Even though John Wayne died over 40 years ago, his legacy lives on through his movies and deep impact on American culture. However, his son Ethan, has a vision of his Hollywood icon father that he wants the rest of the world to know about him. A view of his father that many of his fans may not even know.
On John Wayne’s official website, it features several behind-the-scenes stories about the actor. One of the most fun recent blogs features the Duke in the role he played best: Dad. The blog includes photos of Wayne with all his kids, and notably, with his youngest son Ethan.
Ethan, now 59, serves as the president of John Wayne Enterprises and director of the John Wayne Cancer Foundation. The foundation is a family-formed non-profit founded in 1985 in honor of the Duke’s courageous battle with cancer.
This particular blog post features photos of Ethan and John on movie sets, sailing on Wayne’s boat called The Wild Goose, and sharing classic father-son moments. There are photos that start from when Ethan was just a young boy and conclude when Ethan was a teenager. Ethan even shares some memories of his father on the blog.
“I remember just following my father everywhere,” writes Ethan. “I just wanted to be with him all the time.”
John Wayne’s Son Shares Sage Advice From His Father
Fans of the Duke can delight in the fact that they not only get to see personal family photos from John Wayne, but they can also ready personal advice the actor offered to his family. Along with the photo, Ethan shared some advice that his father relayed to him.
“I’ve always followed my father’s advice: He told me first, to always keep my word,” writes Ethan.
That sounds like some very John Wayne advice. Let’s see what else he offered.
“And second, to never insult anybody unintentionally. If I insult you, you can be God–n sure I intend to,” Ethan added. Alright, that sounds even more like the Duke!
“And, third, he told me not to go around looking for trouble.” But if trouble happens to find him, he’ll handle it in true Wayne-family fashion!
Here’s How Ethan Wants Fans to Remember His Famous Father
Yes, it’s pretty darn cool to have a dad as famous as John Wayne. And the fact that he played a strong and badass man of the west, was probably even cooler. But that’s not all that Ethan Wayne wants fans to remember about his father. Instead, he’s like fans to remember his dad for his character.
“He kept things simple and relatable. He was open, accommodating. He’d look you in the eye and tell you yes or no, but he would never hold you up,” writes Ethan. “He was kind, positive, and fair.”
Ethan added that he received those lessons from his father, but so did everyone who met him.
“And those are lessons I got from him—we all got from him,” added Ethan. “That’s the John Wayne I want the world to know.”