R. Lee Ermey knew how to perfectly portray Gunnery Sergeant Hartman in Full Metal Jacket because he was a genuine former U.S. Marine Corps drill instructor himself. Director Stanley Kubrick allowed him to improvise most of the character's famously harsh and authentic dialogue based entirely on his real-world military experience. Credit: @cbc | History In Pictures

In the frozen darkness of the Sierra Nevadas, a decorated Gunnery Sergeant publicly challenges a female Master Sergeant's right to lead. He thinks he knows her limits, but he has no idea what she survived to get here, or the promise she made to a dying man just to earn this day. The words sliced through the frozen air of the equipment bay, sharper than the January morning. “Die now or I’ll make you wish you had.” Gunnery Sergeant Derek Holloway stood at parade rest, but there was no rest in him.