John Wayne: 21 Western Films Collection

32 years after his death, John Wayne (né Marion Morrison) remains a tremendously popular movie star. According to a Harris Poll taken earlier this month (January 2011), Americans still rank The Duke as their third most favorite actor, putting him right behind Johnny Depp and Denzel Washington. No doubt about it, the legend of John Wayne continues to grow. And happily you can find a gold mine of John Wayne Western films online – all free. Today, we have pulled together a list of 25 films that span five decades of work, moving from the 1930s to the 1970s.

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• Angel and the Badman -  A black and white Western starring John Wayne and Gail Russell. Considered a radical departure from the Western genre at the time. . (1947)
  

• Blue Steel –  John Wayne plays a U.S. Marshal trying to capture the Polka Dot Bandit. Some consider it the best of the John Wayne Lone Star films. Alternative version on YouTube here. (1934)

• Frontier Horizon -  The Three Mesqueteers try to prevent wholesale slaughter in this fine Republic Western. Stars John Wayne, Ray “Crash” Corrigan, and Raymond Hatton. (1939)
  

Helltown -  Originally called “Born to the West,” this John Wayne Western was based on a novel by Zane Grey, an important author of Western novels. (1937)

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• McLintock! - Comedy Western starring John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara. Loosely based on Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew. (1963)

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‘Neath the Arizona Skies -  John Wayne plays a cowboy protecting an oil-land heiress. (1934)

Paradise Canyon -  Features Wayne as “government agent John Wyatt who searches for a counterfeit ring operating on the Mexican/Arizona border.” (1935)

Rainbow Valley –  John Martin (John Wayne) is a “government agent working under cover. Leading citizen Morgan calls in gunman Butch Galt (Buffalo Bill Jr.) who blows Martin’s cover.” Find the YouTube version here. (1935)

Randy Rides Alone – Jailed for murders he didn’t commit, Randy Bowers (John Wayne) escapes only to stumble into the den of the real murderers. Entertaining early Wayne Western. (1934)

Riders of Destiny -  John Wayne portrays Singin’ Sandy Saunders and has a reputation as the most notorious gunman since Billy the Kid. Wayne was the first singing cowboy, but his singing was dubbed, and it was the last time he “sang” in a Western. (1933)

• Sagebrush Trail -  John Wayne plays John Brant who escapes from jail after being wrongly accused of murder. Features great stagecoach chase. (1933)

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• Texas Terror - A young John Wayne in a romantic Western. (1935)

• The Dawn Rider - John Wayne plays John Mason, a man avenging his father’s murder. A Western directed by Robert Bradbury. (1935)

• The Desert Trail -  Early Western with John Wayne. According to WesternClippings, not Wayne’s finest hour. (1935)

• The Lawless Frontier -  B Western starring John Wayne and directed by Robert Bradbury. (1934)

• The Lucky Texan –  Jerry Mason (played by John Wayne) and Jake Benson become partners and strike it rich with a gold mine. (1934)

• The Man From Utah -  The Marshal sends John Weston (John Wayne) to a “rodeo to see if he can find out who is killing the rodeo riders who are about to win prize money.” (1934)

• The Star Packer -  “A gang working for ‘The Shadow’ is terrorizing the town. John Travers (John Wayne) decides to take on the job of sheriff and do something about it.” (1934)

• The Trail Beyond -Western starring John Wayne, Noah Beery, Sr., and Noah Beery, Jr. (1934)

• War of the Wildcats -  John Wayne stars in a Western also released under the title In Old Oklahoma. One of Wayne’s better post-Stagecoach performances. (1943)

• West of the Divide –  A young John Wayne in a B Western. (1934)