John Wayne
John Wayne’s Mentor Showed Up on ‘The Alamo’ Uninvited to Micromanage the Duke’s Directing Style
John Wayne is a legendary Western actor who stepped behind the camera a few times, including for The Alamo. He learned plenty from John Ford, who was his mentor and longtime friend. However, Ford came to the set of The Alamo uninvited to micromanage Wayne regarding his directing style which made things difficult.
John Wayne stepped behind the camera for ‘The Alamo’
John Wayne | United Artists/Sunset Boulevard/Corbis via Getty Images
Michael Munn’s John Wayne: The Man Behind the Myth dives into the professional and personal lives of the iconic actor. Wayne sat in the director’s chair for The Alamo, which he was very passionate about bringing to the silver screen. Cinematographer William H Clothier opened up about the Duke’s process.
“Every morning Duke and I would get up early and have breakfast, and then we’d go out on the set or to a location, and we’d discuss and plan every shot we were going to use that day,” Clothier said. “Duke knew the entire script, and we were able to plan each shot, so when we began work with the cast and crew, we knew exactly what we were going to do.”
Clothier continued: “Duke would even tell me what kind of natural light he wanted, so we were able to plan which shots to start with to get the morning light, and which shots we’d do in the afternoon so the light would be right. He learned that from Ford. And he knew in his head what he wanted.”
However, Wayne had some specific habits that he had to try and shake while filming The Alamo.
“I’d say the biggest problem he had was that during a take, he’d mouth the other actors’ lines, like he was willing them to get it right first take,” Clothier recalled. “And I’d make a motion to him, and he’d suddenly realize what he’d been doing, and he’d get mad at himself.”
John Ford showed up uninvited to micromanage John Wayne directing ‘The Alamo’
John Wayne: The Man Behind the Myth revealed that Ford showed up to the set of The Alamo uninvited to micromanage Wayne. However, the actor remained very calm about the situation and ultimately figured out how to deal with the situation.
“A week or two after we started, John Ford arrives on the set,” Clothier said. “He wasn’t invited, he didn’t ask if he could come down. He just turned up. Now, that would have been okay if he hadn’t brought his director’s chair with him and set it up next to me. He’d sit there watching Duke direct, and this intimidated Duke which didn’t help his concentration.”
Clothier continued: “Ford would loudly say, ‘Jesus Christ, Duke, that’s not the way to do it.’ Duke was very patient with Ford who began telling him how to make the film. Duke just didn’t want to hurt the old man’s feelings, but he said to me, ‘He’s gonna take over the whole goddamn picture. What the hell am I gonna do?’”
However, Clothier had the perfect solution for Wayne to keep Ford busy on the set of The Alamo: “‘Give the old man a second unit.’ Duke said, ‘Bill, why didn’t I think of that?’ I said, ‘Because you’ve got enough to think about.’”
The actor-turned-director gave instructions to his son to handle John Ford
While filming The Alamo, John Wayne’s long time mentor & friend, John Ford, showed up unannounced. Duke always had great respect for Ford so he sent him off to get B Roll for the movie that ended up not making the final cut of the film. 🎥 pic.twitter.com/2pPH3uEaTR— John Wayne Official (@JohnDukeWayne) October 10, 2018
Clothier said in John Wayne: The Man Behind the Myth that Wayne’s son, Michael, had a specific job on The Alamo.
“Michael Wayne told me, “When JW decided Ford could direct a second unit, he gave me the job of watching over him,’” Clothier remembered. “‘That was a pretty rough situation to be put in, trying to keep John Ford in line. My father said to me, ‘Whatever you do, don’t let him near any of the principal actors.’ I said, ‘Why me?’ He said, ‘You’re not afraid of him.’”
However, Michael had some “rough moments” with Ford because he kept asking to bring over Richard Widmark or Laurence Harvey. Wayne’s son had to come up with excuses for why they weren’t available for filming.
