The Young Duke: The Early Life of John Wayne

by Howard Kazanjian

Marion Morrison, born in Winterset, Iowa, also known as John Wayne, defined the myth of the Old West from the silver screen for five decades. This new book examines his early life and his first roles in Hollywood, uncovering the true stories behind the screen legend's highly publicized and sometimes controversial public life.

The Young Duke, undertaken with the assistance of the Wayne family, offers an unflinching look at this icon's early years. This book includes unpublished family photographs and many personal reminisences.

Genres: Biography, Nonfiction, History

256 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 2006

Reviews

[Valerity (Val) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book about John Wayne's younger years was an enjoyable read. I did see a couple of questions about the accuracy of some of its details on some issues. It went over his early years growing up in California with his parents. He played college football for the Trojans, then got a summer job at Fox Films. He was working as a prop man for Fox Films when director John Ford befriended him and eventually talked him into trying his hand at getting in front of a camera. It took some convincing, but finally, he gave it a shot and the rest is history. The book plays up his patriotism and talks about his private life some.

It also talks about his brief stints at directing, and how he stuck by his guns when he really wanted to direct the movie "The Alamo". It brought back a lot of memories of many John Wayne movies I've seen, and many I want to see. Also, the memories of many I watched together with my late father while he was still alive. It made me miss The Duke all over again, for what he represents, the type of star he was that we rarely see anymore. It's too bad we couldn't have cloned some of those great old stars, but thankfully we do still have their movies around. I'm going to find one to watch right now.

An advance copy was provided by NetGalley, Chris Enss and TwoDot for my review. Publication date is March 1, 2018.

[Bonita Slovinski · Rating 3 out of 5]

There is no doubt that Marion Michael Morrison or Duke, as he was called is one of Americas best known actors in the world. This biography covers the actor, John Wayne’s life from boyhood until the 1940’s. Born in Winterset, Iowa, his father was the parent he was closest to, his mother just did not support him as she did his siblings. Duke, was an all around good American boy and had many interests. He played football in high school and earned a scholarship to play college football at USC in 1925. Cowboy star Tom Mix took special interest in him as a USC player and later after Duke had an injury and lost his scholarship. Mix helped Duke find jobs in the movie making industry, both behind the scenes and in front of the camera. Fox film executives want Duke to appear in a film but did not like his name and changed it to John Wayne, which of course he became known as. Wayne struggled to find his big break in films. John Ford gave him his first big role in the film, Stagecoach, this cemented John Wayne as an actor who starred not only as a cowboy, but as military personnel, and some roles just as a good male actor. Wayne’s life was at times difficult. He had two divorces, seven children, did not earn a lot of money for many years, and wanted to direct as well as act in motion pictures. His story is one of respect, ambition, love, friendship, loyalty, and a true America hero. He played many characters in his films, but he is largely known as a cowboy. Interesting look at John Wayne’s iconic life.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book on John Wayne's early life was quite spectacular. It provided information from his young life, and how he has evolved into the actor we all know him as. My inspiration for why I decided to read this book was because my dad is a huge fan of John Wayne. He told me about how great of an actor and person he was. So I decided to read about his life. Overall, I enjoyed learning about John Wayne as an actor, person, and how inspiring he was to others.

[Fran Burdsall · Rating 4 out of 5]

Generously illustrated in black and white, the early photos and movie posters confirm the rugged good looks of one of our true movie stars of the WWII year. The book is a well organized and factual chronicle of Marion Morrison's real life. Devoid of most of the gossip and speculation, he is described by the people who knew him in their own words. I am left with a warmth and admiration for the man.

[Debbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book about John Wayne. Very informative about his life, family and friends.

[Steven Freeman · Rating 3 out of 5]

How Marion Michael Morrison became John Wayne.

[Andy Hickman · Rating 3 out of 5]

“The Young Duke: The Early Life of John Wayne” by Chris Enss & Howard Kazanjian (Guildford, CT: The Globe Pequot Press, 2009).

Quite amazing to think how many biographies have been written about this man. This one managed to provide new insights and stories based on factual correspondence and photos.

“Sometimes kids ask me what a Pro is. I just point to the Duke.” - Actor Steve McQueen. (p.xiv)

“When he wasn't at school or working, he was holed up at a nearby library poring over history books and classical literature. The long hours he spent learning about Shakespeare, the Old West, the United States, and the world helped make him an exceptional student. His teachers noted that he was a quite, intelligent pupil who was serious about his studies.” (p10)

John Wayne's early life is summarized in a readable fashion without having to plow through lots of data like other biographical accounts of Duke's life.

However, the authors did seem to struggle by the end of the book. Suddenly, decades were skimmed over and signifiant milestones overlooked with some information repeated and then an abrupt ending at the time of production on The Alamo. Felt like it was originally intended to be a complete biography but became a last minute decision to abbreviate and just publish as an “early years” manuscript.

Still, a good book. Glad I read it.
- Andy

[Cherie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was, as the title suggests, a brief account of the early years of John Wayne. It also added a final chapter dealing with the most important events in his later life, including the Academy Award for Best Actor which he won for "True Grit" and his eventual death from cancer. I very much enjoyed reading about the "Duke." It was interesting to read how he went from playing football at UCLA to working as an "anything needed" stagehand or "extra" for the early movie studios, to finally becoming a star. I definitely would like to read a more detailed biography of Wayne. He was truly a great actor and a great American.

[Sandy Batesel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book even with all the typos in it. Have always been a John Wayne fan but admire him even more now. Went out and rented Stagecoach, too. What a great movie. Remember Katie Scarlett's dad in the movie Gone With the Wind? He was in this movie also. The dark haired leading lady in Stagecoach wasn't near the great lady Miss Mellie was though! But back to the book... it's a must read for fans of The Duke.

[Jon · Rating 5 out of 5]

verey cool

[Helen · Rating 2 out of 5]

My first bio for the +11 Challenge!

[Heather · Rating 2 out of 5]

Good content, poor delivery.

[Nancy Shaffer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Picked up on the sale shelf at my local library, this was a quick read & quite interesting. Some repeated information throughout, though.

[Dianna · Rating 3 out of 5]

A pleasant, fun read.