Posted on 05/26/2007 5:29:27 PM PDT by Nasty McPhilthy
“I have found a certain type calls himself a Liberal. Now I always thought I was a Liberal. I came up terribly surprised one time when I found out that I was a right-wing conservative extremist, when I listened to everybody’s point of view that I ever met, and then decided how I should feel. But this so-called new Liberal group, Jesus, they never listen to your point of view…”
- John Wayne
Today marks what would have been actor John Wayne’s 100th birthday.
The man born in 1907 as Marion Robert Morrison was an actor whose films often reflected his personal view on politics and life in general. True, that’s not a rarity for Hollywood, if we take into account some of the leftist celluloid chowder that’s been served up in recent decades, but The Duke represented much of what gives today’s Tinseltown actor/activist the runs: Wayne was pro-America, pro-traditional values, pro-traditional roles and pro-family — ideals that are, in Hollywood these days, mocked more often than not.
John Wayne also backed wars, and didn’t just “support the troops,” but “supported the war” as well, as Wayne seemed to know the two aren’t mutually exclusive as today’s Hollywood seems to believe.
In the new millennium, Hollywood still puts out its share of war movies — the irony being that these often star, as the combat hero du jour, a feverishly anti-war, anti-gun actor who had to be tutored as to which was the working end of the rifle. My guess is that Wayne might have viewed it as hypocritical for an anti-war actor to rake in millions of dollars for portraying a war hero. Of course, The Duke lived during a Hollywood era when “war hero” wasn’t necessarily a laughable oxymoron. How silly we were back in the day.
A century after his birth, John Wayne may also have gotten a hearty, smoke-emitting chuckle from watching today’s Hollywood elites fire up a bunch of ozone-busting, greenhouse gas spewing tanks, half tracks, diesel trucks and Humvees to make a war movie — and then use the money they make to burn tens of thousands of gallons of jet fuel to fly halfway around the world to rallies led by anti-American dictators, spiral-eyed, hacky-sack-brained activists and the types of people who thought Jimmy Carter was a good president, where they blame planetary ills, both real and imagined, on your Chevy Tahoe and hairspray.
Yes, there are still Hollywood actors who embrace traditional American values in both their personal lives and in film, but finding one is about as rare as spotting an psychiatric drugs in Tom Cruise’s medicine cabinet. The preceding comparison is valid in that I wish both were far more common.
Will we ever see the likes of John Wayne again? The Duke was once, arguably, the most famous actor in the world. Today’s most famous are, to a great degree, limo-libs who campaign on behalf of the political candidate who is going to raise our taxes the most, and then, right after the election, head halfway around the world to take tax-exile junkets to their vacation homes on the French Riviera.
Again, John Wayne would have laughed.
It’s not so much the John Wayne attitude that I miss coming from Hollywood as much as the demand for men such as John Wayne from the public. Maybe the demand is still there, incubating, waiting for another John Wayne, if there is one, to emerge and embrace with great zeal. Not today.
So often though it seems as if we’re making today’s actors, directors and producers rich for insulting us, and if one does stray from the script of “progressive” behavior, they are ostracized. There are no doubt many in Hollywood who feel that by coming out as anti-communist (as John Wayne did) or anti-socialist or anti-terrorist, they’d be accused of giving Joe McCarthy a post-mortem totalitarian erection, so they turn in a different direction and suppress any urge they might have to let their Duke-ness show.
Hollywood as it exists today displays a kind of McCarthyism in reverse, where any traditional view of what constitutes “American” is placed in a formaldehyde jar for careful dissection before being thrown out of the casting office and back to “flyover country” where it belongs.
Of course, the heyday of John Wayne was back when Hollywood was proud to be long on demonstrating to the planet why the United States was a world leader, and short on apologizing for it.
John Wayne, where are you?
The Duke was given the name Marion Robert Morrison when he was born, but his middle name was changed to Michael when he was 5 years old, when his brother Robert was born.
He made too many great movies to have just one favorite, but I like The Searchers so much I named my son Ethan.
John Wayne is the reason I registered as a Republican as an 18 year old kid. He’s never steered my wrong. He was a truly great American.
Semper Fi
His kind will never pass our way again, but God I wish someone like him would.
“The Angel and the Bad Man” is right up there as a film.
I disagree with the “politics” which suggested that the “Bad Man” character was bad because he had a gun. After the “Angel” has him properly gelded, he gives up his ability to defend himself and his woman, he supposedly lives happily ever after.
I like “The Quiet Man” better, but TAATBM has to be mentioned.
John Wayne was born in 1907? Holy smokes I’ve always thought he was born in the 1920s.
The Duke “Talked the Talk, and Walked the Walk”
Jim, USMC 73 - 77
America, Why I Love Her
John Wayne
http://sagebrushpatriot.com/america.htm
Do Not Let This Happen!
USS William Jefferson Clinton CVS1
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1510710/posts
The Next Carrier:
CVN 78
USS JOHN WAYNE
The DUKE! For when we really mean business!
Call & write Now. Lets make it happen!
I sat and watched the Quiet Man for the 30th time yesterday. It simply is such a classic that you can’t be bored by it. I still rate the movie as one of the top ten ever made...period.
thanks...
> What do you think is the Duke’s best movie? “The Searchers”?
John Wayne’s best movies did not co-star Tom Cruise. His worst movies did.
*DieHard*
Followed 3 seconds later by a smoking hole in the wall where the phone used to hang!
You’re welcome.
I’ve heard Congressman Duncan Hunter compared with John Wayne. I agree as well. If you watched the presidential two debates, I think that you saw only Duncan Hunter up there really firm on what he would do to keep America’s strength in the world continuing. After all, “Peace through strength” is his adopted motto. Look him up if you get a chance. I’d especially encourage you to look him up on myspace.com. He has a number of campaign videos posted there.
She was one real beautiful woman.
Sands of Iwo Jima is my favorite.
Semper Fi,
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