In your book The Straight Dope you were asked whether John Wayne had ever served in the military. You said no–that though Wayne as a youth had wanted to become a naval officer, “during World War II he was rejected for military service.” However, it may be more interesting than that. According to a recent Wayne bio, for all his vaunted patriotism, Wayne may actually have tried to stay out of the service.
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At the time of Pearl Harbor, Wayne was 34. His marriage was on the rocks, but he still had four kids to support. His career was taking off, largely on the strength of the classic western Stagecoach (1939). But he wasn’t rich. Should he chuck it all and enlist? Many of Hollywood’s big names, such as Henry Fonda, Jimmy Stewart, and Clark Gable, did just that. But these were established stars. Wayne knew that if he took a few years off for military service, he might be over-the-hill by the time he got back.
Besides, he specialized in the kind of movies a nation at war wanted to see, in which a rugged American hero overcomes great odds. Recognizing that Hollywood was an important part of the war effort, Washington had told California draft boards to go easy on actors. Perhaps rationalizing that he could do more good at home, Wayne obtained 3-A status, “deferred for [family] dependency reasons.” He told friends he’d enlist after he made just one or two more movies.
