John Wayne Gritcast

In the season 2 finale of John Wayne Gritcast, we sit down with western legend, Red Steagall. Red is an American actor, musician, poet, and stage performer. He has worked with artists like Ray Charles, Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Glen Campbell and discovered Reba McEntire.

Ethan and Red sit down in the Cowboy Channel studio to discuss Red’s exciting life. Red also tells the story of when he met John Wayne while he was recording his Grammy Nominated album, America, Why I Love Her.

Red is such an icon in the western community and we are so thankful to have him as our Season 2 finale guest!

Thank you to our partners!

On Today’s episode of the John Wayne Gritcast, we are joined by John Wayne’s personal Doctor and very close family friend, Dr. Bob Egan.

Bob was very close with the family, he even had Michael Wayne as his best man in his wedding! Ethan and Bob reminisce on life with Duke, including how Dr Egan found out John Wayne’s Akita was giving everyone in the house strep throat, visiting Duke on set in Durango, and John Wayne’s journey with cancer.

This is a very fun episode with someone who knew Duke very closely, we hope you enjoy!

Thank you to our partners!

Ben Christensen is a western lifestyle photographer who is dedicated to living his own western.

In this episode of the John Wayne Gritcast, Ethan is in Kanab, Utah filming an independent movie written and directed by Ben Christensen. They are also joined by videographer Dusty Soulsey. The three of them discuss what it means to live your own western in the modern times. They also discuss their new film that will be coming out later this year and what role Ethan Wayne played in the movie!

Dan Ford is the grandson of John Wayne’s close friend and mentor, John Ford. Dan tells how he knew John Wayne as “God Damnit, Duke!” based on how John Ford would refer to his friend. He and Ethan also discuss the John Ford stock company, heroes in movies today vs in John Wayne’s time, and Dan’s first memories of Duke in Catalina. This is a great episode for John Wayne and John Ford fans!

Thank you to our partners!

John Wayne valued courage, strength, grit, patriotism, and family… and so does John Wayne Walding. John Wayne Walding is a former Sergeant First Class Green Beret and entrepreneur. In this episode, John Wayne Walding tells the story of the Battle of Shok Valley. In this 6 hour fire fight, he lost his leg to a sniper and returned fire for four more hours with his severed lower limb tied to his thigh. He details what the battle was like and how he got through it, including how being named after John Wayne inspired him.

Julie Hovnanian was one of John Wayne's personal assistants in Newport Beach. Julie tells the story of how she came to know the Wayne family, what it was REALLY like to work for John Wayne, and sheds some light on just how dedicated the Duke was to his fans. She also tells Ethan about a time when someone in his family was trying to spy on him as a teenager! Tune in today to hear the whole story and more light-hearted conversations with Julie Hovnanian.

Thank you to our partners!

Amber Elle is a self-proclaimed mama bear and lady on a mission to empower others to live self-reliant lives. In addition to raising her family, she is the Director of Family Preparedness at Fieldcraft Survival, whose goal is to expand an individual's capabilities in the genre of survival. Their goal is to educate, train, and equip people to survive in the worst-case scenario.

Ethan and Amber sit down to discuss everything from how the pandemic changed the landscape for many parents, the importance of always stretching yourself in order to keep growing, and how feeling self-reliant translates into confidence in all areas of your life.

Thank you to our partners!

In honor of the 50th Anniversary of the release of The Cowboys, we had a three day celebration in the Fort Worth Stockyards!

Nine of the original cast members joined us for a three day celebration that included showings of the film on the lawn of the Livestock Exchange building, VIP meet and greets with the cast and a live panel on Cowboy Channel!

In honor of the 50th Anniversary of the release of The Cowboys, we had a three day celebration in the Fort Worth Stockyards!

Nine of the original cast members joined us for a three day celebration that included showings of the film on the lawn of the Livestock Exchange building, VIP meet and greets with the cast and a live panel on Cowboy Channel!

This is part 1 of 2 of our live panel with nine of The Cowboys!

Thank you so much to our partners who made this weekend happen!

Kanab, Utah is not only the backdrop of many westerns, but it is also home to Best Friends Animal Society.

