John Wayne! We need you now! Duke called me "Grizzly" remembers co-star Gregg Palmer. AWOW

Gregg Palmer appeared with John Wayne in 6 movies. Duke liked having "the big guy" on location with him. Not just because Palmer could deliver the acting goods, but, it seems, because he could also watch out for Duke's cat! Wait til you hear Palmer talk about it in this interview from A WORD ON WESTERNS' very first annual John Wayne Birthday Celebration, May 21, 2014. Gregg (Jan 25, 1927-Oct 31, 2015) had so many wonderful stories about his adventures in acting he could, and should, have written a book. We were lucky he joined us to reminisce, shortly before his death at the age of 88. Groomed as a leading man by Universal-International when his career began under the name Palmer Lee, Gregg's tall, 6'2', height quickly started to go sideways and he became a burly, much in demand, character actor. Usually cast as a rough villain or outlaw, Gregg worked in 100s of TV series. And, he was in movies with some of cinema's giants. Not just Duke, but James Stewart, Maureen O'Hara, Rock Hudson, Fred MacMurray and three with Audie Murphy, plus, the comedy teams of Martin & Lewis and Abbott & Costello. His numerous TV westerns include "Gunsmoke" (21 appearances), "Wagon Train," "Have Gun, Will Travel," "Rawhide," "Bonanza," "Laramie," "Wild, Wild West" and just about any that were being produced in the fifties and sixties. In "The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp," his recurring role as Tom McLowery included the climactic shootout at the O.K. Corral. Gregg Palmer tells about John Mitchum showing him a new piece of poetry, "America, Why I Love Her," that turned into a memorable recording done by John Wayne. Gregg recites the poem to a room full of western fans...and actually sounds like Duke! The poem has been newly recorded by Robert Duvall, who joined dozens of other celebrities all recording more of John Mitchum's poems for a CD release, produced by his daughter, Cindy. Gregg Palmer left us lots of goodies for this and future generations to enjoy. This emotion charged compilation of short interview segments from 2014, with additional material, was recorded in The Autry Museum's Sagebrush Cafe.
#interview #johnwayne #famouspeople #characteractor #hero #bigjake #awordonwesterns #robword #greggpalmer #classics #funny