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Maureen O'Hara, John Wayne and John Ford during the filming of The Quiet Man in Ireland |
The more I learn about John Ford, the more twisted, fascinating and complex the legendary director becomes. I originally set out to watch all of his movies and read about him because so many film scholars have said he was the greatest director of Hollywood's Golden Era and perhaps even of all movie history. He also reminds me of my late dad who enjoyed his works tremendously and had a similar individualistic streak. But as I read books and articles on Ford, he emerges as a deeply troubled, fickle, jealous man who could be extremely manipulative, abusive and vindictive, if you got on his wrong side, even unintentionally.
Maureen O'Hara starred in five Ford films--How Green Was My Valley, Rio Grande, The Quiet Man, The Long Grey Line and The Wings of Eagles. In her autobiography, Tis Herself, she reveals an early connection with Ford over their shared Irish heritage. O'Hara was born in Ireland and came to Hollywood to star in The Hunchback of Notre Dame under the tutelage of Charles Laughton who discovered her as a teenager in Great Britain. Ford developed an affection for O'Hara and her family many of whom later emigrated to the US and got into the picture business.