John Wayne

John Wayne’s Two Lost Movies, Explained

Two of John Wayne’s movies have been lost to time. Long before his breakout role in John Ford’s Stagecoach, Wayne was a struggling young actor who fronted dozens of “Poverty Row” films. These were low-budget b-movies that were filmed quickly, with some notable examples from his career including Wayne’s sole “horror” Haunted Gold. He always appeared to be on the cusp of stardom, but after concerns about being typecast, Wayne attempted to leave Westerns behind in the 1930s by accepting a contract with Universal. This saw him appear in a variety of more contemporary roles like I Cover The War.
This move was disastrous, ultimately, as all six of his Universal outings bombed. Luckily for Wayne, Stagecoach was right around the corner, and Westerns soon became his go-to genre. He worked almost non-stop during his decades-long career, so alongside some classics like The Searchers or True Grit, he made his share of duds too. Fans of the actor have well over 160 movies to work through, including Jet Pilot, which Wayne felt was his worst. However, two of his early movies have been lost.
Why John Wayne’s Oregon Trail & Adventure’s End Are Missing

john wayne in the oregon trail 1936

Wayne’s first missing film is 1936 Western The Oregon Trail, which he made for Republic Pictures. Wayne made over 30 movies with the studio, with Oregon Trail casting him as an army captain seeking revenge for the death of his father. The film also co-starred Gone With The Wind’s Anne Rutherford as Wayne’s love interest. According to a BBC article, the search to find a print of The Oregon Trail began in 2003, and a decade later, a collection of black and white stills were recovered. Despite this, a print of the film itself has yet to be found.

The second lost John Wayne movie is 1937’s Adventure’s End, which was the final entry in his Universal run. This cast him as Duke Slade, who signs on to work on a whaling vessel and finds himself caught up in a munity. Adventure’s End was co-produced by Trem Carr, who lured Wayne away from Republic to Universal and promised to break him free of Westerns. Carr was famous for cost-cutting, however, with Adventure’s End being another quickly slapped together cheapie. Unlike The Oregon Trail, a surviving print of Adventure’s End is said to be held by the Library of Congress, though there’s no sign it will ever be released officially.
Adventure’s End Was A Turning Point In Wayne’s Career

john wayne in adventures end

Adventure’s End sounds like it tried to sell itself on Wayne’s sex appeal, as he was shirtless for the majority of his screentime – as the few surviving stills can attest. However, after it received poor reviews and bombed, it left its leading man in a bad spot. Wayne – who starred in 80 Westerns – attempt to turn away from Westerns had fared poorly, and he had to basically beg Republic for more work after leaving them. Had Adventure’s End been a success, maybe Wayne’s career could have gone in a totally different direction, but it appears Westerns were always his destiny.

John Wayne

The Gunsmoke cast had no idea John Wayne was going to introduce the first episode

The whole cast was at James Arness’ house when the Duke walked out.

Before anybody ever laid eyes on James Arness as Matt Dillon, the first episode of Gunsmoke moseyed out with a face so familiar to Westerns, he really needed no introduction. That didn’t stop him from saying in that sober, serious way of his, “I’m John Wayne. You may have seen me before, or I hope so. I’ve been kicking around Hollywood a long time.”

The introduction went on, but this was really all it took to get any Western fans to stay firmly planted in the saddle for the premiere, and out of all the fans in the audience when that very first episode aired, you should know that perhaps most surprised of all to see Wayne’s face on the front of his own show was Gunsmoke star Arness. He dispelled a myth in an interview with the Archive of American Television, confirming he not only had nothing to do with Wayne’s involvement, he and the rest of the cast didn’t even know it was going to happen!

“I didn’t ask him,” Arness said of John Wayne’s introduction. “Not at all. In fact, I was really surprised when they said that he had done that. He [filmed] that, we didn’t know about it at all. They did that intro some where else on some picture he was doing, and I don’t think actually, that we knew about it until it came on the air that night. I think they were kinda holding it as a surprise.”

Two big western stars meet again as “Gunsmoke” star Jim Arness stopped by to visit his old friend John Wayne. During the visit on the set of Wayne’s current movie the actors recalled that back in 1952 Arness was under contract to Duke. Wayne was asked to a thing called “Gunsmoke” but sold the producers on Jim instead.

Arness then went on to paint a picture of what exactly it was like to see one of his own heroes tipping his hat before the start of Arness’ new show. He said, “We were all actually over at my house, all the gang from Gunsmoke, watching this… and here’s Duke Wayne with this intro.”

Just imagine Amanda Blake, Dennis Weaver and Milburn Stone, sitting shoulder to shoulder on a couch when the screen flickers to reveal John Wayne. It must’ve been quite the surprise, indeed. Arness used a different word to describe the experience: “It was absolutely marvelous.”

In a later interview, he used the same word when discussing his favorite John Wayne movie of all time, The Quiet Man. Arness said, “I watch television all the time, mostly PBS and old movies like The Quiet Man, my favorite Wayne movie. It’s marvelous. I just loved the man and still do.”