“Ford shot a lot of stuff, most of it expensive wastage, just because Duke didn’t want to upset him,” Clothier said. “There are one or two moments in the film that Ford directed. Like the two guys who are always saying, ‘Do it mean what I think it do?’ ‘It do.’ Ford shot their death scene during the final battle, and that’s in the film. But so much of what he shot wasn’t used that he was furious at Duke. For a long time after, he was rough on Duke.”
John Wayne
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John Wayne
Why John Wayne Turned Down the Chance to Work With Clint Eastwood
Clint Eastwood and John Wayne are the two biggest legends in the history of Western movies, however, they never worked together. The duo did have the opportunity to work together once in the 1970s. Here’s why the film never came to fruition.
How John Wayne responded when Clint Eastwood tried to work with him
Firstly, a little background. According to the book John Wayne: The Life and Legend, it all starts with Larry Cohen. Though Cohen is not a widely known director like Steven Spielberg or Quentin Tarantino, he’s a huge name to fans of B movies. He directed famous B movies like The Stuff, Q: The Winged Serpent, It’s Alive, and God Told Me To. He also wrote a script called The Hostiles shortly after Eastwood released his classic High Plains Drifter.
The Hostiles was about a gambler who wins half of an estate of an older man. The gambler and the older man have to work together despite the fact that they don’t like each other. Eastwood optioned the screenplay with the intent of playing the gambler alongside Wayne as the older man.
Eastwood sent a copy of the script of The Hostiles to Wayne. Although Eastwood felt the script was imperfect, he saw its potential. However, Wayne was not interested. Eastwood pitched the film to Wayne a second time and Wayne responded with a letter. Wayne’s letter complained about High Plains Drifter. Wayne was offended by the film and its portrayal of the Old West as a cruel, violent place.
John Wayne
Ann-Margret Refused to Call John Wayne ‘Duke’ While Introducing 1 of His Movies
Ann-Margret once starred in one of John Wayne’s lesser-known movies. However, she refused to call him by his popular moniker Duke. Here’s a look at the film they made together — and why she declined to call him by a nickname.
The one time Ann-Margret and John Wayne made a movie together
Ann-Margret is probably most known for her work in musicals, specifically Bye Bye Birdie, Viva Las Vegas, and The Who’s Tommy. However, she also dabbled in the Western genre. She starred alongside Wayne in the mostly forgotten movie The Train Robbers.
Wayne was also known as The Duke or just Duke. According to USA Today, the nickname was derived from his childhood dog. It stuck with him for many years. It continues to be used today — even on the box covers of the DVDs for his movies.
John Wayne | Silver Screen Collection/Getty Images
During an interview with Interview Magazine, Ann-Margret explained why she didn’t refer to the Rio Bravo star by this famous name. “When I came to this country, first of all, mother and I didn’t know English,” she said. “I would curtsey, then say, ‘Thank you,’ and then when I was leaving, curtsey. For example, we went to Dallas to introduce a film I did with John Wayne. And I never called him Duke. I just couldn’t. That’s the way I was raised. When you meet someone, you say either Mr. or Mrs. or Miss. You stand up.”
Ann-Margret revealed she treated other famous people in much the same way. For example, she worked with director George Sidney on Bye Bye Birdie and Viva Las Vegas. She always called him Mr. Sidney.
What Ann-Margret thought about John Wayne
Ann-Margret refused to use Wayne’s most famous moniker. However, she had a positive view of the actor. During an interview with Fox News, she was asked what she expected when she met Wayne. “Oh, I didn’t know what to expect,” she revealed. “But when he hugged me, it’s like the world was hugging me. He was so big and wide with that booming voice.
“We were shooting in Durango, Mexico and my parents came down to visit me,” she added. “He was so great with my parents. So absolutely welcoming and gentle with them. And anybody who was great to my parents was on a throne in my eyes.”
How the world reacted to ‘The Train Robbers’
Wayne starred in many classic Westerns, including The Searchers, Stagecoach, and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. However, The Train Robbers is mostly forgotten. It didn’t gain a cult following like Once Upon a Time in the West or Dead Man. It wasn’t a critical success either, garnering a 33% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. However, Ann-Margret had some fond memories of making the film — even if she refused to call Wayne by his famous nickname.
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