The Wolf Man (1941)

Lon Chaney Jr.: Lawrence Talbot, The Wolf Man

Photos 

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Quotes 

• Jenny Williams : Even a man who is pure in heart and says his prayers by night, may become a wolf when the wolfbane blooms and the autumn moon is bright.

  Larry Talbot : [after hearing it twice already]  You know that one too, eh?

• Maleva : You killed the wolf.

  Larry Talbot : Well, there's no crime in that is there?

  Maleva : The wolf was Bela.

  Larry Talbot : You think I don't know the difference between a wolf and a man?

  Maleva : Bela turned into a wolf and you killed him. A werewolf can only be killed by a silver bullet, or a silver knife...

  [looks down at Larry's walking stick] 

  Maleva : ...or a stick with a silver handle.

  Larry Talbot : You're insane! I tell you, I killed a wolf! A PLAIN, ORDINARY WOLF!

• Gwen Conliffe : [Gwen and Larry are taking a moonlight walk]  So you're a fortune teller?

  Larry Talbot : Uh-huh.

  Gwen Conliffe : Is that how you knew about the earrings?

  Larry Talbot : Well, no exactly. You see, a telescope has a mighty sharp eye. It brings the stars so close that you feel you can almost touch them.

  Gwen Conliffe : [shocked]  A telescope?

  Larry Talbot : Sure. And it does the same thing to people in their rooms - that is if you point it in the right direction.

  Gwen Conliffe : Oh you wouldn't.

  Larry Talbot : Well, now, I was only testing the refractor. I didn't know about you and all of sudden there you were.

  Gwen Conliffe : From now on I'll be sure to draw the curtains.

  Larry Talbot : Oh, don't do that, I mean, not on account of me.

  [stumbling] 

  Larry Talbot : I mean, well, you know what I mean.

  Gwen Conliffe : [grinning]  Yes, I'm afraid I do.

• Larry Talbot : It isn't a wolf... it's a werewolf!

• Sir John Talbot : Larry, to some people, life is very simple. They decide that this is good, that is bad. This is wrong, that's right. There's no right in wrong, no good in bad. No shadings and greys, all blacks and whites.

  Larry Talbot : That'd be Paul Montford.

  Sir John Talbot : Exactly. Now others of us find that good, bad, right, wrong, are many-sided, complex things. We try to see every side but the more we see, the less sure we are. Now you asked me if I believe a man can become a wolf. If you mean "Can it take on physical traits of an animal?" No, it's fantastic. However, I do believe that most anything can happen to a man in his own mind.

• Larry Talbot : You wouldn't wanna run away with a murderer wouldja?

  Gwen Conliffe : Oh Larry, you're not. You know you're not.

  Larry Talbot : I killed Bela. I killed Richardson. If I stay here any longer, you can't tell who'll be next.

• Sir John Talbot : You can't run away.

  Larry Talbot : That's it! That's what she said.

  Sir John Talbot : Who?

  Larry Talbot : The gypsy woman.

  Sir John Talbot : Gypsy woman? Now we're getting down to it. She's been filling your mind with this gibberish. This talk of werewolves and pentagrams. You're not a child Larry, you're a grown man and you believe in the superstitions of a Gypsy woman!

• Col. Paul Montford, chief constable : [showing Larry's stick to him]  Is this your walking stick?

  Larry Talbot : Why, yes. That's the stick I killed the wolf with.

  [Sir John Talbot and Col. Montford look at Larry with great concern] 

  Sir John Talbot : Larry, Bela the gypsy was killed last night. Your walking stick was found next to the body.

  Larry Talbot : You mean, Bela the fortune teller? But... I only saw a wolf.

• Larry Talbot : [on hearing the word "lycanthropy"]  Oh, it's all Greek to me!

  Sir John Talbot : Well, it is Greek.

• Sir John Talbot : Yes, that's the sign of the werewolf.

  Larry Talbot : That's just a legend though, isn't it?

  Sir John Talbot : Yes, but like most legends, it must have some basis in fact. It's probably an ancient explanation of the dual personality in each of us. How does it go? "Even a man who is pure in heart and says his prayers by night may become a wolf when the wolfbane blooms and Autumn moon is bright."

• Larry Talbot : That's what she said. The gypsy woman.

• Larry Talbot : Don't try to make me believe that I killed a man when I know that I killed a wolf!

  Doctor Lloyd : [patronizing Larry]  Yes, yes. We're all a little bit confused.

• Maleva : Whoever is bitten by a werewolf and lives becomes a werewolf himself.

  Larry Talbot : Ah, don't hand me that. You're just wasting your time.

  Maleva : The wolf bit you, didn't he?

  Larry Talbot : Yeah. Yeah he did!