John Wayne: American by Randy Roberts, James S. Olson
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Book Reviews of John Wayne: American
Book Review: Outstanding Achievement
Summary: 5 Stars
A few years back I reviewed an inferior book on John Wayne and lamented publically why one of the greatest Hollywood stars had never received proper biographical attention. To my delight, a helpful reader wrote in and recommended this book so strongly that I rushed out and bought it. I'm no conservative by any means, and this book is very upfront about its conservative politics, but I can recommend it without question to anyone, no matter what their political stripe.
In fact to me it seems only the gung-ho preface really makes a case for conservatism. You could read the whole book without detecting an ideological message of any sort. It's puzzling. In fact, I had a moment of liberal guilt when I imagined a scenario in which authors Roberts and Olson constructed a well-nigh perfect biography, then perhaps failed to find a regular publisher, resorting only at the end to hooking up with a conservative press that required them to concoct a flag-waving preface. Is it really true, as they claimed, that a liberal cultural elite has "marginalized John Wayne, the brightest star in the pop culture firmament"? Gee, I hope not! Olson and Roberts go the whole distance with Wayne, showing how he responded to the shifting cultural changes in the US, showing for example how Wayne turned against Jane Fonda when she went to Hanoi, but forgave her only a few years later, going so far as to bestow her the Golden Apple Award voted her by the Foreign Press Association. So he was never a cultural monolith and was often capable of surprising turns, both ideologically as well as on the screen.
Roberts and Olson give us a man bafflingly devoted to John Ford, who seemed to think he had the right to abuse the Duke just because he had discovered him way back when. There was something a little masochistic going on in John Wayne's soul, he seemed not only to suffer but to welcome Ford's abuse, losing countless poker games to him, never once letting the old man know he was acting the fool. The Ford-Wayne relationship has been covered dozens of times, of course, but Roberts and Olson make it new all over again, with a savvy combination of candid interviews and trenchant analysis. They shine a powerful light on all aspects of Duke's career, from his three marriages to his guilt over his deferment during World War II to his slump in the late 1950s, a period when it seemed he just didn't care any more. Struggles with studio bosses, with critics and audiences, Everything looks brand new again under this cool, steady, biographical focus. They don't male Wayne a plaster saint; at the same time, the multidimensional profiling gives us the illusion of a 360 degree pan, as though we could reach out and touch the man.
I saw only one little section that left a bad taste; in their section on the production of Hondo, they see fit to carve up poor Geraldine Page like few actresses have ever been carved up. According to Roberts and Olson (largely following the memories of Mary St. John, Wayne's personal secretary), Page slept around, drank heavily, smelled like nothing on earth--and she was a liberal too of course. In this account Page was so blowsy "even Ward Bond wouldn't take advantage of her availability." After burning her at the stake for four pages. suddenly the authors switch to Page's point of view in a personal interview which reveals her in a bizarrely different light, as a charming, affectionate, sober, insightful witness. Roberts and Olson, have you treated the late Geraldine Page with the good faith anybody deserves? No, I think not--one shoddy episode in what is otherwise a biographical triumph,
Book Review: LOUSY TITLE, EXCELLENT BIOGRAPHY
Summary: 5 Stars
I'm just going to sign on to what a lot of other folks said. I saw this title at the library and was actually somewhat turned off, thinking it was some kind of right wing, hearts and flowers trip through the city of rose-colored glasses, some kind of super patriotic fluff.
Well, it's nothing like that. They did this book a serious disservice by not giving it a more descriptive title. This is a really excellent biography. I just thought in the beginning I'd cherry pick a few parts I really wanted to read about, just zero in on the movies I really like (Like "Rio Bravo"). Then it began to dawn on me. This guy is in a TON of movies I really, really like. The sheer magnitude of the excellence of his output eventually became kind of overwhelming and I realized i should just read the whole damn thing, cover to cover.
I don't know about anyone else but I think you're on shakey ground reading about someone whose work you immensely enjoy. The danger is finding out you don't particularly like the person behind the image and thereby damaging your ability to enjoy their work anymore. And, presto, you've deprived your life of a significant joy.
That's not an issue with this guy. He's totally likeable. Having met a few famous people I remember being delighted when I met someone back in the eighties who'd met john wayne and talked about how welcoming he was toward the public. then somewhere I read more about that aspect of his character--once he was on a movie shoot at some crappy restaurant at four in the morning preparing to drive out to the movie set and he was approached by a waitress who worked there and was a fan. He actually saw her coming, stood up to greet her, then stood amiably chatting with her for TWENTY MINUTES while his breakfast got cold. He was like that. That's the quality of individual we're talking about here. Movie career and acting bullsh-t aside, this was a really excellent human being.
