John McClane Sr. is a fictional character and the protagonist of the Die Hard franchise, based on Joe Leland from Roderick Thorp's action novel Nothing Lasts Forever. McClane was portrayed in all five films by actor Bruce Willis, and he is known for his sardonic one-liners, including the famous catchphrase in every Die Hard film: "Yippee-ki-yay, motherfucker". Per the franchise's name, he confounds repeated attempts to kill him, driving his enemies to distraction, by adding up and exploiting dumb luck.
Source : Wikipedia