Travis Bickle
Encyclopedia
Travis Bickle is a fictional character from the 1976 film Taxi Driver
Taxi Driver
Taxi Driver is a 1976 American drama film directed by Martin Scorsese and written by Paul Schrader. The film is set in New York City, soon after the Vietnam War. The film stars Robert De Niro and features Jodie Foster, Harvey Keitel, and Cybill Shepherd. The film was nominated for four Academy...

, played by Robert De Niro
Robert De Niro
Robert De Niro, Jr. is an American actor, director and producer. His first major film roles were in Bang the Drum Slowly and Mean Streets, both in 1973...

. He is widely considered one of the most iconic characters in film history
History of film
The history of film is the historical development of the medium known variously as cinema, motion pictures, film, or the movies.The history of film spans over 100 years, from the latter part of the 19th century to the present day...

, and De Niro earned an Oscar nomination for his portrayal of him.
]], BBC Radio 4's Film Programme, 10 August 2007 He is greatly inspired by Arthur Bremer
Arthur Bremer
Arthur Herman Bremer is an American convicted for an assassination attempt on U.S. Democratic presidential candidate George Wallace on May 15, 1972 in Laurel, Maryland, leaving him paralyzed from the waist down for the rest of his life...

, who attempted to assassinate presidential candidate George Wallace
George Wallace
George Corley Wallace, Jr. was the 45th Governor of Alabama, serving four terms: 1963–1967, 1971–1979 and 1983–1987. "The most influential loser" in 20th-century U.S. politics, according to biographers Dan T. Carter and Stephan Lesher, he ran for U.S...

 on May 15, 1972.

Biography

Little is known about Bickle's past other than that he is a former Marine
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...

 who served in the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...

, has "not much" education, was given an honorable discharge in May 1973, and is 26 years old. He is socially inept, has few friends, and is suffering from insomnia
Insomnia
Insomnia is most often defined by an individual's report of sleeping difficulties. While the term is sometimes used in sleep literature to describe a disorder demonstrated by polysomnographic evidence of disturbed sleep, insomnia is often defined as a positive response to either of two questions:...

. He takes a job as a graveyard shift cab
Taxicab
A taxicab, also taxi or cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of their choice...

 driver to occupy his time. Working late at night in dangerous neighborhoods, his customers tend to include pimp
Pimp
A pimp is an agent for prostitutes who collects part of their earnings. The pimp may receive this money in return for advertising services, physical protection, or for providing a location where she may engage clients...

s, addicts, and thieves
Theft
In common usage, theft is the illegal taking of another person's property without that person's permission or consent. The word is also used as an informal shorthand term for some crimes against property, such as burglary, embezzlement, larceny, looting, robbery, shoplifting and fraud...

. He is visibly disgusted by them, and begins fantasizing
Fantasy (psychology)
Fantasy in a psychological sense is broadly used to cover two different senses, conscious and unconscious. In the unconscious sense, it is sometimes spelled "phantasy".-Conscious fantasy:...

 about "cleansing" such "filth" from the streets.

He becomes smitten with a woman, Betsy (Cybill Shepherd
Cybill Shepherd
Cybill Lynne Shepherd is an American actress, singer and former model. Her best known roles include starring as Jacy in The Last Picture Show, as Betsy in Taxi Driver, as Madeleine Spencer in Psych, as Maddie Hayes on Moonlighting, as Cybill Sheridan on Cybill, and as Phyllis Kroll on The L...

), who works in the local campaign office of presidential candidate
United States presidential election
Elections for President and Vice President of the United States are indirect elections in which voters cast ballots for a slate of electors of the U.S. Electoral College, who in turn directly elect the President and Vice President...

, Senator
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...

 Charles Palantine. He often watches Betsy from his cab, and finally enters the office with the pretense of wanting to support the candidate, and asks her out. They meet for coffee, and Betsy finds him odd but intriguing, and agrees to see him again. He takes her to a porn theater he frequents. She is appalled and refuses to see him again.

