John Wayne

Marion Robert Morrison (May 26, 1907 – June 11, 1979), known professionally as John Wayne and affectionately nicknamed The Duke, was an American actor who rose to iconic status through his leading roles in films produced during Hollywood’s Golden Age, particularly in Western and war movies. His career thrived from the silent era of the 1920s through the American New Wave, spanning a total of 179 film and television productions. Wayne remained among the top box-office draws for three decades and shared the screen with many other significant Hollywood stars of his time. In 1999, the American Film Institute honoured Wayne as one of the greatest male stars of classic American cinema.

Born in Winterset, Iowa, Wayne was raised in Southern California. After a football injury cost him his scholarship to the University of Southern California, he began his career with the Fox Film Corporation. Initially cast in minor roles, Wayne’s breakthrough came with his leading role in Raoul Walsh’s Western, The Big Trail (1930), an early widescreen film that, unfortunately, didn’t fare well at the box office. Despite this setback, Wayne persevered and starred in numerous B movies during the 1930s, many of which were Westerns. It was John Ford’s Stagecoach (1939) that catapulted Wayne to mainstream stardom, solidifying his status as an enduring cinematic figure. Throughout his illustrious career, Wayne embodied the nation’s frontier heritage for millions.

Among his notable Western roles, Wayne portrayed a cattleman driving his herd on the Chisholm Trail in Red River (1948), a Civil War veteran embarking on a quest to rescue his abducted niece in The Searchers (1956), a conflicted rancher vying for a woman’s affections with a lawyer (James Stewart) in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962), and a gritty, one-eyed marshal in True Grit (1969), for which he earned the Academy Award for Best Actor. Additionally, he left an indelible mark with performances in The Quiet Man (1952) alongside Maureen O’Hara, Rio Bravo (1959) featuring Dean Martin, and The Longest Day (1962). His final screen appearance saw him portraying an aging gunfighter battling cancer in The Shootist (1976). Wayne’s last public appearance was at the Academy Awards ceremony on April 9, 1979, before succumbing to stomach cancer two months later. In 1980, he was honoured posthumously with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honour in the United States.