WI: John Wayne Dies Young?

So I was read this Cracked.com article about crazy shit that was done to people during the making of movies, when I found something interesting. During the filming of the 1928 film Noah's Arc, people actually drowned for real during the famous scene with the flood. Now, scary as that is, it also turns out that a young John Wayne was amoung the extras in that scene. So that got me thinking...

What if John Wayne drowns to death in 1928? What sort of impact would this have on American cinema, the Western film, and America as a whole? Would another actor take the mythological place John Wayne holds in the American mind instead?

Thoughts? Ideas?
 
John Wayne made a lot of movies. Stagecoach was probably the first star-making film that Wayne did, in 1939, after a very long stream of mostly non descript westerns. THen in the late 40s and early 50s came the war films such as Sands of Iwo Jima, along with the Ford westerns like She Wore a Yellow Ribbon. Ford was director on Stagecoach too, and had a hand in Wayne's development as a star. I can imagine that had Wayne not been around, Ford would have dipped into his revolving cast members to find a star for Stagecoach. Hard to say whether it would have been a hit or not without Wayne. He adds a lot to the role, and turns in some darn good performances during the 40s and 50s. FInding an actor to become the Icon that Wayne would become is difficult. There were many top western/action/leading man actors around, but not as many combining Wayne's large frame/ruggedness, combined with an easy grace and humor that he had. An interesting idea, but its hard for me to think of an easy replacement for John Wayne.
 
John Wayne made a lot of movies. Stagecoach was probably the first star-making film that Wayne did, in 1939, after a very long stream of mostly non descript westerns. THen in the late 40s and early 50s came the war films such as Sands of Iwo Jima, along with the Ford westerns like She Wore a Yellow Ribbon. Ford was director on Stagecoach too, and had a hand in Wayne's development as a star. I can imagine that had Wayne not been around, Ford would have dipped into his revolving cast members to find a star for Stagecoach. Hard to say whether it would have been a hit or not without Wayne. He adds a lot to the role, and turns in some darn good performances during the 40s and 50s. FInding an actor to become the Icon that Wayne would become is difficult. There were many top western/action/leading man actors around, but not as many combining Wayne's large frame/ruggedness, combined with an easy grace and humor that he had. An interesting idea, but its hard for me to think of an easy replacement for John Wayne.
Johnny Weismuller?
 
Ya gotta be kiddin' me, Pilgrim.

John wayne cast a pretty tall shadow i nthe hollywood of his day, heck he was making movies right up until his OTL death. (The Shootist, McQ.)

I cannot even imagine a hollywood of that time without him in films like Rio Bravo, or the other version of Rio Bravo, or The COwboys, or Sands of Iwo Jima, or well you get the idea.
 
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