Wilhelm scream

First appearing in Distant Drums (1951) to express the terror of being eaten by alligators, the Wilhelm scream earned its namesake in 1953, when Private Wilhelm was shot in the leg with an arrow in The Charge at Feather River. In the 1970s, University of Southern California film students found the stock sound effect and used it in their student films. One of those students was Ben Burtt, who became sound editor on both the Star Wars and Indiana Jones franchises, and used the effect throughout each series. Other filmmakers noticed and incorporated it into their own sound design as a running industry in-joke. It’s since appeared in Titanic, Reservoir Dogs and Toy Story, as well as countless other films, TV shows and videos. Today, many people encounter the Wilhelm scream via memes, demonstrating how different forms of pop culture influence and inspire each other.