25 Rain Man Quotes on the Need for Diversity and Empathy

These Rain Man quotes remind us of the importance of diversity and empathy.

Many narratives remain unknown until they are portrayed in movies and the 1988 film Rain Man is one of the most well-known portrayals of life for people living with savant syndrome.

Dustin Hoffman won an Academy Award for his authentic depiction of Raymond Babbitt while introducing and humanizing a misunderstood condition like autism.

Some consider Rain Man to be groundbreaking art while others feel it set the tone for damaging stereotypes about autism.

Whatever your reaction to the film, Rain Man’s impact on the world is undeniable.

In the movie, Raymond (Hoffman) and his estranged sibling Charlie (Cruise) venture out of their comfort zones and develop empathy to repair their family bond.

Today we see people across the globe feeling more separate and polarized than ever.

There are lessons to be learned from the film.

Perhaps if we took a cue from Raymond and Charlie, we can expand our limitations, learn how to see past differences, embrace empathy and experience more diversity.

Barry Morrow and Ronald Bass wrote the screenplay while Barry Levinson directed the film.

Released on December 16, 1988, Rain Man was a critical and commercial success.

It grossed over $354.8 million, making it the highest-grossing film of 1988.

To date, Rain Man is the first and only film to win both Golden Bear and Academy Award for Best Picture.

Check out our most popular quote article, a list of short inspirational quotes for daily inspiration. 

Our inspirational quotes category page has all of our motivational quotes for all the different areas of life.

Rain Man Quotes by Charlie and Raymond

1. “I just realized I’m not pissed off anymore.” – Charlie

2. “Serious injury book is a red book, that book is blue.” – Raymond

3. “I’m gonna go take a celebration piss.” – Charlie

4. “That’s my pen. That’s definitely my book.” – Raymond

5. “Well taking your book is not a serious injury!” – Charlie

6. “I’m an excellent driver.” – Raymond

7. “Well forgive me, I’ve lost my secret decoder ring!” – Charlie

8. “K-mart sucks.” – Raymond

9. “I’m gonna let ya’ in on a little secret, Ray. K-Mart sucks.” – Charlie

10. “Gotta get my boxer shorts at K-Mart.” – Raymond

11.  “This is a good one. We don’t go out when it rains, this is a real good one. I hope you appreciate this because my business is going down the f***ing toilet.” – Charlie

12. “I should be in L.A., instead I’m in the Honeymoon Haven motel in Bumblef***, Missouri because you won’t go out when it rains. Mystifying. F***ing mystifying.” – Charlie

13. “Ray, you’re never gonna solve it. It’s not a riddle because Who is on first
base. That’s a joke, Ray, it’s comedy, but when you do it you’re not funny. You’re like the
comedy of Abbott and Abbott.” – Charlie

14. “What you have to understand is, four days ago he was only my brother in name. And this morning we had pancakes.” – Charlie

15. “This guy’s a f***ing fruit cake.” – Charlie

16. “C-H-A-R-L-I-E, my main man.”  – Raymond

Rain Man Quotes from conversations between Raymond and Charlie

17. Charlie: “Did you fart?”
Raymond: “Yes I did.”
Charlie: “How can you stand that?”
Raymond: “No I don’t mind it.”

18. Raymond: “It’s definitely very small in here.”
Charlie: “Small, and safe. Don’t wanna miss the party. You know that, there’s a party in
your honor Ray. When we get to LA, there’ll be a little custody hearing. Lawyers are
setting it up right now. Know why there’s a party for you? Because you’re the $3,000,000
man.”

19. Raymond: “Of course I don’t have my underwear. I’m definitely not wearing my
underwear.”
Charlie: “I gave you a fresh pair of mine to wear. Where are they?”
Raymond: “They’re in the pocket of my jacket. Here.”
Charlie: “I don’t want them back.”

20. Raymond: “These are not boxer shorts. Mine are boxer shorts. These are Hanes 32.”
Charlie: “Underwear is underwear, Ray.”
Raymond: “My boxer shorts have my name and it says Raymond.
Charlie: “All right, when we pass the store, we’ll pick you up a pair of boxer shorts.”

21. Raymond: “I get my boxer shorts at K-Mart in Cincinnati.”
Charlie: “We’re not going back to Cincinnati, Ray, so don’t even start with that.”

22. Raymond: “Lights out at eleven.”
Charlie: “Yeah well new rules.”

22. Charlie: “Raymond, what are you looking at? The ducks are over here. What are you
looking at?
Raymond: “I don’t know.”

More Rain Man Quotes Between Charlie and Raymond

23. Charlie: “Listen, Ray, our dad died, that means he’s not with us anymore. Did they tell
you about that?”
Raymond: “I don’t know.”
Charlie: You don’t know if they told you or you don’t know what death is?
Raymond: “I don’t know.”

24. Charlie: “Ray, all airlines have crashed at one time or another, that doesn’t mean that
they are not safe.
Raymond: “QANTAS. QANTAS never crashed.”
Charlie: “QANTAS?”
Raymond: “Never crashed.”
Charlie: “Oh that’s gonna do me a lot of good because QANTAS doesn’t fly to Los
Angeles out of Cincinnati, you have to get to Melbourne! Melbourne, Australia in order
to get the plane that flies to Los Angeles!”

25. Charlie: “We’re not in the air, we’re not on the highway, I’m on some sh*t secondary
road. I gotta make up some time. I have to get to LA, I should’ve been there this
afternoon, my business needs me. I gotta make up some time.”
Raymond: “Definitely watch TV but you have to be in bed at eleven. Lights out at
eleven.”
Charlie: “Forget it”.
Raymond: “Uh oh, nineteen minutes to eleven.”

Which of these Rain Main quotes is your favorite?

Dr. Darold Treffert, an expert on autism and consultant for the film lamented that “in its
first 101 days.”

Rain Man “accomplished more toward bringing savant syndrome to public awareness than all the efforts combined of all those interested in this condition the past 101 years following Dr. Down’s 1887 description of this disorder.”

He also notes that it was unfortunate for the public to assume that all people with autism are savants because in actuality only about ten percent of those diagnosed demonstrate savant abilities.

Rain Man is a film of different themes, one, in particular, is the idea of bringing family
together.

Whether we are from different continents or come from different backgrounds, in the end, we are all one big earth family.

Is there anybody in your life with who you have been meaning to reconnect?

Take a lesson from Charlie and Raymond and these Rain Main quotes and act on that desire sooner than later.