Best Friends Animal Society is a nonprofit animal welfare organization. BFAS does outreach nationwide with shelters, rescue groups and members to promote pet adoption, no-kill animal rescue, and spay-and-neuter practices.

Best Friends Animal Society’s mission is Save Them All and they are making amazing strides to do just that. When they started, 17 million animals a year were being euthanized and today, that number is down to 355,000.

Ethan Wayne visited BFAS in Kanab, UT and sat down with founder Francis Battitsta and CEO Julie Castle. Self reliance and grit are amongst many qualities that Francis and Julie share with John Wayne and we hope you enjoy this episode!

The John Wayne Gritcast is BACK for season 2! We have a lot of amazing guests lined up for this next season but our first guest needs no introduction.

What was it like being in Duke’s inner circle? Well, lots of trips on the Wild Goose and passing out autograph cards to the fans! This week, we headed to Nogales, AZ, to the Wingfield ranch to sit down with Wayne Family friend, Teddy Wingfield.

Teddy is the son of one of Duke’s closes friends. The Wayne’s and Wingfield’s grew up playing on the Wingfield ranch in between filming and traveling on the Wild Goose. Teddy has some really great stories remembering his time with John Wayne, including one story where he almost got kicked out of Old Tucson!

It is so great to speak with people who were close to John Wayne and we are so grateful that Teddy shared his stories with us!

This week’s guest on the John Wayne Gritcast is Chairman of Texas Rangers 2023 and Vice Chairman of Texas Rangers Association Foundation, Russell Molina! Russell has a big job over the next 2 years, he is spearheading a statewide event in Texas celebrating the Texas Rangers Bicentennial.

In this episode, Ethan and Russel speak about the history and the importance of the Texas Rangers. John Wayne played a Texas Ranger in The Comancheros and was awarded an honorary Texas Ranger in 1979. That certificate will be on display in John Wayne: An American Experience, as we will be supporting the Texas Rangers in celebrating their Bicentennial anniversary.

Ethan and Russell also talk about the importance of classic American values that the Texas Rangers and John Wayne represent. They also speak about empowering the youth with practical skills and self-reliance.

We are so honored to be a part of the Texas Rangers Bicentennial celebration and to have had Russell as a guest on the podcast! For more information, you can visit https://texasranger2023.org/

This week’s guest on the John Wayne Gritcast is Mark Rydell. The legendary Director of one of the most beloved John Wayne films of all time, The Cowboys. It is the 50th anniversary of the film’s release and Ethan and Mark haven’t seen each other since they were on location.

Ethan sits down with Mark in a very special location in Los Angeles to discuss Mark’s amazing career and working with John Wayne on The Cowboys. Mark describes being a little nervous to work with Duke, since the two were on opposite sides of the political spectrum, but he remembers that not being an issue at all. The two really enjoyed working together.

He also details working with his friend, Steve McQueen. He then tells the story about how he discovered Bette Midler and fought to get her cast in the Rose. The executives quickly apologized after 3 days of seeing her on set.

Mark turned 93 this week and it is such an honor to have Mark as a guest on the John Wayne Gritcast.

Also, make sure you’re signed up for our emails and follow us on social because we will be announcing some more exciting news in honor of the 50th anniversary of The Cowboys soon!

This week on the John Wayne Gritcast, Ethan sits down with his sister, Aissa Wayne, to discuss growing up with their dad, John Wayne.

She talks about traveling on the Wild Goose and remembers a horrible storm where the ocean crashed through the salon of the boat. She also remembers travelling with her father and all of his friends, including Ernie Saftig (listen to Tom Saftig’s podcast here).

The two also talk about some of the lessons John Wayne taught them, including teaching Aissa not to lie in Africa on the set of Hatari. She then tells the story of how she snuck Bush Babies on the plane with them coming home from Africa!

This is a really great episode packed with stories about growing up with John Wayne! Stay tuned for a part 2 with Aissa.

Today’s guest is the legendary Travis Tritt! Travis is a Grammy award winning country music icon. He is also a husband, a father, a songwriter, an actor, a proud American, and we are also lucky enough to call him a friend of the John Wayne team.

