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John Wayne

John Wayne DID dodge the draft so he could continue his torrid affair with sexy German actress Marlene Dietrich, ‘the best lay I’ve ever had,’ new book reveals

John Wayne was a hard-nosed Marine sergeant, a naval lieutenant and a commander of an airborne battalion during the invasion of Normandy. But those were his movies.

Wayne never served a day in the US military and has long been accused of being a ‘draft dodger’ because he staunchly avoided putting on a uniform and going to war when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor in 1941.

The truth is that he did avoid military service but not because he was a coward. It was so that he could continue his torrid affair with the older German film star Marlene Dietrich, then aged 40.

Passion: It was lust at first sight for John Wayne and Marlene Dietrich. They had a three-year affair

Passion: It was lust at first sight for John Wayne and Marlene Dietrich. They had a three-year affairSparks: When Wayne arrived on the movie set of Seven Sinners, Dietrich would leap into his arms and wrap her legs around himSparks: When Wayne arrived on the movie set of Seven Sinners, Dietrich would leap into his arms and wrap her legs around him

As other leading men in Hollywood were enlisting, the Duke dodged war duty for the ‘best lay he ever had,’ says the author of a new book, Marc Eliot, in American Titan: Searching for John Wayne, published tomorrow by Dey Street, an imprint of Harper Collins.

When Japan dropped the bombs on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, Wayne was 34 and had become a bankable star after making a few bombs of his own with his ‘on-screen lack of authority’ acting.

At the time of the call to military service, the married Wayne was wrapped in the arms of the lusty German film star, Marlene Dietrich after co-starring with her in the 1940 film, Seven Sinners, in which Wayne traded his chaps and cowboy boots for navy whites.

He had fallen madly in love with the actress whose insatiable desire for American boys and men spiked if she could also break up their marriages or humiliate them in some way.

‘When she came into Wayne’s life, she juicily sucked every last drop of resistance, loyalty, morality, and guilt out of him, and gave him a sexual and moral cleansing as efficiently done as if she were draining an infected sore’, writes the author.

Dietrich had star approval after the film ‘Destry Rides Again’ with Jimmy Stewart and met Wayne in her dressing room at Universal Studios.Too hot to handle:  ‘He was crazy for Dietrich from the first time she led him to her bed,' says Eliot.  'He stayed there, at her beck and call, for the next three years and didn’t appear to care who knew it. She was the bad girl he’d never had, the forbidden fruit he’d never tasted’+17View gallery

Too hot to handle:  ‘He was crazy for Dietrich from the first time she led him to her bed,’ says Eliot.  ‘He stayed there, at her beck and call, for the next three years and didn’t appear to care who knew it. She was the bad girl he’d never had, the forbidden fruit he’d never tasted’Poster boy: The movie poster from the 1949 film Sands of Iwo Jima, a drama set during World War II that follows a troop of United States Marines from training to the Battle of Iwo Jima. Wayne played a relentlessly tough Marine sergeant disliked by his troops for his harsh treatment. He earned a Best Actor Oscar nomination for his role but his lack of military service and anti-communist activities may have cost him the win+17View gallery

Poster boy: The movie poster from the 1949 film Sands of Iwo Jima, a drama set during World War II that follows a troop of United States Marines from training to the Battle of Iwo Jima. Wayne played a relentlessly tough Marine sergeant disliked by his troops for his harsh treatment. He earned a Best Actor Oscar nomination for his role but his lack of military service and anti-communist activities may have cost him the win

She invited him in, closed and locked the door. She lifted up her skirt to reveal a timepiece attached to a black garter. ‘We have plenty of time’, she said.

Dietrich had just brutally dropped actor Jimmy Stewart, who was also head over heels in love with her. There were rumors that she had gotten pregnant by Stewart and had an abortion.

But she had now dropped him cold and set her sights on her new co-star, John Wayne. He was going to be the next notch of her belt. Just like Stewart and Gary Cooper before him, Wayne got caught up in her web and couldn’t get enough of the blonde tigress. She lifted up her skirt to reveal a timepiece attached to a black garter. ‘We have plenty of time’, she said.