After Betsy rejects him, Bickle becomes increasingly paranoid
Paranoia
Paranoia [] is a thought process believed to be heavily influenced by anxiety or fear, often to the point of irrationality and delusion. Paranoid thinking typically includes persecutory beliefs, or beliefs of conspiracy concerning a perceived threat towards oneself...

 and starts acting out his vigilante
Vigilante
A vigilante is a private individual who legally or illegally punishes an alleged lawbreaker, or participates in a group which metes out extralegal punishment to an alleged lawbreaker....

 fantasies. He buys several guns and takes to carrying them secreted about his person—taped to his limbs, for example, or in hidden spring-loaded holsters
Sleeve gun
A sleeve gun is a device wrapped around a user's forearm and used to conceal a small firearm under a long-sleeved coat or jacket. A triggering mechanism causes the firearm to extend out of the gadget quickly enough for the user to grab it and fire....

. He famously practices a menacing, tough guy swagger in the mirror — "You talkin' to me?
You talkin' to me?
"You talkin' to me?" is a catchphrase delivered by Travis Bickle, a character played by Robert De Niro in the 1976 movie Taxi Driver. The quotation and the scene it was featured in have become a pop culture icon. In 2005, it was chosen as #10 on the American Film Institute list, AFI's 100 Years.....

" — to use on whoever angers him. Eventually, he shaves his head into a Mohawk
Mohawk hairstyle
The mohawk is a hairstyle in which, in the most common variety, both sides of the head are shaven, leaving a strip of noticeably longer hair...

. He attends one of Palantine's speeches, apparently intent on shooting him. However, he draws the attention of Secret Service
United States Secret Service
The United States Secret Service is a United States federal law enforcement agency that is part of the United States Department of Homeland Security. The sworn members are divided among the Special Agents and the Uniformed Division. Until March 1, 2003, the Service was part of the United States...

 agents and flees.

He becomes obsessed with saving Iris (Jodie Foster
Jodie Foster
Alicia Christian "Jodie" Foster is an American actress, film director, producer as well as a former child actress....

), a 12-year-old prostitute
Prostitution
Prostitution is the act or practice of providing sexual services to another person in return for payment. The person who receives payment for sexual services is called a prostitute and the person who receives such services is known by a multitude of terms, including a "john". Prostitution is one of...

 he has seen on his route. He pays her pimp, Sport (Harvey Keitel
Harvey Keitel
Harvey Keitel is an American actor. Some of his most notable starring roles were in Martin Scorsese's Mean Streets and Taxi Driver, Ridley Scott's The Duellists and Thelma and Louise, Ettore Scola's That Night in Varennes, Quentin Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction, Jane Campion's The...

), for her time, but is not interested in having sex with her; instead he tries to persuade her to leave prostitution and return home. Iris rebuffs him, only increasing his anger and resolve to take her away from a dangerous life. He confronts Sport and shoots him in the stomach with his S&W Model 36 snub nose and leaves him to die on the street. He then goes on a rampage through a brothel
Brothel
Brothels are business establishments where patrons can engage in sexual activities with prostitutes. Brothels are known under a variety of names, including bordello, cathouse, knocking shop, whorehouse, strumpet house, sporting house, house of ill repute, house of prostitution, and bawdy house...

 with his concealed weapons, while Iris is servicing a client. Bickle shoots the approaching bouncers hand off with his .44 magnum as soon as he walks in, but is shot in the neck by a dying Sport from behind. Travis guns down Sport. Having ran out of ammunition for his .44 magnum, he draws out his snub nose again and executes Sport. Travis begins to advance only to have the enraged, wounded bouncer behind him trying to attack him while going up the stairs. The Mafioso who is being serviced by Iris both overhear the previous gunshots and sneaks behind the distracted Travis and shoots Travis' arm making him fall on the ground, causing him to drop his snub nose down the stairs as well. However the Mafioso is killed by Travis' Smith and Wesson Escort, hidden in his sleeve with his quick draw rig on his wrist. Travis finally gets to Iris. The bouncer, however, is still enraged over the loss of his hand, tackles Travis into her room, but is quickly overpowered and executed when Travis pulls his knife from his boot holster and stabs him in the hand. Travis grabs the dead Mafioso's snub nose and finishes the bouncer off in front of Iris's eyes. Out of weapons and injured severely, Travis lays on Iris's couch; only for the police to arrive. Travis stares at them and smiles, pointing his finger like a gun at his head.

