Maureen O’Hara and John Wayne had a beautiful friendship
Beloved Irish-American actress Maureen O’Hara passed away in 2015 at the age of 95. One of the actress’ most famous roles was in The Quiet Man, in which she starred alongside Hollywood legend John Wayne.
The Quiet Man follows a retired boxer, Sean Thornton (Wayne), who travels to Ireland to reclaim his family’s farm. There, he meets Mary (O’Hara), the sister of the local bully with whom he falls in love. O’Hara and Wayne had an undeniable on-screen chemistry and remained friends after the 1952 film wrapped.
Maureen O’Hara put on a “cheerful Irish act” for John Wayne in his final few days in 1979. Wayne died of lung cancer at the age of 71 and according to sources, O’Hara spent three days with him and didn’t let on as to how worried she was for her friend.
O’Hara, meanwhile, died decades later. And even though John Wayne had been dead for years, she paid a sweet tribute to him in her last few days.
She passed away peacefully at her home in Boise, Idaho, on October 24, 2015, surrounded by family members and listening to “her favorite music” from The Quiet Man.
O’Hara was never shy about sharing her love for her friend John Wayne. In a 1991 interview, she was asked who her favorite co-stars were.
She responded: “Why did you have to make that so difficult? If you had asked one, I’d say John Wayne. But two – I couldn’t choose – Henry Fonda? Brian Keith? Jimmy Stewart? … They were all fine actors, gentlemen, intelligent, considerate – fine people.”
The pair starred in five different films together. As well as The Quiet Man, they appeared together in Big Jake (1971), McLintock (1963), Rio Grande (1950), and The Wings of Eagles (1957).