American Minute with Bill Federer
"Mad Anthony" Wayne, Bruce Wayne, & John Wayne
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"Mad Anthony
" Wayne raised a militia unit at the beginning of the Revolutionary War and participated in the
invasion of Canada.
He fought in the
Battle of Trois-Rivières, and led forces at
Fort Ticonderoga and
Mount Independence.
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"Mad Anthony" Wayne fought at
Brandywine in 1777, then harassed British General Howe as his troops marched towards Pennsylvania.
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He fought at
Germantown, and quartered the winter at
Valley Forge.
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In 1778,
Wayne attacked at the
Battle of Monmouth, and in 1779, he led a stealth, bayonet-only night to capture
Stony Point, New York, for which he was awarded a medal by the Continental Congress.
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When the Pennsylvania Line of the Continental Army
threatened mutiny
for being paid with
worthless "continental currency,"
Wayne was able to keep the army together.
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Wayne led Lafayette's forces in the 1781
Green Springs action and led a bayonet charge against British Lord Cornwallis's troops in Virginia.
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After the Revolution,
Wayne was recalled by Washington to fight an Indian confederacy in the
Battle of Fallen Timbers, 1794.
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Many places in the United States are named for
General"Mad Anthony" Wayne, including:
Fort Wayne, Indiana
Wayne, Illinois
Wayne, Maine
Wayne, Michigan
Wayne, Nebraska
Wayne, New Jersey
Wayne, Ohio
Wayne, Oklahoma
Wayne, Pennsylvania
Wayne, New York
Wayne, West Virginia
South Wayne, Wisconsin
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Waynesboro, Georgia
Waynesboro, Mississippi
Waynesboro, Pennsylvania
Waynesboro, Tennessee
Waynesboro, Virginia
Waynesville, Illinois
Waynesville, Missouri
Waynesville, North Carolina
Waynesville, Ohio
Waynesfield, Ohio
Waynesburg, Ohio
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In 1939, “Detective Comics” (DC Comics, Issue #27) introduced the character of
Batman as the caped crusader who fought crime in Gotham City.
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Batman's secret identity is
Bruce Wayne, who the creators of the fictional series made a descendant of
General "Mad Anthony" Wayne.
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"Mad Anthony" Wayne's courageous reputation as fit the character of actor
John Wayne.
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John Wayne was born MAY 26, 1907.
His given name was
Marion Mitchell Morrison, grandson of a Scots-Irish Presbyterian veteran of the Civil War.
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He played football for U.S.C. and worked behind-the-scenes at Fox Studios.
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He became an Academy award winning actor for portraying cowboys and soldiers in action western and war films, appearing in over 200 films and holding the Hollywood record of starring in 142 films.
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Raoul Walsh, director of film
The Big Trail (1930), first suggested his screen name be
"Anthony Wayne" after Revolutionary War general
"Mad Anthony" Wayne, but settled upon
"John Wayne."
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John Wayne's career took off when director
John Ford cast him in epic western films such as: Fort
Apache (1948);
She Wore A Yellow Ribbon (1949); and
Rio Grande (1950).
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The immensely popular 1952 movie,
The Quiet Man, depicting the humorously stubborn traditions of Irish courtship, is memorialize by a statue in the town of Cong, Ireland, of
John Wayne carrying his fiery-tempered redhead co-star,
Maureen O'Hara.
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John Wayne became an icon of the U.S. Armed Forces for depicting the strength and sacrifice of American military personnel during World War II, Korea and Vietnam:
The Flying Tigers (1942);
The Fighting Seabees (1944);
They Were Expendable (1945);
Back to Bataan (1945);
The Sands of Iwo Jima (1949);
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The Flying Leathernecks (1951);
Operation Pacific (1951);
The Longest Day (1962);
In Harm's Way (1965); and
The Green Berets (1968).
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These films had the international effect of publicizing America's military might and moral values, as demonstrated when
Japanese Emperor Hirohito visited the United States in 1975 and asked to meet
John Wayne.
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Regarding socialism,
John Wayne stated in an interview, May 1971:
"In the late Twenties, when I was a sophomore at USC, I was a socialist myself-but not when I left.
The average college kid idealistically wishes everybody could have ice cream and cake for every meal.
But as he gets older and gives more thought to his and his fellow man's responsibilities, he finds that it can't work out that way-that some people just won't carry their load ...
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I believe in welfare-a welfare work program. I don't think a fella should be able to sit on his backside and receive welfare.
I'd like to know why well-educated idiots keep apologizing for lazy and complaining people who think the world owes them a living.
I'd like to know why they make excuses for cowards who spit in the faces of the police and then run behind the judicial sob sisters.
I can't understand these people who carry placards to save the life of some criminal, yet have no thought for the innocent victim."
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On MAY 26, 1979, the U.S. Congress awarded him the Congressional Gold Medal and President Jimmy Carter, who later awarded
John Wayne the Presidential Medal of Freedom posthumously, stated:
"I have today approved ... a specially struck gold medal to John Wayne. For nearly half a century, the Duke has symbolized the American ideals of integrity, courage, patriotism, and strength and has represented to the world many of the deepest values that this Nation respects."
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In 1998, the
U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation
honored
John Wayne with the Naval Heritage Award for his support of the U S Navy and military.
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A Harris Poll, January 2011, ranked
John Wayne third among America's favorite film stars.
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In 1979, California's Orange County airport was named
John Wayne Airport.
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Ronald Reagan said November 5, 1984:
"I noted the news coverage about the death of my friend, John Wayne. One headline read 'The Last American Hero.'...
No one would be angrier than
Duke Wayne at the suggestion that he was America's last hero.
Just before he died,
John Wayne said in his unforgettable way, 'Just give the American people a good cause, and there's nothing they can't lick.'"
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John Wayne stated in a 1971 interview:
"Tomorrow is the most important thing in life.
Comes into us at midnight very clean. It's perfect when it arrives and it puts itself in our hands. It hopes we've learned something from yesterday."
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In his album,
America-Why I Love Her, 1977,
John Wayne stated:
"Face the Flag, son, and face reality.
Our strengths and our freedoms are based in unity.
The flag is but a symbol, son, of the world's greatest nation,
And as long as it keeps flying, there's cause for celebration.
So do what you've got to do, but always keep in mind,
A lot of people believe in peace ... but there are the other kind.
If we want to keep these freedoms, we may have to fight again.
God forbid, but if we do, let's always fight to win,
For the fate of a loser is futile and it's bare:
No love, no peace ... just misery and despair.
Face the Flag, son ... and thank God it's still there."
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American Minute is a registered trademark of William J. Federer. Permission is granted to forward, reprint, or duplicate, with acknowledgment.
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Schedule Bill Federer for informative interviews & captivating PowerPoint presentations: 314-502-8924
wjfederer@gmail.com
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