John Wayne

John Wayne in The Fighting Seabees (Donovan's Army)

John Wayne (1907 - 1979)

"You cannot kill John Wayne" is a quote by some filmmakers of the cinema, but only a few of his many starring roles "broke" it.

Film Deaths

• Noah's Ark (1928) [Uncredited Flood Extra]: Drowned in the great flood.

• The Deceiver (1931) [Reginald Thorpe's Corpse]: Stabbed to death (off-screen) by Sidney Bracey. (This part was actually played by Ian Keith during the "living" scenes; John only served as a stand-in when the body is discovered.)

• Central Airport (1933) [Co-Pilot in Wreck]: Killed when his plane crashes into the ocean.

• Reap the Wild Wind (1942) [Captain Jack Stuart]: Killed by a giant squid while deep-sea diving through an old shipwreck.

• The Fighting Seabees (Donovan's Army) (1944) [Wedge Donovan]: Shot in the chest by a Japanese soldier while driving his jeep towards an oil refinery tank. John succeeds in his intended mission when the jeep crashes into the tank and causes an explosion.

• Wake of the Red Witch (1948) [Captain Ralls]: Drowns after being trapped underneath debris while attempting to recover sunken treasure.

• Sands of Iwo Jima (1949) [Sgt. John M. Stryker]: Shot by a Japanese soldier while ascending Mount Suribachi.

• The Sea Chase (1955) [Captain Karl Ehrlich]: Drowned (off-screen) with Lana Turner when their lifeboat is sunk.

• The Alamo (1960) [Col. Davy Crockett]: Stabbed with a lance by a Mexican soldier and blown up in the Alamo's arsenal when he sets off a massive explosion. (it's known that in real-life, Crockett's body was found whole and did not blow up in a gunpowder explosion).

• The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962) [Tom Doniphon]: Dies (off-screen) of natural causes. His coffin (but not body) is shown when James Stewart arrives at the funeral home, and the rest of the movie takes place in flashbacks set years earlier.

• The Cowboys (1972) [Wil Andersen]: Shot in the shoulders, back, and stomach by Bruce Dern; he dies shortly after the teenage cowboys carry him back to their camp.

• The Shootist (1976) [John Bernard Books]: Mortally wounded (on top of terminal cancer) in the saloon gunfight; he dies moments later at the end of the shoot-out (by Richard Boone, Hugh O'Brian, and finally Charles G. Martin) with Ron Howard at his side after Charles shoots John in the back.

TV Deaths

None.

Notable Connections

• Father of Patrick Wayne, Ethan Wayne, and Aissa Wayne.

• Grandfather of Brendan Wayne.

• Grandfather-in-law of Sara Arrington.