A trophy cabinet stuffed to bursting point with accolades isn’t a prerequisite to going down in the history books as one of the most iconic movie stars in Hollywood history, with few underlining that feeling better than John Wayne.
The actor left behind a towering legacy throughout a career that spanned decades. It saw him reign among the industry’s biggest stars and feature in countless all-time classics. And yet, in terms of high-profile trophies, ‘The Duke’ only notched a solitary Academy Award win for ‘Best Actor’ in Henry Hathaway’s elegiac True Grit.
In fact, it was one of only three nominations in total, and one of them wasn’t even for his acting prowess. In addition to his first ‘Best Actor’ nod for Sands of Iwo Jima, Wayne’s status as the producer of The Alamo – which he also directed – landed him among the nominees for ‘Best Picture’. He did win a trio of Golden Globes, but again, True Grit was the only trophy he secured based solely on his on-screen efforts.
Wayne never made much of a fuss about being repeatedly overlooked by the Academy, but one role, in particular, did stand out as a part he felt deserved much greater recognition than it got. Re-teaming with friend, mentor, and regular collaborator John Ford for the sixth of their 14 features together, She Wore a Yellow Ribbon did at least win the only Oscar it was nominated for in t he ‘Best Cinematography’ category.
Playing a character much older than he was in real life, Wayne’s Nathan Brittles seeks to soothe relations with the Cheyenne and Arapaho tribes in the wake of Custer’s last stand at the Battle of the Little Bighorn. Simultaneously, he’s seeking to secure safe haven for the wife and niece of his commanding officer, ultimately pitting duty against personal sentiment to achieve both tasks.
As Wayne explained in John Farkis’ book Not Thinkin’ … Just Rememberin’ … The Making of John Wayne’s The Alamo, “I was disappointed at not even being nominated for Yellow Ribbon“.
Continuing, he put it down to his commitment to playing against type and above age: “I had played a man 60 years old, which was 17 years older than I was. I have always believed that this was my best achievement in pictures.”
Strangely, he seemed to forget that he didn’t even land a nomination, seeing as he operated under a completely different impression when interviewed by Playboy in 1971. Wayne said: “I think both of my two previous Oscar nominations – for She Wore a Yellow Ribbon and Sands of Iwo Jima – were worthy of the honour,” even though he was omitted completely for the latter.
Not that it overtly bothered him after he opined that “I really didn’t need an Oscar”. Instead, he was happy to call himself “a box office champion with a record they’re going to have to run to catch, and they won’t”.
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