Origin Of 'Die Hard' Movie's Famous Quote 'Yippee-Ki-Yay' Revealed

The iconic "Die Hard" line "yippee-ki-yay" made it into the movie's script due to a childhood connection, according to its screenwriter.

Screenwriter Steven de Souza revealed during his appearance on the "I Was There Too" podcast that most of "Die Hard," including John McClane's (Bruce Willis) famous one-liner, was written on the fly.

"The changes were happening so fast, and the picture was better for it," de Souza said of the script.

De Souza, a Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, native, explained that he added "yippee-ki-yay" after discovering during a conversation that he and Willis grew up in the same town and watched the "Roy Rogers Show" on the same television station.

The program, which was a childhood favorite of both men, featured Roy Rogers' catchphrase, "yippee-ki-yay kids," which de Souza put an R-rated twist on for "Die Hard."

In the movie, McClane says the iconic line to villain Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman) before hanging up their walkie-talkie call.

But although they agreed when it came to adding the line to the film, Willis and de Souza debated over its pronunciation.

For Willis, its correct pronunciation was "yippee-ti-yay." But they eventually went with de Souza's suggestion on how to pronounce the yippee-ki-yay catchphrase.

The Oxford English Dictionary states that the word "yip" originated in the 15th century and meant "to cheep, as a young bird." Its meaning changed over the centuries and can now mean "to shout" or "to complain."

The word was reportedly influenced by the 16th-century term yelp, meaning "boasting, vainglorious speaking." It was also linked to the 14th-century word "yawp" and Walt Whitman's late 19th-century term "barbaric yawp."

The Week, on the other hand, noted that "yippee" was first recorded in Sinclair Lewis' 1920 novel, "Main Street." Meanwhile, the whole phrase "yippee-ki-yay" was heard in Bing Crosby's song, "I'm An Old Cowhand."

The "Die Hard" franchise expanded the "yippee-ki-yay" line's history and added it in the next installments, including "Die Hard 2: Die Harder" (1990) and "Die Hard With a Vengeance" (1995). Though the line still sounds profane, knowing its real meaning became a game-changer to fans.