evening, Captain.”
Of course, I’m still waiting for the joke about the hippie who says “Today is a good day to tie-dye.”
My favorite variation is from Smoke Signals: “We went to Denny’s, and I ordered breakfast for dinner. Some days, it is a good day to die, and some days, it is a good day to eat breakfast.”.
From the Top Ten Lists of things said by Klingon Software Engineers:
“Perhaps today is a good day to die! I say we ship it!”
<quote>
and an instrumental piece by R. Carlos Nakai and Peter Kater
</quote>
<semi-obscure claim to fame>
R. Carlos Nakai is married to a 1st cousin of mine
</s-octf>
Brian
John Wayne’s Teeth, Hey-yah!
John Wayne’s Teeth, Hey-yah!
Are they fake or are they real?
Are they plastic?
Are they steel?
WTF?