Having regretted passing on 1971’s Dirty Harry, John Wayne took a turn in a gritty cop thriller a couple of years later as McQ.
Intended for Steve McQueen, hence the title, the film’s script was heavily rewritten for the 65-year-old Duke.
Originally set in Seattle like Dirty Harry, the location was changed to San Francisco despite the shoot taking place in Washington state.
The production of McQ, which marks its 50th anniversary this week, almost included a tragedy when a stunt involving the titular character’s rare 1973 Pontiac Firebird Trans-Am 455 Super Duty car went wrong.
The near miss took place when the stunt driver was preparing to flip the vehicle without the use of ramps.
Stunt driver Hal Needham performed the very first car stunt with a black powder cannon charge. Yet during the second practice run in Los Angeles, the vehicle was accidentally overcharged and the stuntman was almost killed.
The stunt performed on the beach in the film was eventually performed by Gary McLarty. Meanwhile, Wayne’s McQ co-star shared just how kind Duke was to her on set.
Wayne had worked with Colleen Dewhurst a couple of years prior on 1972’s The Cowboys. Despite not having any scenes with Duke, she’d left a good impression on him and he promised they’d work together again.
She later said: “Duke kept his word…and when McQ came up, he told [director] John Sturges he wanted me. When we did our two scenes, he was relaxed and seemed to enjoy the work. I’m so glad I managed to bring something good into Duke’s life.”
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