On this episode, Ethan and Travis talk about Travis’ career and how he connects with his audience. He knows the people that listen to him are hardworking Americans who are resilient and he wants to give them music to listen to which is similar to the way John Wayne connected with his audience through film.

He also tells Ethan about his dedication to his home state of Georgia. He draws inspiration from being able to drive down to his high school or on the roads he grew up on. Also in Georgia is his family. Travis talks about how close his family is and credits his wife for instilling a big love of family in to their children, which is something John Wayne passed along to his family too.

Travis really embodies a lot of the same values that were important to John Wayne. He is one of the nicest, genuine, and down-to-earth people and we think you guys will really enjoy listening to this episode!

Follow Travis on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/realtravistritt/

More information on Travis’ tour dates on https://travistritt.com/tour/

Randy Wayne White is the author of the Doc Ford series and an extreme outdoorsman… and by extreme, we mean he hunts pythons. That takes some grit!

Ethan Wayne started reading the Doc Ford series and immediately saw some familiar names and reached out to Randy to see if John Wayne had any influence. It turns out, he was correct! The two connected and have stayed in touch ever since.

To say Randy lives John Wayne Grit, is an understatement. He is extremely adventurous, courageous, intelligent, and creative. We hope you enjoy this episode with our friend, Randy Wayne White!

No one gets off the beaten path, literally and metaphorically, more than Matt and his crew from Matt’s Off Road Recovery! Matt and his team run a very popular YouTube channel that shows them recovering vehicles who get stuck off roading. Matt and his team were nice enough to let us come on an off-road excursion with them in St George, Utah, the scene for some of John Wayne’s films.

Ethan and Matt discuss how Matt got into the business of off-road recovery after years of owning his own roofing business and then how his off road recovery business turned into a very successful YouTube channel. Matt and his crew share so many of the same core values as John Wayne, including self-reliance, family, and adventure.

You can listen and watch the full interview with Matt on Apple Podcasts and Spotify but if you want to see the off road adventure they took us on, head to our YouTube channel for some exclusive Behind the Scenes footage!

Run Pilgrim, run! Meet our John Wayne Grit Series Race Director, Molly Kassouf! If you have been to one of our runs, Molly has greeted you with a big smile. The John Wayne Grit Series is a series of trail runs set in beautiful rugged locations and bring awareness and raise funds for John Wayne Cancer Foundation.

Molly knows good trail runs, she is an avid Ultra Marathon runner and has ran all over the world. She also had a run in Newport Coast, CA for many years, which is how she got connected with Ethan and the JWCF team.

On this episode, Ethan and Molly sit down over coffee to discuss how Molly got into running, how the John Wayne Grit Series was created, and her favorite JWGS running locations!

To learn more about the John Wayne Grit Series, head to johnwayne.org/jwgs

In the western world, there’s a saying “all hat and no cattle” which basically means someone is all talk but lacking the experience…. Well, Ricky Bolin is the opposite of this saying! He not only runs some of the most iconic western hat brands but he truly lives the western lifestyle.

Ricky Bolin is the President of Hatco which is the parent brand for iconic hat brands like Stetson, Charlie 1 Horse, Resistol, but he started out bullriding in Mesquite, Texas. He made the NFR several times in his life and was one of the first riders to get sponsored and opened the doors for other riders.

John Wayne worked his way up from being a propman’s assistant to a leading actor and Ricky has that same drive. After he stopped bullriding, he got a job working at an outlet store for Resistol then worked his way up to being the President of Hatco.

Ethan and Ricky also discuss the values of the western community and how those values are regaining popularity.  How do you make a deal with George Strait, one of the biggest country music legends in the world? With a handshake. That’s the classic western values that Ricky and his team are keeping alive today.

This is a really fun interview with an interesting person and great friend of John Wayne Enterprise, we hope you enjoy!

John Wayne’s Grit lives on through the next generation – Meet his granddaughter, Jennifer Wayne. Jennifer is a tennis player, song writer, Amazing Race contestant, and band member of Runaway June. In this week’s episode of the John Wayne Gritcast, Jennifer and her uncle, Ethan, discuss her career and how her values parallel her grandfather’s.