‘He had never before had a real whiff of the kind of feral sexuality Dietrich exuded,’ writes Eliot.

This consuming sexuality didn’t exist at home with his first wife, Josephine Alicia Saenz, whom he married in 1933 – or for that matter with actress Claire Trevor, who became his lover when his marriage began to fail.

‘He was crazy for Dietrich from the first time she led him to her bed. He stayed there, at her beck and call, for the next three years and didn’t appear to care who knew it. She was the bad girl he’d never had, the forbidden fruit he’d never tasted.

‘Dietrich made him not just like sex with her but crave it.’

They carried on in public, kissing over dinner at restaurants, at nightclubs. There were no restrictions.

‘He was in love with Dietrich…they were two opposites strongly attracted to each other’.

She was exotic, sultry and teased him with flashes of her frilly undergarments. She was sexually uninhibited and wild representing his fantasy of European women. He was her fantasy of the big, tough American male who could beat any sophisticated German male to a pulp.

She made him her own personal King Kong.On deck: John Wayne, and his first wife Josephine Wayne relax with actor Spencer Tracy at El Mirador in Palm Springs, California, in January, 1934+17View gallery

On deck: John Wayne, and his first wife Josephine Wayne relax with actor Spencer Tracy at El Mirador in Palm Springs, California, in January, 1934Hot tamale: Wayne dipped his toe in the marriage waters for a second time with Esperanza, known as Chata or pug-nose. The author says that she was actor Ray Milland's 'port of call' when he visited Mexico City+17View gallery

Hot tamale: Wayne dipped his toe in the marriage waters for a second time with Esperanza, known as Chata or pug-nose. The author says that she was actor Ray Milland’s ‘port of call’ when he visited Mexico CityThree's a charm: Wayne embraces his third wife, Pilar Palette after the wedding ceremony in the former home of King Kamehameha III in November, 1954.The 46-year-old star and his 21-year-old Peruvian bride were wed a few hours after his divorce from Esperanza Bauer became final+17View gallery

Three’s a charm: Wayne embraces his third wife, Pilar Palette after the wedding ceremony in the former home of King Kamehameha III in November, 1954.The 46-year-old star and his 21-year-old Peruvian bride were wed a few hours after his divorce from Esperanza Bauer became final

Every able-bodied man and actor was expected to answer the call to military service in 1941 and put on a uniform to go fight the enemy.

Young guys lied about their ages, old men as well to get into the service. All except John Wayne…

‘He was still clinging to his relationship with Marlene Dietrich, whom he described as ‘the most intriguing woman I’ve ever known and ‘the best lay I’ve ever had’.

‘He wasn’t quite ready to give her up for anything, even, perhaps, his country’, writes author Marc Eliot.

Duke also feared military service might end his career by dragging on so long he would be too old to be ‘an action-oriented leading man’, or a character actor not making the same kind of money he was now used to earning to support his soon-to-be ex-wife.

With all the leading men in Hollywood gone he became a valuable acting commodity – and he knew it.

Henry Fonda had enlisted in the navy at 37. Jimmy Stewart tried to enlist at age 33 but was underweight. He put aside his Academy Award winning career and went on a diet to fatten up that included candy, beer and bananas. He reached the minimum weight and proudly flew dozens of missions over Germany.

Cowboy singing star Gene Autry joined the Army Air Corps. Tyrone Power went into the Marines. Robert Montgomery joined the army along with Clark Gable. Ronald Reagan also signed up but his lousy eyesight kept him from going overseas. 

Even Hollywood’s ‘Beverly Hills Brits’ faced extradition and imprisonment in Britain if they didn’t head home to do their duty.

Any story that Wayne had tried to enlist was a complete fabrication, the author insists. 

‘Wayne never tried to enlist and never ‘pleaded’ with John Ford to get him into the navy,’ writes the author.

