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Encore Westerns Pays a Memorial Day Tribute to John Wayne's Life and Legacy With 28-Hour Marathon

Posted on: Tuesday, 12 May 2009, 12:34 CDT

Homage Includes Exclusive Interviews with Former Presidents George H.W. Bush, Jimmy Carter, Senator John McCain, Producer Norman Lear and Others

ENGLEWOOD, Colo., May 12 /PRNewswire/ -- Encore Westerns presents "John Wayne's Life and Legacy," a 28-hour marathon of Wayne's films on Memorial Day, Monday, May 25th. The marathon is interspersed with exclusive interviews featuring prominent people from politics and the entertainment industry. Those scheduled to appear include former Presidents George H.W. Bush, Jimmy Carter, Senator John McCain, Producer Norman Lear, Wayne's son Ethan and others. Movies in the marathon include Chisum, The Cowboys, North to Alaska, The Undefeated, Angel and the Badman and Rooster Cogburn. The tribute begins at 8:00 p.m. (ET/PT).

Below are some of the bites from these interviews. If interested in screeners and/or footage, please contact Steve Belgard, 720.852.5843, steve.belgard@starz.com.

President Jimmy Carter on John Wayne, the Person:

I think he epitomized in his private life a lot of the wonderful attributes that he portrayed on the screen. He was tall, handsome, stalwart somewhat taciturn. He didn't talk much but when he did people listened...I think his heart was in the right place. He was a strong patriot. He defended Vietnam for instance when it was becoming increasingly unpopular particularly in Hollywood he didn't let other people push him around. I think he was willing to use his fame and his fortune a good bit of it to help alleviate the suffering of people. I don't know any deleterious or negative things to say or feel about John Wayne. He remains in the hearts and minds of people my age and younger of course as still a hero on and off the screen.

President George H. W. Bush on John Wayne's Contributions:

'John Wayne'...just the name evokes images of a hero wrapped in Red, White and Blue. No matter how bad things were, we knew that when the Duke rode over the hill, we'd be okay. He was an inspiration to all of us who fought against oppression in World War Two, Korea and Vietnam. His no-holds-barred patriotism and support for our troops continues to inspire America's men and women in uniform today. But his greatest legacy may be the life saving education and research being done in his name at the John Wayne Cancer Foundation and the John Wayne Cancer Institute. John Wayne made a career out of saving the day and 30 years after his death, he's still doing it. Thanks Duke!

Senator John McCain on John Wayne as a Role Model:

I think a lot of us wanted to be like him. I wanted to be a fighter pilot. I wanted to be in combat and I wanted to lead. He sort of epitomized what a lot of us, certainly my generation, wanted to be. People who are willing to go out and fight and defend our country against enemies, whether it be WWII, or the Korean War, or the Vietnam War...John Wayne embodies some of the best qualities of American patriotism, love of country, commitment to a nation that's safe and secure.... I think Americans always look to people to inspire them, that's one of our traits, and it's been true throughout our history. John Wayne, through his charisma, through his actions, through his ability to project a feeling of love of country, patriotism, willingness to serve a cause greater than one's self, literally inspired generations of Americans. Whether it be WWII, or up to and including, very frankly, the Gulf War. People, young soldiers, and sailors and airmen, both sexes, continue to watch his movies, admire him, and be inspired by him.

Norman Lear on John Wayne's Legacy:

When I knew him as an actor, he was kind of a mythic, American figure in all the Westerns and so forth...Everybody knows him to be a great American, Republican, Conservative and so forth. But he was conservative the way that I am conservative. Well, I would say, "Know me by my deeds." If America knew John Wayne by his deeds, they would know that he stood up for everybody's right to be who they are. Everybody's right to speak their peace. Everybody's right to believe as they believe. That's the way I came to know him.

I think John Wayne's greatest legacy was John Wayne. When you pull a hundred people together and ask them about John Wayne, they would all have the same basic image because it was so indelible for all of us. But for me, and maybe for most Americans, you expected him to stand up, not just because he was the guy who played those roles, but because that's who he was in our culture. You heard from him. You knew who he was and what he stood for. And, you know, that's everything.

Contact: Steve Belgard Starz Entertainment 720.852.5843 steve.belgard@starz.com

John Wayne's Life and Legacy

Celebrate Memorial Day and "The Duke's" 102nd birthday as Encore Westerns presents a 28-hour movie marathon of John Wayne's films

(All times ET/PT)

• The Undefeated at 8:00 p.m. - (John Wayne, Rock Hudson, Tony Aguilar)
• Rooster Cogburn at 10:05 p.m. - (John Wayne, Katharine Hepburn, Anthony Zerbe)
• Blue Steel at 12 a.m. - (John Wayne, Eleanor Hunt, George "Gabby" Hayes)
• The Man From Utah at 1:00 a.m. - (John Wayne, George "Gabby" Hayes, Polly Ann Young)
• Randy Rides Alone at 2:00 a.m. - (John Wayne, Alberta Vaughn, George "Gabby" Hayes)
• The Star Packer at 3:00 a.m. - (John Wayne, Verna Hillie, George "Gabby" Hayes)
• The Trail Beyond at 4:00 a.m. - (John Wayne, Noah Beery Sr., Noah Berry Jr.)
• The Lawless Frontier at 5:05 a.m. - (John Wayne, Sheila Terry, George "Gabby" Hayes)
• 'Neath The Arizona Skies at 6:05 a.m. - (John Wayne, George "Gabby" Hayes, Harry Fraser)
• Texas Terror at 7:05 a.m. - (John Wayne, Lucile Browne, Leroy Mason)
• The Desert Trail at 8:05 a.m. - (John Wayne, Mary Kornman, Eddy Chandler)
• The Dawn Rider at 9:05 a.m. - (John Wayne, Marion Burns, Yakima Canutt)
• Paradise Canyon at 10:05 a.m. - (John Wayne, Marion Burns, Earle Hodgins)
• In Old California at 11:05 a.m. - (John Wayne, Binnie Barnes, Albert Dekker)
• Dakota at 12:40 p.m. - (John Wayne, Vera Hruba Ralston, Walter Brennan)
• Angel and the Badman at 2:10 p.m. - (John Wayne, Gail Russell, Harry Carey)
• North To Alaska at 4:00 p.m. - (John Wayne, Stewart Granger, Ernie Kovacs)
• The Comancheros at 6:05 p.m. - (John Wayne, Stuart Whitman, Lee Marvin)
• Chisum at 8:00 p.m. - (John Wayne, Ben Johnson, Forrest Tucker)
• The Cowboys at 10:00 p.m. - (John Wayne, Bruce Dern, Robert Carradine)

SOURCE Starz Entertainment, LLC

Source: PR Newswire

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