John Wayne, perhaps unfairly, stands as the archetypal actor whose screen persona is confused by the viewing public with real life.
John Wayne was not a war hero, he never served anywhere near combat. Yet he is a symbol, even today, of the heroic American combat soldier.
John Wayne was not a great horseman, contrary to the opinion often expressed in this forum, he hated horses and rode only when absolutely required. He was not possessed of a good "seat."
Just as confused conservatives attribute superhuman heroism to John Wayne and other actors when that is not necessarily worthy of attribution, so do leftists quite unfairly attack John Wayne because they see him as one regarded as a patriot and they this viscerally despise what his cinematic image stands for.
They hate John Wayne for what he stands for so they traduce the man off the screen and criticize his on film acting as well as his films themselves. Typical of leftists, they often denigrate the film not because it is actually artistically wanting but because it's message is conservative.
Leftists are more to be criticized than conservatives because they act out of venom while conservatives act out of love of country.
Though Wayne grew up riding his mare Jenny to school and made much of his career from atop a horse he was once interviewed and had this to say about horses.
“I’ve never really liked horses.”
Perhaps not, but horses were integral to his success as an actor and part of his personal life as well. Wayne owned a ranch and was an avid rider who taught his children to ride. Horses certainly had a significance throughout his lifetime, from Jenny to Dollor. Or is it Dollar?
The family mare, Jenny, carried young Marion Michael Morrison to school every day in Lancaster, California. By the time Marion Morrison became John Wayne, he was an experienced rider who once said that riding a horse “came as naturally to me as breathing.”
“He was surprisingly skilled, considering his size. For a big guy, he looks graceful on a horse,” Petrine Day Mitchum, author of the book Hollywood Hoofbeats says. “But he also had the advantage of working with Yakima Canutt, the famous stuntman, who gave him a lot of coaching.”
Here is another
In the most recent Wayne biography, a very good one, the author found Wayne was riding a horse daily from their small, poor farm to school and about as his primary transportation. His first work in the movies was as a stuntman and extra (i.e. “guy in the posse”, “guy in the saloon”) in the westerns mostly.
Stuntmen particularly had to be skillful riders as they were falling from horses frequently for “hero shot me”, “hero outrode me through rough terrain”, etc. in dramatic ways that frequently killed horses and not infrequently killed or busted up the stuntmen too
This one addresses the left’s myth about Wayne and horses.
John Wayne hated horses.
“After starring in more than 80 westerns, and owning a ranch, and riding a horse to school as a child, this is another hard to believe myth, and yet there are those who readily believe it. In fact, it has actually made it into print, albeit into a rather biased book titled “John Wayne’s America, the Politics of Celebrity” by Garry Wills, and reiterated by Wills during a PBS Newshour interview with him by David Gergen. Here’s a snippet:
DAVID GERGEN: And yet in the end the idea of John Wayne was really a myth. You say that he hated horses, a man—
GARRY WILLS: Hated horses. Never rode except on the set, and never rode when he didn’t have to.
Now, while it is true that Wayne once told an interviewer that he did not especially enjoy riding horses, and generally didn’t unless it was necessary, this does not mean he hated horses. Nor did it mean that he was a poor horseman as some have suggested. In fact, the reverse is true and there is ample evidence to support this. Not only can John Wayne be seen riding horses in his 80+ western films, but he can also be seen riding horses in home movies taken at his Arizona ranch. John Wayne’s son Patrick once said, ““He was a terrific horseman. In Big Jake (1971) there is a scene at the beginning when the characters are introduced. Chris Mitchum rides a motorcycle into the scene and Dad is on a horse and it rears up and throws him. Later in film there is a chase and as they are passing by a bar a guy gets thrown out into street. Dad is riding a horse and the horse gets spooked and goes sideways. Dad stayed with it and stayed in the saddle, even though it was going sideways for ten feet, just an amazing display of horsemanship. It was all caught on film, but it had to be cut because it was inconsistent with the opening scene. A guy who could ride like that could never be thrown like he was thrown in the opening scene.”
