That's a statue of John "Duke" Wayne that I see often. It's in front of an office building at the corner of La Cienega Boulevard and Wilshire, just on the outskirts of Beverly Hills. I see it often because my dentist's office is nearby, as is the Saban Theater which I occasionally visit.
The statue was erected in 1984 to celebrate Wayne's career in films but probably more to note his years doing TV commercials for Great Western Savings and Loan, aka Great Western Bank. That was their building at the time, back when Great Western was one of the largest savings and loan operations in the nation. It has since changed owners and undergone serious restructuring and downsizing.
In 1994, that building and the statue outside were acquired by the noted pornographer Larry Flynt. His name now adorns the building outside of which John Wayne stands guard. We can only imagine what Duke would have thought of that.
As if everyone these days didn't have plenty of things to be outraged about, a lot of folks are presently mad at Mr. Wayne. Some comments he made in 1971, which were no secret all these years, are suddenly getting attention for being way outta sync with some current sensibilities. I wish I could say he was outta sync with all current sensibilities but if you read about this controversy on any website that allows comments, you'll find plenty insisting that his remarks about believing in "white supremacy" are still right on target.
I for one have not lost any real respect for John Wayne. Didn't have much then, don't have much now. I love the great actors of his era but not him to any serious degree. Certain films in which he starred are still beloved but most of them were directed by John Ford and I think I was way more impressed by Ford than by anyone in those pictures. And I say that knowing it will lead to an argumentative phone call from at least one film buff friend.
Okay…but even if he's right, it would only move me to think Wayne was a competent actor who expounded that shallow "I got mine" kind of patriotism. You know the type: "I got rich in America so there couldn't possibly be anything wrong with America." That's galling when it comes from people who seem to have lucked into their wealth…like being born with it or striking some kind of freakish luck. But that doesn't mean I see any point in condemning Mr. Wayne now.
The interview was 1971. He passed away in 1979 and it seemed to me like in his last years, he realized the world was changing and that he was alienating a younger generation who'd control the way he'd be viewed posthumously. He tried to back off some of what he'd said and he did a few talk shows, speaking of the essential dignity of the American Natives and their struggles.
One of those times was a Dick Cavett special that aired in '76. Cavett wrote about his encounter with Wayne in this article which he prefaces by saying "Good friends have refused to believe a word of what I'm about to relate. Your credulity is about to be strained." I'm not one of his good friends so I believe it but it doesn't change my opinion of the man. I already knew Wayne was an actor, not a cowboy. I just didn't think he was a good enough actor to make me believe he wasn't reciting a script by a good public relations consultant.
But I'm also willing to give him the benefit of a large doubt. There were stupid things I said in 1971 that I wouldn't try to defend today. Few among us are incapable of pulling an Ebenezer Scrooge and regretting the way we acted long ago or even before those three ghosts dropped by for a chat. Late in life, Bob Hope stopped defending Nixon and the Vietnam War. I know less famous people who, either because they were genuinely enlightened or just saw the wisdom of switching to the right side of history, underwent serious conversions. Or at least learned to drop certain words from their vocabulary.
Who's to say John Wayne wouldn't have? Heck, just the realization that he would wind up as Larry Flynt's welcoming committee could have made him change his act.