The Gipper and John Wayne

Over at Amiable Dunce, RoJo, who is working on Ronald Reagan in his PhD program (excuse me: programme) has a well-done piece on Reagan and John Wayne. Here is a taste:

Reagan and Wayne are inextricably linked in American history thanks to their shared Hollywood careers, their similar public personae, their celebrity conservatism or even the fact that each shed midwestern roots for those dreamy Californian heights. Its a link reinforced, if not originally defined, by the superb historian Garry Wills, who has written books on each. Reagan's America is long familiar to me, and I picked up John Wayne: The Politics of Celebrity yesterday for £2.50 in a crummy little shop that despite its complete lack of charm continues to reward me with useful finds.

Please do read on . . .