“Congratulations, here's your graduation present” – Jimmy, Goodfellas ... Movie Quotes Database

Jimmy

[To young Henry, after he gets cleared in court]

Congratulations, here's your graduation present [Puts money in Henry's pocket]

Henry

For what? I got pinched.

Jimmy

Hey, everybody gets pinched, but you did it right. You told 'em nothing and they got nothing.

Henry

I thought you'd be mad.

Jimmy

I'm not mad, I'm proud of ya. You took your first pinch like a man, and you learned the two most important things in life. You listenin'? Never rat on your friends, and ALWAYS keep your mouth shut. [Gives Henry an affectionate light slap on the cheek and leads him out of the courtroom. Outside, Paulie and many of the other gangsters are waiting for him.]

Paulie

Hey, you broke yer cherry! [The other gangsters cheer and congratulate Henry]

In this scene

Henry Hill Ray Liotta More Henry quotes →

Paulie Cicero Paul Sorvino More Paulie quotes →

Jimmy Conway Robert De Niro More Jimmy quotes →

More from Goodfellas

Henry Hill As far back as I can remember, I always wanted to be a gangster. To me, being a gangster was better than being President of the United States. Henry Hill I was the luckiest kid in the world. I could go anywhere. I could do anything. I knew everybody and everybody knew me. I was part of something. And I belonged. I was treated like a grown-up. Every day, I was learning to score. A dollar here. A dollar there. I was living a fantasy. Henry Hill People looked at me differently and they knew I was with somebody. At thirteen, I was making more money than most of the grown-ups in the neighborhood. I mean, I had more money than I could spend. I had it all. One day the kids from the neighborhood carried my mother's groceries all the way home. You know why? It was out of respect.