[Captain Peter Blood]

According to Mel Brooks, he, Richard Pryor and the other writers were at the Warner Commissary having lunch and at a nearby table was John Wayne. Wayne asked Brooks about the Western he heard he was making and Brooks said they were making one and wanted him in it, presumably as The Waco Kid. Wayne read the script and said no that it wasn't his kind of picture but he sure would be the first one in line to see it.
Now think of it John Wayne playing The Waco Kid, Brooks actually wanted an older actor for that role and had initially cast Gig Young in the role and then had to replace him at the last minute with Gene Wilder.

[ZirconEncrustedTweezers]

I thought casting Gene Wilder was a good way to play around with the Western genre. A nice Jewish boy playing an alcoholic gunslinger... who’da thunk it?