John Wayne Century Collection

Description by OLDIES.com:

The ultimate John Wayne collection, featuring 14 action-packed films from "The Duke"...

Donovan's Reef (1963, 108 mins.): Acclaimed director John Ford and screen legend John Wayne team up for what would be their final collaboration in this boisterous, rowdy South Seas escapade. The Duke, Lee Marvin and Jack Warden play World War II navy buddies who have made the French Polynesian island of Haleakaloha their post-war paradise. Local headquarters is Donovan's Reef, Wayne's rough-and-tumble watering hole where bragging, brawling, and full-blown misbehavior are the order of the day. But destined to create more turmoil than any barroom fisticuffs is the sudden arrival of Elizabeth Allen, a straight-laced Boston blue blood. She's hoping to locate her long-estranged father (Warden), affirm that he is "not of good moral character," and then assume control of the family's shipping dynasty back home in the States. Suave, debonair Cesar Romero and a strong-clad Dorothy Lamour add to the laughs - and mayhem - in this tropical comedy treat.

Hatari! (1962, 157 mins.): Hatari! is Swahili for "danger" - and also the word for action, adventure and broad comedy in this two-fisted Howard Hawks effort. John Wayne stars as the head of a daring Tanganyka-based group which captures wild animals on behalf of the world's zoos. Hardy Kruger, Gerard Blain and Red Buttons are members of Wayne's men-only contingent, all of whom are reduced to jello when the curvaceous Elsa Martinelli enters the scene. In tried and true Howard Hawks fashion, Martinelli quickly becomes "one of the guys," though Wayne apparently can't say two words to her without sparking an argument. The second half of this amazingly long (157 minute) film concerns the care and maintenance of a baby elephant; the barely credible finale is devoted to a comic pachyderm stampede down an urban African street, ending literally at the foot of Martinelli's bed. The other scene worth mentioning involves comedy-relief Red Buttons' efforts to create a fireworks-powered animal trap. Not to be taken seriously for a minute, Hatari! is attractively packaged and neatly tied up with a danceable-pranceable theme song by Henry Mancini.

In Harm's Way (1965, 167 mins.): Director Otto Preminger's epic treatment of the bombing of Pearl Harbor details the devastating attack on the Hawaiian naval base as well as the explosive, behind-the-scenes stories. An awesome cast - including John Wayne, Kirk Douglas, Patricia Neal, Henry Fonda, Carroll O'Connor, Burgess Meredith, Paula Prentiss, Dana Andrews and host of other notables - is interwoven into this account of the attack itself, the disobeyed orders, the American counter-offensive, father-son reunions, battles at sea, and layers of romantic entanglements. It's a story that's been told and re-told, but perhaps never so completely.

Island In The Sky - Special Collector's Edition (1953, 109 mins.): John Wayne heads an all-star cast in this edge-of-the-seat drama of heroism and survival. Set after WWII, Pilot Dooley (Wayne) and his flight crew are forced into an emergency crash landing in the frozen Canadian wilderness. As Dooley and his men battle hunger and below-zero temperatures in a desperate struggle for survival, his fellow pilots launch a seemingly impossible rescue mission. Lloyd Nolan, Walter Abel, James Arness, Andy Devine and Harry Carey Jr. also star in this engrossing tale of bravery, hope and triumph of the human spirit.

True Grit - Special Collector's Edition (1969, 127 mins.): John Wayne earned an Academy Award for his larger-than-life performance as the drunken, uncouth and totally fearless one-eyed U.S. Marshall, Rooster Cogburn. Rooster is hired by a headstrong young girl (Kim Darby) to find the man who murdered her father and fled with the family savings. When she insists on accompanying the old gunfighter, sparks fly. And the situation goes from troubled to disastrous when an inexperienced Texas Ranger (Glen Campbell) joins the party. This extraordinary and beloved Western also features unforgettable performances by Robert Duvall and Strother Martin.

Rio Lobo (1970, 114 mins.): A classic action-filled John Wayne western is set into motion with a spectacular robbery of a Union pay train by Confederate guerrillas. The train's colonel (Wayne) jails the enemy leaders (Jorge Rivero, Chris Mitchum), but the three men later become friends when the war ends. Together, they seek the Union traitors responsible for a string of Confederate train robberies, a mission that culminates in a rousing shoot-'em-up finale.

Big Jake (1971, 109 mins.): When his grandson is abducted and held for ransom by a gang of vicious outlaws, larger-than-life rancher Big Jake (John Wayne) takes the law into his own hands and sets out to exact frontier justice against the kidnappers. Vividly set against the waning days of the Wild West, Big Jake features gun-slinging action and two of The Duke's real-life sons: Patrick and John Ethan. Richard Boone and Maureen O'Hara complete the noteworthy cast.

