He was born Marion Michael Morrison in Winterset, Iowa. He got the nickname "Duke" from a dog :) When Marion was six, the family moved to California. He rose at 4 a.m. to deliver newspapers, and after school and football practice he made deliveries for local stores. He was an A student, president of the Latin Society, head of his senior class and an all-state guard on a championship football team. Duke had hoped to attend the U.S. Naval Academy and was named as an alternate selection to Annapolis, but the first choice took the appointment. Instead, he accepted a full scholarship to play football at the University of Southern California. There coach Howard Jones, who often found summer jobs in the movie industry for his players, got Duke work in the summer of 1926 as an assistant prop man on the set of a movie directed by John Ford. "Sure, I wave the American flag. Do you know a better flag to wave? Sure I love my country with all her faults. I'm not ashamed of that, never have been, never will be. I was proud when President Nixon ordered the mining of Haiphong Harbor, which we should have done long ago, because I think we're helping a brave little country defend herself against Communist invasion. That's what I tried to show in The Green Berets and I took a lot of abuse from the critics." ~John Wayne~ John Wayne always supported the men in uniform. Due to a football injury he was never able to serve in the military so he helped out in other ways. He made films for the War department during WW2. The Duke was active with the USO visiting the troops from WW2 to Vietnam. He spent 6 weeks in Vietnam encourgaging the men and signing helmets. His film, "The Green Berets" was his tribute to those who served. In 1970, Mr. Wayne won an oscar for one of my favorite movies...True Grit. In 1963 he had a lung removed,open heart surgery in 1978 and in 1979 his stomach was removed.His last public appearance, at the 1979 Oscar ceremony, was itself an act of courage for the cancer-ridden star, who died just a few months later John Wayne Cancer Institute was officially opened on July 1, 1991, at Saint John's Health Center in Santa Monica, California, as a nonprofit center for cancer treatment and research. John Wayne is buried at Pacific View Memorial Park in Newport Beach, CAlifornia.