An American Icon Remembered

[jollymon]

An American Icon Remembered

Today June 11th 1979 We lost the "Duke", John Wayne lost his battle with cancer.

I was at Ft.Knox Ky. at tank turret school when we heard it on the radio that he passed away, 70 loud and rowdy young Soldiers in a open Bay barracks Fell Silent.
It's a shame Hollywood can't muster up some more like him, IN today's Hollywood,Being a
conservative, patriotic,and God fearing, puts you on the outside looking in.

 

[Colonialgirl]

He had a large beautiful estate on Newport Harbor in CA. A LOAD of Waterfront footage at $1000 a frontage foot back in 1962/63.

 

[SAJohn]

We still have a few left: Clint Eastwood,Tom Selleck, Kurt Russell, and Chuck Norris immediately come to mind. It is interesting to note that the western image of self reliance, high moral values, and good winning over evil tend to attract more conservative actors.

 

[GP100]

He was a real man.. Not like the "girly" men we are producing now..

 

[contender]

"He was a real man.. Not like the "girly" men we are producing now.."

Quoted for truth!

 

[Big Old Boy]

We will always remember the Duke.

 

[caryc]

When I was on the Bryce Canyon (destroyer tender) we were in dry dock in San Pedro for some work. While we were in there, John Wayne's boat "The Galloping Goose" was in the dry dock next to us. This was when he first purchased the boat. It was a Naval Mine Sweeper and they were removing all the superstructure from it to rebuild it per Wayne's wishes.

 

[Rick Courtright]

He had a large beautiful estate on Newport Harbor in CA. A LOAD of Waterfront footage at $1000 a frontage foot back in 1962/63.

Hi,

Double whammy day for me: I'd been living on Balboa Island, right across the small channel from Lido Isle where the Duke lived and had just moved off the Island a short time before he died. Nineteen years later, to the day, I lost a very dear friend, also to cancer. So when I woke up this morning to a pretty good cloud cover, cool and almost drizzly, it seemed a somehow appropriate way to remember them both. I think Jimmy Buffet spoke for at least a few of us when he did "Incommunicado":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y3-yPjvjEuw&index=98&list=PLdiDN6Uc46DGiADfF1LIpiTPGmkYn1k_F


John Wayne's yacht, the Wild Goose, is still in Newport Harbor, owned by Hornblower Cruises who uses her for dinner cruises and special occasions like weddings and such. She's listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and I just learned she's a sister ship of the Calypso, Jacques Cousteau's famous boat. The things one can do with an old minesweeper. She's hard to miss moving about in Newport Harbor, like the Duke himself, bigger than life!

Rick C

 

[Jeepnik]

Wild Goose as it says on the bow in the photo. I had a chance to go aboard twice when it was tied up in San Pedro after his death. Last I heard it was being used for cruises of the Newport, CA. harbor.

 

[Ammoman78]

A man that passed away while I was to young to know who he was yet I admire and miss him dearly.

 

[blume357]

A while back while surfing the web I found this photo of Wayne from the Movie Hondo.... it is an ideal image of both him and what he represented:

 

[EddieON]

The man was a legend. I grew up watching his movies. The Searches was one of his best, a true classic.

 

[rkrcpa]

He had a large beautiful estate on Newport Harbor in CA. A LOAD of Waterfront footage at $1000 a frontage foot back in 1962/63.

A couple photos of his home from the water

 

[Colonialgirl]

Interestingly, when you cross over the channel to the back bay headed South the Island to the right (Now Named "Linda" Island use to be a solid sand island with no "bay" in the middle of it. It was sand and other materials dredged up from the bottom of Newport Harbor one time when they were deepening it. That was the location where MANY of the Beach scenes were shot for the Movie "Sands of Iwo Jima" starring of course JOHN WAYNE; just a FLAT island of , well you know; Somebody bought it in the 60's and (little kitty cat)ed it into high priced real estate for the uber wealthy. Of course too the "Back Bay" had no homes over looking it and the only thing around it was the dock and launching ramp and at the far end a "Salt Farm"; Wanna put the throttle to the dash,wall, pedal to the metal? That was where you went. Donkey Dung !! Just took a look at the satellite view and they have ruined THAT area too. Glad I don't live there any more !!

 

[Rumrunner]

I shipped out of Long Beach for 3 to 4 years and saw his boat there quite often.

Never saw his house before though...WOW.

blume, I just watched Hondo again the other night when it was on. Love that movie. Hondo was Louis La'mors first novel.

 

[gunman42782]

The Duke was a heck of a guy. What every boy wanted to grow up to be. Now every other boy wants to grow up to be a girl. It's unreal how much has changed since the Duke's passing.

 

[blume357]

I've got a niece that wants to be a boy, does that even things out?

Rober Duval gave him the best lead in for a come back line there ever was in a movie.

RD: "That's mighty bold talk for a one eyed fat man!"

The Duke: "Fill your hands, you sons of bitches!"

 

[Rick Courtright]

I've got a niece that wants to be a boy, does that even things out?

Rober Duval gave him the best lead in for a come back line there ever was in a movie.

RD: "That's mighty bold talk for a one eyed fat man!"

The Duke: "Fill your hands, you sons of bitches!"

Hi,

One of our TV stations is having a "True Grit" marathon for Father's Day, trading back and forth between John Wayne's version and the remake with Jeff Bridges. I'd never seen the latter, but was a bit disappointed, so when the Duke's version came on, I watched all the way thru just to refresh my memory of how it was "supposed to be," and just finished it a few minutes before seeing this post. That's still, and always will be, a great scene.

Rick C