Jennifer takes us through her childhood, her father was a tennis pro and Jennifer played tennis through college. She started playing music with a boyfriend, saved up money, and moved to Nashville, with help from her aunt, Marisa.

The music industry is not easy and Jennifer talks about getting knocked down and never giving up. They also talk about having the name of John Wayne behind them while trying to pursue their own ventures and discuss how that affects their pursuits.

Jennifer realized her talents were in songwriting which led her to her first band, Stealing Angels. After they lost their record deal, Jennifer and her bandmate, Caroline, were asked to be on the show Amazing Race. They got 4th place in their first season and were asked to go on the All Star season where they placed 2nd by 4 seconds.

Jennifer is such a sweet and kind person and her grandfather’s Grit lives on through her. Check out Jennifer’s band, Runaway June, and her new song with Keith Urban titled Wild Hearts.

John Wayne always said that if he was going to have a drink, it had better be a good one and today we’re talking to the man behind the spirits that bear Duke’s name. Meet Chris Radomski, co-founder and owner of Duke Timeless Spirits.

This week’s episode, we’re diving deep into the world of spirits with Chris and Ethan! Including Chris’ past in spirits, how they came up with the idea for Duke Bourbon, and our new Duke Tequila.

For more information on Duke Spirits: dukespirits.com

Follow Duke Spirits on Instagram: Instagram.com/dukespirits

John Wayne was a huge supporter of the military and he wanted his legacy to be used to help the fight against cancer so there is no better guest for today’s John Wayne Gritcast than John Wayne Alumni Fellow, Dr. Dan Nelson. Dr. Nelson is not only a John Wayne Alumni Fellow, but a board-certified surgical oncologist, and an active duty service member in the United States Army.

How do you become a surgical oncologist AND also serve our country in the Army? Dr Nelson takes us through his path that led him to John Wayne. He was drawn to the pioneering cancer research led by John Wayne Fellows and was matched with the John Wayne Surgical Oncology program.

Dr. Nelson speaks about being deployed as an Army surgeon and also working as a surgical oncologist. He and Ethan also discuss some of the John Wayne Cancer foundation funded research he is performing.

Being active is very important to your overall health and Dr. Nelson talks about how he and his family make time to find hobbies to enjoy together. He and Ethan also discuss their mutual love of Jiu Jitsu!

We are so lucky to have doctors like Dr. Nelson leading the charge in the fight against cancer and we hope you enjoy this episode!

The Gritcast headed out to Pioneertown, California to meet up with our friend, David Corso! Ethan connected with David in 2020 while planning our John Wayne Grit Series Pioneertown run that benefits the John Wayne Cancer Foundation. On this episode, Ethan and David are also joined by our Race Director, Molly Kassouf, and the two sit down with David to get his interesting life story

David owns a marketing group that integrates activations for brands and in 1999 got connected with Coachella founder and was asked to help bring brands in to sponsor the event and create activations for the guests. Talk about John Wayne Grit, David went from handing out paper tickets to help drive attendance to the festival and now the festival ticket demands are so high, it is a two weekend event and tickets sell out quickly.

David and Ethan also bond over their love of Pioneertown, a town that was once used as a set for westerns and is located outside of Palm Springs in the high desert. David talks about what drew him to Pioneertown and after purchasing it, his plans to keep the Pioneertown charm.

Cancer is such a big story in John Wayne’s legacy and David was also affected by the disease when his brother was diagnosed. His brother’s one wish was to be able to spend his final days with their mom so after failed attempts to get an ambulance across state lines, David loaded his brother up and the two road tripped back to New Orleans so his brother could be closer to their mother.

David has been such a good friend to the John Wayne family and has really helped the fight against cancer with his contributions to the John Wayne Grit Series. This is a really fun interview with Ethan, Molly, and David, we hope you enjoy!

Learn more about Corso Marketing Group here: corsomg.com

Learn more about the John Wayne Grit Series here: johnwayne.org/jwgs

If you’re a racing fan, then you know Richard Childress. Richard is a former NASCAR driver, the current owner of Richard Childress Racing, the owner of Childress Wineries, a wildlife conservationist, and advocate for child trauma with The Childress Institute of Pediatric Trauma.

