Monogram was one of the companies that was merged to form the new Republic Pictures organization in 1935.  Wayne, Carr, Malvern and the Lone Star pictures company came in the deal, and new films were churned out with slightly higher budgets and production values.  KING OF THE PECOS (Republic, 1936) is a good adventure with a meaty role for rotund baddie Cy Kendall.  The last, and arguably best of the group of eight, is WINDS OF THE WASTELAND (Republic, 1936).  In WINDS, Lane Chandler is Wayne's buddy, and the film is a fast-paced tale about a stageline and concludes with an exciting and lengthy stagecoach race.

After the merger of Monogram, Mascot, Consolidated Film Laborites, et al to form Republic Pictures in 1935, producer Paul Malvern and Wayne wound up at Republic continuing their earlier Lone Star westerns. The above title lobby card from THE NEW FRONTIER (Republic, 1935) is one of the eight that Wayne did at Republic before heading to Universal to do some non-westerns.

Trem Carr and Paul Malvern then went over to Universal Pictures, and Wayne followed along as he was offered some better low-budget films, none of them westerns.  However, the pictures were not successful, nor did they elevate Wayne to higher status.

Republic's Three Mesquiteers trio series began in 1936 and was a box office success.  The Republic brass liked 3M star Bob Livingston and decided to put him in some other work (such as the 1939 THE LONE RANGER RIDES AGAIN serial). So they hired Wayne to replace Livingston as 'Stony Brooke' in the Mesquiteers' adventures.  He appeared in eight Mesquiteers' films released during 1938-1939, and all were typical Republic action and quality.  During this period, he also had time for STAGECOACH (1939).

With the success from that movie, Wayne was promoted to higher grade cinema adventures.  He worked long and hard to get to this position, and we're thankful that most of Wayne's 1930s westerns and cliffhangers are available on cable TV and videotape. A great many wonderful and memorable films lay ahead for John Wayne.  And he would become one of Hollywood's most beloved stars and a role model for America and American ideals.  But that's another story.

		(Courtesy of Les Adams)
Above right is an April, 1938 trade paper announcement about Wayne signing for the Three Mesquiteers and Bob Livingston getting promoted to bigger roles.  The article mentions Wayne for three films - he wound up doing eight Mesquiteer adventures for the 1938-39 release season. On the left is a poster image from THREE TEXAS STEERS. Based on the size of the lettering, Wayne was definitely the star. The pretty gal next to Wayne is Carole Landis (1919-1948).

Above, Wayne as 'the Ringo Kid' in John Ford's STAGECOACH (UA, 1939).

Above, from L-to-R are Tom London, Max Terhune, John Wayne, and Ray 'Crash' Corrigan in SANTA FE STAMPEDE (Republic, 1938).

Most of the info on the Old Corral about the contracts and salaries at Republic Pictures has been gleaned from Jack Mathis' excellent Republic Confidential, Volume 2, The Players (Jack Mathis Advertising, 1992), and I've given Jack credit in the Acknowledgements & Thanks page.  The Mathis book includes information on Wayne's agreements for the Three Mesquiteers - he was under a term picture contract for eight films and was paid $3000 for each.  Upon the Republic merger in 1935, Wayne was under contract to Trem Carr Pictures, and Carr charged Republic $1750 for each of the eight films Wayne starred in during 1935-1936.

If I had to select a few Wayne favorites from this period, I would choose:

The Motion Picture Herald and Boxoffice polls were conducted from about the mid 1930s through the mid 1950s.  With a few exceptions, the annual results would list the 'Top Ten' (or 'Top Five') cowboy film stars.  In most cases, the winners were what you would expect - Autry, Rogers, Holt, Starrett, Hoppy, etc.  Wayne and the Three Mesquiteers (while Wayne was a member) were ranked in both polls.

