The Wire

The Wire

The Wire is an American crime drama television series created and primarily written by author and former police reporter David Simon. The series was broadcast by the cable network HBO in the United States. The Wire premiered on June 2, 2002, and ended on March 9, 2008, comprising 60 episodes over five seasons. Set and produced in Baltimore, Maryland, The Wire introduces a different institution of the city and its relationship to law enforcement in each season, while retaining characters and advancing storylines from previous seasons. The five subjects are, in chronological order: the illegal drug trade, the seaport system, the city government and bureaucracy, education and schools, and the print news media. The large cast consists mainly of actors who are little known for their other roles, as well as numerous real-life Baltimore and Maryland figures in guest and recurring roles. Simon has said that despite its framing as a crime drama, the show is "really about the American city, and about how we live together. It's about how institutions have an effect on individuals. Whether one is a cop, a longshoreman, a drug dealer, a politician, a judge or a lawyer, all are ultimately compromised and must contend with whatever institution to which they are committed."The Wire is lauded for its literary themes, its uncommonly accurate exploration of society and politics, and its realistic portrayal of urban life. Although during its original run the series received only average ratings and never won any major television awards, it is now regarded by many critics as one of the greatest television shows of all time.

Year:
2002
9,105 Views

Slim Charles:
[during a New Day Co-Op meeting] Milton came with six hundred, and Little Glen is in for three.

Clinton 'Shorty' Buise:
I got five from me, and I got five from Chinaman to cover.

Slim Charles:
We still short nine hundred.

Melvin 'Cheese' Wagstaff:
I can go that, no thing.

Ricardo 'Fat Face Rick' Hendrix:
What? Muthaf***a, where you get that kinda scratch?

Melvin 'Cheese' Wagstaff:
You don't think Cheese know this here game? We sellin' dope and coke in Baltimore, nigga. Any of y'all ain't got that kinda money need be ashamed.

Clinton 'Shorty' Buise:
You're still puttin' up more than your share with that.

Melvin 'Cheese' Wagstaff:
The way I look at it, we all gonna more than paid once we own the connect, so...

Ricardo 'Fat Face Rick' Hendrix:
Sh*t, nigga, we was good when ya uncle had it. You had to go ahead and put up with Marlo - [Cheese abruptly draws his gun and sticks it in Rick's face]

Melvin 'Cheese' Wagstaff:
See that? See now, that's just the wrong way to look at it. 'Cause Joe had his time, and Omar put an end to that. Then Marlo had his time, short as it was, and the police put an end to that. And now, muthaf***a, it's OUR time. Mines and yours. But instead of just shuttin' up and kickin' in, you gonna stand there cryin' that "back in the day" sh*t.

Ricardo 'Fat Face Rick' Hendrix:
Cheese...

Melvin 'Cheese' Wagstaff:
There ain't no "back in the day," nigga! Ain't no nostalgia to this sh*t here! There's just the street, and the game, and what happen here today.

Ricardo 'Fat Face Rick' Hendrix:
You right. [Cheese lowers his gun]

Melvin 'Cheese' Wagstaff:
When it was my uncle, I was with my uncle. When it was Marlo, I was with him. But now, nigga - [Slim suddenly draws his gun and shoots Cheese in the head, killing him instantly. Everyone stares in shock as Cheese's body twitches on the ground]

Clinton 'Shorty' Buise:
What the f*** you do that for? Now we short the nine!

Slim Charles:
That was for Joe. [he walks away]

Clinton 'Shorty' Buise:
[to Rick, jerking his thumb at Slim] This sentimental muthaf***a just cost us money.

[Sergei warns Nick outside Prop Joe's shop before their meeting]

Sergei 'Serge' Malatov:
Talk when I say. Not before. [they walk in; Sergei spreads his arms when he sees Joe] Tovarich.

Proposition Joe Stewart:
Sergei. My nigga. [he laughs, and they embrace]

Sergei 'Serge' Malatov:
You're losing weight.

Proposition Joe Stewart:
Sheeeit!

Sergei 'Serge' Malatov:
You're down to nothing. In this country, supermarkets are cathedrals. I worry for you, buddy.

Proposition Joe Stewart:
How your peoples, dawg?

Sergei 'Serge' Malatov:
Same. Good.

Proposition Joe Stewart:
Hey, you talk to the man about that other thing, right? 'Cause I can get behind that bidness in a big way.

Sergei 'Serge' Malatov:
We'll talk. Later. Now, another business.

Proposition Joe Stewart:
Right, right. This the man with the raggedy-ass Camaro.

