News culture “He stayed as far away from her as possible” Even John Wayne could be intimidated: this star left him speechless
Published on 03/11/2024 at 07:30
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When we think of western films, we inevitably think of some legendary actors like John Wayne. But while the latter often played strong, virile men, he was actually completely intimidated by one actress in particular.
John Wayne, this western film legend
If you like western films, you probably know John Wayne. A true Hollywood legend, the American actor born in 1907 is today part of the history of cinema in its entirety. It must be said thathe played the lead role in no less than 135 different filmsmaking him the record holder in this category. Although he obviously specialized in westerns, it should also be remembered that he also tried his hand at comedy or war films, making him a fairly versatile actor.
In his films, John Wayne generally played a strong, virile manmaking him a true model of masculinity for the time. An image that he apparently liked to maintain even in real life. According to some accounts, John Wayne liked to seem like he was on top of things and not intimidated by anything or anyone. However, it was when he met a certain actress that this image went up in smoke…
When John Wayne is intimidated by an actress
If we often remember the male actors of the golden age of westerns, we must also not forget the actresses who generally burst the screen as much as their male colleagues. Among the best-known actresses of this era, we find for example Marlene Dietrich. Born in 1901 in Berlin, she made a name for herself internationally thanks to cinema but also to song. It was in 1940 that she crossed paths with John Wayne for the first time during the filming of The House of Seven Sinsdirected by Tay Garnett. She then played the character of Bijou, who was to fall in love with Dan Brent, played by John Wayne. Except that if it was only fiction for Wayne, Dietrich wanted to go a little further. In the book Conversations With Classic Film Stars: Interviews From Hollywood’s Golden Eraactress Anna Lee says:
According to producer Joe Pasternak, Dietrich first saw Wayne in the cafeteria and shouted “Mommy wants this for Christmas!” John stayed as far away from her as possible.
It must be said that John Wayne was married to Joséphine Saenz at the time of this filming, which perhaps explains why he didn't really want to respond to Dietrich's advances (that and because yelling that kind of thing in public constitutes harassment). However, over the years, John Wayne ended up being charmed by Dietrich since they began a 3-year affair before the American actor ended up divorcing. So, even if he was intimidated at first, he quickly got over his emotions…
