Despite Having 7 Children, John Wayne Was Buried In Private & His Grave Went Unmarked For 20 Years

Dec 01, 2021 by apost team

When it comes to Hollywood royalty, it does not get much better than John Wayne. For over three decades, Wayne starred in countless blockbuster films. Best known for his Westerns, Wayne had starring roles in "True Grit," "Stagecoach," "The High and the Mighty," and countless other gems of the silver screen. 

Wayne's acting career is a modern legend, and in 1999 he was selected posthumously as one of the greatest male actors of all time by the American Film Institute. He was also given the Presidential Medal of Freedom which is the highest honor a civilian can receive in the United States.

Wayne was born Marion Robert Morrison on May 26, 1907, in Winterset, Iowa. He was raised in Southern California. After high school, he received a football scholarship to the University of Southern California, where he enrolled as pre-law, but due to a bodysurfing accident, he lost his scholarship. Wayne then decided to become an actor and began working with the Fox Film Corporation. He went on to win the Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in "True Grit." Wayne passed away from stomach cancer in 1979 at the age of 72.

During his life, Wayne had seven children. Wayne's marriage with his first wife, Josephine, produced four kids: Michael, Mary, Patrick, and Melinda. Wayne had another three kids with his third wife, Pilar. Their names are Alissa, John Ethan, and Marisa. His kids adored him but decided to leave his grave unmarked for 20 years. Read on to learn more about Wayne's family and why they made this choice.

In addition to sharing remarkably similar physical attributes, all three of Wayne's sons shared their father's love of film. Michael, Wayne's oldest child, was born in 1934 and came of age at the height of his father's career. 

While his old man might have loved being in front of the camera, Michael relished working behind it. With his strong work ethic, Michael advanced from production assistant to producer, even helping his father with some of his later films. Tragically, Michael died in 2003 at 68 years old.

Born in 1939, Patrick Wayne started his acting career at the age of 11. Like his father, Patrick made a name for himself by starring in Westerns. Throughout his decades-spanning career, Patrick appeared in 40 productions, 11 of which he co-starred alongside his legendary father. Patrick also became known to television audiences as the host of two game shows: "The Monte Carlo Show" and "Tic-Tac-Dough."

John Ethan, who prefers to go by just Ethan, was born in 1962 and appeared in numerous TV shows and films in the 80s and 90s as both an actor and a stuntman. Since stepping away from the camera, Ethan now devotes himself entirely to protecting his father's legacy as head of John Wayne Enterprises and the John Wayne Cancer Foundation.

In a video, Wayne's family gathered aboard his yacht, the Wild Goose, to remember their beloved patriarch on what would have been his 110th birthday. Listening to their stories gives the picture of a man who, although known the world over as a famous celebrity, was first and foremost their father and loving caretaker.

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It turns out the Wayne family had a good reason to leave their father's grave unmarked for so long. "You want him to rest in peace. We didn't want to make a shrine," Ethan told the Los Angeles Times. "It's more out of respect for the people that are out there. They don't want their loved ones' graves trampled on."

Ethan added that he thinks his father would have liked fans to visit his final resting place. He shared: 

"I personally think it's wonderful that people want to go see him. He was a public person. He had a relationship with his family. But he also had a relationship with his fans. His fans allowed him to lead his lifestyle… He spent probably three to four hours a day just answering fan mail. Every letter got answered. They like him. If they want to go see him, I think it's wonderful. He had a tremendous impact on people."

Fans interested in visiting the grave can find the information online. Gary Wayne, the founder of www.seeing-stars.com, said to the LA Times, "In the same way that people want to visit the grave of a loved one to pay their last respects, people who fondly remember a celebrity often have a similar desire to visit or at least see their final resting place."

John Wayne's grave is not a shrine, but a simple headstone with a quote from him that says: "Tomorrow is the most important thing in life. Comes into us at midnight very clean. It's perfect when it arrives and it puts itself in our hands. It hopes we've learned something from yesterday."

Are you a fan of Wayne's movies? Would you ever visit a celebrity's grave? Let us know your thoughts, and be sure to pass this along to your friends and family.