John Wayne Gritcast

John Wayne’s Grit lives on through the next generation – Meet his granddaughter, Jennifer Wayne. Jennifer is a tennis player, song writer, Amazing Race contestant, and band member of Runaway June. In this week’s episode of the John Wayne Gritcast, Jennifer and her uncle, Ethan, discuss her career and how her values parallel her grandfather’s.

Jennifer takes us through her childhood, her father was a tennis pro and Jennifer played tennis through college. She started playing music with a boyfriend, saved up money, and moved to Nashville, with help from her aunt, Marisa.

The music industry is not easy and Jennifer talks about getting knocked down and never giving up. They also talk about having the name of John Wayne behind them while trying to pursue their own ventures and discuss how that affects their pursuits.

Jennifer realized her talents were in songwriting which led her to her first band, Stealing Angels. After they lost their record deal, Jennifer and her bandmate, Caroline, were asked to be on the show Amazing Race. They got 4th place in their first season and were asked to go on the All Star season where they placed 2nd by 4 seconds.

Jennifer is such a sweet and kind person and her grandfather’s Grit lives on through her. Check out Jennifer’s band, Runaway June, and her new song with Keith Urban titled Wild Hearts.

Follow Jennifer on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jenniferwayne/

Follow Runaway June on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/runawayjuneofficial/

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John Wayne always said that if he was going to have a drink, it had better be a good one and today we’re talking to the man behind the spirits that bear Duke’s name. Meet Chris Radomski, co-founder and owner of Duke Timeless Spirits.

This week’s episode, we’re diving deep into the world of spirits with Chris and Ethan! Including Chris’ past in spirits, how they came up with the idea for Duke Bourbon, and our new Duke Tequila.

For more information on Duke Spirits: dukespirits.com

Follow Duke Spirits on Instagram: Instagram.com/dukespirits

More information about John Wayne on JohnWayne.com

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John Wayne was a huge supporter of the military and he wanted his legacy to be used to help the fight against cancer so there is no better guest for today’s John Wayne Gritcast than John Wayne Alumni Fellow, Dr. Dan Nelson. Dr. Nelson is not only a John Wayne Alumni Fellow, but a board-certified surgical oncologist, and an active duty service member in the United States Army.

How do you become a surgical oncologist AND also serve our country in the Army? Dr Nelson takes us through his path that led him to John Wayne. He was drawn to the pioneering cancer research led by John Wayne Fellows and was matched with the John Wayne Surgical Oncology program.

Dr. Nelson speaks about being deployed as an Army surgeon and also working as a surgical oncologist. He and Ethan also discuss some of the John Wayne Cancer foundation funded research he is performing.

Being active is very important to your overall health and Dr. Nelson talks about how he and his family make time to find hobbies to enjoy together. He and Ethan also discuss their mutual love of Jiu Jitsu!

We are so lucky to have doctors like Dr. Nelson leading the charge in the fight against cancer and we hope you enjoy this episode!

More information on John Wayne Cancer Foundation here: www.johnwayne.org

Follow JWCF on Instagram here: Instagram.com/joinjohnwayne

Follow JWCF on Facebook here: Facebook.com/johnwaynecancerfoundation

More information about John Wayne on JohnWayne.com

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The Gritcast headed out to Pioneertown, California to meet up with our friend, David Corso! Ethan connected with David in 2020 while planning our John Wayne Grit Series Pioneertown run that benefits the John Wayne Cancer Foundation. On this episode, Ethan and David are also joined by our Race Director, Molly Kassouf, and the two sit down with David to get his interesting life story

David owns a marketing group that integrates activations for brands and in 1999 got connected with Coachella founder and was asked to help bring brands in to sponsor the event and create activations for the guests. Talk about John Wayne Grit, David went from handing out paper tickets to help drive attendance to the festival and now the festival ticket demands are so high, it is a two weekend event and tickets sell out quickly.

David and Ethan also bond over their love of Pioneertown, a town that was once used as a set for westerns and is located outside of Palm Springs in the high desert. David talks about what drew him to Pioneertown and after purchasing it, his plans to keep the Pioneertown charm.

