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John Wayne
“the Quiet Man” is a Love Story Set in the Emerald Isle of Ireland
Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley
The Quiet Man – 4 Stars (Excellent)
No one ever said that filmmaking was easy, only that it could be very good and sometimes enduring, as in “The Quiet Man”, starring John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara with legendary Director John Ford.
Like a lot of great films, The Quiet Man is a story of the conflict and conquest in the courtship of a man and a woman. A woman determined to get her way, a brother determined to keep his sister from the man she loves, and a man determined to win the heart of the woman he marries.
Irish-born Sean Thornton (John “Duke” Wayne) is an American who swears off being a professional fighter after accidentally killing an opponent in the ring.
Returning to the Irish town of his birth, he starts a new life and finds happiness when he falls in love with the fiery Mary Kate Danaher (Maureen O’Hara).
Mary Kate’s brother, Will “Red” Danaher (Victor McLaglen) stands in their way. Without her brother’s permission, she cannot marry Sean. The male dominance in Irish culture during this period is evident. Women were to obey, period.
Red Danaher resents the fact that Sean was able to purchase his birth home adjacent to the Danaher’s property. Danaher had continually bid for the property next door but lost out to the American “newcomer” and outsider.
Eventually Danaher is duped into letting Sean marry Mary Kate, but initially he refuses to let Mary Kate take her inheritance (furniture and a dowry). The villagers persuade Red to give Mary Kate her furniture, but he stands fast on the dowry.
For Mary Kate the 350 pounds sterling she is owed represents a lot of money, but the breaking of tradition and doing the right thing becomes an issue she cannot and will not ignore, even for the sake of her marriage.
Mary Kate is a woman who, if nothing else, makes it clear she will be dealt with despite her ill temper and stubbornness. She believes that Sean is a coward for not confronting her brother Red. Sean simply does not want to accidentally kill another man in a fight over money.
When Mary Kate decides to leave her marriage and take the train out of town, Sean goes into action. After dragging Mary Kate off the train and through the pasture, the longest fistfight in screen history erupts.
Once Mary Kate realizes that Sean will fight for her, she is quite happy to return to their cottage and makes it clear that dinner will be ready when Sean returns home. The Duke (Sean) slugs it out with Kate’s brother, eventually wins, and wins back Kate’s heart as well.
The story of The Quiet Man reminds me of William Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew and its movie version in 1967 starring Elizabeth Taylor as Katharina and Richard Burton as Petruchio.
Katharina is cast as an ill-tempered, strong-willed, opinionated, vocal, recalcitrant, unmanageable woman. Petruchio manages to bring her around and when he does, Katharina is content to do his bidding. I see a lot of Mary Kate Danaher in Katharina.
The supporting cast of The Quiet Man is a collection of Irishmen worthy of the name: Michaleen Oge Flynn (Barry Fitzgerald), Father Peter Lonergan (Ward Bond), Father Paul (James O’Hara) and The Widow Sarah Tillane (Mildred Natwick) among others. And, yes, there are a lot of relatives in this cast.
The Quiet Man was based on a 1933 Saturday Evening Post short story by Maurice Walsh. Ford read the story in 1933 and purchased the rights to it for $10.
In 1944, John Ford, John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara made a handshake agreement to do the film version, but it would take another 8 years for Ford to raise the money necessary to produce the film.
The Quiet Man was the first American feature to be filmed in Ireland’s picturesque countryside. The film almost never happened as Ford was told by producers that a “silly Irish story would not make a penny.”
Finally Republic Pictures was approached and studio chief Herbert Yates relented under the condition that Ford, Wayne and O’Hara would also do a western for Republic, a sure money-maker that would offset losses anticipated from The Quiet Man. The result was the 1950 production of “Rio Grande”.
John Ford was more than interested in doing the film. His real name was John Martin Feeney, his parents immigrated from County Galway, Ireland and settled in Maine. Ford also went by the name Sean O’Feeney.
Maureen O’Hara (real name Maureen Fitzsimons) was born in County Dublin, Ireland, spoke Irish and used her Gaelic language in the film. Her father was part owner of Ireland’s leading football team, the Shamrock Rovers.
John Wayne was half Irish. He appeared in more than 20 of Ford’s films, many of them low budget westerns and war movies. The Duke said that of all the films he made, The Quiet Man was his favorite.
Ford earned his 4th and last Best Director Oscar for The Quiet Man in 1952. His other 3 Best Director Oscars were for “The Informer” in 1935, “The Grapes of Wrath” in 1940 and “How Green Was My Valley” in 1941. Only How Green Was My Valley won an Oscar for Best Picture.
