You can’t have a blog about the cowboy lifestyle without mentioning John Wayne (1907-79).
Marion Robert Morrison was born in Iowa and moved to California at age four. A local fireman called him “little duke” after Marion’s huge Airedale Terrier dog, Duke. He kept the name after that. Morrison attended USC intending to be a lawyer, played football but was injured and lost his scholarship forcing him to abandon college.
He contacted movie star Tim Mix who had gotten him a summer job in his studio prop department in exchange for football tickets. Through that connection he met director John Ford and began getting bit parts in western movies. Director Raoul Walsh renamed Marion “John Wayne” for a part, without even asking his permission. John Ford’s 1939 classic movie Stage Coach was Wayne’s first big movie and his career was launched. Over his long career he appeared in 171(!) films and produced 20 movies. He won an Oscar and had another 24 award wins & 16 nominations.
Although his life centered around the movie industry, Wayne was active in conservative politics, visited US troops abroad, and in 1979 was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal. Later he also received the Presidential Medal of Honor. Unfortunately his last years were plagued with cancer.
How much of his public adoration was based around the public’s view that he was like the characters he played in movies, versus who he really was as a private person, is a matter of opinion. But it is clear he was loved for the cowboy values of hard work, honor, integrity and perseverance. We miss him.
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