The Big Picture
- Wayne's name change by director Walsh helped him become a Western movie icon.
- John Wayne's partnership with Ford revolutionized Western cinema and created iconic characters.
- Despite changing trends, Wayne's impact on the Western genre persisted, earning him accolades and awards.
While Hollywood’s simultaneous desires to produce risky, artistically-minded films and develop a superficial celebrity culture surrounding its most prominent acting talent may seem counterintuitive, the two seemingly different ambitions are quite closely linked. It’s often that loyal film fans will go to see any new work based on the name of the star attached. If the actor in question is one that often pushes themselves creatively to do the best work possible, then the attention that their personal activities earn may end up helping the industry in the long run. While the era of “movie stardom” that truly peaked during the Golden Age of Hollywood produced many iconic acting talents, John Waynewas a star like no other. Although he had a long and successful career, earning a loyal battalion of fans, Wayne was not given any input on choosing his iconic name.
The Big Trail
PassedWesternAdventureDramaRomanceBreck Coleman leads hundreds of settlers in covered wagons from the Mississippi River to their destiny out West.
- Release Date
- November 1, 1930
- Director
- Raoul Walsh , Louis R. Loeffler
- Cast
- John Wayne , Marguerite Churchill , El Brendel , Tully Marshall , Tyrone Power Sr. , David Rollins , Frederick Burton , Ian Keith
- Runtime
- 125 Minutes
- Main Genre
- Western
- Writers
- Hal G. Evarts , Marie Boyle , Jack Peabody , Florence Postal , Raoul Walsh
How Did John Wayne Get His Name?
Like many of the era’s most prominent stars, Wayne’s popularity wasn’t immediately evident based on his first few roles. While his experiences shooting the romantic comedyGirls Demand Excitement nearly made him quit the industry, Wayne became a breakthrough sensation thanks to his lead performance in the 1930 Western The Big Trail. Directed by Raoul Walsh, the film redefined the “epic scope” possible within pre-Code westerns, and single-handedly introduced Wayne to a significant audience. While Westerns had certainly been popular prior to the release of The Big Trail, its success indicated that the genre would be Hollywood’s gateway to success in the coming decades.
It was shortly before filming The Big Trail that Walsh first became aware of Wayne’s talents, as he remembered that “the expression on his face was so warm and wholesome that I stopped and watched.” Wayne had only been hired as a prop boy by the Fox Film Corporation at the time, and had been given the responsibility of moving furniture between sets as Walsh prepared for production on the soundstages. Although Wayne had only appeared in low budget films at the time, and was by no means considered an A-lister, Walsh felt that “his careless strength” and “the grace of his movement” were perfectly suited to making him a leading man.
Although casting Wayne in The Big Trail would end up being one of the most savvy moves of his career, Walsh was also instrumental in getting the star to change his name.Despite Walsh and studio head Winfield Sheehans’enthusiasm about what Wayne could bring to the screen, they grew concerned that his given name of Marion Robert Morrison was not befitting of a leading man, and would not fit within the parameters of a movie poster. Sheehan wanted a name that represented traditional American values, and chose “Wayne” based on its connection to the American Revolutionary War hero General Anthony Wayne. Although Walsh suggested “Anthony Wayne” to Fox Studios, the studio found that the name was “too Italian,” and changed his first name to John. Wayne himself was not present for the conversation, even if the name would stick with him for countless great films throughout his career.
What Makes a John Wayne Movie Work?
While The Big Trail was not the breakout critical and financial success that Walsh and Sheehan had hoped for, it succeeded in identifying the type of tough, cheeky Western protagonist that Wayne would become synonymous with in the subsequent decades of his career. Although he was a much more self-aware actor than he was given credit for, having frequently starred in romantic comedies, Wayne’s work within the Western genre changed it fundamentally. His endearing personality transcended any individual project, and generated a rabid fanbase that had come to appreciate the similar characters he played. Although his Westerns were widely divergent in terms of quality, Wayne could rarely be faulted for giving a poor performance.
How John Wayne's Western Movie Career Ended With a Bang
John Wayne’s final on-screen role brought his career as a Western legend full circle.Although the 1930s saw him appearing in many “crowd pleasing” Westerns, it was Wayne’s partnership with director John Ford that kicked both of their careers to the next level. Ford’s 1939 Western Stagecoach is often cited as one of the most influential Westerns in history, as it embodied a perfect structure of an adventure story, featured groundbreaking technical advancements, and developed modernized characters that audiences could relate to. While the film was packed with great performances by Claire Trevor, Thomas Mitchell, and John Carradine, it was Wayne’s role as “the Ringo Kid” that immediately landed with audiences.
Wayne’s partnership with Ford wasn’t just a commercial one, as the two collaborators often pushed each other to work on more ambitious projects. Wayne was given the opportunity to show his acting talents by playing less traditional Western heroes. Ford’s 1956 masterpiece The Searchers cast him as the dogmatic, obsessive former Confederate warrior Ethan Edwards, which established the template for the perfect cinematic anti-hero. Similarly, Wayne appeared in Ford’s reflective Western The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, which examined the end of the frontier era from the perspective of a longstanding gunslinger. In many ways, it felt like Ford and Wayne were reflecting upon the decline of the genre that they had helped to create.
John Wayne Hugely Impacted the Western Genre
Western cinema certainly changed in the 1960s as Wayne began to move away from the genre, with it beginning to go in a more over-the-top direction as a result of the influence of “Spaghetti Westerns.” Although the Spaghetti Western era produced its own stars and left older icons in the dust, Wayne received many accolades for the Westerns he made late in his career. His role as the idiosyncratic U.S. Marshall Rooster Cogburn in 1969’s True Grit earned him his first Academy Award victory for Best Actor; he would go on to star in the film’s sequel, Rooster Cogburn, in 1975.
Wayne remained loyal to the Western genre until the end of his career, giving his final performance in the revisionist western The Shootist. Don Siegel’s dark, emotionally nuanced film once again gave Wayne the chance to reflect on his legacy. Although it ensured that moviegoers would remember his name forever, it’s ironically one that Wayne himself had no say in having.
The Big Trail is available to rent on Prime Video in the U.S.
