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A John Wayne Movie Classic Actually Reduced His Role From the Story It’s Based On

The John Wayne movie classic The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance has many memorable moments. The most noteworthy is the whole theme of “print the legend.” Wayne makes an impression as Shinbone cowboy Tom Doniphon, who played a pivotal role in the life of Senator Ransom (James Stewart). It turns out the adaptation of Dorothy M. Johnson’s short story gave Doniphon even less to do in the movie, but Wayne still made those moments count.

[Warning: This article contains spoilers for The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance.]

Paramount Home Entertainment is releasing The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance on 4K UHD on May 19. The 4K edition makes the black and white movie so sharp that the shadows in the title shooting scene are extra dark and moody. In the bonus features, historian Scott Eyman explains how the adaptation reduced Wayne’s role. 

‘The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance’ story became a John Wayne’s movie

Adapting a short story into a two hour film often requires embellishing the source material. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance actually streamlined it. Scott Eyman wrote a biography of director John Ford, so he knew all about the differences between the story and the film. 

“The point of the story is basically the same point as the film,” Eyman said. “The execution is quite different. Ford and his writers altered one crucial aspect. In the story, the John Wayne character is kind of the fairy godfather to the Jimmy Stewart character, keeps nudging him along on the road from frontier lawyer to United States senator, constantly showing him the way and helping him out.”

‘The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance’ isn’t completely a John Wayne movie

The western begins with Ransom attending the funeral of Doniphon. When reporters ask how he knew Doniphon, the story flashes back to Ransom’s arrival in Shinbone. Outlaw Liberty Valance (Lee Marvin) roughed him up and terrorized the town. 

When Doniphon was around, that was enough to keep Valance in line. Doniphon tried to convince Ransom to pick up a gun to defend himself, but Ransom wanted to use the law to address Valance. Finally, Valance confronted Ransom in the street. Ransom pulled the trigger of his gun and shot Valance dead, or so it seemed.

At the end of the film, Doniphon reveals he was standing in the shadows and fired his gun at the same time. Now, it makes much more sense that experienced gunslinger Doniphon hit his target than amateur shooter Ransom. But, Doniphon let Ransom have the credit, and the heroic act set him on a course for political success. When the reporters heard the truth, they killed the story, stating, “When the legend becomes fact, print the legend.”

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance is both a Wayne movie and a Stewart movie. Both have equal parts, though the story centers around Stewart’s character with Wayne’s coming in for backup.

‘The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance’ made its point 

The film adaptation made its point without making Doniphon directly involved in every aspect of Ransom’s life. It proved to be a signature role for Wayne, too.

“That doesn’t happen in the film,” Eyman said. “Basically, the John Wayne character in the film commits two acts that alter Ransom Stoddard’s life and that’s all and that’s enough. So it made the Wayne character a little less proactive in the film as opposed to the story.”

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John Wayne

The scene could completely change the way fans see Bruce Dern who is known as “The Man Who Killed John Wayne.”

By 1972, Bruce Dern’s career was off to a great start. Like many actors who started in the sixties, Dern cut his teeth on small TV parts. He was on hit westerns like Rawhide and Bonanza. Dern also holds film roles in movies like Hang ‘Em High and They Shoot horses Don’t They. However, the role that had the most impact on his carer was Longhair in The Cowboys. In that film, he starred alongside John Wayne. That role almost killed his career.

Bruce Dern turned in a stellar performance in The Cowboys. That wasn’t what made it hard for him to get work. In fact, he had no control over the aspect of the role that nearly tanked his acting aspirations. After that movie came out, fans branded him “The Man Who Killed John Wayne.” He was one of the most hated men in Hollywood.

MOVIE MEMORIES: Getting in the saddle to examine the career of Hollywood  icon John Wayne - Daily Record

As a matter of fact, Dern’s performance alongside John Wayne may have made things worse. He is such a believable villain in the scene that you can’t help but hate him just a little bit. Fans may have forgotten a lesser actor with or a weaker performance. Bruce Dern, however, was all in. Check out the fateful scene below.

Bruce Dern on shooting John Wayne in "The Cowboys" - CBS News

There is no denying that John Wayne and Bruce Dern both turn it all t he way up for this scene. They have an epic fight. Then, after Duke’s Wil Anderson bests Dern’s Longhair, things go south fast. Longhair pulls a pistol from his partner’s holster. After a little trash talk, he shoots Anderson in the back of his arm. Then, he puts one in the cowboy’s gut. When Anderson goes down, the villain puts another slug in him for good measure. At the same time, Dern was shooting down several future prospects.

Bruce Dern The Cowboys Posters and Photos 204358 | Movie Store

John Wayne warned Bruce Dern that there would be consequences for taking the role. About this, Dern once said that when he showed up to the set, the Duke had already been drinking. He walked up to Dern, leaned in close, and said, “Oh, how they’re going to hate you for this.”

John Wayne was telling the truth. After The Cowboys hit screens, fans hated Bruce Dern. People would come up to him on the street and cuss him out for killing the Duke. At the same time, studios didn’t want to hire him because people hated him so much.

On one hand, that is a testament to John Wayne’s popularity. If just about anyone else died in a movie it was no big deal. It really didn’t matter who did the killing, either. However, Wayne’s characters never died. At the same time, he was a national treasure. So, his death was a little different. On the other hand, it shows how good of an actor Bruce Dern is. The goal of any kind of art, acting included, is to make the audience feel something. Dern succeeded. The emotion just happened to be rage.

