“I don’t know if I’ve made the right choice”: why John Wayne rolled up to Harvard in a tank
Towards the tail end of his career, John Wayne became every bit as well known for his outspoken political views as he was for his on-screen endeavours, which didn’t sit well with everyone during a period of turmoil for the United States at large.
Having already been a vocal proponent of the anti-Communist witch-hunt that dogged Hollywood in the 1950s, ‘The Duke’ regularly lent his support to the Vietnam War, even working it into his filmography with 1968’s ill-conceived The Green Berets. In addition to not being a very good movie, the story of a cynical reporter embedded with the titular unit who ultimately changes their perspective on the conflict faced accusations of being thinly veiled pro-war propaganda.
Unsurprisingly, then, he was also hugely critical of Jane Fonda’s stance against America’s involvement in Vietnam, which created huge divides among the general public. Never one to back down from an argument, though, Wayne decided to accept an offer to appear at Harvard University in a fashion entirely befitting his larger-than-life persona when he opted to roll up in a tank.
The current generation of attendees wasn’t anywhere near as sold on Wayne’s gung-ho, jingoistic persona as their parents were. With tongue planted halfway into the cheek, Harvard’s students issued an invitation for ‘The Duke’ to descend on campus and screen his latest feature, McQ, where he played a trigger-happy detective.
Harvard’s Hasty Pudding Club also planned to ironically honour him for his conservative politics with one of the organisation’s signature roasts, and he was all too happy to oblige. Borrowing his chosen mode of transport from the National Guard and waving to the gathered crowds was a brazen display of confidence, but his son Patrick revealed that he wasn’t entirely convinced it was a good idea at first.
“It was during the Vietnam era, and they were very left-wing, very anti-Vietnam war,” he explained. “He said, ‘Boys, I don’t know if I’ve made the right choice going back to this school. I don’t know what they’re going to do to me.’ I said, ‘They’re going to love you. Are you crazy?’. He said, ‘I don’t know what they’re going to say; I don’t know what they’re going to do’. I said, ‘Don’t worry about it, you’re going to be fine.'”
In the end, ‘The Duke’ put on a charm offensive that won the sceptical crowd over, leaving the audience in stitches when he joked that he’d “accepted this invitation over a wonderful invitation to be at a Jane Fonda rally”. Wayne was the butt of many one-liners and gags, but in the end, he gave as good as he got putting his natural charisma and presence to great use conducting a gathered throng who weren’t entirely sold on his appearance, to begin with.
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