Marion Robert Morrison[1][a] (May 26, 1907 – June 11, 1979), known professionally asJohn Wayne, was an American actor. Nicknamed "Duke", he became apopular icon through his starring roles in films which were produced duringHollywood's Golden Age, especially inWestern andwar movies. His career flourished from thesilent film era of the 1920s through theAmerican New Wave, as he appeared in a total of 179 film and television productions. He was among the top box-office draws for three decades[3][4] and appeared with many other important Hollywood stars of his era. In 1999, theAmerican Film Institute selected Wayne as one of thegreatest male stars of classic American cinema.[5]
Wayne was born inWinterset, Iowa, but grew up inSouthern California. After losing hisfootball scholarship to theUniversity of Southern California due to abodysurfing accident,[6] he began working for theFox Film Corporation. He appeared mostly in small parts, but his first leading role came inRaoul Walsh's WesternThe Big Trail (1930), an early widescreen film epic that was a box-office failure. He played leading roles in numerousB movies during the 1930s, most of them also Westerns, without becoming a major name.John Ford'sStagecoach (1939) made Wayne a mainstream star, and he starred in 142 motion pictures altogether. According to biographer Ronald Davis, "John Wayne personified for millions the nation's frontier heritage."[7]
Wayne was born Marion Robert Morrison on May 26, 1907, at 224 South Second Street inWinterset, Iowa.[13] The local paper,Winterset Madisonian, reported on page 4 of the edition of May 30, 1907, that Wayne weighed 13 lb (around 6 kg) at birth.[14] Wayne claimed his middle name was soon changed from Robert to Michael when his parents decided to name their next son Robert, but extensive research has found no such legal change, although it might have been changed informally or the documentation may have been lost. Wayne's legal name apparently remained Marion Robert Morrison his entire life,[15][16] although to this day his original name is almost always referred to as Marion Michael Morrison.
Wayne's family moved toPalmdale, California, and then in 1916 toGlendale at 404 Isabel Street, where his father worked as a pharmacist. He attendedGlendale Union High School, where he performed well in both sports and academics. Wayne was part of his high school's football team and its debating team. He was also the president of the Latin Society and contributed to the school's newspaper sports column.[20]
A local fireman at the station on his route to school in Glendale started calling him "Little Duke" because he never went anywhere without his hugeAiredale Terrier, Duke.[21][22] He preferred "Duke" to "Marion", and the nickname stuck. Wayne attended Wilson Middle School in Glendale. As a teen, he worked in an ice-cream shop for a man whoshod horses for Hollywood studios. He was also active as a member of theOrder of DeMolay, which he was later inducted into the Hall of Fame.[23] He played football for the 1924 league championGlendale High School team.[24]
Wayne applied to theU.S. Naval Academy, but was not accepted due to poor grades. Instead, he attended theUniversity of Southern California (USC), majoring inpre-law. He was a member of theTrojan Knights andSigma Chi fraternities.[25]: 30 Wayne, who stood 6 feet4+1⁄2 inches (1.94 metres) tall, also played on theUSC football team under coachHoward Jones. A broken collarbone injury curtailed his athletic career; Wayne later noted that he was too terrified of Jones' reaction to reveal the actual cause of his injury, abodysurfing accident.[26] He lost his athletic scholarship and, without funds, had to leave the university.[27][28]
As a favor to coach Jones, who had given silent Western film starTom Mix tickets to USC games, directorJohn Ford and Mix hired Wayne as a prop boy and extra.[29][30] Wayne later credited his walk, talk, and persona to his acquaintance withWyatt Earp, who was good friends with Mix.[29] Wayne soon moved tobit parts, establishing a longtime friendship with Ford, the director who provided most of those roles. Early in this period, he had a minor, uncredited role as a guard in the 1926 filmBardelys the Magnificent. Wayne also appeared with hisUSC teammates playing football inBrown of Harvard (1926),The Dropkick (1927), andSalute (1929) andColumbia'sMaker of Men (filmed in 1930, released in 1931).[31] While working forFox Film Corporation in bit roles, Wayne was given on-screen credit as "Duke Morrison" only once, inWords and Music (1929). DirectorRaoul Walsh saw him moving studio furniture while working as a prop boy and cast him in his first starring role inThe Big Trail (1930). For his screen name, Walsh suggested "Anthony Wayne", afterRevolutionary War General"Mad" Anthony Wayne. Fox Studios chiefWinfield Sheehan rejected it as sounding "too Italian". Walsh then suggested "John Wayne". Sheehan agreed, and the name was set. Wayne was not even present for the discussion.[32] His pay was raised to $105 a week.[33]
The Big Trail was to be the first big-budget outdoor spectacle of the sound era, made at a then-staggering cost over $2 million (over $32.8 million equivalent in 2021),[34] using hundreds of extras and wide vistas of theAmerican Southwest, still largely unpopulated at the time. To take advantage of the breathtaking scenery, it was filmed in two versions, a standard35 mm version and another in the new70 mm Grandeur film process, using an innovative camera and lenses. Many in the audience who saw it in Grandeur stood and cheered, but only a handful of theaters were equipped to show the film in its widescreen process, and the effort was largely wasted at the time. The film was considered a huge box-office flop at the time, but came to be highly regarded by modern critics.[35]