The Quigley Publishing Annual Top Ten MoneyMakers Poll was published in the Motion Picture Almanac, and Gene Autry and Roy Rogers were on the list in the 1940s. Wayne's initial appearance on this poll occurred in 1949. Over the next next several decades, he was a consistent box office champion, often garnering the number one or number two spot. You'll find a link to the Quigley Publishing Annual Top Ten MoneyMakers Poll from 1932-1970 on a later Wayne webpage.

There's a lot of stories as to how Wayne acquired the nickname of 'Duke'.  Among the oft mentioned are:  the nickname kinda matched his good looks; a scrapper, he was good with his 'dukes'; and the story that seems to be most quoted is that the Wayne family - or Wayne himself - had a pooch named 'Duke', and that's where the nickname originated.

Mike Newton e-mailed with more info on the Duke nickname:

"... his real name was Marion Michael Morrison and as a young boy, he was shy and not particularly aggressive. His mother was estremely dominant and his father, though likeable, was a rather mild type character, though Wayne admired him. Anyway, the older boys teased Wayne about his name. Wayne took to hanging aroumd the firehouse in Glendale and somehow acquired a dog whose name was "Duke". It may have been the firehouse dog or just a stray. Anyway, the firemen would always call out when they saw them, "Here's Big Duke and Little Duke". Big Duke of course was the dog, but Wayne liked the name so much that he acquired it as his own and when he went to college, that was how he was called. Of course he didn't acquire the name "John Wayne" until his first movie. This information I acquired from interviews done with Wayne over the years ..."

Wayne addresses people as "Pilgrim" in several films.   In THE MAN WHO SHOT LIBERTY VALANCE (1962), he used that response with James Stewart.  And in the chaotic mud pit battle in McLINTOCK! (1963), Wayne acknowledges screen tough Leo Gordon as "Pilgrim" ... and then clobbers him.

What are the films in which Wayne was "killed"? There are seven:

REAP THE WILD WIND (1942)
THE FIGHTING SEABEES (1944)
THE WAKE OF THE RED WITCH (1948)
THE SANDS OF IWO JIMA (1949)
THE ALAMO (1960)
THE COWBOYS (1972)
THE SHOOTIST (1976)

As to the number of films where Wayne "died", include the above mentioned seven ... and here's a few more. Add THE MAN WHO SHOT LIBERTY VALANCE (1962). This film has Jimmy Stewart (as Senator and lawyer Ransom Stoddard) returning home to attend the funeral of Wayne (portraying Tom Doniphon who had passed away from natural causes). Stewart tells the story of Doniphon, Liberty Valance, et al in flashback. You may or may not include THE SEA CHASE (1955) - Wayne is the ship's Captain, Lana Turner is the female lead, and their ship sinks at the end. But the ending leaves the viewer to guess whether they perished or survived. And thanks to Mark Shaw for his tip on CENTRAL AIRPORT (Warners, 1933) which starred Richard Barthelmess and Sally Eilers. In that film, Wayne has a bit part as the co-pilot of an aircraft that crashes into the ocean.

In the photo left, Yakima Canutt gives a helpin' hand to a young John Wayne in THE STAR PACKER (Lone Star/Monogram, 1934). For those of you who study Wayne, remember the way he often twirls his six-shooter when he draws it?  Canutt did the same and Wayne probably copied that mannerism when he and Yak were working on those Lone Star westerns. Billy Alford sent me an e-mail reminder that this is seen in RANDY RIDES ALONE (1934).  Wayne and Canutt shoot at a wanted poster. Yak draws, twirls, and shoots. Wayne then draws, does the same twirl as Yak, and shoots.

Les Adams spent time chatting with Bob Steele and Smith Ballew, and one of the subjects was who was the singing voice for John Wayne in RIDERS OF DESTINY and some other Wayne oaters. Les has a detailed writeup, including some comments from Wayne, and I've included that information below. Les' original comments on the Internet Movie Database (IMDb) can be found at: http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0024500/usercomments, and scroll down the page - or do a search - for Les' notes.