From The Searchers to Rio Bravo to True Grit, John Wayne never failed to astound us with his acting. His strong personality and renowned generosity were said to have been some of his greatest characteristics- both on and off the screen. But, there are quite a few facts about America’s favorite cowboy that you might not have known. Read on for 13 surprising facts about John Wayne.
1) Winston Churchill
Wayne looked up to Winston Churchill and owned many of his writings.
2) He Was Very Superstitious
Wayne hated hats on left on beds or salt passed directly to him at the table, for instance.
3) Nickname
He got his nickname of Duke from the family dog growing up. His real name was Marion Morrison.
4) Surfing Got Him Into Acting
If Wayne hadn’t been injured in a surfing accident in the 1920s it is likely that he wouldn’t have become an actor. The shoulder injury he sustained while surfing meant that he lost his football scholarship in college and had to take a job to make ends meet- as a prop boy at Fox Studios where he was soon put in front of the camera instead of behind it.
Via/ Wiki Commons
5) There Was a Price on His Head
Joseph Stalin supposedly ordered a hit on Wayne after anti-Communist views made by the All-American star had enraged the Russian leader. There were several attempts made on his life, each of which were quelled by Wayne and his stuntmen.
6) He Copied a Stuntman
Wayne took some of his most well-known mannerisms from a cowboy stuntman named Yakima Canutt. The lowered voice and slowed speech are aspects that he observed in Canutt and then copied on screen.
7) He was Balding
And he was apparently unashamed of it- many home movies and photos exist of him in a natural state, but for public appearances and films he wore a toupée starting in about 1948. Often in transit he would wear a hat to hide the fact that he was going bald on the chance that he might be photographed by newspapers. His many cowboy and soldier films meant that he was very often wearing a hat on screen, too. Interviews with photographers who knew him and his (lack of) hair confirm this as well.
8) The Big C
Wayne coined the term the “big c” to reference cancer after his 1964 diagnosis of lung cancer. It wasn’t until 1979 that stomach cancer finally took his life.
Via/ Wiki Commons
9) He Was Good Friends With Lucy
Wayne was close friends with Lucille Ball and probably met her through his affair with Maureen O’hara (who was once roommate to Ball). Wayne made appearances on I Love Lucy and on The Lucy Show.
10) Places Named After Him
Among the places named for him are an airport, an elementary school, a highway, and a hiking trail.
Architectural model for the new terminal at the John Wayne Airport in Orange County, CA. Via/ Flickr
11) Heart Surgery
Wayne had heart surgery to replace one of his valves with that of a pig’s heart in 1978.
12) Design Skills
Wayne was rumored to have been quite good at decorating and if he had anything to do with designing these rooms then we’d have to agree. He is said to have acquired these skills from his days as a prop boy.
13) He Was a Fool for His Favorite Candy
Tootsie Rolls were the Duke’s preferred treat. In his last days he lamented not being able to have any.
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