From: Planet of the Apes (1968)
Genre: Movies
Who said it?: George Taylor
The story behind the quote: The quote comes from the original Planet of the Apes film that was released way back in 1968. The film stars Charlton Heston as astronaut George Taylor who, crash lands on an unknown planet way in the future. The dominant species on this planet are intelligent apes who use the subjugated human being (who cannot speak) as pets and cheap labor. Thinking that Taylor is just another “ordinary” human, the apes capture him. The story revolves around Taylor’s attempts to flee the planet.
WARNING: There are SPOILERS for the ending of this (extremely old and well-known) film!
The quote comes from the very end of the film. Taylor and his new female companion, Nova, escape to the Forbidden Zone, as apes are not permitted there. The earth astronaut, sees the ruins of the Statue of Liberty. Realizing he actually is on Earth after it has been razed by nuclear war, Taylor laments the fate of the human race and delivers the quote.
Geek wisdom: We sometimes take the future for granted. We hastily destroy our environment and lay waste to the planet’s natural resources without even giving a second thought to the long term repercussions they may have. We can be shortsighted and believe that the world will always be there for us and nothing we do can harm it.
We only have one world. We have to take care of it while we still can.
Apocalyptic cults abound. I hope to be part of that larger segment of society that will eat their lunch.