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The reason why fans can’t see the “face-to-face” between John Wayne and Kirk Douglas.

John Wayne and Kirk Douglas starred together in The War Wagon. Kirk was not the first choice to play Lomax in the film but the director ended up giving up half his salary to secure Kirk for the movie. Turns out that the two big stars had very different political views and butted heads a few times during filming.

The War Wagon: John Wayne was 'furious' with Kirk Douglas – 'We never saw  eye-to-eye' | Films | Entertainment | Express.co.uk

During production, Kirk was late one day because he had been filming a commercial to endorse Edmund G Brown, a Democrat, as Governor of California. Of course, John was a lifelong conservative and republican who had just filmed an endorsement for Ronald Reagan.

John Wayne and Kirk Douglas often fought about politics : With their extremely different political views, they would often bicker. However, their respect for each other never wavered.

Kirk once shared on The Dick Cavett Show, “I don’t want to get involved in a conversation about John Wayne. I’ve made quite a few pictures with John Wayne and, by the way, I’ve always called him John. Everybody calls him Duke. We have never seen eye-to-eye on a lot of things.”

Amazon.co.jp: John Wayne and Angie Dickinson and Kirk Douglas Cast Giant  Shadow 16x20 Poster : Home & Kitchen

He added that John was “one of the most professional actors I’ve ever worked with. We get along well, we never discuss politics. But he’s the first guy on the set, the hardest worker I’ve ever worked with, and I think he’s quite a character.”

73 Kirk Douglas;John Wayne Photos and Premium High Res Pictures - Getty  Images

Dick then joked that of course, they wouldn’t see eye to eye because John was a tall 6’4″ while Kirk was only around 5’9″ then. During filming, Kirk would have to wear lifts in his shoes so that they would appear to be around the same height.

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Reveal 7 fascinating facts about John Wayne’s 1963 film ‘McLintock! ‘

A Standout Film In John Wayne’s Catalog . In the immense list that is John Wayne’s filmography, one title stands out among the rest. That movie would be McLintock! which starred Wayne and Maureen O’Hara in the lead roles.

Loosely based on William Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew, McLintock! is a Western in which John played the role of cattle, timber, and mining baron George Washington “G.W.” McLintock. Maureen played his estranged wife, Katherine, who moves out East after suspecting that G.W. cheated on her.However, she eventually comes back to his town, and the two find themselves tangled up in a series of messes.

7 Facts About John Wayne's 1963 Film 'McLintock!' – Country Music Family

The film also focuses on the couple’s daughter, Becky, who was played by Stefanie Powers. Once Becky comes back to town after her time away at college, she brings along a suitor named “Junior” Douglas, who was played by Jerry Van Dyke. But eventually, Rebecca ends up falling in love with a young man who lives in her father’s home named Dev, who was played by John’s son Patrick.

If you’re a fan of John’s movies, you’ve definitely seen McLintock! a time or two…or more. But there’s a few facts about the film and its creation that you’re likely clueless about.That’s what we’re here for, to tell you those facts! Are you excited to learn what they are?https://www.youtube.com/embed/VcAzj_b0bIM

1. The Movie Was Produced By John’s Son : John Wayne was always good about including his children in his projects, and ended up launching their careers in the process. While you likely already knew before reading this list that the character Dev was played by John’s son Patrick, did you know that another one of his children was involved in the film as well?

McLintock! / John Wayne / Technicolor 1963 - YouTube

It turns out that John’s eldest son, Michael, served as the sole producer of the film. Although Michael had worked on many other films in the past, McLintock! was the first that he ever fully produced.

2. John Insisted On One Of The Actresses Being Cast : One of the supporting roles in McLintock! was played by the immensely popular and beloved Yvonne De Carlo. She played Louise Warren, a widow who moves in to McLintock’s home with her two children and serves as the housekeeper and cook.https://www.youtube.com/embed/4aF4oGRM9Q0

While Yvonne appeared in a number of starring roles in earlier years, she was forced to accept supporting roles as her career declined. You probably didn’t know this before, but she may not have ever been cast in McLintock! if it wasn’t for John insisting that she be given a part.

McLintock!” – John Wayne, Maureen O'Hara | Katherine loudly… | Flickr

John wanted Yvonne to be cast in the film because her husband, stuntman Bob Morgan, had been seriously injured while working on the movie How the West Was Won, which John also starred in. The injuries put an end to Bob’s career, so why John Yvonne to have a role in McLintock! when it came time to start filming it.

3. John Wanted To Do One Stunt Because It Looked Fun : According to John’s son and the film’s producer, Michael, John really wanted to do one of his own stunts in the film. The stunt required John to jump from a hayloft down into a pile of hay below.

Michael said that his dad thought the stunt looked like a lot of fun, and he declared that he wanted to do it himself. The studio wasn’t too keen on the idea, since John was one of the brightest stars in Hollywood at the time.

John finally won the argument, and he got the chance to perform the stunt himself. However, the studio also shot the scene with a stuntman as well in case something went wrong.

4. There Isn’t A Bit Of Mud To Be Found In The Famous Brawl Scene : Sometimes, films have to substitute other substances for their real-life counterparts, such as blood, or even ice cream. In the case of the famous mudhole brawl scene that takes place in McLintock! the “mud” wasn’t mud at all!

In reality, the substance used in the mudhole brawl scene was a material called bentonite. This material is typically used while drilling oil wells, and resembles chocolate syrup in terms of appearance and consistency. On the movie screen, it stands in as a good substitute for mud, which is usually much thicker.

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