White Russians & $5.00 Milkshakes

[Fresser]

Fans of "The Big Lebowski" will remember Jeff Bridges as The Dude. Ever-inebriated, The Dude would wake up at 11:00 A.M. and mix up a White Russian with Coffee-Mate. And of course Vincent Vega in "Pulp Fiction" curiously ordered a five-dollar milkshake, sipped it and proclaimed, "Damn. That's a good f@&{ing milkshake!"

Which gets me wondering: what other movie characters have signature beverages? And are the drinks conscious props, or are they just inserted to catch the attention of moviegoing food-fetishists (like us)?

[Jason Perlow]

er, "Vodka Martini, Shaken, not Stirred?" and "Bollinger, 1958"

[JPW]

Perhaps the greatest drinking movies of all time are the Thin Man movies. Nick and Nora Charles drank mainly martinis, but they were not limited to it. As Nick instructs a bunch of bartenders in the first movie "THe THin Man":

"The important thing is the rhythm! Always have rhythm in your shaking. Now a Manhattan you shake to fox-trot time, a Bronx to two-step time, a dry martini you always shake to waltz time."

[Rehovot]

I always liked Bob Hope's character's line in one of the "Road to..." movies, where he's in some kind of parody-of-a-Western scene in a saloon and he growls, "Give me milk....in a dirty glass!"

[Radio7]

In "Heathers", Winona Ryder and the 'lead Heather' went to 7-11 to get cherry slurpees a few times. Though in the movie the names are different to avoid product placement issues, I presume.

mmmm....cherry!

Of course there's twin peaks with Agent Cooper's cups of coffee.This counts cuz there was a movie version.

In "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf" Martha is rarely without her gin&tonic, nor George without his whiskey.

Jean Reno's hitman character in "The Professional" drank milk.

(don't they all?)

As a side note, I feel that vanilla milkshakes are the perfect food. I wouldn't blink an eye to shell out $5 for a "good f*(*#g milkshake". But it'd have to be seriously good...

This is a tough Q, especially now that my mind's on the dang milkshake. lol

[munchymom]

For the Trekkies among us, there's always "Tea. Earl Grey. Hot."

[wkl]

When told his shake was $5 didn't Travolta ask "Don't it come with bourbon or something?"

Edited February 17, 2005 by wkl (log)

[kvltrede]

When told his shake was $5 didn't Travolta ask "Don't it come with bourbon or something?"

I hate to quibble but this is the internet and geeks quibble. It was Uma Thurman's character who ordered the $5 milkshake.

Thankfully, I'm not such a geek that I remember what beverage Travolta's character ordered. Oh, wait, was it a cherry coke?

Damn...

How 'bout Greta Garbo's first words in a "talkie" (Anna Christie):

"Gimme a whiskey, ginger ale on the side. And don't be stingy, baby."

Kurt

[Jason Perlow]

For the Trekkies among us, there's always "Tea.  Earl Grey.  Hot."

←

Yup, and then you have Prune Juice for Lt Worf "This is the drink of a WARRIOR!" and Romulan Ale for Dr. Mccoy, a banned substance which he keeps around for "medicinal purposes".

And I recall Scotty with a bottle of Whiskey in one of the old episodes as well, but I don't remember which one it was.

[Carolyn Tillie]

My old signature line from Casablanca:

Right after Ugarte is arrested, Captain Renault walked over to Major Strasser's table as Rick comes down the stairs.

RENAULT: Good evening, gentlemen.

STRASSER: Good evneing, Captain.

HEINZE: Won't you join us?

Renault sits down

RENAULT: Thank you. It is a pleasure to have you here, Major.

STRASSER (to the waiter): Champgne and a tin of caviar.

RENAULT: May I recommend Veuve Cliquot '26? A good French wine.

STRASSER: Thank you.

WAITER: Very well, sir.

[JPW]

I think perhaps this is easier to do with TV characters, as they have more than two hours to put the product image in your mind.

Take MASH for example -

1)The surgeons' still

2)Radar's Grape Nehi

Or, Sex and the City and cosmopolitans.

