Image: }#/media/File:John_Wayne_in_Riders_of_Destiny.jpg"]Wiki Commons
About This Quiz
“A man's got to do what a man's got to do.” Ain't that the truth? And who is going to argue with one and only John Wayne about it?
If there was any doubt about who was America's greatest cowboy actor of them all, Wayne cast it out with sheer hard work and tenacity. But it wasn't all smooth sailing for one of Hollywood's most famous leading men. Wayne took years to make an impact in Tinseltown, first slaving away behind the scenes before he received his first break.
That first break didn't amount to much, as the A-grade movie in which he starred quickly bombed, leading to Fox Studios dropping Wayne like a hot six-shooter. What followed was a decade in the B-grade wilderness, starring in the movies that no one really wanted to see and ones that certainly weren't going to get him noticed.
Another break followed as his friend John Ford signed him up in 1939, giving Wayne another leading man role but in an A-grade movie. And the rest, as they say, is history. But there is a lot about John Wayne you might not know. This complex man wasn't just the slow-talking, slow-walking cowboy you saw on screen
So let's test your knowledge about a man who starred in 175 movies!
Good luck!
True or false? John Wayne's real name was Marion Robert Morrison.
True
Marion Robert Morrison was born in Winterset, Iowa on May 26, 1907. It was Fox Studio that gave him the name of John Wayne with the surname taken from a general in the Revolutionary War, Anthony Wayne.
False
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John Wayne was an excellent American football player with a college scholarship. A shoulder injury ended his career. How did it happen?
Car accident
Body surfing
There is no telling how far John Wayne would have gone as an American football star. His prowess at the sport had secured him a spot at the University of Southern California but a shoulder injury while body surfing ended his career. Wayne lost his scholarship and dropped out of school.
Fell from a tree
Parachuting incident
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What was John Wayne's first job in the movie industry?
Director
Producer
Prop person
When he left college, John Wayne started working on movie sets in Hollywood. He began in the prop department where he helped saddle horses. Wayne worked for Fox studios at the time
Actor
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Which board game was John Wayne an avid player of?
Twister
Snakes and Ladders
Clue
Chess
John Wayne loved chess and would play at every opportunity. And he chose some interesting opponents, including Marlene Dietrich, Robert Mitchum and Rock Hudson.
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Of the options below, which was John Wayne's nickname?
"Duke"
Hollywood referred to John Wayne as either "Duke" or "The Duke". Wayne had used Duke as his name even before he became famous in Hollywood. In fact, he preferred it to his first name, Marion.
"Little"
"Bruce"
"Old Blue Eyes"
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True or false? John Wayne made his first leading role in 1930 in a movie called "The Big Trail".
True
Released in 1930, "The Big Trail" was directed by Raoul Walsh and gave John Wayne his first leading role, which was originally offered to Gary Cooper. Set on the Oregon Trail, it is one of the movies selected for preservation in the National Film Registry.
False
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Are you able to finish the name of this John Wayne movie, "The Man Who _____ Liberty Valance"?
Hugged
Tackled
Kicked
Shot
Released in 1962, "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance" was directed by John Wayne's long-time friend, John Ford. Wayne starred with James Stewart with the movie making over $7 million in the United States alone.
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Which disease did John Wayne battle twice in his lifetime?
Bulimia
Anorexia
Cancer
Cancer would ultimately cost John Wayne his life in 1979. Then it was stomach cancer, but Wayne's first bout with the dreaded disease was in 1964. Wayne lost a lung as a result.
Lime disease
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John Wayne was a supporter of J. Edgar Hoover's hunt for communist sympathizers in Hollywood. Which movie did he turn down because he thought it was against the blacklisting campaign?
True Grit
The Unforgiven
Saving Private Ryan
High Noon
John Wayne was offered the lead role in "High Noon" but flatly refused it. He later called the movie, "the most un-American thing I have seen in my whole life!"
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Can you name the 1939 movie that shot John Wayne's career into superstardom?
Stagecoach
Released in 1939, "Stagecoach" took John Wayne to leading man status after a few years in the B grade movie wilderness. Directed by John Ford, it started a long and successful partnership between Ford and Wayne.