In addition, although John Wayne was not a “real” cowboy (as has been pointed out by many), he was not a complete novice when it came to cowboy work. In an interview with Wayne, he once related, “I was hired on as an assistant for a George O’Brien western (I was actually hired as an actor but it was understood I would act as an Assistant – a scrounger, today they would call them a location manager). One of my jobs was to get 400 head of cattle into Blue Canyon which was 150 miles from any paved road. A preacher who had a little church on the Hopi reservation agreed to help me gather them. In gathering those cattle, we horsebacked into Monument Valley. … It was during the making of this picture, in which I was assistant as well as riding in the posse, that I personally rode through Monument Valley.” The film was 1930’s Lone Star Ranger. [Tim Lilley, The Big Trail, Vol VI, No 1, June 1989]
What this proves is, that not only did John Wayne visit Monument Valley long before John Ford had (thus debunking the myths that Harry Goulding told Ford about the valley, or that Ford had “discovered” it), but that he was herding cattle by horseback, and if that isn’t cowboyin’ then I don’t know what is.
So he may not have been a “real” cowboy as far as his chosen career path, but he was a real cowboy in every sense of the word.
So where do these myths about John Wayne come from? Well, primarily from two different sources. The first is that they are perpetuated by ignorant people who have never let the truth of any matter come in the way of perpetuating a damaging hateful lie.”
http://dukefanclub.blogspot.com/2012/03/clearing-up-some-misconceptions-about.html
All quite true. Confusing actors with their roles though is part of how promotion in the movie business works. That was why John Wayne appeared before an audience of badly wounded Marines in the garb of a screen cowboy.
Yet Wayne was not just a good and legendary actor but also a genuinely good person. When Dennis Hopper's career withered because of drug use and insolent behavior on set, Wayne gave him a fresh chance in True Grit -- and closely checked that Hopper was on time every day and ready to perform. Wayne also teased Hopper for his Lefty views, referring to him at times as "that little pinko." The passage of years (and perhaps Wayne's influence) eventually made Hopper into a conservative.
A friend of mine, John Smith (his real name) once met John Wayne under unusual circumstances. At a hotel in Miami, John Smith chanced to meet Frenchy, an old friend who had made a fortune as an oil wildcatter. John learned that Frenchy had just buried his beloved wife of many years. As the two commiserated, Wayne passed in the hallway and, recognizing Frenchy's voice, popped his head in through a door that was slightly ajar.
Under those circumstances, most of us would make short, polite condolences to an old friend and then excuse ourselves. Not Wayne. Invited in, he stayed for many hours. Over room service dinners and many drinks, the three shared stories of the departed and of love, loss, and better times. Most of all, Wayne conveyed to his old friend an Irishman's confidence that tears are for this world and that those we lose here go to eternal glory to await us.
As my friend John Smith explained it, Wayne did not leave until Frenchy was cried out and ready to face life alone.
John Wayne could ride. He wasn’t a show rider who followed “rules of equitation”, but IMHO many of those rules are total bunk. He rode like a good trail rider.
A friend of mine is a rancher. Now semi-retired. He prefers trucks to horses and would use an ATV if he could. But his work required him to ride daily for years, often 50+ miles a day. He’s not sentimental about horses, but there is a photo on the wall of his favorite horse - a stallion who he said would do 50+ miles a day for a week straight and be fresh and ready to go on day 8. It is framed by hair from the horse’s mane and he’ll gladly tell stories about the horse.
But he doesn’t “like” horses. Not the way a 14 year old suburban girl does. They are “tools” - but he knows all their names, knows all their breeding going back 30 years, and has ridden all of them. His sons estimated once that their Dad had ridden at least 50,000 miles in his life.
And if you asked him to go riding for fun, he’d think you were nuts. But when this suburban retired old guy who rides horses for fun needs advice, I give him a call!