After the commercial failure ofThe Big Trail, Wayne was relegated to small roles in A pictures, including Columbia'sThe Deceiver (1931), in which he played a corpse. He appeared in theserialThe Three Musketeers (1933), an updated version of theAlexandre Dumas novel in which the protagonists were soldiers in theFrench Foreign Legion in then-contemporary North Africa. He played the lead, with his name over the title, in many low-budgetPoverty Row Westerns, mostly atMonogram Pictures and serials forMascot Pictures Corporation. By Wayne's own estimation, he appeared in about 80 of thesehorse operas from 1930 to 1939.[36] InRiders of Destiny (1933), he became one of the firstsinging cowboys of film, albeit via dubbing.[37] Wayne also appeared in some of theThree Mesquiteers Westerns, whose title was aplay on the Dumas classic. He was mentored bystuntmen in riding and otherWestern skills.[31] StuntmanYakima Canutt and Wayne developed and perfected stunts and onscreen fisticuffs techniques that are still in use.[38] One of the main innovations with which Wayne is credited in these early Poverty Row Westerns is allowing the good guys to fight as convincingly as the bad guys, by not always making them fight clean. Wayne claimed, "Before I came along, it was standard practice that the hero must always fight clean. The heavy was allowed to hit the hero in the head with a chair or throw a kerosene lamp at him or kick him in the stomach, but the hero could only knock the villain down politely and then wait until he rose. I changed all that. I threw chairs and lamps. I fought hard and I fought dirty. I fought to win."[39]
Wayne's second breakthrough role came withJohn Ford'sStagecoach (1939). Because of Wayne'sB-movie status and track record in low-budget Westerns throughout the 1930s, Ford had difficulty getting financing for what was to be an A-budget film. After rejection by all the major studios, Ford struck a deal with independent producerWalter Wanger in whichClaire Trevor—a much bigger star at the time—received top billing.Stagecoach was a huge critical and financial success, and Wayne became a mainstream star. Cast memberLouise Platt credited Ford as saying at the time that Wayne would become the biggest star ever because of his appeal as the archetypal "everyman".[40]
Wayne (right) acting in a short clip fromAngel and the Badman (1947)(click to play)
America's entry intoWorld War II resulted in a deluge of support for the war effort from all sectors of society, and Hollywood was no exception. Wayne was exempted from service due to his age (34 at the time ofPearl Harbor) and family status (classified as 3-A – family deferment). Wayne repeatedly wrote to Ford saying he wanted to enlist, on one occasion inquiring whether he could get into Ford's military unit.[41] Wayne did not attempt to prevent his reclassification as 1-A (draft eligible), butRepublic Studios was emphatically resistant to losing him, since he was their only A-list actor under contract.Herbert J. Yates, president of Republic, threatened Wayne with a lawsuit if he walked away from his contract,[42] and Republic Pictures intervened in the Selective Service process, requesting Wayne's further deferment.[43]
U.S. National Archives records indicate that Wayne, in fact, did make an application[44] to serve in theOffice of Strategic Services (OSS), precursor to the modernCIA, but his bid was ultimately unsuccessful. Wayne toured U.S. bases and hospitals in the South Pacific for three months in 1943 and 1944,[45] with theUnited Service Organizations (USO).[46][47][48] During this trip, he carried out a request fromWilliam J. Donovan, head of the OSS, to assess whether GeneralDouglas MacArthur, commander of theSouth West Pacific Area, or his staff were hindering the work of the OSS.[22]: 88 Donovan later issued Wayne an OSS Certificate of Service to memorialize Wayne's contribution to the OSS mission.[22]: 88 [49] By many accounts, his failure to serve in the military later became the most painful part of his life.[41] His widow later suggested that his patriotism in later decades sprang from guilt, writing: "He would become a 'superpatriot' for the rest of his life trying to atone for staying home."[50]
Like most Hollywood stars of his era, Wayne appeared as a guest on radio programs, such as:TheHedda Hopper Show andTheLouella Parsons Show. He made a number of appearances in dramatic roles, mainly recreations for radio of his own film roles, on such programs asScreen Directors Playhouse andLux Radio Theatre. For six months in 1942, Wayne starred in his own radio adventure series,Three Sheets to the Wind, produced by film directorTay Garnett. In the series, an international spy/detective show, Wayne played Dan O'Brien, a detective who used alcoholism as a mask for his investigatory endeavors. The show was intended by Garnett to be a pilot of sorts for a film version, though the motion picture never came to fruition. No episodes of the series featuring Wayne seem to have survived, though a demonstration episode withBrian Donlevy in the leading role does exist. Wayne, not Donlevy, played the role throughout the series' run onNBC.[51] DirectorRobert Rossen offered to Wayne the starring role inAll the King's Men (1949), but Wayne refused, believing the script to be "un-American in many ways."[52]Broderick Crawford, who was eventually cast in the role, won the 1949 Oscar for Best Actor, ironically beating out Wayne, who had been nominated forSands of Iwo Jima (1949).
He lost the leading role of Jimmy Ringo inThe Gunfighter (1950) toGregory Peck due to his refusal to work for Columbia Pictures because its chief,Harry Cohn, had mistreated him years before when he was a young contract player. Cohn had bought the project for Wayne, but Wayne's grudge was too deep, and Cohn sold the script toTwentieth Century Fox, which cast Peck in the role Wayne badly wanted, but for which he refused to bend.[52][53]
Batjac, the production company co-founded by Wayne in 1952, was named after the fictional shipping company Batjak inWake of the Red Witch (1948), a film based on the novel byGarland Roark. (A spelling error by Wayne's secretary was allowed to stand, accounting for the variation.)[52] Batjac (and its predecessor, Wayne-Fellows Productions) was the arm through which Wayne produced many films for himself and other stars. Its best-known non-Wayne productions wereSeven Men From Now (1956), which started the classic collaboration between directorBudd Boetticher and starRandolph Scott, andGun the Man Down (1956) with contract playerJames Arness as an outlaw.
