Core Post #1 - Madison Lorenz

Madison Lorenz
Core Post 1
February 13, 2018

            I found this week’s reading titled “John Wayne’s America” by Garry Willis extremely interesting when it comes to the formulation of a star’s persona. The piece describes the image that Wayne portrayed on screen, how this depiction affected the viewers, and the contrast of who he was off screen.

            Willis describes how Wayne was the epitome of the “American Man” and what it meant to be American. First off, Wayne was known for his Westerns, which are associated with being a typical all-American genre. Second, it was the image that he conveyed in these films that furthered this belief that he was “the American.” Visually he was extremely masculine. He was tall, strong, and moved with finesse. The article recalls times that he used his physical strength with grace, which gave off the idea that he could do anything with ease due to his masculinity. Wayne, along with directors and producers, developed this image. The article reveals that he was actually completely different in real life than who he was onscreen. In Willis’ words, “Wayne was not born Wayne. He had to be invented” (Willis, 15). According to the article, he wasn’t a fan of horses and enjoyed dressing formally rather than the jeans he was always pictured in (15).

            It’s interesting to think that director Raoul Walsh discovered this manly cowboy persona after witnessing the way Wayne looked and carried himself. He looked at Wayne and saw potential to build up a certain image that he knew audiences would like to see. Wayne continued this persona by only accepting roles that would further this image and turning down anything that might have gone against it. He worked on the way he walked and talked in order to keep it going. This image was so strong that audiences believed that this was the way he was in real life and that his invincible character lived off screen.

            The idea that audiences associated an actor’s typical character with their real-life personality is intriguing. Often times we get so used to seeing actors in a certain light that when they are portrayed any differently, we feel disoriented. Many times I have caught myself associating an actor with certain traits on screen that if they do something “out of character” off the screen, I get confused and think, “That’s so unlike them!” This also brings me to the funny idea that audiences often feel like they know actors so well. In reality, we only know what actors choose for us to see. In this case, Wayne chose for audiences to see him as a rugged cowboy who was invincible. In reality, this was a made-up persona that attracted audiences to see his work and gave them something to look up to. He became the epitome of what Americans wanted to see and wanted to be.