The newspapers hail Bickle as a hero for rescuing Iris. While in the hospital, he receives a letter from her parents, thanking him profusely for returning their daughter to them (she had been sent home after the police arrived and found out she was a runaway
Runaway youth
A runaway is a minor or a person under an arbitrary age, depending upon the local jurisdiction, who has left the home of his or her parent or legal guardian without permission, or has been thrown out by his or her parent and is considered by the local authorities to lack the capacity to live under...

). After recovering, he sees Betsy, who tells Bickle that she read about him in the papers, and when she gets out and asks him how much the cab fee was, he smiles and drives away.

Critical response and analysis

Taxi Driver, American Gigolo
American Gigolo
American Gigolo is a 1980 crime drama film, written and directed by Paul Schrader. It is informally considered the second installment in his "lonely man" trilogy, following the Martin Scorsese directed Taxi Driver and preceding Light Sleeper .-Plot:Julian Kaye is a male prostitute in Los Angeles...

, Light Sleeper
Light Sleeper
Light Sleeper is an US-american drama film written and directed by Paul Schrader in 1992. It stars Willem Dafoe, Susan Sarandon, and Dana Delany....

, and The Walker
The Walker
The Walker is a 2007 drama film that was written and directed by Paul Schrader. It is a British-American independent production and is the latest installment in Schrader's "night workers" series of films, starting with Taxi Driver in 1976, and then followed by American Gigolo in 1980 and Light...

make up a series referred to variously as the "Man in a Room" or "Night Worker" movies. Screenwriter Paul Schrader
Paul Schrader
Paul Joseph Schrader is an American screenwriter, film director, and former film critic. Apart from his credentials as a director, Schrader is most notably known for his screenplays for Martin Scorsese’s Taxi Driver and Raging Bull....

 (who directed the other three films) has stated that he considers the central characters of the four films to be one character, who has changed as he has gotten older.

In the American Film Institute
American Film Institute
The American Film Institute is an independent non-profit organization created by the National Endowment for the Arts, which was established in 1967 when President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act...

's top 50 movie villains of all time
AFI's 100 Years... 100 Heroes and Villains
AFI's 100 Years... 100 Heroes and Villains is a list of the 100 greatest screen characters chosen by American Film Institute in June 2003. It is part of the AFI 100 Years… series. The series was first presented in a CBS special hosted by Arnold Schwarzenegger...

, Bickle was named the 30th greatest film villain
Villain
A villain is an "evil" character in a story, whether a historical narrative or, especially, a work of fiction. The villain usually is the antagonist, the character who tends to have a negative effect on other characters...

 of all time. Empire
Empire (magazine)
Empire is a British film magazine published monthly by Bauer Consumer Media. From the first issue in July 1989, the magazine was edited by Barry McIlheney and published by Emap. Bauer purchased Emap Consumer Media in early 2008...

magazine also ranked him 18th in their "The 100 Greatest Movie Characters" poll.

The cynical cab driver Narasingh (played by Soumitra Chatterjee
Soumitra Chatterjee
Soumitra Chatterjee or Soumitra Chattopadhyay is an iconic Bengali actor from India, known among other things for his frequent collaborations with the great Bengali film director Satyajit Ray and his constant comparison with the Bengali screen idol Uttam Kumar.-Background:Soumitra graduated from...

) in Satyajit Ray
Satyajit Ray
Satyajit Ray was an Indian Bengali filmmaker. He is regarded as one of the greatest auteurs of 20th century cinema. Ray was born in the city of Kolkata into a Bengali family prominent in the world of arts and literature...

's Abhijan
Abhijan
Abhijan is a 1962 Bengali film directed by the Indian filmmaker Satyajit Ray.-Introduction:The filming of Abhijan began by the first half of 1961 when Bijoy Chatterjee asked Satyajit Ray to write a script on a popular Bengali novel of the same name by Tarashankar Bandopadhyay...

is seen as a prototype for the character of Travis Bickle in Taxi Driver. Scorsese himself has credited Satyajit Ray as a major influence on his work.

