Raylan Givens Quotes

“You thinkin bout the time I shot you and you rose from the dead? It only happens once in your life." He turned to Carol again and she said:

"Were you actually aiming at his hat?"

"I hit it didn't I?”
― Elmore Leonard

“She wondered what he looked like with his hat off and wondered again if he knew he was funny.”
― Elmore Leonard, Pronto

“I thought I explained it to you. Boyd and I dug coal together.”
― Elmore Leonard, Fire in the Hole

“Boyd looked at him now like he was trying to decide something in his mind.
“You’d shoot me, you get the chance?”
“You make me pull,” Raylan said, “I’ll put you down.”
― Elmore Leonard, Fire in the Hole

“She said, "Coming across the yard you had your hat off, but as you reached the door you put it on." "I guess I did, didn't I?" "You were being...I want to say official, and your hat's like a badge of office. You like to set it forward a little, close over your eyes." "I've had that hat eight years," Raylan said. "I never thought I wore it any special way, I just put it on my head.”
― Elmore Leonard, Riding the Rap

“I'll give you something else to think about. Not very long ago he shot and killed a man and did it deliberately, at close range. What I'm saying is he intended to kill the guy and he did." Again the silence before Chip said, "Come on, he told you that?" "I felt it in his hand," Dawn said. "The one that held the gun.”
― Elmore Leonard, Riding the Rap

“There was a poster with the heading HANG 'EM HIGH that showed a famous hanging judge of a hundred years ago, Isaac Parker, against a montage of condemned prisoners on scaffolds waiting to be dropped through the trapdoors. Raylan would look at the poster, in the lobby of the Marshals Service offices in Miami, and feel good about their tradition. Not the hanging part--they had quit handing out death penalties in federal court--but the tradition of U.S. marshals as peace officers on the western frontier. Every time he looked at Judge Parker up there in the poster Raylan thought of growing a mustache, a big one that would droop properly and look good with his hat.”
― Elmore Leonard, Riding the Rap

“I want you to understand,” Raylan said, “I don’t pull my sidearm ‘less I’m gonna shoot to kill. That’s its purpose, huh, to kill. So it’s how I use it.”
― Elmore Leonard, Fire in the Hole

“You take one more step," Raylan said, "I'll shoot you. That's all I'm gonna say.”
― Elmore Leonard, Pronto

“You know but don't want to let on," Raylan said, seeing Nicky's hands right there at his waist, the boy still in the game, "waiting to see if you have a move. Well, I'll tell you something. Shooting at a person is not the same as shooting out on a firing range. Even if you're a dead shot, it don't mean you can look a man in the eye and be able to pull the trigger. I know this for a fact, partner, cause I taught the use of firearms at the training academy.”
― Elmore Leonard, Pronto

“He said to Dale Crowe Junior, "I know you think you can drive when you've had a few. How good are you when you're sober?" This marshal not sounding like the usual hard-ass lawman; Dale Junior was glad of that. He said, "I had a Caddy myself one time, till I sold it for parts and went to work at Disney's. You know what I tried out for? Play Goofy. Mickey Mouse's friend? Only you had to water-ski and I couldn't get the hang of it. Sir, I like to mention that these three years since I took off? I been clean. I never even left the state of Florida all that time, not wanting to be too far away from my folks, my old mom and dad, except I never did get to see them." The marshal, Raylan Givens, said, "If you're gonna talk I'll put you in the trunk and I'll drive.”
― Elmore Leonard, Riding the Rap

“The Zip was quiet, maybe trying to guess what was in Raylan's mind. He seemed curious. Finally he said, "Okay, what do you want to tell me?" "Here's the deal," Raylan said. "I'm giving you twenty-four hours to get out of this county and never come back." Raylan looked at his watch. "That means you have until...two-fifteen tomorrow afternoon to clear out. If I see you're still around after that, I won't hesitate to shoot you on sight. You have any questions?”
― Elmore Leonard, Pronto

“He walked in, I thought he was a farmer, or maybe a rancher. He looks like a cowboy, that raw-boned, outdoor type. Wears cowboy boots and a hat with a curled brim." "The Marlboro man," Chip said. "Yeah, except he's real.”
― Elmore Leonard, Riding the Rap

“Man, I'm the caretaker. He's staying while he does the work and I help him out some." "What's your name?" "Louis Lewis." "You putting me on?" "It's my name. You want me to spell it out for you?”
― Elmore Leonard, Riding the Rap