‘The Duke’s library: John Wayne’s favourite books of all time
There aren’t many actors who haven’t starred in at least one literary adaptation during their career, but despite his status as one of the most prominent and popular stars in the industry, John Wayne never made a concerted effort to turn any of his favourite books into movies.
He lent his name to a fair share of page-to-screen translations, though, and ended up winning the one and only Academy Award of his lifetime after lobbying hard for the part of Rooster Cogburn upon his first time reading Charles Portis’ novel True Grit.
‘The Duke’ was also planning to tie a bow around his iconic stint in the Hollywood spotlight by headlining a feature inspired by Buddy Atkinson’s Beau John, but he passed away before he got around to it. Based on both his on and off-screen persona, Wayne hardly gave off the impression of someone who’d voraciously devoured literature set hundreds of years in the past, but it turns out he was full of surprises.
In Scott Eyman’s biography John Wayne: The Life and Legend, it was revealed that not only was the Western legend a fan of Charles Dickens’ work, but David Copperfield was his personal favourite. In addition, he developed a habit of directly quoting the classic tome whenever he was in the midst of concluding a business deal.
“Wayne was also a fan of Charles Dickens and if the actor agreed to a business deal, he would always say ‘Barkis is willing!’, a phrase used by Mr. Barkis when he tells David Copperfield that he is ready to marry Peggotty,” Eyman wrote, creating the curious mental image of ‘The Duke’ barking out Dickens dialogue while surrounded by agents, representatives, and studio executives.
He was also said to be enthralled by the writings of Arthur Conan Doyle, but not his most famous character. Instead, 1891’s The White Company – which was set across Europe between 1366 and 1367 – and Sir Nigel – set during the same period – came out trumps. The two books were companion pieces to one another, so it makes sense that if ‘The Duke’ liked one of them, he’d love them both.
The grizzled gunslinger had a soft spot for Agatha Christie, too, which paints the unusual picture of the living, breathing embodiment of on-screen Americana spending his free time reading books written by some of the United Kingdom’s most esteemed authors. Christie is one of the most heavily-adapted authors in history, but Wayne clearly wasn’t of the mind that he wanted to star in any of them.
It would have been quite a sight to see him try his hand at Dickens, right enough, although it wouldn’t be unfair to say his signature drawl and distinctly all-American aura wouldn’t have made him the right fit.
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