BBC Radio 2

To coincide with the centenary of the birth of the enduring American icon, John Wayne, Peter Bogdanovich celebrates the cinema legend and accounts for his extraordinary popularity. But there is a vital theme and twist that runs through our John Wayne story; Wayne could not exist in contemporary Hollywood – it has lost the moral authority to celebrate the kind of hero that John Wayne was.

Clips from 'Stagecoach' and 'The Quiet Man' courtesy of Universal Pictures (UK).
 

The 100th Anniversary Special Edition DVD Collection starring John Wayne is available to buy from 14th May 2007 from Paramount Home Entertainment