John Wayne
John Wayne’s ‘violent confrontation’ with co-star sparked feud: ‘Patience ran out’
Among those praising Baby Face was Ty Burr, of the Boston Globe, who hailed it a “fascinatingly conflicted artefact of Depression-era do-me feminism. Lily Powers is one of the screen’s great hard girls, and Baby Face can’t decide whether to celebrate her or string her along”.
Fellow critic, Mick La Salle, wrote in the San Francisco Chronicle: “The differences between the original and the release versions of Baby Face are small, and yet combined they spell the difference between a good three-star movie and a delightful four-star movie.”
Wayne has remained one of Hollywood’s most enduring stars, with his more than 170 films and TV back catalogue regularly enjoyed by viewers across the globe.
While the star sadly passed away in 1979 aged 72, tales of Wayne’s life and relationships have continued to be pored over by historians and film aficionados.
This included a time when Wayne lashed out at a co-star while filming the 1960 western The Alamo.
The Alamo was directed, produced and starred in by Wayne, with Richard Widmark also taking a leading role in the flick, and their relationship was discussed in Pilar Wayne and Alex Thorleifson’s 1987 book John Wayne: My Life With the Duke.
Pilar noted how Wayne found Widmark “a difficult man” who had a “scratchy” personality.
She explained that during filming Widmark would challenge every decision Wayne would make, while shooting continued in Brackettville, Texas.
During his long career, Wayne had routinely dealt with stars that he didn’t get along with, and understood different ways to approach those relationships as a director.
But, Pilar explained, with Widmark, Wayne was unhappy with how their understanding was developing.
She said: “Duke tried patience and understanding first because he respected Widmark’s talent. But Widmark seemed to interpret Duke’s patience as a sign of weakness. He kept on arguing with Duke in front of the rest of the cast and crew.”
However, as time went by Wayne’s patience with Widmark, who died in 2008, grew worse with the director’s understanding seen as a “sign of weakness” by his unruly actor.
John Wayne won an Oscar (Image: GETTY)
Pilar added: “He kept on arguing with Duke in front of the rest of the cast and crew.
“Predictably, the day came when Duke’s patience ran out… Widmark and Duke had a violent confrontation and Duke threw the smaller man against a wall.”
Widmark wasn’t the only star Wayne would seemingly fall out with, as his daughter Aissa outlined in her 1991 book John Wayne: My Father.
She noted how Wayne would speak with “real venom” about the double Oscar winner Gene Hackman, and that every time he appeared on screen the western star would “skewer his performance”.
She added: “I wish I could tell you why he so harshly criticised Hackman, but he never went into detail.
“Although it’s pure speculation, had my father lived to see more of his work, I think his view of Mr Hackman would have changed.
“Back then, however, my father called Hackman ‘the worst actor in town. He’s awful’.”
John Wayne
The Legend Lives On: John Wayne is Still Alive!
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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