Tuesday, September 06, 2016

Announcing the John Wayne Blogathon!

Hey, guess what?  Quiggy at The Midnite Drive-In and I are going to co-host a John Wayne blogathon in December!  And you are hereby invited to attend, participate, and generally enjoy the festivities.


The John Wayne Blogathon will run for three days, December 9-11.  You can sign up for this event either here in the comments on this post, or else on The Midnite Drive-In's post.  We will add you to the list of participants, along with your chosen topic.  You can post on any of those three days, and if you want to write multiple posts, that's cool with us!

EDIT:  Please leave a link to your blog as well if your sign-in name doesn't lead to it, so we can link to it on the list.



Because John Wayne was such a prolific actor, we are insisting that there be no duplicates as far as movie reviews.  But you don't have to review one of the Duke's films to participate -- you could write about anything related to John Wayne.  A list of your favorites of his films?  Or his characters?  A review of a book about him?  An introspective look at why you're his fan?  An overview of his career?  There are so many options!  If you're not sure your idea for a post would work or not, feel free to ask either Quiggy or myself if it will be a good fit for this event.


And here's something else exciting!  Quiggy is going to host a giveaway during the blogathon!  He'll be giving a copy of the book American Titan:  Searching for John Wayne by Marc Eliot.  And his giveaway will be open world-wide.  I may or may not do a giveaway of some sort myself -- we'll see what I come up with.  You know I love me a good giveaway, so stay tuned for more about that closer to the event.


I got a little carried away with the buttons for this event, but I figure a nice variety is good, since John Wayne had such a wide spectrum of roles.  And that means you can pick the one you like best to post on your blog to spread the word about this event.


As you probably know, John Wayne is my absolute favorite actor of all time.  I'm really excited to be able to celebrate his films with this blogathon!


The List

Hamlette's Soliloquy -- The Quiet Man (1952)
The Midnite Drive-In -- Stagecoach (1939) and The Shootist (1976)
Caftan Woman -- Island in the Sky (1953)
Christina Wehner -- In Old California (1942)
High Noon -- Rio Bravo (1959) and The Big Trail (1930)
In the Good Old Days of Classic Hollywood -- The Sands of Iwo Jima (1949)
Phyllis Loves Classic Movies -- Rio Grande (1950)
Coffee, Classics, and Craziness -- The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962)
Love Letters to Old Hollywood -- John Wayne's appearance on I Love Lucy (1955)
Old Hollywood Films -- She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949)
Critica Retro -- John Wayne's early collaborations with John Ford
Movies Meet Their Match -- The Sons of Katie Elder (1965) and True Grit (1969)
Silver Scenes -- Tall in the Saddle (1944) and the films and friendship of John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara
Ekaterina -- Rooster Cogburn (1975)
Silver Screenings -- Operation Pacific (1951)
Thoughts All Sorts -- The War Wagon (1967) and Big Jake (1971)
The Wonderful World of Cinema -- Dark Command (1940)
Mike's Take on the Movies -- Wake of the Red Witch (1948)
4 Star Films -- walking in John Wayne's footsteps
Pillow Shots -- The Searchers (1956)
Sidewalk Crossings -- Rio Lobo (1970)

66 comments:

  1. Looks good. Thanks for cohosting.

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    1. Oops! Sorry! I did not mean to delete that! Any way looks great!!! I would like to take part, can I?

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    2. MovieCritic, absolutely! Pick a movie or topic that isn't claimed yet, let me know what it is, and I'll put you on the list. Then, sometime on December 9, 10, or 11, post about your topic on your blog. Come back and leave me a link to it then, and that's all there is to it!

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    3. I might be able to do True Grit, or The Sons of Katie Elder, or The War Wagon. I'm not sure. You can sign me up for one of these after everyone else has picked. ;-)

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    4. Just please don't make me do all three! :-o

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    5. I could also do The Searchers, but please have that one be a last choice. Sorry, I'm commenting too much! If anyone else wants to do True Grit or one of the other ones I can just do a differant one. Thanks! This looks fun!!

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    6. MovieCritic, I think you should just pick which one you really want to do!

      Personally, The Sons of Katie Elder is my favorite John Wayne film and favorite western, so I would love to see that included. So if you want me to just pick one for you, I pick that one. But don't wait for other people to see what they don't choose! This is first-come, first-serve.

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    7. The Sons of Katie Elder it is!
      MovieCritic at https://moviesmeetmatch.blogspot.com/
      Thank you!

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    8. Awesome! Adding you to the list, MovieCritic.

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    9. ...And True Grit as well, sorry, but it is one of my favotites.

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    10. MovieCritic -- you got it! Double the fun, huh?

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  3. Could I write about In Old California (1942)? I am Christina Wehner

    https://christinawehner.wordpress.com/

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    1. Christina W -- great! I haven't seen that one in years. You're on the list :-)

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  4. What an event this is going to be!!! Could I be down for Rio Bravo and The Big Trail? Though honestly I may be inspired to do more if I can...