[lannie]

I think perhaps this is easier to do with TV characters, as they have more than two hours to put the product image in your mind.

←

How about Laverne's Pepsi and milk concoctions?

[Daddy-A]

I can only think of two, and they're about as diverse as you can get

Homer Simpson: Duff Beer

Ernest Hemmingway: Campari & Soda

A.

[peppyre]

I can only think of two, and they're about as diverse as you can get 

Homer Simpson: Duff Beer

Ernest Hemmingway: Campari & Soda

A.

←

Homer Simpson and Ernest Hemingway in the same post! Way to go Arne.

[ludja]

A dry martini for Auntie Mame...

[TrishCT]

Barbara Billingsly a/k/a June Cleaver, in Airplane:

"I like my coffee like I like my men, strong and black."

[aengus9]

When told his shake was $5 didn't Travolta ask "Don't it come with bourbon or something?"

I hate to quibble but this is the internet and geeks quibble. It was Uma Thurman's character who ordered the $5 milkshake.

Thankfully, I'm not such a geek that I remember what beverage Travolta's character ordered. Oh, wait, was it a cherry coke?

Damn...

How 'bout Greta Garbo's first words in a "talkie" (Anna Christie):

"Gimme a whiskey, ginger ale on the side. And don't be stingy, baby."

Kurt

←

I am such a geek :) It was a vanilla coke.

[cdh]

Wasn't there some movie that featured a scene with a sambuca milkshake... on fire?

[crankyyankee]

Billy Wilder films are always good for bourbon references. There are two great scenes that I remember off-hand:

Double Indemnity -- In that great first scene between Fred MacMurray and Barbara Stanwyck, she serves him a glass of iced tea. In between hitting on her, he sips it, and suggests, "Maybe a little bourbon would get this on its feet."

Some Like It Hot -- Jack Lemmon and a sleeper car full of attractive young women have a late-night party where they mix Manhattans in a hot-water bottle.

Every time I see a Manhattan on a drink menu, I always secretly wish that it would come in a hot-water bottle.

[petite tête de chou]

Agent Cooper in Twin Peaks loved coffee.

Pete: And how do you take your coffee, Agent Cooper?

Cooper: Black as midnight on a moonless night.

Pete: Pret-ty black.

Cooper: Harry, I'm gonna let you in on a little secret. Every day, once a day, give yourself a present. Don't plan it, don't wait for it, just...let it happen. Could be a new shirt at the men's store, a catnap in your office chair, or two cups of good, hot, black coffee.

[Great Northern waitress pours Agent Cooper's coffee]

Cooper: Wait a minute! Wait a minute!

[sips, sighs blissfully]

This is--

excuse me--a DAMN fine cup of coffee.

I've had I don't know how many cups of coffee in my life, but this is one of the best.

[Romy]

Barbara Billingsly a/k/a June Cleaver, in Airplane:

"I like my coffee like I like my men, strong and black."

←

Ah-- actually, this was uttered by the mature-beyond-her-years little girl to the little boy. Barb just spoke jive. And who could forget: "We're out of coffee."

My favorite is from Groundhog's Day: Bill: "Sweet Vermouth, rocks, with a twist." Andie: "I'll have the same. That's my favorite drink! ... What should we drink to?" Bill: "I like to say a prayer and drink to world peace."

Or something along those lines.

[TrishCT]

Mea culpa, thanks for the catch, Romy.

[Carlovski]

Can't believe no-one has mentioned James Bond yet.

The Books were much better food and drinks wise though. I remember an article in a short lived foodie magazine in the UK where a writer tried to follow food and drink wise Bond's time in Paris. Quote 'A small carafe of vodka - very cold'. This as well as the champagne, bottle of wine, martinis and a couple of glasses of calvados.

He was quite drunk and ill...

[The Chefs Office]

Wasn't there some movie that featured a scene with a sambuca milkshake... on fire?

←

That would be my all time favourite movie, The Adventures of Ford Fairlane.

[lorilei1170]

The disatrous effects of several Siberian Mists in "She's So Lovely"

Someone beat me to the Vanilla Coke reference in Pulp Fiction