Nickolas 'Nick' Sobotka:
Wasn't mine, it was my cousin's. Wasn't all that raggedy. [Sergei gives Nick a disapproving look, then turns to Joe]

Sergei 'Serge' Malatov:
Sorry. Nicky is with us. His cousin... [he rolls his eyes and shakes his head, then shrugs]... but family cannot be helped.

Proposition Joe Stewart:
Who you tellin'? I got muthaf***in' nephews and in-laws f***in' all my sh*t up all the time, and it ain't like I can pop a cap in they ass and not hear about it Thanksgivin' time. For real, I'm livin' life with some burdensome niggas. [he turns to Nick] So what the f***? [Sergei motions for Nick to sit; he does] You ain't pay my boy Cheese, and Cheese ain't payin' me, right? Now I ain't talkin' 'bout all the money in the world, but it ain't like Cheese be in a position out on that corner to let ya cuz exemplify sh*t, you feel? The man cut you some slack, and soon every f***in'-up white boy be on his titty.

Nickolas 'Nick' Sobotka:
We wanna pay what we owe. Twenty-seven, anyway. And we're gonna have it soon enough.

Sergei 'Serge' Malatov:
Your man doubled it, though.

Nickolas 'Nick' Sobotka:
He also burned the car. Now, the Blue Book on that Camaro is fifty-one.

Proposition Joe Stewart:
[in disbelief] Now, let me understand. You gonna come up in here havin' f***ed up a package, askin' me to tell Cheese, who you f***ed it up on, to pay you out twenty-four hundred dollars?

Nickolas 'Nick' Sobotka:
He gets to keep the Camaro.

Proposition Joe Stewart:
[to Sergei] Just how good a friend is this muthaf***a to y'all? [Sergei shrugs. Joe motions to one of his men, who counts out a stack of bills; Joe passes the money to Nick] The Cheese ain't gonna be happy havin' to pay me back, so I would advise y'all to give him some distance.

Nickolas 'Nick' Sobotka:
Just so he don't come back on my cousin. [Sergei motions him out] Anyway... thanks for bein' straight on this.

Proposition Joe Stewart:
Fool, if it wasn't for Sergei here, you and ya cuz both would be cadaverous muthaf***as.

Mayor Clarence V. Royce:
I admit I've made some mistakes, Burrell being one of the biggest. But he's got a job for about 10 more days. After the primary, he's gone believe me. And that last stunt - pulling a detective.

State Delegate Odell Watkins:
What'd you expect?

Mayor Clarence V. Royce:
Not that, huh-uh. Hey, I had nothing to do with that nonsense.

State Delegate Odell Watkins:
Now that's a straight-up lie. I was at that damn meeting when you told him "Slow the case down.".

Mayor Clarence V. Royce:
I didn't mean...

State Delegate Odell Watkins:
Who the hell knows what you mean anymore Clarence? Look at this. [hands Clarence two campaign flyers] Look at it! You gave me your word on this. Your *word* Clarence! But here you are ticketed up with Eunetta in her best precincts and then ticketed up with my girl Daniels where she's running strong.

Mayor Clarence V. Royce:
Odell, this is the first I've seen this. C'mon now! This is probably Eunetta's people pulling this sh*t.

State Delegate Odell Watkins:
With a "Citizens for Royce" authority line? Eh, look at you Clarence. Just look at you. You've forgotten your agenda. You've forgotten your base! You think a shave and some Marcus Garvey posters are gonna get you over? Do you think that's gonna make up for jumping in bed with every damn developer? Sh*t. You're even on Clay Davis's tit.

Mayor Clarence V. Royce:
Now don't you go getting all self-righteous with me Odell. Campaigns run on dollars - you know it.

State Delegate Odell Watkins:
Whose dollars? Those sons of b*tches you got around your card table every month feeding your kitty? Oh yeah, I know about that too. You... trouble with you - f*** you, Clarence. I'm gonna sit what's left of this one out. I'm gonna sit it out!

Mayor Clarence V. Royce:
Sit it out. The primary?

State Delegate Odell Watkins:
Sit it out! [Odell starts to leave]

Mayor Clarence V. Royce:
Odell! ODELL! Who the hell do you think you are huh? Come November, I'm still gonna be the only game in town! Odell, turn your back on me now, I won't forget it!

Chief of Staff Coleman Parker:
We can't afford this! We need his organization on Tuesday, go after him!

Mayor Clarence V. Royce:
F*** that holier than thou motherf***er!

Felicia 'Snoop' Pearson:
God... damn.

Hardware Store Employee:
I see you got the Dewalt cordless. Your nailgun, Dewalt 410.