    And that header... Hamlette, you should have some sort of warning! I nearly fainted at the intense splendor of it. ;)

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    1. Eowyn, awesome! I've got you down for those two (and oh, how I love Rio Bravo!!!), and if you feel inspired to write more later on, you can see what's still available :-)

      Hee :-) Yes, a triple dose of Alan Ladd looking that fine can be a bit dangerous. Sorry! (Not really, though, cuz I love admiring this header...)

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  5. Hi. Could I write about "The Quiet Man" ( 1952 )? I'm going to be seeing it on the big screen next month, so thought it's rather fitting.

    My blog: In The Good Old Days Of Classic Hollywood

    I've also just announced another blogathon the other day for December, and would love to invite you to join in. The link is below with more details.

    https://crystalkalyana.wordpress.com/2016/09/05/announcing-the-agnes-moorehead-blogathon/

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    1. So jealous you're getting to see it on the big screen!!!

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    2. Crystal, it's all yours! And wooooow, I am also envious that you're seeing it on the big screen. How amazing!

      Thanks for the invite on the Agnes Moorehead event. I will have to see what my calendar looks like closer to it, as right now I'm like, "Ack, but I'm doing Phyl's Cary Grant event, and then hosting this, and there's no way!" But we shall see ;-)

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    3. Don't let that stop you... You should see the docket I have for October... :-)

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    4. Yeeeah, but my head nearly exploded when I had the film noir and Hitchcock events so close together, and I realized I can't do that anymore or it isn't fun anymore...

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  6. I think I'm going to go with Rio Grande (1950). It's my favorite John Wayne film but I've never written a full post on it! Can't wait for this!!

    http://phyllislovesclassicmovies.blogspot.com/

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    1. Phyl, sounds good! I haven't seen that one in a long time, but I've been thinking of rewatching the whole "cavalry trilogy" sometime soon to see if She Wore a Yellow Ribbon is still my favorite.

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  7. I'm torn. I love entering blogathons (and I've probably have time to do this one), especially when they deal with an Old Hollywood actor/topic, and I've seen a few John Wayne films that I've enjoyed + wouldn't be averse to reviewing, but... I don't actually dig his characters much in any of those films. :P Either because I find them unlikable, or I just don't much care about them. With the possible exception of The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance.

    You know what? I'm going to do mini-reviews of TMWSLV and The Horse Soldiers. Nobody's taken those yet and the blogathon is far enough away to give me time to re-watch both of those and write the post. Sound good?

    ~Eva

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    1. Eva, whaaaaaaat? I am aghast. Possibly appalled. And also fascinated. I'm wondering now what it is about his characters that you don't like? Too bossy? Too curt? Too tough? Too my-way-or-the-highway? This is very interesting.

      But anyway, Liberty Valance and The Horse Soldiers can be yours :-)

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    2. Yes, I think John Wayne's characters come across as a little too bossy and rough for my tastes - I prefer it when guys are a little, I don't know...gentler? Not that I want them to be pansies, or anything. I guess I like guys to have plenty of strength of character but be a little kinder and softer than John Wayne's characters usually are. Does that make any sense?

      Thanks!

      ~Eva

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    3. By the way, I heartily approve of your new header. :)

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    4. And it's that bossiness that I relate to, I think -- I'm awfully bossy myself sometimes. Plus I like big, tough, sometimes rough guys because then when they do get all soft and tender, it's very special and you know they're making an effort to be nicer than usual.

      And thanks! It's not going anywhere for a long time, I suspect.

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  8. Could I do the Duke's appearance in "I Love Lucy"? My blog is Love Letters to Old Hollywood.

    I also wanted to invite you to my own December blogathon. It'd be great to have you!
    http://loveletterstooldhollywood.blogspot.com/2016/09/announcing-vincente-minnelli-blogathon.html

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    1. Michaela, I was hoping someone would cover his I Love Lucy episode! All yours.

      And thanks for the invite! Wow, December will be quite the busy time. I'm not sure I'll be able to join your event, but I'll think about it! Looks like most of my favorites are taken already, but maybe I'll come up with something :-)

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    2. I totally understand! I was just looking at my list of upcoming posts and it's like suddenly a dozen new blogathons popped up. Add the holidays on top of that and it's going to be crazy.

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    3. I never knew the Duke was on "I Love Lucy"... Have to admit when I saw this I thought you two had confused it with his appearance on "The Lucy Show". But I googled it. Now I gotta watch it.

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  9. I'll take She Wore a Yellow Ribbon for Old Hollywood Films. Thanks!

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  10. Lê at Crítica Retrô wants to do early John Wayne/John Ford collaborations. (from my page's comments.)