He appeared in nearly two dozen ofJohn Ford's films over 20 years, includingShe Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949),The Quiet Man (1952), andThe Searchers (1956). The latter film was the first one in which he called someone "Pilgrim", and is often considered to contain Wayne's finest and most complex performance.[54]
In 1962, Wayne starred inJohn Ford'sThe Man Who Shot Liberty Valance withJames Stewart.[62] May 29 marked the premiere ofHoward Hawks'Hatari!, shot on location in Africa with Wayne playing the lead capturing wild animals from the beds of trucks; all the scenes with animals in the film are real.[63] On October 4,The Longest Day started its theatrical run, with Wayne memorably acting with an ensemble cast.[64] Although the other top-level actors in the film accepted a token payment of only $10,000 each to play their roles, making the all-star cast feasible for the budget, Wayne was paid a quarter of a million dollars due to an earlier dispute with producerDarryl F. Zanuck. During this time, the cast of the television drama,Combat!, were preparing for the inaugural season. The principal cast (includingVic Morrow) were to go through a week of basic training at the Army's Infantry Training Center atFort Ord in northern California.[65] Morrow noted that the instructors who worked with the cast at Fort Ord had one common request: not to act like John Wayne. "Poor John," Morrow told a reporter. "I wonder if he knows he's almost a dirty word in the Army."[65]
In 1967, Wayne played the lead inBurt Kennedy'sThe War Wagon with Douglas as the second lead.[74] His second movie that year, Hawks'El Dorado, a highly successful partialremake ofRio Bravo withRobert Mitchum playing Martin's original role, premiered on June 7.[75]
In 1968, Wayne co-directed withRay KelloggThe Green Berets,[76] the only major film made during theVietnam War in support of the war.[27] Wayne wanted to make this movie because at that time Hollywood had little interest in making movies about the Vietnam War.[77] During the filming ofThe Green Berets, theDegar or Montagnard people of Vietnam's Central Highlands, fierce fighters against communism, bestowed on Wayne a brass bracelet that he wore in the film and all subsequent films.[52] Also that year, Wayne played the lead in Andrew V. McLaglen'sHellfighters, a film about the crews who put out oil rig fires.[78]Katharine Ross played a supporting role.
On June 24, 1970, Andrew V. McLaglen'sChisum started to play in cinemas. Wayne took the role of the owner of a cattle ranch, who finds out that a businessman is trying to own neighboring land illegally.[81] On September 16,Howard Hawks'Rio Lobo premiered. Wayne played Col. Cord McNally, who confronts Confederate soldiers who stole a shipment of gold at the end of the Civil War.[82] This was another remake ofRio Bravo, albeit without a second lead the box office caliber ofDean Martin orRobert Mitchum.
In June 1971,George Sherman'sBig Jake made its debut. Wayne played the role of an estranged father who must track down a gang who kidnapped his grandson.[83] The film was a critically acclaimed hit.
In 1972, Wayne starred inMark Rydell'sThe Cowboys.Vincent Canby ofThe New York Times, who did not particularly care for the film, wrote: "Wayne is, of course, marvelously indestructible, and he has become an almost perfect father figure".[84] The same year, he was selected in the last round of theNFL draft by theAtlanta Falcons for his past football experience, though the pick was disallowed by league officials as he was 64 years old at the time.[85]
In 1974, Wayne took on the role of the eponymous detective inJohn Sturges's crime dramaMcQ.[88]
On March 25, 1975,Douglas Hickox'sBrannigan premiered. In it, Wayne played a Chicago police lieutenant named Jim Brannigan on the hunt in London for an organized-crime leader.[89] On October 17,Rooster Cogburn started its theatrical run; Wayne reprised his role asU.S. Marshal Reuben J. "Rooster" Cogburn[90] with strong elements of the plot ofThe African Queen along withKatharine Hepburn as his leading lady.
In 1976, Wayne starred inDon Siegel'sThe Shootist, also starringLauren Bacall,Ron Howard andJames Stewart. It was Wayne's final cinematic role, whose main character, J. B. Books, was dying of cancer, to which Wayne himself succumbed three years later. It contains numerous plot similarities toThe Gunfighter of nearly 30 years before, a role which Wayne had wanted, but turned down.[52] Upon its theatrical release, it grossed $13,406,138 domestically. About $6 million were earned as UStheatrical rentals.[91] The film received positive reviews.[92] It was named one of the Ten Best Films of 1976 by the National Board of Review. Film criticRoger Ebert of theChicago Sun-Times rankedThe Shootist number 10 on his list of the 10 best films of 1976.[93] The film was nominated for an Oscar, aGolden Globe, aBAFTA film award, and aWriters Guild of America award.
Wayne was married three times and divorced twice. His wives included one ofSpanish American descent, Josephine Alicia Saenz, and two fromLatin America,Esperanza Baur andPilar Pallete. He had four children with Josephine:Michael Wayne (1934–2003), Mary Antonia "Toni" Wayne LaCava (1936–2000),Patrick Wayne (born 1939), and Melinda Wayne Munoz (1940–2022). He had three more children with Pilar: Aissa Wayne (born 1956),John Ethan Wayne (born 1962), and Marisa Wayne (born 1966).
