The History Channel’s This Day in History highlights the actor stating, “Wayne appeared in some 150 movies over the course of his long and storied career. He established his tough, rugged, uniquely American screen persona most vividly in the many acclaimed films he made for the directors John Ford and Howard Hawks.”
Wayne later battled cancer, first lungs and later stomach, which ultimately took his life at the age of 72 on June 11, 1979. Though on this day, back in 1970, he received his only Best Actor Oscar at the 42nd Annual Academy Awards, Wayne was known to be “one of Hollywood’s most enduring performers” and gave outstanding performances in films such as Stagecoach, Red River, The Searchers and The Shootist.