Wayne was 35 years old when most draftees were 20. He was called in by his local draft board but he argued that he was exempt being the sole support of his family. He neglected to mention he was getting divorced.Dumped: Wayne was left in the dust when the fickle German star’s passions moved on to actor George Raft, who played gangsters in crime melodramas in the 1930s and 1940s+17View gallery

Dumped: Wayne was left in the dust when the fickle German star’s passions moved on to actor George Raft, who played gangsters in crime melodramas in the 1930s and 1940s

He also brought up an old shoulder injury that he considered made him ineligible although it never impacted his movie work as a stuntman or as a cowboy riding horses and getting into brawls.

When Wayne received a letter from the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) that later became the CIA, urging the actor to join without delay.Wayne denied that he got the letter saying that his wife Josephine hid it from him.

This last attempt to get Wayne to commit to the war effort was made by director John Ford who helped make Wayne into a big star.

Wayne later told the truth to Dan Ford, John Ford’s biographer and grandson: ‘I didn’t feel I could go in as a private, I felt I could do more good going around on tours and things…

‘I was America [to the young guys] in the front lines…they had taken their sweethearts to that Saturday matinee and held hands over a Wayne Western. So I wore a big hat and I thought it was better.’

He also made the preposterous excuse that Herb Yates, head of Republic Pictures at the time, was going to sue him if he let himself be drafted.

There is no proof of this because when the war ended, the government had destroyed Wayne’s service-related papers.Wayne with his circle of friends in 1971 -- Bob Hope, Ronald Reagan, Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra. He had been making films for more than 41 years and by 1969, grossed more than $400 million for the studios that produced his films -- more than any other star in motion-picture history+17View gallery

Wayne with his circle of friends in 1971 — Bob Hope, Ronald Reagan, Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra. He had been making films for more than 41 years and by 1969, grossed more than $400 million for the studios that produced his films — more than any other star in motion-picture history

Duke had been so desperate to stay out of the military and in the arms of Marlene Dietrich, yet by 1942, Dietrich was through with the six foot four inch actor who had represented every branch of the military in his movie roles.

She attempted to keep him out of the film, The Spoilers, the scheduled film reunion of the pair.

The fickle star’s passions had moved on to actor George Raft, who played gangsters in crime melodramas in the 1930s and 1940s. Simultaneously she was having a passionate affair with France’s biggest movie star, Jean Gabin, now in the States after escaping the Nazis. 

Wayne was brokenhearted and couldn’t bear seeing her around town so he decided to take a trip to Mexico  to get over his heartache — ‘where life was cheap and women cheaper’.

Along for the joy ride were actors Ward Bond, Fred MacMurray, and Ray Milland.

Milland introduced the despairing Wayne to his Mexican ‘girlfriend’ who was a bit film player and full time call girl to the stars, Esperanza Baur Diaz Ceballos  – Chata for short –  who switched her allegiance to Duke.

She liked that he was taller than she was but she was no beauty having dark hair, bad skin and a moustache.

The only thing she had in common with Dietrich was ‘their high-octane sexuality and the fact that both of them had worked at one time or another, as professional escorts’.

Chata would become the second Mrs. John Wayne in 1946.

The actor declared it was the biggest mistake he ever made in his life.

At one point, Wayne felt guilty that he had bailed out of military service.Ailing: Riddled with cancer, Wayne made his first public appearance since his surgery in 1979 at the 51st Annual Academy Awards in Hollywood+17View gallery

Ailing: Riddled with cancer, Wayne made his first public appearance since his surgery in 1979 at the 51st Annual Academy Awards in Hollywood

He thought he could make up for it by making appearances at USO shows in the South Pacific and Australia – ‘his version of military service’ but he was greeted with raucous booing by the enlisted men who had served in hard combat.

The press didn’t write about the booing but the soldiers viewed Wayne, along with Bing Crosby, Bob Hope and Al Jolson as Hollywood entertainers just looking for some good p.r.

Wayne went to hospitals and ‘told the press he felt he belonged at the fronts with the boys’. He told them he’d be back after his picture commitments. But he never went back to Burma and China not only because he didn’t have time but because of the less-than-warm welcome.

Wayne’s third wife, Pilar Pallete, an actress from Peru who he married in 1954 as soon as he divorced ‘pug nose’ Chata, stated that Wayne became a ‘super-patriot for the rest of his life trying to atone for staying at home’ and not serving in the war effort.