Several of Wayne's children entered the film and television industry. Son Ethan was billed as John Ethan Wayne in a few films, and played one of the leads in the 1990s update of theAdam-12 television series.[94] Ethan has also appeared on theHistory Channel showPawn Stars to help authenticate merchandise supposedly related to his father's career. Granddaughter Jennifer Wayne, daughter of Aissa, is a member of the country music groupRunaway June.[95]
In 1973, Wayne was encouraged by Pilar, an avid tennis player, to build the John Wayne Tennis Club inNewport Beach, California. In 1995, the club was sold toKen Stuart, former general manager, and became thePalisades Tennis Club. InThe Quiet Man (1952), Wayne tells Michaeleen "Óg", (Irish: Young), Flynn (portrayed byBarry Fitzgerald) that he is six feet "four and a half" (194 cm), an assertion corroborated by Pilar's bookJohn Wayne: My Life With the Duke.[96]
His divorce from Baur, a Mexican former actress, was stormy. She believed that Wayne and co-starGail Russell were having an affair, a claim that both Wayne and Russell denied. The night the filmAngel and the Badman (1947) wrapped, the usual party was held for cast and crew, and Wayne came home very late. Esperanza was in a drunken rage by the time he arrived, and she attempted to shoot him as he walked through the front door.[52]
Wayne had several high-profile affairs, including one withMerle Oberon that lasted from 1938 to 1947.[97] After his separation from Pilar, in 1973, Wayne became romantically involved and lived with his former secretary Pat Stacy (1941–1995) until his death in 1979.[27] Stacy published a book about her life with him in 1983, titledDuke: A Love Story.[98]
Wayne's hair began to thin in the 1940s, and he had begun to wear a hairpiece by the end of the decade.[99] He was occasionally seen in public without the hairpiece (such as, according toLife, atGary Cooper's funeral). During an appearance atHarvard University, Wayne was asked by a student, "Is it true that your toupée is realmohair?" He responded: "[...] sir, that's real hair. Not mine, but real hair."[100]
A close friend, California CongressmanAlphonzo E. Bell Jr., wrote of Wayne: "Duke's personality and sense of humor were very close to what the general public saw on the big screen. It is perhaps best shown in these words he had engraved on a plaque: 'Each of us is a mixture of some good and some not so good qualities. In considering one's fellow man, it's important to remember the good things. ... We should refrain from making judgments just because a fella happens to be a dirty, rotten S.O.B.'"[101]
Wayne was achess player.Roger Ebert recalls that on the set ofChisum, "we were playing a chess game, both of us bending over the board on an upended apple crate. Wayne, slouched in his old stitched leather director's chair, had a crowd of kibitzers: wranglers, extras, old cronies, drinking buddies, a couple of Mexican stuntmen. He studied the board, roared with laughter, and said, 'God...damn it! You've trapped my queen!' We studied the board. I made a decisive move. 'Why thehell did I just say that?' he asked. If I hadn't-a...said it, you wouldn't-a...seen it.'"[102] According toMichael Munn, when Wayne was asked aboutRock Hudson's sexuality, he replied, "Who the hell cares if he's a queer? The man plays great chess."[103]
Wayne had been a chain smoker of cigarettes since young adulthood and was diagnosed with lung cancer in 1964. He underwent successful surgery to remove his entire left lung[106] and two ribs. Despite efforts by his business associates to prevent him from going public with his illness for fear that it would cost him work, Wayne announced he had cancer and called on the public to get preventive examinations. Five years later, Wayne was declared cancer-free. Wayne has been credited with coining the term "the Big C" as a euphemism for cancer.[107] Wayne biographer Michael Munn chronicled Wayne's drinking habits.[22] According toSam O'Steen's memoir,Cut to the Chase, studio directors knew to shoot Wayne's scenes before noon, because by afternoon, he "was a mean drunk".[108] Ebert quotes him as saying: "Tequila makes your head hurt. Not from your hangover. From falling over and hitting your head."[102]
During the early 1960s, Wayne traveled often toPanama, and he purchased the island ofTaborcillo off that nation's Pacific coast. It was sold by his estate at his death.
Throughout most of his life, Wayne was a vocally prominentconservativeRepublican in Hollywood, supportinganti-communist positions.[115] However, he voted forDemocratic PresidentFranklin D. Roosevelt in the1936 presidential election and expressed admiration for Roosevelt's successor, fellow Democratic PresidentHarry S. Truman, despite having supported Republican candidateThomas E. Dewey in 1948.[116][117] He took part in creating the conservativeMotion Picture Alliance for the Preservation of American Ideals in February 1944 before being elected its president in 1949. An ardent anti-communist and vocal supporter of theHouse Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), he madeBig Jim McLain (1952) with himself as a HUAC investigator to demonstrate his support for the cause of anti-communism. His personal views found expression as a proactive inside enforcer of the "Black List", denying employment and undermining careers of many actors and writers who had expressed their personal political beliefs earlier in life. Soviet leaderJoseph Stalin is alleged to have said that Wayne should be assassinated for his frequently espoused anti-communist politics, despite being a fan of his movies.[118][119] Wayne was a supporter of SenatorJoseph McCarthy.[120]
Wayne supported Vice PresidentRichard Nixon in thepresidential election of 1960, but expressed his vision of patriotism whenJohn F. Kennedy won the election: "I didn't vote for him, but he's my president, and I hope he does a good job."[121] He used his star power to support conservative causes, including rallying support for theVietnam War by producing, co-directing, and starring in the financially successful filmThe Green Berets (1968).[122] In 1960, he joined the anti-communistJohn Birch Society, but quit after the organization denouncedfluoridation of water supplies as a communist plot.[123] In 1964, Wayne was a staunch supporter ofBarry Goldwater, and actively campaigned for him.[124]
Due to his status as the highest-profile Republican star in Hollywood, wealthyTexas Republican Party backers asked Wayne to run for national office in 1968, like his friend and fellow actor SenatorGeorge Murphy. He declined, joking that he did not believe the public would seriously consider an actor in theWhite House. Instead, he supported his friendRonald Reagan's campaigns forGovernor of California in 1966 and 1970. He was asked to be the running mate for DemocraticAlabama GovernorGeorge Wallace, who had been nominated for president by theAmerican Independent Party, in his 1968 campaign, but he immediately rejected the offer[115] and actively campaigned for Nixon;[125] Wayne addressed the1968 Republican National Convention on its opening day.[123]
