Seeing this thread got me wondering whether Wayne did ever win an Oscar. Checking just now, I see he won for True Grit (1969), but was also nominated for Sands of Iwo Jima (1949).

"The Searchers (1956)" is one of my favourite John Wayne movies. I think that perhaps in 1957 westerns weren't that popular for the members of the Academy to nominate for an award.

Anyway, he would've had to compete against another of my favourite actors: Yul Brynner, who won that award for his role as King Mongkut of Siam in the movie "The King and I (1956)".

The other month I got a John Wayne Westerns DVDs set of The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962), The Sons of Katie Elder (1965), and The Shootist (1976) as a Christmas gift for my best friend who's very in to Westerns - though then I decided to hold on to the set for myself (despite that I've not really been in to Westerns since my teen years - but realizing those movies have excellent casts). Am I correct that's a good Wayne films trio? I'm sure I saw TSoKE during the '70s or thereabouts, and probably saw also TMWSLV circa that same era, though I don't remember anything, at all, about either film at this point.

It's been ages since I saw those movies.

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What I can recall is:

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★ "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962)" is packed with great actors, like James Stewart, Lee Van Cleef, Lee Marvin, John Carradine and Vera Miles.

Vera Miles, as you know, played Martin's love interest Laurie in "The Searchers (1956)".

In this movie she played Hallie, the girl Tom (John Wayne) wanted to marry. The major part of the movie is a flashback to what happened twenty-five years ago. Young Stoddard, who would later become a senator, arrives in the town Shinbone and defies outlaw Liberty Valance. There's a gunfight between him and Valance. The latter is killed and everyone thinks that Stoddard shot him. Stoddard (James Stewart) got the fame - he became senator - and the girl. However it was someone else who shot Valance and the reporter who discovers that, twenty five years later, decides to not publish the truth.


★ "The Sons of Katie Elder (1965)" has actors like Dean Martin, Martha Hyer, James Gregory, George Kennedy and Dennis Hopper in it. I would also like to mention Paul Fix who has appeared in so many movies and television shows, especially westerns, that I've lost count.

Martha Hyer, of course, is known for "Some Came Running (1958)", which also starred Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra and Shirley MacLaine.

Four brothers return home to attend the funeral of their mother. They are confronted by Hastings who claims that he won the family ranch in a card game from their murdered father. This movie is brutal and at the end, as usual, the bad guy dies, but his death was too easy (for him). For all those deaths that he caused, he deserved much more pain and punishment.


★ "The Shootist (1976)" is John Wayne's last movie. He plays the hero, terminally ill with cancer, who would rather die with his boots on. James Stewart and John Carradine are in it, and known actors like for example Ron Howard, Harry Morgan and Lauren Bacall.

Becall has also starred with John Wayne - twenty years earlier - in another movie "Blood Alley (1955)".

Of these three movies, I like "The Shootist (1976)" the best. "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962)" is good too, but I didn't like it, because Stoddard got everything, including the girl, and Tom died alone.

Side notes:

Hopefully your friend got something else as a Christmas gift.

As you can easily look it up, I didn't give a detailed summary of the movies.

Thanks for the excellent info, wonder. One of these days or weeks I'll pull out that set (which so far still has the factory wrap on it) and give each of the movies a look.

Per your recommendations, I think I'll view the films in the order of Shootist, then Valance, then Elder.

Yep: After I decided to hold on to that DVDs set, I did, indeed, get my best friend a different Christmas gift. lol

@hownos said:

wasn't even nominated

Hell yes, he deserved the Oscar for it!

@wonder2wonder said:

"The Searchers (1956)" is one of my favourite John Wayne movies. I think that perhaps in 1957 westerns weren't that popular for the members of the Academy to nominate for an award.

Anyway, he would've had to compete against another of my favourite actors: Yul Brynner, who won that award for his role as King Mongkut of Siam in the movie "The King and I (1956)".

That would have been a close call, IMO. Also up for best actor were Alec Guinness for Bridge on the River Kwai, and Marlon Brando for Sayonara. I'm surprised that Henry Fonda wasn't nominated for 12 Angry Men.

Boy, am I ever glad that I don't have to vote!