Bullitt
The Green Berets
Cahill U.S. Marshal
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True or false? John Wayne never won an Academy Award.
True
False
John Wayne was nominated for three Best Actor Academy Awards. This included in 1950 for "Sands of Iwo Jima", 1961 for "The Alamo" in 1963 and "True Grit" in 1970. Wayne received an Oscar for his exceptional performance in "True Grit".
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What 1949 World War II movie did John Wayne receiver a Best Actor Oscar nomination for?
How The West Was Won
Sands of Iwo Jima
1949's "Sands of Iwo Jima" saw John Wayne nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor. He lost out to Broderick Crawford for his role in "All the King's Men." This role was initially offered to Wayne who turned it down, thinking the film to be un-American.
The Comancheros
The Barbarian and the Geisha
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John Wayne could speak another language, other than English. What was it?
Apache
French
Spanish
John Wayne was fluent in Spanish. In fact, Wayne married three times and all his wives were of Hispanic or Latino descent. His second wife was Mexican actress Esperanza Baur.
Italian
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Can you name the a society, from the list below, that John Wayne was a member of?
Scouts
Freemasons
John Wayne, like many famous actors and politicians in America, was a freemason. He attained the rank of Master Mason and served at Tucson, Arizona at the Marion McDaniel Lodge.
Seventh Day Adventists
The Moonies
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Any idea of the name of the 1968 Vietnam movie John Wayne starred in?
The War Wagon
The Sons of Katie Elder
The Green Berets
John Wayne starred and directed 1968's "The Green Berets", a movie about the crack U.S. military unit set on a mission in Vietnam. It starred his son Patrick as well as George Takei of "Star Trek" fame.
How the West Was Won
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"The Horse _____". Can you finish the name of this John Wayne movie?
Soldiers
Another John Ford-directed John Wayne movie, "The Horse Soldiers" is set in the American Civil War. It also stars Will Holden and Constance Towers. John Wayne was paid $775,000 and 20% of profits for his role. Many consider this to be the first Hollywood mega-acting deal.
Breeders
Lovers
Fanatics
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True or false? John Wayne smoked five packs of unfiltered cigarettes a day.
True
Virtually a chain smoker, John Wayne would smoke up to five packs of cigarettes each day. Wayne knew that his smoking was the cause of lung cancer in 1964, which saw him forced to have one lung removed.
False
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Which term, used to describe cancer today, is said to have orginated with John Wayne?
The dreaded disease
The no-hope disease
The Big C
When John Wayne first contracted lung cancer in 1964, he was told not to disclose it to the public as it would affect his image. Wayne refused, calling a press conference at his home just two days after losing a lung and a rib to the disease. It was here that the term 'Big C' was first used by the actor.
None of the above
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How many B-grade movies did John Wayne star in before his big break in 1939 in "Stagecoach"?
3
1
15
50
John Wayne seemed destined to be a B-grade movie star. From his first movie till "Stagecoach" in 1939, he appeared in 50 B-grade films, most produced on what was known as "Poverty Row" in Hollywood, a place where the low-budget studios were situated.
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Which political party did John Wayne support?
Republicans
John Wayne threw his enormous influence behind many things, including the Republican Party from time to time, especially Richard Nixon and Barry Goldwater. He was a staunch supporter of American forces in Vietnam and was passionately anti-communist.
Democrats
None, he didn't care for politics
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Can you tell us which British politician John Wayne was a huge fan of?
Winston Churchill
John Wayne was a massive fan of Winston Churchill, the two-time prime minister of Great Britain. In fact, Wayne could quote many of Churchill's famous speeches verbatim.
John Major
William Pitt the Younger
Tony Blair
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True or false? John Wayne served in the U.S. military during World War II
True
False
John Wayne did not serve in the U.S. military during World War II, although many Hollywood stars did. Wayne was the only A-grade actor that Republic Studio had and they were reluctant to let him off overseas. Wayne recounted that not serving was something that disappointed him for the rest of his life.
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John Wayne was rumored to have had an affair with an actress born in Germany. Can you tell us her name?