Cancer is such a big story in John Wayne’s legacy and David was also affected by the disease when his brother was diagnosed. His brother’s one wish was to be able to spend his final days with their mom so after failed attempts to get an ambulance across state lines, David loaded his brother up and the two road tripped back to New Orleans so his brother could be closer to their mother.

David has been such a good friend to the John Wayne family and has really helped the fight against cancer with his contributions to the John Wayne Grit Series. This is a really fun interview with Ethan, Molly, and David, we hope you enjoy!

Learn more about Corso Marketing Group here: corsomg.com

Learn more about the John Wayne Grit Series here: johnwayne.org/jwgs

More information about John Wayne on JohnWayne.com

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If you’re a racing fan, then you know Richard Childress. Richard is a former NASCAR driver, the current owner of Richard Childress Racing, the owner of Childress Wineries, a wildlife conservationist, and advocate for child trauma with The Childress Institute of Pediatric Trauma.

Ethan and Richard talk about the people that helped steer them in the right direction after losing their fathers at a young age. Richard also talks about guiding his grandsons through the world of social media and giving them traditional values. They then discuss how John Wayne’s films impact the younger generations and give them a positive role model to look up to. Richard’s grandson, Austin Dillon, is not only the driver of the RCR Cowboy Channel/John Wayne car but he is also a huge John Wayne fan who grew up looking up to Duke.

Richard also talks about the different moments in his life that made an impact and how believing in the American dream got him to where he is now.

Hunting is a passion of Richards. That passion started out when he was a young kid and was born out of necessity. That passion has taken him all over the world and also brought him into funding nature conservation. His other passions include the Childress Winery, his Wildlife conservation museum, Auto Racing museum with 43 Dale Earnhardt cars, and The Childress Institute for Pediatric Trauma.

Trauma is the number 1 killer of children in America and The Childress Institute for Pediatric Trauma discovers and shares the best way to prevent and treat severe injuries in children. The Institute funds research, education and advocacy to help improve the care and treatment injured kids receive across the US.

He also talks about losing his friend, Dale Earnhardt, and how that has changed the racing industry and how they changed the approach to safety in racing.

Listen to the end of podcast to hear Richard tell a story about how he protected his family from intruders.

If you like John Wayne and his values, we think you will really enjoy this episode with Richard Childress!

More information on Richard Childress Racing: https://www.rcrracing.com/

Follow Richard Childress Racing here: https://www.instagram.com/rcrracing/

More information on Childress Winery: https://childressvineyards.com/

Follow Childress Winery here: https://www.instagram.com/childresswines/

More information on The Childress Institute for Pediatric Trauma: https://saveinjuredkids.org/

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This is our first John Wayne Gritcast Family Christmas Episode!

Ethan Wayne hosts brother Patrick Wayne, sister Marisa Wayne, and niece (John Wayne’s first grandchild) Anita Swift at his house to reminisce on family memories. The four of them tell stories of holidays with John Wayne and the traditions they made after he passed.

We hope everyone has a very happy holiday season and enjoys this episode with the Wayne family!

More information about John Wayne on JohnWayne.com

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Meet the woman behind the operations at John Wayne Cancer Foundation, our Vice President, Stacy Mulder!

Ethan and Stacy talk about the different ways John Wayne is helping the fight against cancer.

Block the Blaze is our youth sun safety program that teaches kids skin cancer prevention and early detection. They also discuss our Block the Blaze expansion, including the Mayo Clinic in Arizona, Baylor School of Medicine, Florida, and more.

They also speak about different ways to prevent cancer, including living healthier lifestyles, which brings us to the John Wayne Grit Series. The John Wayne Grit Series not only raises funds and brings awareness to John Wayne Cancer Foundation, but it encourages it’s participants to get out in amazing locations and Run to Fight Cancer. This year we were grateful to put on FIVE in person events!

Ethan and Stacy also discuss some of the people we have met this year that have been touched by cancer and have joined us in the fight. It brings it all home on why this fight is so important.

Finally, we discuss some of the John Wayne Fellows and their research that JWCF funds. More information on these doctors and their pioneering research can be found here: https://johnwayne.org/pages/jw-fellows

Thank you so much to Stacy for all of her help leading us in the fight against cancer and for joining us on the John Wayne Gritcast!