Hondo - Special Collector's Edition (1953, 83 mins.): In an iconic performance, John Wayne plays Hondo Lane, a cavalry scout who befriends and protects a strong-willed frontier woman (Geraldine Page) and her son (Lee Aaker). Awaiting the return of her ne'er-do-well husband (Leo Gordon), Page refuses to leave her isolated homestead despite the danger of an Apache attack. She finds herself growing attracted to the taciturn Hondo - a man hardened by life but still capable of kindness and love. Ward Bond, Michael Pate, James Arness and Rodolfo Acosta co-star. Page received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress.

The Sons Of Katie Elder (1965, 121 mins.): When Katie Elder's four sons return to Texas for her funeral, their homecoming sets the stage for a classic Western tale of horror, justice and revenge. John Wayne stars as a professional gunfighter who leads his brothers in a fight to avenge their father's murder and reclaim their family's ranch from a crooked businessman. Directed by Henry Hathaway (True Grit), an acknowledged master of the Western, this action-packed drama also stars Dean Martin, Earl Holliman and Michael Anderson Jr.

El Dorado (1967, 126 mins.): Legendary producer-director Howard Hawks teams with two equally legendary stars, John Wayne and Robert Mitchum, in this classic Western drama. Mitchum plays to perfection an alcoholic but gutsy sheriff who relentlessly battles the dark side of the wild West, ruthless cattle barons and crooked "businessmen." The Duke gives an equally adept performance as the sheriff's old friend who knows his way around a gunfight. Filled with brawling action and humor, El Dorado delivers the goods. James Caan and Ed Asner co-star.

The Shootist (1976, 98 mins.): Afflicted with a terminal illness, John Bernard Brooks (John Wayne), the last of the legendary gunfighters, quietly returns to Carson City for medical attention from his old friend Dr. Hostetler (James Stewart). Aware that his days are numbered, the troubled man seeks solace and peace in a boarding house run by a widow (Lauren Bacall) and her son (Ron Howard). However, it is not Brooks' fate to die in peace, as he becomes embroiled in one last valiant battle.

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962, 123 mins.): Ranking with Stagecoach as one of the greatest of its genre, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance is the modern-day Western to beat all Westerns. John Ford, whose very name is synonymous with "Westerns," directed the iconic cast. Jimmy Stewart shines as the bungling but charming big-city lawyer determined to rid the fair village of Shinbone of its number one nuisance and Bad Man: Liberty Valance (Lee Marvin). And as if all that weren't enough, the biggest star that ever aimed a six-shooter plays the man of the title: John Wayne.

The High And The Mighty - 2-Disc Special Collector's Edition (1954, 148 mins.): Soar into the skies on a thrilling airborne adventure in this meticulously restored John Wayne film classic. In one of his most memorable roles, Wayne plays Dan Roman, a veteran pilot haunted by a tragic past. Now relegated to second-in-command cockpit assignments, he finds himself scheduled on a routine Honolulu-to-San Francisco flight - one that takes a terrifying, suspense-building turn when disaster strikes high above the Pacific Ocean at the point of no return. A "Who's Who" of Hollywood greats - Claire Trevor, Laraine Day, Robert Stack, Jan Sterling, Phil Harris and Robert Newton, among others - are aboard for this celebrated drama bursting with conflict and excitement. Nominated for six Academy Awards, including Best Director (William A. Wellman) and two Best Supporting Actress nods (Trevor and Sterling), the film nabbed the Oscar for Dimitri Tiomkin's unforgettable musical score.

McLintock! - Authentic Collector's Edition (1963, 127 mins.): McLintock! presents screen giant John Wayne at his two-fisted best, with the beautiful, fiery Maureen O'Hara as the proverbial thorn in his side. The Duke stars as George Washington McLintock, a proud, defiant cattle baron whose daughter Becky (Stefanie Powers) is due home from college. But G.W.'s happy reunion with his daughter is tempered by the arrival of his headstrong wife Katherine (O'Hara), who left him two years earlier. Verbal fireworks explode, slapstick pratfalls bloom... and the Wayne-O'Hara "reconciliation" culminates with the biggest mudhole brawl this side of the Mississippi! Patrick Wayne, Yvonne De Carlo, Chill Wills, Jack Kruschen, Jerry Van Dyke, Bruce Cabot and Edgar Buchanan are among the dazzling supporting cast in this wild, raucous and hilarious western comedy.

Plot Keywords:

Action | Adventure | Classic | Drama | Old West | Outlaws | Vintage

Cast and Crew: