Undoubtedly, John Wayne lives on in our hearts as one of America’s greatest actors; he made 162 feature films in his time, and was known for his Westerns and war films. The John Wayne Estate, which runs the official Instagram account chronicling the actor’s legacy, recently shared a post of a scene from McLintock!.
Additionally, the caption on the video states, “Perfect John Wayne clip for Labor Day weekend 💪🏼,” going on to quote an iconic line Wayne line, “I don’t give jobs, I hire men.”
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John Wayne: ‘I’ve Never Been Punched for Hiring Anybody’
In the film, made in 1963, John Wayne’s son Patrick Wayne plays Devlin Warren. Devlin is a down-on-his-luck young man looking for work; he catches McClintock and asks for a job, explaining that he lost his father and has to support his family. McLintock gives him a job, and then Devlin tries to slug him. When asked to explain himself, Devlin says, “Never begged before, it turned my stomach,” then admitting, “I suppose I should’ve been grateful you gave me the job.”
Here, John Wayne delivers his historic line: “I don’t give jobs, I hire men,” meaning he doesn’t just give anything away for free; he expects good, honest work in exchange.
The History of ‘McLintock!’
John Wayne developed the McLintock! script himself as a way to subvert the usual negative tropes placed upon Native Americans in Western films. He also included his opinions on “marital abuse and [his] discontent for corruption from either political party.”
Loosely adapted from the Shakespeare play The Taming of the Shrew, the film features cattle, timber, and mining baron G.W. McLintock as he navigates both his money-making business and the messy business of love. In a departure from John Wayne’s usual repertoire, McLintock! is a comedy, relying heavily on slapstick humor steeped in the Western setting.
Indeed, the film was a huge success; it put director Andrew McLaglan on the map, and he did four more films with Wayne. Emanuel Levy, in a review of McLintock! in 2006, wrote that the film “marks the beginning of Wayne’s attempt to impose his general views…on his pictures,” continuing by saying, “Most of Wayne’s screen work after McLintock! would express his opinions about education, family, economics, and even friendship.”
Certainly, McLintock! continues to be a fan favorite, even earning a novelization by Richard Wormser. Currently, the film is in the public domain, and can be watched for free on YouTube.