The scene that almost blinded John Wayne: “It was real fucking glass, and it went flying into my face”
In 1945, a John Wayne World War II movie was released barely months after the conflict ended in real life. It was a challenging production for The Duke, who hadn’t served in the war like many other men who worked on the film – including its director. Wayne felt guilty about not serving his country, and the director knew this, so he reportedly took every opportunity to needle the star. On top of this, Wayne was also nearly blinded while shooting an action scene, causing him to chase down the person responsible with a hammer. It wasn’t a good time for anybody.
When America joined the war in 1941, Wayne was one of the biggest movie idols in Hollywood. He applied for a deferment from the draft on the grounds that he was the sole provider for his family of four, and they couldn’t afford for him to be away from home. That deferment went through but was later rescinded when the military needed as many men as it could gather to cope with the demands of the conflict. This time, though, Hollywood came to his defence, arguing that his status as a world-famous movie star who could visit the troops was more beneficial to national interests than actually making him one of those troops.
Naturally, Wayne was subsequently labelled a draft dodger by the many men who did serve in the war, and it reportedly cut him deeply. In fact, his wife Pilar claimed that the ultra-patriotism he displayed for the rest of his life was his way of attempting to atone for staying at home while so many lost their lives.
Understandably, this wasn’t the ideal background for an actor making a movie about the real-life US boat unit that defended the Philippines from Japanese invasion. That film was They Were Expendable, directed by John Ford, who had served in World War II as the head of the photographic unit in the Office of Strategic Services. He came under fire on the beaches of Normandy and at the Battle of Midway and even took a machine gun bullet to the left arm.
As a wounded veteran, Ford resented Wayne and resolved to make his life extremely difficult while shooting the film. He heaped insults on him for months, and it all reportedly came to a head one day when he lambasted Wayne for a salute. He witheringly said, “Duke, can’t you manage a salute that at least looks as though you’ve been in the service?” and Wayne was so upset he supposedly walked off set. In the end, star Robert Montgomery – another war veteran – angrily told Ford, “Don’t you ever speak like that to anyone again.” This seemingly caused Ford to see sense, and he apologised to Wayne for his behaviour.
All this is to say, the Duke was probably a roiling mass of hurt feelings and guilt for that whole shoot – and that likely didn’t help when he was almost blinded in a stunt gone wrong. In John Wayne: The Man Behind the Myth, he revealed that while filming a scene in which his boat is strafed by gunfire, a production snafu nearly led to disaster.
“A special effects guy was shooting ball bearings at my boat,” explained Wayne, “But he had forgotten to replace the windshield with a non-breakable one made of Plexiglas. It was real fucking glass, and it went flying into my face.”
A shocked and frightened Wayne flew into a rage, claiming, “I picked up a hammer and went after the man.” Ford bellowed at his star, “No, you don’t. He’s part of my fucking crew,” to which Wayne screamed back, “Your fucking crew, goddamn it. They’re my fucking eyes!”
In the end, working on They Were Expendable hurt only the iconic tough guy’s ego, but it could have been much worse. As he grumbled, “I was lucky not to have been seriously hurt.”
Never Miss A Tale
The Far Out John Wayne Newsletter
All the latest stories about John Wayne from the independent voice of culture.
Straight to your inbox.