Throughout his life, Wayne remained uncompromising in his anti-Communist stance and unforgiving battle against subversives.

He began as a supporter of FDR and became ‘one of the toughest and most unforgiving political soldiers in Hollywood’s war on communism’. He was ‘willing to throw out the cream of Hollywood’s talent, with the bathwater of their perceived politics’.+17View gallery

He wanted to participate and help rid the film capital of the perceived Red menace and win the respect of the Academy.

It was a tragic era of hate and paranoia in America – the 1950’s witch hunts that ruined so many lives.

‘Wayne’s resistance to change was granite hard and the more doctrinaire he became, the more out of fashion he sounded’.

He was convinced he had never won a gold statuette, an Oscar, because of the Communists.

He would win his one and only Oscar in 1970 for his starring role in True Grit. He had never even been nominated before. He was bitter but said he was laughing all the way to the bank.

Nine years later, in 1979, Hollywood’s reigning symbol of the American fighting soldier had succumbed to stomach cancer at age seventy-two after smoking five packs of cigarettes a day for years.

He had appeared in some 150 movies. His only military service was on the silver screen.True Grit original trailer starring John Wayne (1969)

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.

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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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John Wayne

True Crime on Amazon Prime: ‘Lorena’ Reexamines a 90s Tabloid Sensation

True crime might not be the first type of show that comes to mind when you think of the offerings on Amazon Prime Video. The perpetually buzzy genre is usually more associated with the likes of Netflix and HBO.

However, the streaming service boasts at least one standout docuseries from 2019. It’s one that can scratch the true crime itch for fans, but also give them a much needed new perspective on a well-worn tabloid sensation from the 1990s.

‘Lorena’ was produced by Jordan Peele of ‘Get Out’ fame

Jordan Peele, Head of Amazon Studios Jennifer Salke, and Lorena Gallo attend the 'Lorena' Premiere during the 2019 Sundance Film Festival.Jordan Peele, Head of Amazon Studios Jennifer Salke, and Lorena Gallo attend the ‘Lorena’ Premiere during the 2019 Sundance Film Festival. | Rich Fury/Getty Images

Lorena, as the simple, to-the-point title suggests, chronicles the sordid story of Lorena and Jon Bobbit. The series was produced by Jordan Peele, the comedian-turned-director best known for Get Out and Us, and released on Amazon Prime Video in early 2019 following a premiere at the Sundance Film Festival.

In 1993, Lorena Bobbitt infamously cut her husband, John Wayne Bobbitt’s penis off in his sleep with a kitchen carving knife. She drove off with it, tossed it out the car window into a field, and eventually called 911 to report the incident. After a search followed by 9.5 hours of surgery, John Bobbitt was able to get his penis reattached and functioning normally.

Thanks in large part to the salacious and sexual nature of the Bobbittss story, it quickly became a tabloid and late-night talk show sensation. Sadly, as one might expect from a male-dominated culture, the media spectacle largely focused on John Bobbitt as a sympathetic victim and cast Lorena as a hysterical victim. John Bobbitt went on to become something of a cult figure for a time, even starring in two pornographic films.

Part of the mission statement of Lorena, the series, was to use the true crime format to recontextualize the Lorena Bobbitt story. Despite the prevailing perception of the incident beforehand, in reality, John Bobbitt had subjected Lorena to years of domestic abuse and rape, up to and including the night of her attack.

John Bobbitt was eventually acquitted on rape charges. Lorena Bobbitt was found not guilty by a jury for reasons of insanity.

“25 years later, Lorena is a groundbreaking re-investigation of the deep moral issues and painful human tragedies buried at the heart of this infamous American scandal,” Amazon’s official description of the series reads, as reported by Deadline. “Lost in the tabloid coverage and jokes was the opportunity for a national discussion on domestic and sexual assault in America.”

Lorena saw a positive reaction upon its release, currently boasting an 82% positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes. It was the biggest project yet from director Joshua Rofé, who previously helmed Lost for Life, a documentary about juvenile offenders sentenced to life in prison.

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