In 1971, Wayne wrote to President Nixon, who was a friend, to oppose Nixon's plannedtrip to China. Wayne enclosed some hate literature on "that Jew,Kissinger," who had negotiated the historic meeting with Chinese leaders.[126]
Wayne openly differed with many conservatives over the issue of returning thePanama Canal, as he supported thePanama Canal Treaty in the mid-1970s;[127] while Republican leaders such as Reagan,Jesse Helms, andStrom Thurmond had wanted the U.S. to retain full control of the canal, Wayne and fellow conservativeWilliam F. Buckley believed that the Panamanians had the right to the canal and sided with PresidentJimmy Carter. Wayne was a close friend of Panamanian leaderOmar Torrijos Herrera, and Wayne's first wife Josephine was a native of Panama. His support of the treaty brought him hate mail for the first time in his life.[128][129]
In 1973, actorMarlon Brando refused anOscar he had won, due to "the treatment ofAmerican Indians today by the film industry"; Brando did not attend the award ceremony but askedNative American civil rights activistSacheen Littlefeather to attend and deliver a refusal speech in the event that he won. Wayne was allegedly waiting in the wings and was so angry about her presence there that Littlefeather said "he was coming towards me to forcibly take me off the stage, and he had to be restrained by six security men to prevent him from doing so."[130] However, an investigation in 2022 found that this is unlikely to have happened, and Littlefeather had no way of witnessing this take place.[131]
Roger Ebert wrote that Wayne had a sense of humor about his politics. He recalls Wayne giving him a tour of his house: "He pointed out autographed photos ofEisenhower, Nixon, Goldwater, andJ. Edgar Hoover. I said I had to take a pee. On the wall of the bathroom opening off the den, he had a photo ofHubert Humphrey, inscribed 'with warm appreciation for your continued Support.'"[132] Colorado CongresswomanPat Schroeder recalled that "John Wayne gave me a silver cigarette lighter during the Vietnam War that said 'Fuck Communism' on it. I didn't know how to do that. I still don't."[133]
Left-wing activistAbbie Hoffman paid tribute to Wayne's singularity, saying, "I like Wayne's wholeness, his style. As for his politics, well—I suppose even cavemen felt a little admiration for the dinosaurs that were trying to gobble them up."[134]Maoistavant garde film maker and criticJean Luc Godard, in hisCahiers du Cinéma text "3000 heures de cinéma" ("3000 hours of cinema"),asked rhetorically:[135]
How can I hate John Wayne upholding Goldwater and yet love him when abruptly he takesNatalie Wood in his arms in the last reel ofThe Searchers?
Wayne signing the helmet of Pfc. Fonzell Wofford during a visit atChu Lai, South Vietnam, in June 1966
In May 1971,Playboy magazine published an interview with Wayne, in which he expressed his support for theVietnam War,[137] and made headlines for his opinions about social issues and race relations in the United States:[138]
With a lot of blacks, there's quite a bit of resentment along with their dissent, and possibly rightfully so. But we can't all of a sudden get down on our knees and turn everything over to the leadership of the blacks. I believe inwhite supremacy until the blacks are educated to a point of responsibility. ... I don't feel we did wrong in taking this great country away from the Indians. Our so-called stealing of this country from them was just a matter of survival. There were great numbers of people who needed new land, and the Indians were selfishly trying to keep it for themselves.[25]: 289 [139][140][141]
In the samePlayboy interview, he also responded to questions about whethersocial programs were good for the country:
I know all about that. In the late '20s, when I was a sophomore at USC, I was a socialist myself—but not when I left. The average college kid idealistically wishes everybody could have ice cream and cake for every meal, but as he gets older and gives more thought to his and his fellow man's responsibilities, he finds that it can't work out that way—that some people just won't carry their load ... I believe in welfare—awelfare work program. I don't think a fella should be able to sit on his backside and receive welfare. I'd like to know why well-educated idiots keep apologizing for lazy and complaining people who think the world owes them a living. I'd like to know why they make excuses for cowards who spit in the faces of the police and then run behind the judicialsob sisters. I can't understand these people who carry placards to save the life of some criminal, yet have no thought for the innocent victim.[137]
In February 2019, thePlayboy interview resurfaced,[142] which resulted in calls forJohn Wayne Airport to be renamed.[143] Wayne's son,Ethan, defended him, stating: "It would be an injustice to judge someone based on an interview that's being used out of context."[144] The calls for changing the airport's name back to Orange County Airport were renewed during theGeorge Floyd protests in June 2020,[145] though the name, as of 2025, remains unchanged.
In October 2019, student activists of Wayne'salma materUniversity of Southern California called for removing from the university's premises an exhibit dedicated to Wayne, citing the interview as cause.[146] In July 2020, it was announced that the materials of the 2012-created exhibit would be moved to the USC Cinematic Arts Library for "research," to "allow scholarship to continue on the role John Wayne's films played in the history of cinema."[147][148]
Tomorrow is the most important thing in life. Comes into us at midnight very clean. It's perfect when it arrives and it puts itself in our hands. It hopes we've learned something from yesterday.[154][155]
In 1974, film criticCharles Champlin wrote of Wayne: "Wayne is a motion picture actor, first, last and always, who defined as powerfully as anyone else what that means. From the lean and intense early days, in those low-cost dusters which still play on morning television, Wayne has had a presence which got through the lenses and shutters and onto the film undiminished."[10]John Ford said of him: "He's not something out of a book, governed by acting rules. He portrays John Wayne, a rugged American guy. He's not one of those method actors, like they send out here from drama schools in New York. He's real, perfectly natural."Lee Strasberg observed that Wayne was similar to fellow actorsSpencer Tracy andGary Cooper, who "try not to act but be themselves".
