Old Hollywood Stars Who Were Forced to Live a Double Life

John Wayne became the face of the American Western through Stagecoach, The Searchers, and True Grit. His slow walk, firm voice, and fearless screen presence seemed completely natural, but the identity audiences recognized had been shaped before he became a major Hollywood star.

Born Marion Robert Morrison and nicknamed Duke, he was renamed for the 1930 epic The Big Trail. Director Raoul Walsh suggested Wayne, while Fox chief Winfield Sheehan approved John. Morrison was not consulted, yet the new name soon defined Hollywood’s ideal of rugged American manhood.