Felicia 'Snoop' Pearson:
Yeah. The trouble is, you leave it in a truck for a while, need to step up and use the b*tch, the battery don't hold up, you know?

Hardware Store Employee:
Yeah, cordless'll do that. You might want to consider the powder-actuated tool. The Hilti DX 460 MX or the Simpson PTP. These two are my cadillacs. Everything else on this board is second best, sorry to say. Are you contracting, or just doing some work around the house?

Felicia 'Snoop' Pearson:
No, we work all over.

Hardware Store Employee:
Full time?

Felicia 'Snoop' Pearson:
No, we had about 5 jobs last month.

Hardware Store Employee:
At that rate, the cost of the powder-actuated guns justifies itself.

Felicia 'Snoop' Pearson:
You say power?

Hardware Store Employee:
Powder.

Felicia 'Snoop' Pearson:
Like gunpowder?

Hardware Store Employee:
Yeah. The DX 460 is fully automatic, with a .27 caliber charge. Wood, concrete, steel to steel... She'll throw a fastener into anything, and for my money, she handles recoil better than the Simpson or the P3500. Now, you understand what I mean by recoil ?

Felicia 'Snoop' Pearson:
Yeah, the kickback. I'm with you.

Hardware Store Employee:
That's right.

Felicia 'Snoop' Pearson:
.27 caliber, huh?

Hardware Store Employee:
Yeah, not large ballistically, but for driving nails, it's enough. Any more than that, you'd add to the recoil.

Felicia 'Snoop' Pearson:
Man, sh*t. I seen a tiny-ass .22 round-nose drop a n*gger plenty of days, man. Motherf***ers get up in you like a pinball, rip your ass up. Big joints, though... Big joints, man, just break your bones, you say, "f*** it." I'm gonna go with this right here, man. How much do I owe you?

Hardware Store Employee:
Six-sixty-nine plus tax. [Snoop counts out a stack of cash] No, no, you just pay at the register.

Felicia 'Snoop' Pearson:
Nah, man, you go ahead and handle that for me, man. And keep the rest for your time.

Hardware Store Employee:
This is $800.

Felicia 'Snoop' Pearson:
So what, man? You earned that buck like a motherf***er, man. Keep that sh*t.

Sgt. Jay Landsman:
[Landsman knocks on Rawls' door] Major, sir?

Maj. William A. Rawls:
Yeah.

Sgt. Jay Landsman:
I been thinkin'. It's a clear violation of the general orders, I know, but... [Rawls motions for Landsman to sit] Last night, I'm at home, I'm sittin' up buck naked. And I, I got one hand wrapped around a cold domestic beer, and the other wrapped around my magnificent flaccid four-and-one-half-inch wonder, and I am trying with all my might to remember what Leila Kaufman's nipples looked like when her bathing top slipped off at the Hillendale Pool swim party.

Maj. William A. Rawls:
[chuckling] Leila Kaufman?

Sgt. Jay Landsman:
Yes, sir. Uh, summer of '72. I got this saucy wench in my gunsights, so to speak, and, uh... I am dangerously close to engorged when, all of a f***in' sudden, out of f***in' nowhere, f***in' Detective f***in' Jimmy McNulty pops into my head.

Maj. William A. Rawls:
McNulty?

Sgt. Jay Landsman:
Obviously, I gotta open my eyes and admit to myself that my whole night is ruined, at which point I got nothin' to do but think about the problems of Jimmy McNulty, because clearly, this guy and his f***in' problems are standing between me and all worldly pleasure.

Maj. William A. Rawls:
Clearly.

Sgt. Jay Landsman:
First of all... it's not Jimmy's fault.

Maj. William A. Rawls:
No?

Sgt. Jay Landsman:
No. Jimmy is an addict, sir.

Maj. William A. Rawls:
What's he addicted to?

Sgt. Jay Landsman:
Himself. [Rawls laughs] No, it's not funny, sir. As a matter of fact, it's a f***in' tragedy, is what it is. The guy, he has come to believe that he is always the smartest f*** in the room. And you know what? It's not his fault, because let's face it, he's not goin' to Johns Hopkins or joining Mensa, he's taking a f***in' job with the Bawlmer Police Department. His first two years in Homicide, he's in Ulmansky's squad, partnered with Tony LaMartino. Christ, it must've been months, even, he WAS the smartest f*** in the f***in' room!

Maj. William A. Rawls:
What's your point, Jay?