Wayne thought of himself as a reactor rather than an actor, and felt that the difference between good and bad acting was in acting and reacting. He explained this difference: "In a bad picture, you see them acting all over the place. In a good picture, they react in a logical way to a situation they're in, so the audience can identify with the actors." When asked about his approach to acting, Wayne commented: "I read dramatic lines undramatically and react to situations normally. This is not as simple as it sounds. I've spent a major portion of my life trying to do it well and I am not past learning it yet." Much like many actors of his generation, Wayne dislikedmethod acting, and once said of them: "Let those actors who picked their noses get all the dialogue, just give me the close-up of reaction."[156]
Howard Hawks, who directed him in five films, felt that after losing one of his lungs, Wayne became a much better actor. Hawks explained: "Because of the lung Wayne lost, he reads his lines differently. He pauses in the strangest places simply because he hasn't got the breath he used to have. This device is terribly effective, because you keep your eyes on him and wait for him to finish, because you don't know what's coming next."Raoul Walsh noted: "Wayne underacts, and it's mighty effective, not because he tries to underact—it's a hard thing to do if you try—but because he can't overact."[157]
Despite his popularity at the box office, Wayne was often criticized forplaying the same type of character during most of his career. In a 1969 interview withRoger Ebert, Wayne remarked: "Of course, they give me that John Wayne stuff so much, claim I always play the same role. Seems like nobody remembers how different the fellows were inThe Quiet Man orIwo Jima, orYellow Ribbon, where I was 35 playing a man of 65. To stay a star, you have to bring along some of your own personality. Thousands of good actors can carry a scene, but a star has to carry the scene and still, without intruding, allow some of his character into it."[158]
Gene Hackman said that Wayne "was one of the best actors ever. You must admire how really good he was as an actor, in command of the scene and with such great charisma."[159]
It is important for you to know that I am a registered Democrat, and to my knowledge, share none of the political views espoused by Duke. However, whether he is ill disposed or healthy, John Wayne is far beyond the normal political sharpshooting in this community. Because of his courage, his dignity, his integrity, and because of his talents as an actor, his strength as a leader, his warmth as a human being throughout his illustrious career, he is entitled to a unique spot in our hearts and minds. In this industry, we often judge people, sometimes unfairly, by asking whether they have paid their dues. John Wayne has paid his dues over and over, and I'm proud to consider him a friend and am very much in favor of my government recognizing in some important fashion the contribution that Mr. Wayne has made.[160]
Wayne was posthumously awarded thePresidential Medal of Freedom on June 9, 1980, by PresidentJimmy Carter. He had attended Carter's inaugural ball in 1977 "as a member of theloyal opposition", as he described it. In 1998, he was awarded the Naval Heritage Award by the US Navy Memorial Foundation for his support of the Navy and military during his film career. In 1999, theAmerican Film Institute named Wayne 13th among theGreatest Male Screen Legends of classic Hollywood cinema.
In the essay "John Wayne: A Love Song",Joan Didion recalls the first time she saw Wayne in a movie: "it was there, that summer of 1943 while the hot wind blew outside, that I first saw John Wayne. Saw the walk, heard the voice. Heard him tell the girl in a picture calledWar of the Wildcats that he would build her a house, 'at the bend in the river where the cottonwoods grow.' As it happened I did not grow up to be kind of woman who is the heroine in a Western, and although the men I have known have had many virtues and have taken me to live in many places I have come to love, they have never been John Wayne, and they have never taken me to that bend in the river where the cottonwoods grow. Deep in that part of my heart where the artificial rain forever falls, that is still the line I want to hear... When John Wayne rode through my childhood, and perhaps through yours, he determined forever the shapes of certain of our dreams. It did not seem possible that such a man could fall ill, could carry within him that most inexplicable and ungovernable of diseases."[161]
Wayne's most enduring image is that of the displaced loner uncomfortable with the very civilization he is helping to establish and preserve...At his first appearance, we usually sense a very private person with some wound, loss or grievance from the past. At his very best he is much closer to a tragic vision of life...projecting the kind of mystery associated with great acting.
Various public locations are named in honor of Wayne, including theJohn Wayne Airport inOrange County, California, where a 9-foot (2.7 m) bronze equestrian statue of him stands at the entrance;[138] the John Wayne Marina[163] for which Wayne bequeathed the land, nearSequim, Washington;John Wayne Elementary School (P.S. 380) inBrooklyn, New York, which boasts a 38-foot (12 m)mosaic mural commission by New York artistKnox Martin[164] entitled "John Wayne and the American Frontier";[165] and over 100 miles (160 km) named the "John Wayne Pioneer Trail" in Washington'sIron Horse State Park. A larger-than-life-sized bronze statue of Wayne atop a horse was erected at the corner of La Cienega Boulevard and Wilshire Boulevard inBeverly Hills, California, at the former offices of the Great Western Savings and Loan Corporation, for which Wayne had made a number of commercials. In the city ofMaricopa, Arizona, part ofArizona State Route 347 is named John Wayne Parkway, which runs through the center of town.