Judy Garland
Lucille Ball
Ginger Rodgers
Marlene Dietrich
John Wayne was married three times during his lifetime. He also had numerous affairs. It is rumored that the one with Marlene Dietrich lasted for three years..
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Which of these applies to John Wayne?
He was ambidextrous.
He was extremely superstitious.
Interestingly, John Wayne was an incredibly superstitious person. His pet hates included people leaving their hats on a bed or at dinner when someone passed him the salt directly. Strange ...
He was blind in one eye.
None of the above
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Believe it or not, John Wayne had a price on his head. But who wanted him killed?
Frank Sinatra
Bonnie and Clyde
Joseph Stalin
Rumor has it that Joseph Stalin, the then-leader of the Soviet Union wanted John Wayne killed because of his anti-communism stance. Stalin went as far as to order KGB agents to carry out the orders. Clearly, they didn't succeed.
The FBI
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On which of these 1950s TV shows did John Wayne make a guest appearance?
I Love Lucy
John Wayne appeared on "I Love Lucy" with Lucille Ball on a few occasions. The two were friends who met when Wayne was having an affair with Ball's roommate, Maureen O'Hara. .
The Danny Thomas Show
Perry Mason
The Adventures of Superman
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What US government award was John Wayne given in 1979?
Purple Heart
Congressional Gold Medal
The Congressional Gold Medal, awarded to John Wayne in 1979, was one of two accolades from the United States government. The second, awarded to him posthumously, was the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1980.
Silver Star
None of the above
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Before he died, John Wayne requested that his tombstone be inscribed with the phrase "Feo, Fuerte y Formal". What does this mean?
The Good, The Bad and the Ugly
True Grit
The Alamo
Ugly, strong and dignified
Although John Wayne described the phrase as having meant "ugly, strong and dignified" the final word when translated from Spanish is more "formal" or "reliable". Still a great word to describe Wayne, however.
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Can you tell us what religion John Wayne converted to before he died?
Hinduism
Roman Catholicism
John Wayne was a Protestant for most of his life. He was influenced by Roman Catholicism due to the fact that all three of his wives were Catholic and his children were raised in the religion as well. Wayne became a Catholic before he died.
Judaism
None of the above
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True or false? John Wayne used a hairpiece as his hair began to thin out as he got older.
True
John Wayne's film career spanned almost 50 years and so the ravages of time began to take their toll toward the end of it. As his hair began to thin, Wayne used a hairpiece while acting. He didn't always wear it in public, however.
False
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Can you name the magazine that published a controversial interview with John Wayne in 1971?
Playboy
In 1971, John Wayne sat down with Playboy magazine for an interview which became quite controversial. Why? Well, Wayne expressed his conservative views with regard to race, native Americans and numerous other subjects.
Time
GQ
Life
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In 1973, John Wayne released a spoken world album. What was it called?
John Wayne reads Shakespeare
John Wayne: The Holy Bible
America: Why I Love Her
Interestingly, after 9/11, "America: Why I Love Her" was re-released and again became a top seller. Set to the accompaniment of strings, "America: Why I Love Her" saw Wayne reading patriotic speeches he had written.
John Wayne reads Leo Tolstoy's War and Peace
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Of the options below, which other Hollywood series did John Wayne make a guest appearance in?
The Beverly Hillbillies
John Wayne made a one-off appearance in the 1960's TV show, "The Beverly Hillbillies". And his payment? Wayne just asked to be paid with a fifth of bourbon
Batman and Robin
Gilligans Island
The Avengers
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Can you complete this John Wayne movie title, "How the _______ Was Won"?
East
West
Directed by John Ford (a long time John Wayne collaborator) and Henry Hathaway, "How the West Was Won" was released in 1962. Alongside Wayne, the movie stars Gregory Peck and James Stewart. It won three Academy Awards.
North
South
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True or false? John Wayne starred in and directed "The Alamo" in 1960.
True
One of only two movies John Wayne ever directed (the other was "The Green Berets"), "The Alamo" tells the story of Davy Crockett and Jim Bowie as they defend the Alamo from the Mexican forces of General Santa Anna. Wayne was nominated for the Best Picture Academy Award for his efforts but didn't win.
False
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You Got:
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