Ford remains the only director in history to win 4 Best Director Oscars. Two othersWilliam Wyler and Frank Caprahave won 3 times.
Ford received the American Film Institute’s first Life Achievement Award in 1973. He has been recognized as one of the greatest directors of all time. His work had an influence on directors Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, Sam Peckinpah, Peter Bogdanovich, Sergio Leone, Jean-Luc-Godard and Akira Kurosawa.
The Quiet Man won a second Oscar for Best Cinematography and was nominated for 5 other Oscars: Best Picture, Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Victor McLaglen), Best Art Direction, Best Sound and Best Writing (screenplay by Frank Nugent). The Best Picture Oscar in 1952 went to “The Greatest Show on Earth”.
Action adventure freaks and lovers of unredeeming modern-day films such as “Mr. and Mrs. Smith” will not be able to stand The Quiet Man, which is very slow developing yet offers a perfectly picturesque Irish setting for a real love story.
The Quiet Man is an Irish movie filmed in Ireland for the glory of Ireland, its people and its culture. I am only 15% Irish and a third generation American, but always claim that my 15% Irish heritage is the best part of me.
About the Author
Ed Bagley’s Blog Publishes Original Articles with Analysis and Commentary on 5 Subjects: Sports, Movie Reviews, Lessons in Life, Jobs and Careers, and Internet Marketing. Read my 3-part series on “Secrets Men Don’t Want Women to Know” and reviews on the Broadway musicals “Camelot”, “Chicago” and “The Phantom of the Opera”. These are all excellent films. Find my Blog at:
http://www.edbagleyblog.com
http://www.edbagleyblog.com/MovieReviews.html
How many different movies did John Wayne star in?
I long ago lost count and just wondered.
1926 – GREAT K & A TRAIN ROBBERY
1926 – BROWN OF HARVARD
1926 – BARDELYS THE MAGNIFICENT
1927 – THE DROPKICK 1927 – ANNIE LAURIE
1928 – MOTHER MACHREE
1928 – HANGMAN’S HOUSE
1928 – FOUR SON’S
1929 – WORDS AND MUSIC/Duke Morrison
1929 – SPEAKEASY 1929 – SALUTE
1929 – NOAH’S ARK
1929 – THE FOWARD PASS
1929 – THE BLACK WATCH 1930 – ROUGH ROMANCE
1930 – MEN WITHOUT WOMEN
1930 – CHEER UP AND SMILE/Duke Morrison
1930 – BORN RECKLESS 1930 – THE BIG TRAIL
1931 – THREE GIRLS LOST
1931 – THE RANGE FUED
1930 – MEN ARE LIKE THAT
1931 – MAKER OF MEN
1931 – GIRLS DEMAND EXCITEMENT
1931 – THE DECEIVER 1932 – THE VOICE OF HOLLYWOOD No.13
1932 – TWO-FISTED LAW
1932 – THAT’S MY BOY 1932 – TEXAS CYCLONE 1932 – THE SHADOW OF THE EAGLE
1932 – RIDE HIM COWBOY
1932 – LADY AND GENT
1932 – THE HURRICANE EXPRESS
1932 – THE HOLLYWOOD HANDICAP
1932 – HAUNTED GOLD 1932 – THE BIG STAMPEDE
1933 – THE THREE MUSKETEERS
1933 – THE TELEGRAPH TRAIL
1933 – SOMEWHERE IN SONORA
1933 – SAGEBRUSH TRAIL 1933 – RIDERS OF DESTINY
1933 – THE MAN FROM MONTEREY
1933 – THE LIFE OF JIMMY DOLAN
1933 – HIS PRIVATE SECRETARY
1933 – COLLEGE COACH 1933 – CENTRAL AIRPORT
1933 – BABYFACE
1934 – WEST OF THE DEVIDE
1934 – THE TRAIL BEYOND 1934 – THE STAR PACKER
1934 – RANDY RIDES ALONE
1934 – THE MAN FROM UTAH
1934 – THE LUCKY TEXAN
1935 – THE LAWLESS FRONTIER
1934 – BLUE STEEL
1934 – `NEATH THE ARIZONA SKIES
1935 – WESTWARD HO
1935 – TEXAS TERROR
1935 – RAINBOW VALLEY
1935 – PARADISE CANYON
