WW2 Draft Dodger Gets a Statue in OK City

[Joey Liberal]

OKLAHOMA CITY - John Wayne has been honored on the 100th anniversary of the year of his birth with a larger-than-life bronze statue at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum.

Two of Wayne's grandchildren, Anita LaCava Swift and Nick Kuhle, attended the unveiling Saturday of the 8-foot, 8-inch statue depicting the actor in cowboy boots, spurs, chaps and a hat, holding a rifle in his left hand and wearing a gun belt and holster.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070729/ap_en_mo/people_wayne

[muntrv]

1. Don't you know? He had other priorities during WWII.

:sarcasm:

[mitchum]

2. Is the statue wearing make up?

The weird thing about Wayne is that he was a better actor than his detractors think, and he was a much more loathsome human being than admirers think.
And that's probably the only complex thing about that ridiculous asshole.

[Captain Hilts]

11. Gen. MacArthur wore make-up. nt

[mitchum]

12. Indeed, MacArthur was a full on fop who really liked "looking pretty"...

that fact and his son's sexual orientation weighs pretty heavily in favor of the theory that there is indeed a genetic component to homosexuality.

[Help me help Earth]

3. That's a little harsh,

there is a difference between dodging the draft and not enlisting.

[Joey Liberal]

14. No, it wasn't harsh enough

The "Duke" was a daisy when it came to fighting for his country in WW2.

[Faygo Kid]

4. More complicated than that. 34 year old father of four in 1941,

Others in the same circumstance did indeed serve, like Henry Fonda, and this is not to make an excuse. But he was not a "draft dodger" in the sense that the neocon chickenhawks are today. Plus, he did visit dangerous areas to genuinely support the troops. Unlike the chickenhawks today. Look, he was a better actor than most here would give him credit for (The Searchers), but his politics were bad and simplistic. He was no "draft dodger," though, like the neocons today.

I wonder what a hard-ass conservative like him, Barry Goldwater and even Reagan would think of the nasty vermin that occupy the White House today and control talk radio and Faux News. Maybe they would go down the line in their support, but they might just have had at least a small degree of skepticism that doesn't exist in the W. worship world.

[bbinacan]

5. Was he drafted? n/t

[Help me help Earth]

6. No, he wasn't elegible.

But he didn't enlist at a time when many movie stars did.

[Captain Hilts]

7. They changed the eligibility standards as the war went on.

Bogart and Tracy served in WWI.

bv

[bbinacan]

8. Are you sure about elegibility? My

Grandfather was drafted at the same age, with 3 children. He closed his grocery store and went.

[Help me help Earth]

9. Not totally, but that's what I've heard. nt

[Captain Hilts]

10. At the end of the war, those with three or more kids got discharged first.

But some did get drafted.

[mitchum]

13. Yes he was; read Gary Wills' "John Wayne's America" for a detailed examination...

of all the machinations used by that powdered and painted chickenhawk in order to keep his drunken ass out of harm's way.

[BDW1964]

15. Draft Dodger no

John Wayne always regretted not being in the service. However, his decision to not enlist was not one based on cowardice or draft dodging. As a man of 34 years of age, he was generally past the point of being a combat soldier. Secondly and more importantly, the War Department wanted to put him in what was then called a "Special Services Unit". These were not special forces, but were MWR (Morale, Welfare and Recreation) units that did entertainment. Even actors like Clark Gable, who was a major star like Wayne at the time, mainly did PR stuff, although he did fly on one or two missions. Jimmy Stewart had the threaten to resign his commission to get an active assignment.

[WannaJumpMyScooter]

16. No draft dodger, but a service avoider

for sure.

He could have done anything he wanted, don't give me that crap.

[mitchum]

17. Sorry, but you have fallen for the PR...

Perhaps Wayne regretted being a swaggering veteran, but he sure as hell didn't regret not being in the service. Read Gary Wills' "John Wayne's America" for the documentation concerning all of the machinations done by that powdered and painted chickenhawk.
Wayne avoided military service due to cowardice and a desire not to lose $$$$$$$$$ during an interrupted career. Typical chickenhawk republican.

[BDW1964]

19. Lmao

Mitchum,

Are you claiming that the War Department would have put a movie star like John Wayne in a combat unit? How many men that were Hollywood stars at the time, were in direct combat positions? The only one that I know of was Jimmy Stewart, who had to threaten to resign his commission unless he was assigned to an active bomb group. Even in John Wayne had enlisted or been commissioned, he would ave been assigned to a Special Services Unit, basically doing exactly what he did do, or making army movies like Reagan did.

[WannaJumpMyScooter]

18. At least they did not picture him as

a Marine.

[Name removed]

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