You can donate to JWCF and join us in the fight against cancer here: https://donate.johnwayne.org/campaign/the-can-do-spirit/c360441

More information on John Wayne Cancer Foundation here: www.johnwayne.org

Follow JWCF on Instagram here: Instagram.com/joinjohnwayne

Follow JWCF on Facebook here: Facebook.com/johnwaynecancerfoundation

More information about John Wayne on JohnWayne.com

Shop our official store on JWStockandSupply.com

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Facebook.com/johnwayne

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What doesn’t Pam Minick do?

Pam is such a pillar in the Fort Worth Community and was a huge help in helping John Wayne: An American Experience make it’s home in the Fort Worth Stockyards.

Pam and Ethan Wayne sit down to talk all about Pam’s background in the western community, starting with her early days growing up in Las Vegas and how she convinced her parents to get her a horse so she could start competing in the rodeo. Pam’s passion led her to becoming Miss Rodeo America 1973, the Women’s World Champion Calf Roper, and the first women to announce a major professional rodeo.

Pam and Ethan also discuss their love of Fort Worth, which is the new home to John Wayne: An American Experience. Pam came to Fort Worth and walked the cobblestone streets of the Stockyards and immediately felt at home. They also discuss the preservation of the Stockyards to keep the history alive for generations to come.

Pam and her husband, Billy, also took over Billy Bob’s, the world’s largest honky tonk. She talks about bringing Billy Bob’s back from bankruptcy and taking over the marketing. Billy Bob’s has seen artists like George Strait, Garth Brooks, Travis Tritt, Miranda Lambert, Ringo Starr, and more!

Pam is extremely passionate about Fort Worth and the western community and is such an amazing leader that has helped John Wayne make Fort Worth their home. This is a really fun episode and we are so lucky to have a friend like Pam Minick!

More information about John Wayne on JohnWayne.com

Get tickets to John Wayne: An American Experience here: https://www.showclix.com/tickets/JW2021

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This week we are honored to be sitting down with Dr. Maheswari Senthil. Dr. Senthil is the Program Director for the John Wayne Cancer Foundation Fellowship program at UCI and the Director Peritoneal Malignancy Program.

Ethan Wayne sits down with Dr. Senthil to speak about her background and the different ways she, and her colleagues, are helping the fight against cancer.

Dr. Senthil grew up in India where she knew she wanted to be a surgeon from a very young age, following in her mother’s footsteps. She goes through how she decided to become a surgeon and the steps it took to become an expert in her field.

Ethan and Dr. Senthil also talk about what we can do to help support the doctors that are on the front lines researching pioneering ways to fight cancer.

This is a great episode to learn more about how John Wayne Cancer Foundation’s impact on the fight against cancer and how doctors like Dr. Senthil and her team are helping fight this terrible disease.

More information on John Wayne Cancer Foundation here: www.johnwayne.org

Follow JWCF on Instagram here: Instagram.com/joinjohnwayne

Follow JWCF on Facebook here: Facebook.com/johnwaynecancerfoundation

More information about John Wayne on JohnWayne.com

Shop our official store on JWStockandSupply.com

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In honor of Thanksgiving, our guest on this week’s John Wayne Gritcast is Alice Johnson McKinney! Alice was married to John Wayne’s 26 Bar Ranch partner, Louis Johnson. Each Thanksgiving, the Wayne family would head to Casa Grande, AZ for the annual cattle sale so we’re very lucky to have Alice on this Thanksgiving episode.

Alice and her late husband, Louis Johnson, were two of Duke’s most treasured friends. She even loaned one of John Wayne’s custom station wagons that he kept on the ranch to John Wayne: An American Experience, our museum in the Fort Worth Stockyards. (More information here: https://www.johnwayne.com/jwexperience)

In this podcast, Alice tells Ethan how Duke and Louis’ partnership in 26 Bar began, including how she and Louis brought back the ranch from $44 Million in debt! She also reminisces on the more lighthearted times with Duke, including being invited to the Oscars.

We hope everyone has a happy Thanksgiving, we are thankful for your continued support!

More information about John Wayne on JohnWayne.com

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