Ethan and Richard talk about the people that helped steer them in the right direction after losing their fathers at a young age. Richard also talks about guiding his grandsons through the world of social media and giving them traditional values. They then discuss how John Wayne’s films impact the younger generations and give them a positive role model to look up to. Richard’s grandson, Austin Dillon, is not only the driver of the RCR Cowboy Channel/John Wayne car but he is also a huge John Wayne fan who grew up looking up to Duke.

Richard also talks about the different moments in his life that made an impact and how believing in the American dream got him to where he is now.

Hunting is a passion of Richards. That passion started out when he was a young kid and was born out of necessity. That passion has taken him all over the world and also brought him into funding nature conservation. His other passions include the Childress Winery, his Wildlife conservation museum, Auto Racing museum with 43 Dale Earnhardt cars, and The Childress Institute for Pediatric Trauma.

Trauma is the number 1 killer of children in America and The Childress Institute for Pediatric Trauma discovers and shares the best way to prevent and treat severe injuries in children. The Institute funds research, education and advocacy to help improve the care and treatment injured kids receive across the US.

He also talks about losing his friend, Dale Earnhardt, and how that has changed the racing industry and how they changed the approach to safety in racing.

Listen to the end of podcast to hear Richard tell a story about how he protected his family from intruders.

If you like John Wayne and his values, we think you will really enjoy this episode with Richard Childress!

This is our first John Wayne Gritcast Family Christmas Episode!

Ethan Wayne hosts brother Patrick Wayne, sister Marisa Wayne, and niece (John Wayne’s first grandchild) Anita Swift at his house to reminisce on family memories. The four of them tell stories of holidays with John Wayne and the traditions they made after he passed.

We hope everyone has a very happy holiday season and enjoys this episode with the Wayne family!

Meet the woman behind the operations at John Wayne Cancer Foundation, our Vice President, Stacy Mulder!

Ethan and Stacy talk about the different ways John Wayne is helping the fight against cancer.

Block the Blaze is our youth sun safety program that teaches kids skin cancer prevention and early detection. They also discuss our Block the Blaze expansion, including the Mayo Clinic in Arizona, Baylor School of Medicine, Florida, and more.

They also speak about different ways to prevent cancer, including living healthier lifestyles, which brings us to the John Wayne Grit Series. The John Wayne Grit Series not only raises funds and brings awareness to John Wayne Cancer Foundation, but it encourages it’s participants to get out in amazing locations and Run to Fight Cancer. This year we were grateful to put on FIVE in person events!

Ethan and Stacy also discuss some of the people we have met this year that have been touched by cancer and have joined us in the fight. It brings it all home on why this fight is so important.

What doesn’t Pam Minick do?

Pam is such a pillar in the Fort Worth Community and was a huge help in helping John Wayne: An American Experience make it’s home in the Fort Worth Stockyards.

Pam and Ethan Wayne sit down to talk all about Pam’s background in the western community, starting with her early days growing up in Las Vegas and how she convinced her parents to get her a horse so she could start competing in the rodeo. Pam’s passion led her to becoming Miss Rodeo America 1973, the Women’s World Champion Calf Roper, and the first women to announce a major professional rodeo.

Pam and Ethan also discuss their love of Fort Worth, which is the new home to John Wayne: An American Experience. Pam came to Fort Worth and walked the cobblestone streets of the Stockyards and immediately felt at home. They also discuss the preservation of the Stockyards to keep the history alive for generations to come.

Pam and her husband, Billy, also took over Billy Bob’s, the world’s largest honky tonk. She talks about bringing Billy Bob’s back from bankruptcy and taking over the marketing. Billy Bob’s has seen artists like George Strait, Garth Brooks, Travis Tritt, Miranda Lambert, Ringo Starr, and more!

Pam is extremely passionate about Fort Worth and the western community and is such an amazing leader that has helped John Wayne make Fort Worth their home. This is a really fun episode and we are so lucky to have a friend like Pam Minick!