Sequel

  • In late January 2005 a sequel was announced by Robert De Niro
    Robert De Niro
    Robert De Niro, Jr. is an American actor, director and producer. His first major film roles were in Bang the Drum Slowly and Mean Streets, both in 1973...

     and Martin Scorsese
    Martin Scorsese
    Martin Charles Scorsese is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film historian. In 1990 he founded The Film Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to film preservation, and in 2007 he founded the World Cinema Foundation...

    . At a 25th anniversary screening of Raging Bull, De Niro talked about the story of an older Travis Bickle being in development. Also in 2000, De Niro mentioned interest in bringing back the character in conversation with Actors Studio host James Lipton
    James Lipton
    James Lipton is an American writer, poet, composer, actor and dean emeritus of the Actors Studio Drama School at Pace University in New York City. He is the executive producer, writer and host of the Bravo cable television series Inside the Actors Studio, which debuted in 1994...

    .

Weapons

  • Smith and Wesson Model 29: Travis sought this gun out first. Recommended by a mentally unstable client, who mentioned it for killing his wife. Of all of his four concealed weapons, his model 29 saw the most use. "Easy Andy" deemed the weapon heavily impractical due to its 8⅜" barrel. Travis carries it in a custom fitted leather shoulder holster sold to him by "Easy Andy"—the gun for $350, and $40 for the holster. It was used in the climatic shootout at the end of the film. When Travis enters the brothel, he uses it to not only blast the bouncer's entire right hand off, but finishes off "Sport" as well with two shots, who was already injured by Travis' first attack. Travis however drops the gun, and pulls his .38 out. Prior to these events, he used it at the firing range.

  • Smith & Wesson Model 36
    Smith & Wesson Model 36
    The Smith & Wesson Model 36 is a revolver chambered for .38 Special. Like nearly all other "J-frame" Smith & Wesson revolvers, it has a 5-round capacity in a swing-out cylinder, and features an exposed hammer. It features a nickel-plated or blued finish and either wood or rubber grips...

    : Along with the other handguns by Easy Andy, Travis purchases the 5 shot, .38 special revolver. It is also nickel plated and has Pearl grips, a square butt, and a flared flat cylinder latch. It was recommended by Easy Andy because of its practicality and was bought for $250. The snub nose was concealed in Travis' military jacket pocket. At the beginning of Travis' rampage, it was used to gutshot Sport when the two begin to throw insults at each other. The gun was put away however, when Travis decides to use his magnum instead. After the bouncer is injured and Sport is killed by the .44 magnum, Travis drops it and draws the Model 36 and shoots Sport twice to ensure his death. Before anymore shots could be fired from it, he drops it down the stairs during the ensuing shootout. A blued one is used by the Mafioso whom shot Travis, and is also picked up by Travis as well to finish the bouncer off. In an error at the gun range scene, it turns into a Colt Detective Special.

  • Smith & Wesson Model 61
    Smith & Wesson Model 61
    The Smith and Wesson Model 61 Pocket Escort is a small semi-automatic pistol designed for self-defense. It was available in blued or nickel-plated finishes and black or white plastic grip plates...

    : Purchased for $125, but Easy Andy incorrectly refers it as a "Colt .25" even though the pistol is a .22 LR caliber. Has a Factory nickel plating with Faux Ivory Grips. It was easily the most concealable of Travis Bickle's assortment of weapons. It was hidden in his sleeve by a quick draw rig he constructed himself. Was used in the famous You talkin' to me?
    You talkin' to me?
    "You talkin' to me?" is a catchphrase delivered by Travis Bickle, a character played by Robert De Niro in the 1976 movie Taxi Driver. The quotation and the scene it was featured in have become a pop culture icon. In 2005, it was chosen as #10 on the American Film Institute list, AFI's 100 Years.....

     scene, and used to kill the Mafioso who ambushes Travis by the stairway in the brothel shootout. In an error during gun range scene, it turned into a Sterling Arms Pistol. Since this was created many other movies have used the quick draw rig.The first was the 1990 film The Adventures of Ford Fairlane
    The Adventures of Ford Fairlane
    The Adventures of Ford Fairlane is a 1990 American action/comedy film starring comedian Andrew Dice Clay as Ford Fairlane, a "Rock n' Roll Detective," whose beat is the music industry in Los Angeles. The film was directed by Renny Harlin.-Plot:...

     where it is used to hold Ford Fairlane's (Andrew Dice Clay
    Andrew Dice Clay
    Andrew Dice Clay is an American comedian and actor who played the lead role in the film The Adventures of Ford Fairlane.Clay has been in several movies and has released a number of stand-up albums...

