• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • ABOUT US
  • MEDIA
  • PRIVACY
  • TERMS
  • DMCA
  • CONTACT US
  • AUTHORS
do you remember

DoYouRemember?

The Home of Nostalgia

  • Celebrity News
    • Family
    • Obituaries
    • Life Behind the Fame
    • ICONS
    • Celebrity Feuds
  • Entertainment
    • Cast
    • Showbiz Rewind
    • Music
    • Beauty & fashion
  • STORIES
  • Celebrity Buzz!?
  • Sitcoms
    • Bewitched
    • Little Rascals
    • The Partridge Family
    • I Dream of Jeannie
    • All in the Family
    • MASH
    • Happy Days
    • Cheers
  • Celebrity Collections
  • SHOP DYR
    • DYR Book

Stories

The Time A U.S. Navy Veteran Met John Wayne During His Time At Sea

by Erica Scassellati

Published October 2, 2020

John Wayne Cover Image

Richard Wilde, an 85-year-old Navy veteran, recalled an interesting event during his time serving aboard the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Philippine Sea. One foggy morning when he was 19 years old the pilots were conducting training – and the weather was rough. The aviators could only fly by instrument, and one nearly plowed right into Wilde.

“A man standing behind me said ‘wing ding dilly,’” Wilde said. “When I heard this, I turned my head, and the man looked down at me and said ‘that was pretty close, wasn’t it?’ I said ‘just about too close.’ He laughed at me and patted me on the head.” That man was John Wayne.

Related:

  1. Sam Elliott Shares How He Met John Wayne During Wayne’s Final Film
  2. The US Navy Has Trained Sea Mammals To Keep Rivals Away For Six Decades

Wayne Comes Aboard

Yes, John Wayne, as well as an entire film crew were aboard Wilde’s ship. They were at sea working on the film The Wings of Eagles and Wayne was to play the lead role of Frank “Spig” Wead. Wayne was already a star, having acted in dozens of movies and gained fame for his part in films such as Stagecoach, Sands of Iwo Jima, and The High and Mighty. But from Wilde’s account of him, Wayne didn’t sound like some cocky big shot. “I’ve never met anybody more down to earth than John Wayne,” Wilde said.

RELATED: John Wayne’s Son Defends Father’s Legacy After New-Found Scandal

One night, Wilde and three of his friends were playing cards in the coffee locker with the hatch open to catch a breeze. “That night, this big man looked through the hatch and said ‘Oh, I’m sorry, you boys are having a meeting,’” Wild recounted. “I said ‘No, no, come on in, and I hope you like coffee.’ He commented that he loved coffee and pulled up a chair and sat in it backward, resting his arms on the back of the chair.”

The Crew Departs

Wayne joined Wilde and his friends for coffee a few more times, even bringing along his costar Ken Curtis one night. It turned out Wayne had been having trouble sleeping while at sea. Wilde remembers that after chatting for a bit he had referred to him as “Mr. Wayne.” “He asked me to call him Duke,” Wilde said. That was Wayne’s famous nickname and he preferred it over “Mr. Wayne.”

Before the Duke and Wilde parted ways, Wayne left him with a signed one-dollar bill, a gift that he would cherish forever. About three weeks after the film crew left the ship, the sailors received a large coffee urn, bearing the engraving, “For the boys in V1 division, from the boys at MGM.”

Next up: Whatever Happened To Mike Lookinland, Bobby Brady On ‘The Brady Bunch?’

 

Previous article: Whatever Happened To Mike Lookinland, Bobby Brady On ‘The Brady Bunch?’
Next Post: ‘Home Improvement’ Stars Tim Allen And Richard Karn Begin Filming Their New Show

Primary Sidebar

© 2025 DoYouRemember? Inc.

  • about us
  • media
  • privacy
  • terms
  • DMCA
  • CONTACT US
  • AUTHORS