In 2006, friends of Wayne and his former Arizona business partner, Louis Johnson, inaugurated the "Louie and the Duke Classics" events benefiting the John Wayne Cancer Foundation[166] and theAmerican Cancer Society.[167][168] The weekend-long event each fall inCasa Grande, Arizona, includes a golf tournament, an auction of John Wayne memorabilia, and ateam roping competition.[167]
Several celebrations took place on May 26, 2007, the centennial of Wayne's birth. A celebration at the John Wayne birthplace in Winterset, Iowa, included chuck-wagon suppers, concerts byMichael Martin Murphey andRiders in the Sky, a Wild West Revue in the style of Buffalo Bill's Wild West show, and a Cowboy Symposium with Wayne's costars, producers, and costumers. Wayne's films ran continuously at the local theater. Ground was broken for the new John Wayne Birthplace Museum and Learning Center at a ceremony consisting of over 30 of Wayne's family members, including Melinda Wayne Muñoz, Aissa,Ethan, and Marisa Wayne. Later that year, California GovernorArnold Schwarzenegger and First LadyMaria Shriver inducted Wayne into theCalifornia Hall of Fame, located atthe California Museum inSacramento.[169]
In 2016, Republican assemblymanMatthew Harper proposed marking May 26 as "John Wayne Day" in California.[170] This resolution was struck down by a vote of 35 to 20, due to Wayne's views on race and his support of controversial organizations such as theJohn Birch Society and the House Un-American Activities Committee.[170][171]
Wayne rose beyond the typical recognition for a famous actor to that of an enduring icon who symbolized and communicated American values and ideals.[172] Using the power of communication through silent films and radio, Wayne was instrumental in creating a national culture from disparate areas of the US, and made the creation of a national hero possible.[173] By the middle of his career, Wayne had developed a larger-than-life image, and as his career progressed, he selected roles that would not compromise his off-screen image.[174] Wayne embodied the image of strong American masculinity and rugged individualism in both his films and his life.[175] At a party in 1957, Wayne confronted actorKirk Douglas about the latter's decision to play the role ofVincent van Gogh in the filmLust for Life, saying: "Christ, Kirk, how can you play a part like that? There's so goddamn few of us left. We got to play strong, tough characters. Not these weak queers."[176] However, actorMarlon Brando was notably critical of Wayne's public persona and of the cultural insensitivity of Wayne's characters, arguing onThe Dick Cavett Show that, "We [Americans] like to see ourselves as perhaps John Wayne sees us. That we are a country that stands for freedom, for rightness, for justice," before adding that "it just simply doesn't apply."[177][178]
Wayne's rise to being the quintessential movie war hero began to take shape four years after World War II, whenSands of Iwo Jima (1949) was released. His footprints at Grauman's Chinese theater in Hollywood were laid in concrete that contained sand fromIwo Jima.[179] His status grew so large and legendary that when Japanese emperorHirohito visited the United States in 1975, he asked to meet John Wayne, the symbolic representation of his country's former enemy.[180] Likewise when Soviet leaderNikita Khrushchev visited the United States in 1959, he made two requests: to visit Disneyland and meet Wayne.[181]
In theMotion Picture Herald Top Ten Money-Making Western Stars poll, Wayne was listed in 1936 and 1939.[182] He appeared in the similarBox Office poll in 1939 and 1940.[183] While these two polls are really an indication only of the popularity of series stars, Wayne also appeared in the Top Ten Money Makers Poll of all films from 1949 to 1957 and 1958 to 1974, taking first place in 1950, 1951, 1954, and 1971. With a total of 25 years on the list, Wayne has more appearances than any other star, surpassingClint Eastwood (21) who is in second place.[184]
Wayne is the only actor to appear in every edition of the annualHarris Poll of Most Popular Film Actors, and the only actor to appear on the list after his death. Wayne was in the top 10 in this poll for 19 consecutive years, starting in 1994, 15 years after his death.[185]
Mylène Demongeot declared in a 2015 filmed interview: "Gary Cooper was sublime, there I have to say, now he, was part of the stars, Gary Cooper,Cary Grant, John Wayne, those great Americans who I've met really were unbelievable guys, there aren't any like them anymore."[186]
John Wayne Cancer Foundation
The John Wayne Cancer Foundation was founded in 1985 in honor of John Wayne, after his family granted the use of his name (and limited funding) for the continued fight against cancer.[187] The foundation's mission is to "bring courage, strength, and grit to the fight against cancer".[187] The foundation provides funds for innovative programs that improve cancer patient care, including research, education, awareness, and support.[187]
Dispute with Duke University
Newport Beach, California-based John Wayne Enterprises, a business operated by Wayne's heirs, sells products, including Kentucky straightBourbon, bearing the "Duke" brand and using Wayne's picture. When the company tried to trademark the image appearing on one of the bottles,Duke University inDurham, North Carolina, filed a notice of opposition. According to court documents, Duke has tried three times since 2005 to stop the company from trademarking the name. The company sought a declaration permitting registration of their trademark. The company's complaint filed in federal court said the university did "not own the word 'Duke' in all contexts for all purposes." The university's official position was not to object provided Wayne's image appeared with the name.[188] On September 30, 2014,Orange County, California federal judge David Carter dismissed the company's suit, deciding the plaintiffs had chosen the wrong jurisdiction.[189]
Between 1926 and 1977, Wayne appeared in over 170 films. According to Quigley Polling, Wayne was named the top money maker (as of 2005).[190]
Missed roles
Wayne turned down the lead role in the 1952 filmHigh Noon because he felt the film's story was an allegory againstblacklisting, which he actively supported. In a 1971 interview, Wayne said he consideredHigh Noon "the most un-American thing I've ever seen in my whole life", and that he would "never regret having helped run screenwriterCarl Foreman [who was later blacklisted] out of the country".[25]: 142
An urban legend has it that in 1955, Wayne turned down the role ofMatt Dillon in the long-running television seriesGunsmoke and recommendedJames Arness, instead. While he did suggest Arness for the part and introduced him in a prologue to the first episode, no film star of Wayne's stature would have considered a television role at the time.[191]
Terry Southern's biographer Lee Hill wrote that the role of Major T. J. "King" Kong inDr. Strangelove (1964) was originally written with Wayne in mind, and thatStanley Kubrick offered him the part afterPeter Sellers injured his ankle during filming; he immediately turned it down.[192] While Sellers went on to play three other roles in the film,Slim Pickens played Kong.