As a liberal person i always find it somewhat disconcerting to realize conservatives are often better human beings when encountered in the one-on-one. I have no clue as to why.
Anyway, the waitress story I just told was from another source, I just use it to illustrate what this guy was like. But there's a lot more here than just john wayne, it brings to life his best buddy, ward bond, john ford (arguably Hollywood's most gifted director, who "made" wayne what he was and was an assho--e but a genius, and who was my fellow democrat naturally) and howard hawks, almost as gifted as ford but a really good guy (a damn republican naturally).
this is just a very, very entertaining read. If you're like me and are willing to freely admit the freaking obvious, that john wayne was clearly the greatest movie star in American history, give this a chance.
I predict you won't regret that you did. Good luck, pilgrim.
Book Review: The Man and the Legend
Summary: 5 Stars
The acid test of any biography is does the personality of the subject come through the pages of the book? After the reader is finished, do they feel they have meet the man or woman they were reading about. Historians Randy Roberts and James S. Olson have done so with this book, which is very difficult for two distinct reasons: 1) Wayne left no papers; and 2) there is the legend of John Wayne that gets in the way of knowing Marion "Duke" Morrison, the man behind the famous stage name.
Roberts and Olson have given their readers a well-written, engaging study that is both traditional biography of the actor, but a study of his status as an American icon. The authors also show that Wayne was a talented actor in addition to being a movie star and deserved the Oscar he won, even though he expected to lose.
A decent and diligent son, he was never able to win his mother's love. For whatever reason, she showered her affections on her second son who was a mediocrity in life. Wayne was a conservative, but mainly because he was a classical liberal in that he believed in limited government that did little to impose on the liberties of individuals. Even though he was worth millions when he died, he had invested poorly and had gone bankrupt, squandered most of his earnings, and most of his fortune was the result of his having an honest business partner that had looked out for him.
He went through three marriages, but was a loving, if removed father. In many ways, he placed more value in his friends than in his family. Perhaps because his friends could never hurt him the way his wives had.
There will be other Wayne books, but it is difficult to see this book being surpassed anytime soon.
Book Review: Excellent Book! The best ever written on John Wayne
Summary: 5 Stars
This is quite simply a great book. Roberts and Olson approach there subject with respect but are not overwhelmed by awe and really just tell a great story in the process. This book really puts John Wayne's life in a context and shows how he became the actor and person that he was. There is no whitewashing of 'The Duke' there is just the plain old fashion truth and the authors do a wonderful job.
Wayne's films are described in a very nice fashion and they are dissected very expertly. How Wayne got in the business is told in detail. The wasteland that was the 1930s for the actor are described and then the great breakthrough of 'Stagecoach' is told in a whole, great chapter. The ups and downs of working with the legendary Director John Ford are also told in excellent detail and really makes for fascinating reading. The authors also do a great job of handling the lack of military service for John Wayne in World War II. This part of Wayne's life is told in a very balanced fashion.
The authors go on through Wayne's successful career into the '50s, '60s, and '70s and describe the many personal problems he dealt with. But what I like so much about this book is that it is not salacious it is just telling the story with great, fair analysis. This book is just a superb account of Wayne's life and films. As Wayne approaches his last days you will be moved. The book concludes with a excellent summary of what Wayne meant to America and the cinema and the concluding paragraphs are very moving and touching.
This book is absolutely A+! Highly recommended to all readers who want to read a great book about the Golden Age of Hollywood!
Book Review: Outstanding book... the most enjoyable read ever.
Summary: 5 Stars
I've read a lot of biographies and without a doubt, this was the most enjoyable one I've ever read. The authors did an outstanding job of melding the Duke's personal and professional life together into an easy-to-read, chronological breakdown of what many Americans - including me - consider to be one of the greatest Americans ever.Since I was a kid watching John Wayne movies with my dad, I wanted to know more about the man behind the walkin and talkin and this book really filled in all the blanks. The best part about this book was that Duke turned out to be everything I wanted him to be. He was flawed... he was a womanizer and a bit of a drinker and he probably didn't make the best decision when it came time to fight in WWII. But, one thing is for sure. The man was not a coward and he was a patriotic and moral soul that struggled with his own demons just like the rest of us, but truly always sought to do the right thing.
The authors did an outstanding job of pointing out when the Duke may have made a mistake or had a lapse in judgement because the guy was human. But, they also documented some of the times when the Duke stood up for what he believed in, like when he stood up for U.S. soldiers repeatedly during the Vietnam war.
I had this image of who John Wayne was in my mind. He was a flawed giant that believed in a chilvarous code to country, family and God and that is exactly the image that was portrayed in this book.
Wonderfully written book that is really worth your time...!!