Articles

Deep in the Heart Aiming to share the history of Texas with the rest of America, John Wayne pooled all his resources and made an epic cinematic event with The Alamo. When John Wayne finally got to sit down in the director’s chair to begin filming The Alamo (1960) in September 1959, it had been more than a decade since he’d first envisioned bringing the stirring story to the big screen. While filming Angel and the Badman in 1946 with screenwriter James Edward Grant, Duke and his go-to writer spent much of their time between takes diving deep into the...

LEGACY OF KINDNESS Whether they were his friends, family, fans or coworkers, everyone who crossed paths with John Wayne considered him to be among the kindest people they’d ever encountered. “When he hugged me, it’s like the world was hugging me.” —ANN-MARGRET, DUKE’S CO-STAR IN THE TRAIN ROBBERS (1973) “Even if he disagreed with you, he’d want to hear your argument. And he might say ‘I don’t agree with you,’ but he would always let you say your piece.” —EDWARD FAULKNER, JOHN WAYNE’S FREQUENT CO-STAR “I never saw Duke display hatred toward those who scorned him. Oh, he could use...

“From his unwavering confidence to his refusal to quit, John Wayne is someone many folks hope to be like when the going gets tough—and that’s just based on the man they saw on the screen. At home, I’m proud to say, Duke was just as much of a role model, someone who seemed to have the knowhow for handling any situation. We’ll look at moments from John Wayne’s films as well as anecdotes from his personal life in order to glean timeless tips for overcoming life’s challenges. Hopefully, the next time you’re faced with a difficult scenario, you can simply...

A Resonant Legacy “ As Captain Jake Cutter famously says in 1961’s The Comancheros, “Words are what men live by...words they say and mean.” Though spoken by one of his characters, this quote could have just as easily come from the mouth of the real Duke. That’s the case with many of the most memorable lines from my father’s films. Whether intimidating, profound or just plain funny, the dialogue uttered by John Wayne characters consistently contains greater truths that resonate long after the end credits roll. In the following pages, we’ll look back on the greatest words ever spoken by...

Cinema Spotlights! “In his efforts to constantly improve his craft, he made many film and television appearances that sometimes slip under the radar when discussing his body of work. Viewed today, these undersung entries tell a story beyond the ones playing out between the characters on screen, speaking directly to Duke’s desire to get it right.” —Ethan Wayne   The High and Mighty By the 1950s, John Wayne’s characters had already faced plenty of perilous situations on the big screen. From floods to fires to bloodthirsty bandits, the types of dangers Duke’s heroes typically encountered would likely scare the bejesus out...