In 1966, Wayne accepted the role of Major Reisman inThe Dirty Dozen (1967), and askedMetro-Goldwyn-Mayer for some script changes, but eventually withdrew from the project to makeThe Green Berets. He was replaced byLee Marvin.[193]
DirectorPeter Bogdanovich and screenwriterLarry McMurtry pitched a film in 1972 calledThe Streets of Laredo that would co-star Wayne along with James Stewart andHenry Fonda. They conceived it as a Western that would bring the final curtain down on Hollywood Westerns. Stewart and Fonda both agreed to appear in it, but after long consideration, Wayne turned it down, citing his feeling that his character was more underdeveloped and uninteresting than those of his co-stars, which was largely based on John Ford's recommendation after perusing the script. The project was shelved for some 20 years, until McMurtry rewrote and expanded the original screenplay co-written with Bogdanovich to make the novel and subsequent TV miniseriesLonesome Dove, withTommy Lee Jones in Wayne's role andRobert Duvall playing the part originally written for Stewart in the extremely popular miniseries.[196][197][198]
Mel Brooks offered Wayne the role of the Waco Kid (eventually played byGene Wilder) inBlazing Saddles (1974). After reading the script, Wayne declined, fearing the dialogue was "too dirty" for his family-friendly image, but told Brooks that he would be "first in line" to see the movie.[199][200]
Steven Spielberg offered both Wayne andCharlton Heston the role of Major GeneralJoseph Stilwell in the film1941 with Wayne also considered for a cameo in it. After reading the script, Wayne decided not to participate due to ill health, but also urged Spielberg not to pursue the project. Both Wayne and Heston felt the film was unpatriotic. Spielberg recalled, "[Wayne] was really curious and so I sent him the script. He called me the next day and said he felt it was a very un-American movie, and I shouldn't waste my time making it. He said, 'You know, that was an important war, and you're making fun of a war that cost thousands of lives atPearl Harbor. Don't joke about World War II'."[201]
In 1973,The Harvard Lampoon, a satirical paper run byHarvard University students, invited Wayne to receive The Brass Balls Award, created in his "honor", after calling him "the biggest fraud in history". Wayne accepted the invitation as a chance to promote the recently released filmMcQ, and aFort Devens Army convoy offered to drive him intoHarvard Square on anarmored personnel carrier.[204][205] The ceremony was held on January 15, 1974, at the Harvard Square Theater and the award was officially presented in honor of Wayne's "outstanding machismo and penchant for punching people".[206] Although the convoy was met with protests by members of theAmerican Indian Movement and others, some of whom threw snowballs, Wayne received a standing ovation from the audience when he walked onto the stage.[204] An internal investigation was launched into the Army's involvement in the day.[205]
Additional awards and honors
1960, Award a star on theHollywood Walk of Fame at 1541 Vine Street for his contribution to the motion pictures industry.[207]
^After Wayne gained fame under his stage name, studio publicists erroneously referred to his birth name asMarion Michael Morrison; Wayne went along with this himself, because he "really liked the name Michael".[2] The error appeared in virtually every biography of Wayne until Roberts and Olson uncovered the facts in their 1995 biographyJohn Wayne: American, drawing on the draft of Wayne's unfinished autobiography among other sources.
^TV.com."New Adam-12".TV.com.Archived from the original on February 17, 2020. RetrievedFebruary 1, 2020.
^Konicki, Lisa (June 6, 2016)."Who's New: Runaway June".Nash Country Daily.Archived from the original on September 11, 2016. RetrievedJanuary 23, 2019.
^"List of famous freemasons".Lodge No 11 F.A.A.M., Washington D.C.Archived from the original on November 16, 2015.33 Deg. Marion McDaniel Lodge No. 56, Tucson, AZ. Came through the system from DeMolay.
^"John Wayne". Freemasonry.bcy.ca.Archived from the original on October 18, 2015. RetrievedAugust 29, 2010.
^"When Totò had the apron" (in Italian). April 5, 1999.Archived from the original on September 27, 2013.John Wayne, the horseman of Hollywood, the hero ofStagecoach, symbol of the Yankee soldier, took up the degree of Master.
^McCarthy, Todd.Howard Hawks: The Grey Fox of Hollywood. p. 583.
^"John Wayne".Biography. A&E Television Networks. September 11, 2019 [Originally published April 2, 2014].Archived from the original on November 28, 2016.
^Kerr, David (October 4, 2011)."My granddaddy John Wayne".California Catholic Daily. Archived fromthe original on October 6, 2011. RetrievedOctober 4, 2011.
^Candelaria, Nash. "John Wayne, Person and Personal The love affairs of an American legend" inHopscotch: A Cultural Review, Volume 2, Number 4, 2001, pp. 2–13, Duke University Press.
^Whitehead, John W. (June 6, 2011)."John Wayne Was True Grit".The Rutherford Institute.Archived from the original on April 7, 2014. RetrievedMay 29, 2013.
^Sarris, Andrew (1979) inThe New Republic August 4 & 11, 1979. Reprinted inAmerican Movie Critics: An Anthology From the Silents Until Now. 2006. Ed:Phillip Lopate The Library of America. p.312ISBN1-931082-92-8
^"John Wayne All Time Top Money-Making Star."PR Newswire, February 24, 2005.Gale In Context: Biography, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A129166834/BIC?u=uiuc_uc&sid=bookmark-BIC&xid=0c91356d. Accessed December 14, 2021.
^Barabas, S.Gunsmoke: A Complete History. McFarland (1990), pp. 63–4.ISBN0899504183.
^Lee Hill,A Grand Guy: The Life and Art of Terry Southern (Bloomsbury, 2001), pp.118–119
^Eyman, S.John Wayne: The Life and Legend. Simon & Schuster (2014), p.78.ISBN1439199582
Baur, Andreas; Bitterli, Konrad (2007). "Brave Lonesome Cowboy. Der Mythos des Westerns in der Gegenwartskunst oder: John Wayne zum 100".Verlag für moderne Kunst Nürnberg. Geburstag, Nuremberg.ISBN978-3-939738-15-2.
Beaver, Jim (May 5, 1977). "John Wayne".Films in Review.28.
McGivern, Carolyn (2000).John Wayne: A Giant Shadow. Bracknell, England: Sammon.ISBN0-9540031-0-1.
Munn, Michael (2004).John Wayne: The Man Behind the Myth. Robson.ISBN978-1-86105-722-8.
Raab, Markus (2007). "Beautiful Hearts, Laughers at the World, Bowlers. Worldviews of the Late Western".Baur/Bitterli: Brave Lonesome Cowboy. Der Mythos des Westerns in der Gegenwartskunst Oder: John Wayne zum 100. Geburtstag. Nuremberg.ISBN978-3-939738-15-2.
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