Michael Wayne

Michael Anthony Morrison was born in Los Angeles, California on November 23, 1934,^[1] as the eldest child to John Wayne (1907–1979), an actor, and his first wife, Josephine Alicia (née Saenz; 1908–2003), the daughter of Panama's Consul General to the United States.^[2] He had three younger siblings; Mary Antonia "Toni" Wayne LaCava (1936–2000),^[3] Patrick Wayne (born 1939),^[4] and Melinda Ann Wayne Munoz (1940–2022),^[5][6] and three half-siblings; Aissa Maria Wayne (born 1956),^[7][8] John Ethan Wayne (born 1962),^[9] and Marisa Carmela Wayne (born 1966),^[10] from his father's marriage to his stepmother, Pilar Pallete (born 1928), a Peruvian former actress.^[11][12][13]

Wayne graduated from Loyola Marymount University in 1956, with a business degree. He later served in the U.S. Air Force Reserve.^[14]

Wayne began his film career as a production assistant on the set of the John Ford romantic comedy drama film The Quiet Man in 1951. He adopted his father's stage surname, Wayne. He joined his father's film production company, Batjac Productions, for The Alamo (1960). He became line producer for McLintock! (1963) and producer on many other John Wayne vehicles, including Big Jake (1971) and Cahill U.S. Marshal (1973).^[15]

Wayne served on the board of the Motion Picture & Television Fund.^[16] He was The John Wayne Foundation's president and chairman of the board. He was also the founder and chairman of the board of the John Wayne Cancer Institute at Saint John's Health Center.^[17]

Wayne married Gretchen Ann Deibel (born 1935)^[18][19] in Los Angeles, California on August 30, 1958.^[20] They had five children together; Alicia Maria Wayne (born 1959),^[21] Teresa Ann Wayne (born 1960),^[22] Maria Utilla Wayne (born 1962),^[23] Josephine Michele Wayne (born 1965),^[24] and Christopher Michael Wayne (born 1967).^[25] His sister-in-law, Kathryn Deibel, married Frankie Avalon on January 19, 1963, and they had eight children together.^[26] He was the uncle of Jennifer Wayne from the country music group Runaway June.^[27]

Wayne was 44-years-old^[28] when his father died from stomach cancer on June 11, 1979.^[29][30] His father left an estate worth US$6.85M, of which he received US$220,000.^[31]

Wayne died from heart failure with complications resulting from lupus^[32] erythematosus in Burbank, California on April 2, 2003. He was 68.^[33][34] He was interred at Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Hollywood Hills, Los Angeles.^[35][36]