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    1. Thanks, Quiggy! I've added her. And I've clicked the "notify me" thing on your post so I'll get an email alert if someone comments on your post. Or should, anyway :-)

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  11. This sounds like so much fun! I also have not done a movie review, so this will be a new experience. Could I do a guest blog post on your blog? If I can, could I do a movie review on Rooster Cogburn (1975)? I really loved the interaction between John Wayne and Katharine Hepburn, so I think it would be fun to write about this movie.

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    1. Ekaterina, "Rooster Cogburn" it is. But is there a reason you'd rather not do it on your own blog? I'll put you down as "Incidents of a Literary Nature" for now, but that doesn't mean I'm unwilling to post yours as a guest post here, just... kind of wondering why?

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    2. Oh! Sorry, if I have made you confused. Elizabeth made me her fellow blogger on her blog (Incidents of a Literary Nature) for a little while because we wrote some blog posts together, but that is her blog. I don't have a blog, which is why I wanted to do a guest post.

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    3. AHA! Okay, Ekaterina, I understand :-) I will change the list to say just your name, and you can email your post to me.

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  12. I don't see Silver Scenes' reply on this page, so I'm assuming Connie probably messaged you in another way. I'm also assuming that the before and after parts in the list means she is going to do one and her sister is going to do the other. That's why I posted it to my blog as separate entries. Just so you know. Q-

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    1. Quiggy, yup, they emailed me with their selections. Since I've just been listing them by blog and not by blogger, I just put them together. Now you know!

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  13. Hello. Mike's Take on The Movies would like to contribute a piece on Wake Of The Wed Witch. Let me know if that's ok.

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    1. Hi, Mike! That would be great -- I'll add you to the list.

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  14. Hi,

    I was wondering if I could write about walking in John Wayne's footsteps by visiting his childhood home and his home town in later years? Not really a film per se. My blog is 4 Star Films (fourstarfilmfan.wordpress.com/). Let me know. Thanks!

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    1. Tynan, that sounds great! I've been to his birthplace once, but that was many years ago. I'll add you to the list.

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  15. Hey. I'm wondering if I can change my topic? I originally chose "The Quiet Man", because initially I was going to see it on the big screen last month, but unfortunately I couldn't make it to the screening, and I don't feel inspired to write about it seeing as I missed the screening. I haven't properly decided on another topic yet. Is there anything that you would like to see covered for the blogathon?

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    1. Hi, Crystal! Sure, you can totally change your subject. Bummer on not getting to see TQM on the big screen :-(

      You could review a biography, or write about his involvement with supporting US troops, talk about the films he made with his children, trace the history of his production companty Batjac... lots to choose from! Those are just what come to mind at the moment.

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    2. There's so much to choose from, so I'm having a hard time making up my mind. However, I think I will go with "Sands Of Iwo Jima".

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    3. Works for me, Crystal! That's one of my favorite war movies :-)

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    4. Thanks. Looking forward to it. I would also like to invite you to participate in my next blogathon that I'm co-hosting. Here is the link below.

      https://crystalkalyana.wordpress.com/2016/11/21/announcing-the-carole-lombard-the-profane-angel-blogathon/

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    5. Thanks for the invite, Crystal! I will see if I come up with anything.

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  16. Hi I have a movie blog and I love John Wayne. I'd love to be involved somehow. I notice that "The Searchers" isn't taken. Is that possible? If it's not taken, I'd love to write about that. If not, I could do "Red River" as a second choice. I am on wordpress on www.pillowshot.wordpress.com

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    1. Hi, Jeremy! Glad to have you aboard. Looks like "The Searchers" is still up for grabs -- shall I put you down for it?

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    2. By the way, it looks like your blog is invitation-only. Is there a way you'll be able to make your post available to other participants?

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  17. I had started a review of Rio Lobo awhile back and never finished it. Maybe I should do so for this! Looks like no one has claimed that one yet.

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  18. Finally put the finishing touches on my entry. I scheduled it to go live Sunday, since that's my birthday, but am anxiously awaiting the start of it anyway.

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    1. Well, you're way ahead of me, then, Quiggy. I've rewatched The Quiet Man, but not started my review yet. I'll get there!

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  19. Hello! Just uploaded my post: https://silverscreenings.org/2016/12/08/why-john-wayne-has-to-do-everything-around-here/

    Very excited about this blogathon! :)

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    1. I've updated the list! I'm excited about it too :-) I get to spend all weekend reading about my favorite actor!!!

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  20. How can one handle all this fun!?

    My first link is here: https://ofhorseselvesandmen.blogspot.com/2016/12/movie-spotlight-big-trail-1930.html

    I'm really excited about both the films I reviewed, but I'm giddy about the one for tomorrow! Blogging and I have been having a rather challenging relationship lately, so having this deadline has been really good for me. :)

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    1. Yay! I'm adding your link to the main post right now. Don't forget to enter the giveaway if there are any movies in it you haven't seen/don't own/are curious about!

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