John Wayne

Inside John Wayne’s ‘Wild Goose’ WWII Houseboat

Actor John Wayne loved both land and sea. However, he took his love for the water to another level when he purchased a boat that he spent a lot of time on. The Wayne houseboat is a beautiful piece of history that fans continue to admire long after the actor’s death. Here’s a look inside of Wild Goose.

John Wayne owned a WWII houseboat called ‘Wild Goose’

The Daze with Jordan the Lion YouTube channel takes viewers on a tour inside of the Wayne houseboat. The actor spent a lot of time on the houseboat and owned it for 18 years. However, he sold it shortly before he died in 1979. Jordan explained that Wayne had some of his favorite moments of all time on the Wild Goose. He even convalesced on the boat after he knew that he was going to die.

The Wayne houseboat was a decommissioned World War II Naval minesweeper. However, he wasn’t the original owner. Billionaire Max Wyman purchased the boat, but he wanted to sell it when he grew tired of it. Wayne purchased it off his hands and had to have the ceilings raised to accommodate his height without bumping his head.

Jordan went to the other side of the boat to take a quick look at the kitchen, where the Duke had meals prepared for him. Next, he went into the engine room. The host explained that the ship’s engine was originally a locomotive or train engine that they repurposed when the military had the ship. The ladder at the end of the room leads to the bar area.

The host exited the engine room to head to the second level of the ship, using gold-detailed stairs to get there. He explored a second Bride room, where guests can purchase Wayne and Wild Goose merchandise. Jordan explained that the Wayne houseboat’s captain is still alive and participates in the dinner cruises.

John Wayne

The Most Memorable John Wayne Movies

Few actors compare to John Wayne, both in terms of ability and popularity. Here are The Duke’s most memorable movies.John Wayne or simply “The Duke” is one of the greatest actors of all time, appearing in over 150 movies and starring in over 70 movies during his career. He was brilliant in every single role, whether he was a cowboy, a marshal, a colonel, or any other type of character. Fans of all ages love The Duke for his commanding presence on-screen and good heart off-screen.

1: The Green BeretsJohn Wayne plays a Green Beret colonel in “The Green Berets”Despite its critical failure and protests about its subject matter, The Green Berets was a commercial success when it was released in 1968. Based on a 1965 novel, the movie was also directed by Wayne, who wanted to show the positive side of those who served in South Vietnam at the time.

Wayne plays the colonel of a Green Beret unit who’s sent to Vietnam to support various operations. He’s joined by a cynical newspaper reporter, played by David Jansen. His unit goes on an espionage mission and shores up a front-line camp with help from a character portrayed by George Takei.

2: The Searchers“The Searchers” is considered one of the most classic movies made.John Ford’s The Searchers was not only a commercial success when it premiered in 1956. It also became one of the most influential films of the 20th century. It has been named one of the best Westerns and top movies of all time.

Wayne plays a Civil War veteran who goes on a hunt for his niece, played by Natalie Wood. He’s joined by his adoptive nephew, who is played by Jeffrey Hunter. Along the way, the pair encounters numerous obstacles in their search.

3: Red RiverJohn Wayne and Montgomery Clift in “Red River.”Gunslinging wasn’t the only thing John Wayne did in his Westerns. For the most part, that was a small part. The rest of these films focused on the human condition and how they conquered the harshness of the land at that time.

Red River is an example of this type of film. Directed by Howard Hawkes, it’s loosely based on the first cattle drive from Texas to Kansas along the Chisholm Trail. Most of the tension comes from the relationship between Wayne’s character and his son, played by Montgomery Clift. The movie was preserved by the National Film Registry thanks to its historical significance.

4: StagecoachJohn Wayne was beginning to get his acting chops in the 1930s, working as an extra and starting to star in a few B movies. In 1939, he got his break as Ringo Kid, a young outlaw out for revenge for his father and brother’s death in John Ford’s Stagecoach.

Stagecoach focused on a diverse group of individuals who were all aboard the same stagecoach and are forced to go through several trials and tribulations together, including the birth of a baby. The role set the young actor on a path to success and Wayne soon became a household name.

5: El DoradoThe 1960s were full of great western actors such as John Wayne, Steve McQueen, James Stewart, Clint Eastwood, and Robert Mitchum. Having John Wayne and Robert Mitchum in the same movie proved to be a wise decision, with 1966’s El Dorado became a huge hit among western fans.

John Wayne played Cole Thorton, a gunslinger for hire, who returns to the town of El Dorado as he was hired by wealthy landowner Bart Jason. But when Cole realizes he would have to fight his old friend the drunken sheriff, J.P. Harrah played by Robert Mitchum, he turns down the offer. Cole joins forces with J.P. to protect the town from the bully Bart Jason.

6: The ShootistJohn Wayne had a career that spanned for 4 decades, with his big break coming in 1939 as Ringo Kid in Stagecoach and his last role being J.B. Books in the 1976 film The Shootist. J.B. Books is an old gunslinger who finds out he has cancer, but this old gunfighter isn’t going out without a fight.

The American hero, John Wayne, passed away in 1979, only a few years after filming his final movie. That said, his legacy will never be forgotten. As they say, “when the legend becomes fact, print the legend.”