This week we are honored to be sitting down with Dr. Maheswari Senthil. Dr. Senthil is the Program Director for the John Wayne Cancer Foundation Fellowship program at UCI and the Director Peritoneal Malignancy Program.

Ethan Wayne sits down with Dr. Senthil to speak about her background and the different ways she, and her colleagues, are helping the fight against cancer.

Dr. Senthil grew up in India where she knew she wanted to be a surgeon from a very young age, following in her mother’s footsteps. She goes through how she decided to become a surgeon and the steps it took to become an expert in her field.

Ethan and Dr. Senthil also talk about what we can do to help support the doctors that are on the front lines researching pioneering ways to fight cancer.

This is a great episode to learn more about how John Wayne Cancer Foundation’s impact on the fight against cancer and how doctors like Dr. Senthil and her team are helping fight this terrible disease.

In honor of Thanksgiving, our guest on this week’s John Wayne Gritcast is Alice Johnson McKinney! Alice was married to John Wayne’s 26 Bar Ranch partner, Louis Johnson. Each Thanksgiving, the Wayne family would head to Casa Grande, AZ for the annual cattle sale so we’re very lucky to have Alice on this Thanksgiving episode.

Alice and her late husband, Louis Johnson, were two of Duke’s most treasured friends. She even loaned one of John Wayne’s custom station wagons that he kept on the ranch to John Wayne: An American Experience, our museum in the Fort Worth Stockyards. (More information here: https://www.johnwayne.com/jwexperience)

In this podcast, Alice tells Ethan how Duke and Louis’ partnership in 26 Bar began, including how she and Louis brought back the ranch from $44 Million in debt! She also reminisces on the more lighthearted times with Duke, including being invited to the Oscars.

We hope everyone has a happy Thanksgiving, we are thankful for your continued support!

Listen to our LIVE show from the Cowboy Channel Justin Boots studio as we celebrate the 50th anniversary of the release of Big Jake. We were lucky to have Patrick Wayne, Ethan Wayne, and Chris Mitchum with a live studio audience.

The three reflect on their time on set and take questions from the studio audience.

Patrick Wayne discusses John Wayne’s presence on set and his work ethic, how John Wayne won the Dog from the film in a poker game, and working with his brothers and dad on the film. Chris Mitchum discusses the casting process and how he was honored when Duke asked him to play his son. Ethan Wayne remembers taking directions from his dad as an 8 year old on set.

This is a really fun episode and we were so lucky to get these three together to celebrate this great John Wayne film!

Thank you to Cowboy Channel and RFDtv for hosting this special event for us.

Meet Randy Savvy from the Compton Cowboys. Randy is the leader of the Compton Cowboys and the Director of the Compton Jr. Equestrians.

Did you know Compton is an equestrian city? Randy tells us the history of the Richland Farms section of Compton and their equestrian culture. When crime started becoming more prevalent in Compton, his family was faced with a decision: leave or stay? They decided they were not only going to stay but they were going to give back to their community and do their best to create a change in their community.

Randy’s aunt started the Compton Jr Posse, a children’s equestrian program that teaches children responsibility through horses. When his aunt retired, Randy took over as Director and rebranded it to the Compton Jr Equestrians.

When Hollywood started looking for black cowboys, they reached out to Randy and his friends for more and more opportunities and the Compton Cowboys were born. The Compton Cowboys have appeared in ads for Guiness, Ariat, Boot Barn, Adidas, and more.

Randy also talks about all of the future projects he has in the works and his plans to represent the black cowboy across all forms of media. He released a single called Colorblind with Dr. Dre and explains the process of meeting and working with one of the greatest producers of all time.

If you want to hear some never before heard stories about John Wayne, then this is the episode for you! Who else knows you better than your best friend? Ernie Saftig was one of John Wayne’s longest and closest friends. Ernie was there for many big life events including when Duke met his wife, Pilar, acquiring the Wild Goose, filming the Alamo, and raising their children together.

Today, we have the pleasure of sitting down with Ernie’s son, Tom Saftig. Tom and his family were around for so many great times with the Wayne family, including traveling on the Wild Goose, filming The Alamo, and life in Newport Beach.

