John Wayne

John Wayne is often canonized as one of America's greatest heroes, but this wasn't the case during World War II as his Hollywood star began to rise.

He was in the right spot at the right time with the right qualities and willing to work hard. Historians believe that Wayne's guilt inspired by his lack of serving in the war was a major contributing factor to his eventual zealous nationalism and white supremacist ideals. President Roosevelt called the movie theater a "necessary and beneficial part of the war effort," so Wayne stayed back to support the war effort through his art, successfully obtaining a 3-A status, "deferred for [family] dependency reasons." His family had the money to stay afloat without him, Hollywood clearly loved him and would have welcomed him back with open arms, and director John Ford even had an "in," getting Wayne to join the naval photography unit. As author Garry Wills described in his book " John Wayne's America: The Politics of Celebrity," the combat veterans present during his USO tours in the 1940s were furious with his presence, booing the Duke and jeering as he took the stage. In their eyes, Wayne was a coward and a draft dodger who chose Hollywood stardom over joining the war effort.