Sgt. Jay Landsman:
My point is... he can't help it. It makes him an a**hole, I know, but... it's also what makes him good police. Last year, he gives me eight clearances. One of them was a decomp floater who was John Doe for three weeks. [Rawls doesn't say anything; Landsman starts to stand]

Maj. William A. Rawls:
Tell your boy to wrap up that bullshit detail in two weeks. He does that, he comes home. Clean slate. [Landsman smiles and leaves]

State Sen. R. Clayton 'Clay' Davis:
[after a subpoena for money records has been served] Because if some federal mothaf***er comes walkin' through the door, I say hey, it's all in the game! But a city police, Baltimore City, Hell Naaaw, can't be happenin' because I know I done raised too much goddamn money for the Mayor and his ticket! Hell Naaaw, aint no soul in the world that f***in' ungrateful!

Mayor Clarence V. Royce:
Calm down Clay [Davis interrupts]

State Sen. R. Clayton 'Clay' Davis:
Money Launderin' they gonna come talk to me about Money Launderin' in West Baltimore, SHIIIIT, Where do you think I'm gonna raise cash for the whole damn ticket! From Laundromats and sh*t, from some tiny ass korean groceries, you think I got time to ask a man why he given me money or where he gets his money from, I'll take any mothaf***er's money if he given it away!

Mayor Clarence V. Royce:
I don't wanna know

State Sen. R. Clayton 'Clay' Davis:
I know you don't wanna know, but Im scratchin' and clawin' to get it done for you Clarence, for you and me and the rest of the team and who comes through my door but a Baltimore City police lookin' to get up in my sh*t about everything!

Mayor Clarence V. Royce:
[Trying to reassure Davis] We didn't know about this!

State Sen. R. Clayton 'Clay' Davis:
I'm sorry I gots to get up outta here before I lose my damn mind

Mayor Clarence V. Royce:
Nobody knew about this!

State Sen. R. Clayton 'Clay' Davis:
[Leaving the Mayor's office] You wanna run a campaign with my money pillowed under your ass, you need yo people to back the f*** up Clarence!

D'Angelo Barksdale:
Now look, check it, it's simple, it's simple. See this? This the kingpin, a'ight? And he the man. You get the other dude's king, you got the game. But he trying to get your king too, so you gotta protect it. Now, the king, he move one space any direction he damn choose, 'cause he's the king. Like this, this, this, a'ight? But he ain't got no hustle. But the rest of these motherf***ers on the team, they got his back. And they run so deep, he really ain't gotta do sh*t.

Preston 'Bodie' Broadus:
Like your uncle.

D'Angelo Barksdale:
Yeah, like my uncle. You see this? This the queen. She smart, she fast. She move any way she want, as far as she want. And she is the go-get-sh*t-done piece.

Wallace:
Remind me of Stringer.

D'Angelo Barksdale:
And this over here is the castle. Like the stash. It can move like this, and like this.

Wallace:
Dog, stash don't move, man.

D'Angelo Barksdale:
C'mon, yo, think. How many time we move the stash house this week? Right? And every time we move the stash, we gotta move a little muscle with it, right? To protect it.

Preston 'Bodie' Broadus:
True, true, you right. All right, what about them little baldheaded b*tches right there?

D'Angelo Barksdale:
These right here, these are the pawns. They like the soldiers. They move like this, one space forward only. Except when they fight, then it's like this. And they like the front lines, they be out in the field.

Wallace:
So how do you get to be the king?

D'Angelo Barksdale:
It ain't like that. See, the king stay the king, a'ight? Everything stay who he is. Except for the pawns. Now, if the pawn make it all the way down to the other dude's side, he get to be queen. And like I said, the queen ain't no b*tch. She got all the moves.

Preston 'Bodie' Broadus:
A'ight, so if I make it to the other end, I win.

D'Angelo Barksdale:
If you catch the other dude's king and trap it, then you win.

Preston 'Bodie' Broadus:
A'ight, but if I make it to the end, I'm top dog.

D'Angelo Barksdale:
Nah, yo, it ain't like that. Look, the pawns, man, in the game, they get capped quick. They be out the game early.

Preston 'Bodie' Broadus:
Unless they some smart-ass pawns.

heroin addict:
Got any testers, man?

Preston 'Bodie' Broadus:
Nigga, it ain't even 9:00 and you fiendin' on it. Get the f*** outta here, man! Damn.

D'Angelo Barksdale:
Yo, why you act like that, yo?

Preston 'Bodie' Broadus:
What, for these junkie motherf***ers?

D'Angelo Barksdale:
So you just gonna take his money all day and treat him like a dog?

Preston 'Bodie' Broadus:
How I'm supposed to treat him?

D'Angelo Barksdale:
I don't know. But you ain't gotta punk him like that.

Malik 'Poot' Carr:
He punked hisself. He a goddamn drug addict.