1935 – THE NEW FRONTIER
1935 – LAWLESS RANGE
1935 – THE DESERT TRAIL
1935 – THE DAWN RIDER 1936 – WINDS OF THE WASTELAND
1936 – SEA SPOILERS
1936 – THE OREGON TRAIL
1936 – THE LONELY TRAIL
1936 – THE LAWLESS NINETIES
1936 – KING OF THE PECOS
1936 – CONFLICT 1937 – IDLE OF THE CROWDS
1937 – I COVER THE WAR
1937 – CALIFORNIA STRAIGHT AHEAD
1938 – BORN TO THE WEST
1937 – ADVENTURES END
1938 – SANTA FE STAMPEDE
1938 – RED RIVER RANGE
1938 – PALS OF THE SADDLE
1938 – OVERLAND STAGE RAIDERS
1939 – WYOMING OUTLAW
1939 – THREE TEXAS STEERS
1939 – STAGECOACH 1939 – THE NIGHT RIDERS
1939 – NEW FRONTIER
1939 – ALLEGHENY UPRISING
1940 – THREE FACES WEST 1940 – SEVEN SINNERS
1940 – THE LONG VOYAGE HOME
1940 – THE DARK COMMAND
1941 – WHEEL OF FORTUNE
1941 – STARS PAST AND PRESENT
1941 – THE SHEPARD OF THE HILLS
1941 – A MAN BETRAYED 1941 – LADY FROM LOUISIANA
1941 – LADY FOR A NIGHT
1942 – THE SPOILERS 1942 – REUNION IN FRANCE
1942 – REAP THE WILD WIND 1942 – PITTSBURGH 1942 – IN OLD CALIFORNIA
1942 – FLYING TIGERS
1943 – A LADY TAKES A CHANCE
1943 – WAR OF THE WILDCATS (IN OLD OKLAHOMA)
1944 – TALL IN THE SADDLE
1944 – THE FIGHTING SEABEES
1945 – THEY WERE EXPENDABLE
1945 – FLAME OF THE BARBARY COAST
1945 – DAKOTA 1945 – BACK TO BATAAN
1946 – WITHOUT RESERVATIONS
1946 – DESERT COMMAND
1947 – TYCOON
1947 – ANGEL AND THE BADMAN
1948 – WAKE OF THE RED WITCH
1948 – RED RIVER 1948 – FORT APACHE
1948 – 3 GODFATHERS
1949 – SHE WORE A YELLOW RIBBON
1949 – SANDS OF IWO JIMA
1949 – THE FIGHTING KENTUCKIAN
1950 – RIO GRANDE
1951 – OPERATION PACIFIC
1951 – FLYING LEATHERNECKS
1952 – THE QUIET MAN
1952 – BIG JIM McLAIN
1953 – TROUBLE ALONG THE WAY
1953 – ISLAND IN THE SKY
1953 – HONDO
1954 – THE HIGH AND THE MIGHTY
1955 – BLOOD ALLEY 1955 – THE SEA CHASE
1955 – ROOKIE OF THE YEAR (TV)
1956 – THE CONQUEROR
1956 – THE SEARCHERS
1957 – JET PILOT
1957 – LEGEND OF THE LOST (TIMBUCTU)
1957 – THE WINGS OF EAGLES
1958 – THE BARBARIAN AND THE GEISHA
1958 – CHINA DOLL
1958 – I MARRIED A WOMAN
1959 – THE HORSE SOLDIERS
1959 – RIO BRAVO
1960 – THE ALAMO
1960 – NORTH TO ALASKA
1961 – THE COMANCHEROS
1962 – HATARI!
1962 – HOW THE WEST WAS WON
1962 – THE LONGEST DAY
1962 – THE MAN WHO SHOT LIBERTY VALANCE
1963 – DONOVAN’S REEF
1963 – McLINTOCK!
1964 – CIRCUS WORLD
1965 – THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD
1965 – IN HARMS WAY
1965 – THE SONS OF KATIE ELDER
1966 – CAST A GIANT SHADOW
1967 – EL DORADO
1967 – THE WAR WAGON
1968 – HELLFIGHTERS
1968 – THE GREEN BERETS
1969 – TRUE GRIT
1969 – THE UNDEFEATED
1970 – CHISUM
1970 – RIO LOBO
1971 – BIG JAKE
1972 – THE COWBOYS
1973 – CAHILL -UNITED STATES MARSHAL
1973 – THE TRAIN ROBBERS
1974 – MCQ
1975 – ROOSTER C
John Wayne winning Best Actor for “True Grit”
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America, Why I Love Her $8.85 This sentimentally over-the-top spoken-word recording was originally issued in 1973, during the height of Watergate and the final, unsettling days of the Vietnam War. In the wake of September 11, 2001, the John Wayne Estate reissued it on CD. And why not? Marion Morrison, a.k.a. John Wayne and the Duke, remains an enduring symbol of America–a country with an endlessly conflicted legacy of largely… |
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