    ) Smith & Wesson Model 38 "Bodyguard", but much to his dismay it fails to eject properly on occasion .It is also used in the 1995 film Desperado
    Desperado
    Desperado may refer to:* Outlaw, particularly in the American Old West- Amusement rides :* Desperado , a roller coaster at Buffalo Bill's casino in Primm, Nevada* Desperados , a collective amusement ride- Comics :...

    , where El Mariachi (Antonio Banderas
    Antonio Banderas
    José Antonio Domínguez Banderas , better known as Antonio Banderas, is a Spanish film actor, film director, film producer and singer...

    ) ejects two handguns from his forearms to engage a band of thugs threatening him at a bar. In the 2002 film Equilibrium
    Equilibrium (film)
    Equilibrium is a 2002 American science fiction action film written and directed by Kurt Wimmer. It stars Christian Bale as John Preston, a warrior-priest and enforcement officer in a future dystopia where both feelings and artistic expression are outlawed and citizens take daily injections of drugs...

    , John Preston (Christian Bale
    Christian Bale
    Christian Charles Philip Bale is an English actor. Best known for his roles in American films, Bale has starred in both big budget Hollywood films and the smaller projects from independent producers and art houses....

    ) uses two sleeve guns to conceal his sidearms and extra magazines. The main antagonist in Red Heat
    Red Heat
    Red Heat is a 1988 buddy cop film directed by Walter Hill. The film stars Arnold Schwarzenegger, as Moscow narc Ivan Danko, and James Belushi, as Chicago detective Art Ridžić...

     uses a sleeve gun to eject a small one-shot pistol. A more mechanical version of the sleeve gun is seen in the 1997 film Alien Resurrection. In the 2002 film Returner
    Returner
    is a 2002 Japanese science fiction film, directed by Takashi Yamazaki and starring Anne Suzuki and Takeshi Kaneshiro.-Plot:Milly is a soldier from 2084, where humanity is on the verge of extinction because of the "Daggra", an alien race. In mankind's final stronghold in Tibet Milly leaps into a...

    , Miyamoto (Takeshi Kaneshiro
    Takeshi Kaneshiro
    Takeshi Kaneshiro , born October 11, 1973, is a Taiwan-born Japanese actor and singer.-Name:...

    ) uses a sleeve gun to conceal a cellular phone used as a bomb detonator.

  • Astra Constable: Purchased for $150 and was the only weapon not concealed in any sort of holster, but tucked in his waistband. It was also the only firearm not used by Travis in the brutal climax at the end of the film. Easy Andy who not only mistakenly refers to it as a ".380 Walther", but also claims that "during World War II, they used this gun to replace the Walther P38 pistol. Just gave it out to officers" and claims it can hold eight rounds in the "clip" (meaning magazine). Travis uses it to kill a grocery store robber, and hands it to the grocery store owner (Victor Argo
    Victor Argo
    Victor Argo was a Puerto Rican - American actor who usually played the part of a tough bad guy in his movies.-Early years:...

    ). The pistol most likely stood in for the Walther PPK
    Walther PPK
    The Walther PP series pistols are blowback-operated semi-automatic pistols.They feature an exposed hammer, a double-action trigger mechanism, a single-column magazine, and a fixed barrel which also acts as the guide rod for the recoil spring...

    pistol, due to their similarities. In an error, when Travis fires all of his handguns, the pistol was a PPK instead of an Astra Constable, most likely the pistol Easy Andy was referring to.

  • Travis also kept a combat knife duct-taped on his boot, which was used to stab the bouncer's left hand before being killed by Travis.
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