D'Angelo Barksdale:
And you a goddamn drug *dealer*.

Preston 'Bodie' Broadus:
So? So *what*? Oh, what, the 'customer's always right'?

Wallace:
Yo, we in the projects. The customer be f***ed up. You can't give these n*ggers sh*t, man.

D'Angelo Barksdale:
Why not? Why can't you? Sh*t, everything else in the world gets sold without people taking advantage, scamming, lying, doing each other dirty. Why it got to be that way with this?

Malik 'Poot' Carr:
'Cause they DOPE fiends.

D'Angelo Barksdale:
Yeah, but the game ain't gotta be played like that, yo. You can't tell me this sh*t can't get done without people beatin' on each other, killing each other, doing each other like dogs. And without all that, you ain't got 5-0 down here on our backs every five minutes. Throwing us around and sh*t.

Wallace:
Sheeit, man.

D'Angelo Barksdale:
You think 5-0 care about n*ggers gettin' high? In the *projects*? Man, 5-0 be down here about the *bodies*, yo. That's what they be down here about. The bodies.

Wallace:
[while eating some Chicken McNuggets] Man, these shits is right, yo.

Malik 'Poot' Carr:
[with his mouth full] Mm-hmm.

Wallace:
Good with the hot sauce too, yo.

Malik 'Poot' Carr:
Most definitely.

Wallace:
Yo, D, you want some nuggets?

D'Angelo Barksdale:
Nah, go ahead, man.

Wallace:
Man, whoever invented these, yo, he off the hook.

Malik 'Poot' Carr:
What?

Wallace:
Mm. Muthaf***a got the bone all the way out the damn chicken. 'Til he came along, niggas been chewin' on drumsticks and sh*t, gettin' they fingers all greasy. He said, " Later for the bone. Let's nugget that meat up and make some real money."

Malik 'Poot' Carr:
You think the man got paid?

Wallace:
Who?

Malik 'Poot' Carr:
Man who invented these.

Wallace:
Sh*t, he richer than a muthaf***a.

D'Angelo Barksdale:
Why? You think he get a percentage?

Wallace:
Why not?

D'Angelo Barksdale:
Nigga, please. The man who invented them things? Just some sad-ass down at the basement at McDonald's, thinkin' up some sh*t to make some money for the real players.

Malik 'Poot' Carr:
Naw, man, that ain't right.

D'Angelo Barksdale:
F*** "right." It ain't about right, it's about money. Now you think Ronald McDonald gonna go down in that basement and say, "Hey, Mista Nugget, you the bomb. We sellin' chicken faster than you can tear the bone out. So I'm gonna write my clowny-ass name on this fat-ass check for you"?

Wallace:
Sh*t.

D'Angelo Barksdale:
Man, the nigga who invented them things still workin' in the basement for regular wage, thinkin' up some sh*t to make the fries taste better or some sh*t like that. Believe. [pause]

Wallace:
Still had the idea, though.

Lt. Cedric Daniels:
What're you doing here at two in the morning?

Det. Ellis Carver:
Field interviews. Police work.

Lt. Cedric Daniels:
"Police work." I got a 14-year-old kid in critical but stable condition at University and two witnesses who say one of you princes cold-cocked him with the butt end of a pistol.

Det. Thomas 'Herc' Hauk:
No sir.

Lt. Cedric Daniels:
I got his mother over at I.I.D. filing a formal brutality charge, which for Herc will make an even four in the last two years!

Det. Thomas 'Herc' Hauk:
Unsustained...

Lt. Cedric Daniels:
But all of 'em true!

Det. Thomas 'Herc' Hauk:
Lieutenant, we thought that...

Lt. Cedric Daniels:
I got one less Crown Vic than I had last night, I'm out two Kevlar vests that burned in the car, two hand-held radios, a shotgun and I'm about to lose this idiot here for a week or two of medical! And for WHAT?

Det. Ellis Carver:
Lieutenant, we thought...

Lt. Cedric Daniels:
What did you learn when you went into the Terrace at two in the morning to conduct field interviews? What valuable information did we acquire from this situation? I.I.D. is gonna be on all three of you by afternoon. If you don't get a story straight by then, you're gonna have a file thick enough to see the light of a trial board. Now, tell me, who cold-cocked the kid?

Det. Roland 'Prez' Pryzbylewski:
[after several seconds of silence] Me.

Lt. Cedric Daniels:
[intensely] Why?

Det. Roland 'Prez' Pryzbylewski:
He pissed me off.

Lt. Cedric Daniels:
No, Officer Pryzbylewski, he did NOT piss you off. He made you fear for your safety and that of your fellow officers.


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