Hollywood legend John Wayne starred in the 1959 Western Rio Bravo with Angie Dickinson, who was 24 years his junior and has recalled how ‘adorable’ the Duke was on set
In 1959, John Wayne returned to the Western genre with a patriotic flair in Rio Bravo.
Following his role in John Ford’s The Searchers, Duke had attempted to distance himself from Westerns, but the subsequent films didn’t garner as much acclaim.
Reuniting with director Howard Hawks for Rio Bravo, the film was seen as a counterpoint to 1952’s High Noon, which was interpreted as an allegory for Hollywood’s blacklisting of suspected communists within the film industry.
John Wayne viewed the movie as “un-American” and Hawks took issue with the depiction of the sheriff pleading for assistance from anyone. In contrast, their upcoming film would feature Wayne’s fearless lawman character recruiting only the most competent individuals.
Rio Bravo, co-starring Dean Martin and Ricky Nelson, saw Wayne’s Texan sheriff character arresting a rancher for murder and keeping him in jail until the arrival of the US Marshal. All the while, he fends off the prisoner’s gang with the help of a drunk, a young gunfighter, and a physically disabled man.
The female lead, Feathers, was portrayed by Angie Dickinson, who was just 27 at the time, opposite the 51 year old Duke. This significant age gap sparked criticism from some quarters, reports the Express.
Now aged 92, Dickinson has previously reflected warmly on her experience working with Wayne, who passed away in 1979.
In a heartfelt conversation with Culture Map Austin, Angie Dickinson reflected on the enduring appeal of the classic western Rio Bravo, largely attributing its longevity to John Wayne’s performance. She remarked: “It’s one of the roles where he is so different, in that he’s, how can we say, adorable? He’s not defending the fort, so to speak. I think it’s a side of him we didn’t see in a lot of his movies. He’s enjoying this young woman. And while he’s enchanted with her, he’s also adorable with Walter Brennan. And he’s charming and loving with Dean Martin, and with Ricky Nelson. So we see a warmth and a cuteness about him that we don’t see in many of his other movies.”
Reflecting on her role as a strong female lead who stands up to Wayne’s character, she expressed: “Oh, it was in the writing. The writing is not only underrated but ignored in this movie, because it looks so natural. You forget those words were all written [by Jules Furthman and Leigh Brackett]. It was romantic. Billy Wilder called Rio Bravo a suspense movie, but the suspense was also there in the romance.”
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Dickinson, celebrated for her insured legs by Lloyds of London following her casting, was questioned about the age difference between her and Wayne and whether it posed a challenge to portray a believable on-screen romance. She responded: “No, it never entered my mind. It just didn’t occur to any of us. I think it was a maturity that we all had, that [was] what was most important. The age didn’t matter because we were all mature people. I was never an ingénue.”
Rio Bravo was also the 22nd and last film featuring Wayne and Ward Bond, with Bond passing away from a heart attack at age 57 in 1960.
In later years, scenes from the movie, among others, would be used in flashbacks for Duke’s final film, the 1976 classic The Shootist.