John Wayne and daughter Aissa
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John Wayne: Get to Know The Duke's 7 Children

He was one of Hollywood's most famous western stars, but behind the scenes a devoted dad.

Actor John Wayne, who most folks (including plenty of dads) know as "The Duke," was basically Hollywood royalty. If cowboy movies were a thing on your watchlist, you couldn't miss this guy. He started out as Marion Robert Morrison before Hollywood and fame changed his name. He and director John Ford were like the dynamic duo of their time. Together, they created iconic films like The Searchers, Stagecoach,  and Rio Grande.  These weren't just movies at the time -- they were events.

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And John wasn't solely about the Wild West, as he starred in several other films as well. He showed off his range by playing an ex-boxer in The Quiet Man, which was a shift from dusty boots to Irish countrysides. And in Sands of Iwo Jima, he traded his cowboy hat for a military helmet, proving that he wasn't just a one-genre wonder. His performance as Rooster Cogburn in True Grit was so good, it won him an Academy Award.

But beyond the camera lights and movie sets, John was all about family. He tied the knot three times, and from those adventures, he had seven kids: Michael, Toni, Patrick, Melinda, Aissa, Ethan, and Marisa. Imagine the dinner table conversations! Each of his kids had their own experiences and tales about living life with a superstar dad. So, while the world knew him as "The Duke," at home he was just Dad, trying to juggle the challenges and joys of fatherhood like anyone else.

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Get to know more about all of John Wane's kids below.

This article was originally published in April of 2020.

READ MORE: Clint Eastwood: Meet the American Icon's 8 Children