User blog:ARTaylor/45 Years of Dirty Harry

Today is the forty-fifth anniversary of the premiere of Dirty Harry. The film follows a San Francisco cop named "Dirty" Harry Callahan as he tries to stop a serial killer terrorizing the city, inspired by the real life Zodiac killings that were going on in the San Francisco Bay Area at the time. It was highly controversial at the time but became one of the most iconic films in the cop genre and perhaps the most iconic role for actor Clint Eastwood. The film was the fourth highest grossing film of the year and spawned four sequels. The famous "Do you feel lucky, Punk?" scene has become engrained in popular culture while it skyrocketed sales of the Smith & Wesson Model 29 revolver. Sadly, though, it also inspired some real life terror as some began imitating the film. The film features the talents of John Vernon as the Mayor of San Francisco.