Tom tells the story about how his father helped John Wayne acquire the Wild Goose. Ethan and Tom also remember the fun times on the boat including their fathers’ love for card games on the Wild Goose and Tom remembers playing Duke in a game of chess while Duke was also deep in a game of Bridge.

Ernie helped Duke in a lot of movies and in The Alamo, Tom got his chance to help Uncle Duke. Find out how he missed his big Hollywood moment!

Tom remembers how thoughtful John Wayne was with a story about a trip to Dallas where Duke and Ernie ended up bringing him back a Dallas Cowboys warm up jacket from Bob Lilley and Ralph Neely! Every teenager’s dream.

Ernie and Duke were big fans of the ocean and Ethan and Tom remember their father’s boats and how they carried that on.

This is a really great episode and we hope you enjoy listening to two family friends catching up!

What’s it like seeing your dad get shot on a huge screen? Terrifying. That's what happens when you're John Wayne's daughter! On this week’s episode of the John Wayne Gritcast, Ethan Wayne talks with little sister, Marisa Wayne. 

The two talk about growing up in Newport Beach with their iconic father and then what life was like after losing him. Marisa shares some of her favorite memories with her dad, including attending his last Oscars appearance with him,

Marisa also shares some of the lessons her father taught her. Including how to treat people around you and what happens when you don’t clean your room on the Wild Goose!

The two enjoy some laughs sharing old memories at Ethan’s kitchen table. Find out how they reconnected after their father passed away, some of their favorite foods that remind them of their dad, and what kind of babysitter Ethan was to Marisa’s children!

In this episode of the John Wayne Gritcast, Ethan Wayne sits down with his mother, Pilar Wayne. Pilar & Ethan are also joined by Marisa and the three sit down at Pilar’s dining room table and discuss her very interesting life.

She details her earliest memories of growing up in Peru, witnessing the loss of her father, and having to go to work to help support her family. She also talks about meeting John Wayne and how the two fell madly in love.

What was it like being married to John Wayne? She discusses getting married in Hawaii and how she wanted to be a mother. She also talks about her relationship with John Wayne’s oldest children and having a blended family. She also details traveling around the world so the family could be together on set and life on the Wild Goose.

Pilar also answers questions from the fans like what are the challenges being married to a movie star, her favorite John Wayne film, and her secret to a long and happy life.

In this episode, Ethan continues his conversation with Patrick Wayne where they share their own experiences in Hollywood, their family memories, and answer some fun questions about their lives and the life of their father, John Wayne. We are also lucky enough to have Marisa Wayne join the conversation!

The three continue the conversation from Episode 1 by hearing how Patrick got started acting with John Wayne and how John Ford gave him his first job. From Rio Grande, to The Quiet Man, to Big Jake, Patrick recounts fun memories on set.

What was it like growing up with the Wayne siblings? They discuss growing up in a blended family and how John Wayne raised them all to be very close. Patrick tells the story of how Ethan tricked him and it ended up bringing the family closer together. They also discuss how Patrick stepped in and looked after them after their father, John Wayne, passed away.

Patrick, Marisa, and Ethan answer fun questions about different topics including what actors they would want to play them in a movie based on their families’ lives, their favorite lines they have delivered, their favorite movies to watch, and find out their favorite Hollywood co-workers!

Finally, we hear how Patrick has reacted to the rise in technology through the years and how he thinks John Wayne would react to social media.

Welcome to our first episode of the John Wayne Gritcast with our first guest, Patrick Wayne! Patrick Wayne is John Wayne’s third oldest child and appeared in eleven films with his dad. He and host, Ethan Wayne, are also joined by another special guest, Marisa Wayne.

The three reflect on life with their father, John Wayne, and exchange fun stories! Including memories of filming the mudslide scene from McLintock!, Patrick’s first road trip with Ethan & Marisa’s mother, Pilar, and what happened when John Wayne dropped Ethan off to stay with Patrick while he was filming the Bears and I.

Every Thursday, join host Ethan Wayne as he discusses the classic icon and the Americana he continues to inspire! 

Make sure to subscribe so you never miss an episode!