John Ford came to Hollywood following one of his brothers, an actor. Asked what brought him to Hollywood, he replied "The train". He became one of the most respected directors in the business, in spite of being known for his westerns, which were not considered "serious" film. He won six Oscars, counting (he always did) the two that he won for his WWII documentary work. He had one wife; a son and daughter; and a grandson, Dan Ford who wrote a biography on his famous grandfather.


Two Rode Together (1961): $225,000 plus 25% of the net profits
They Were Expendable (1945): $300,000

There was a group of actors, known informally as the John Ford Stock Company (John Wayne, Harry Carey, John Carradine, Henry Fonda, etc.) that turned up regularly in Ford's films. They knew how to work with Ford and each other, which suited Ford's directing style: "I tell the actors what I want and they give it to me, usually on the first take.". John Wayne called him by the nickname "Coach." Brother of actor-director Francis Ford. The character "John Dodge" in Ford's movie The Wings of Eagles (1957) is a spoof of Ford. His tombstone is marked 'Admiral John Ford'. John Wayne called him by the nickname "Pappy." He was an infamously prickly personality, having constantly mocked John Wayne as a "big idiot" and having punched an unsuspecting Henry Fonda during the shooting of Mister Roberts (1955). Embarrassed Jean-Luc Godard, then a young journalist for "Les Cahiers du Cinema", during an interview. When Godard asked the famous question, "What Brought you to Hollywood?" Ford replied, "A train". May be the most influential director of sound films on other directors. Many of the greatest directors of all time point directly to him as their favorite or one of their favorite filmmakers: Orson Welles, Akira Kurosawa, Sergio Leone (and his own star, Clint Eastwood), Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, Bernardo Bertolucci and many members of the French New Wave or their disciples, from Jean-Luc Godard to François Truffaut. When his western Hell Bent (1918) for Universal was released, "Motion Picture News" praised Ford's direction, writing, "Few directors put such sustained punch in their pictures as does this Mr. Ford." It was the ninth in a series of films featuring Harry Carey as "Cheyenne Harry," who was more of a saddle tramp than a conventional western hero. Directed 10 different actors in Oscar-nominated performances: Victor McLaglen, Thomas Mitchell, Edna May Oliver, Jane Darwell, Henry Fonda, Donald Crisp, Sara Allgood, Ava Gardner, Grace Kelly and Jack Lemmon. McLaglen, Mitchell, Darwell, Crisp and Lemmon won Oscar for one of their roles in one of Fords movies. Is portrayed by Jerome Ehlers in Child Star: The Shirley Temple Story (2001) (TV) Has won more directing Oscars than any other director: four, for The Informer (1935), The Grapes of Wrath (1940), How Green Was My Valley (1941), and The Quiet Man (1952). He also won an Oscar for Best Documentary, Short Subject for The Battle of Midway (1942) and an Oscar for Best Documentary for December 7th (1943). Ford was disgusted by John Wayne's refusal to enlist in 1941. When Ford filmed They Were Expendable (1945) after World War II he included every actor's former military rank and branch (Ford himself was a Navy officer and combat photographer). Of course, there were no credentials behind Wayne's name, which the actor took as a real slap. Enlisted in the US Naval Reserve in 1934, commissioned as a lieutenant commander. He served on reserve and active status until 1951, when Captain John Ford was retired with the honorary rank of rear admiral. Was a character in "Short Letter, Long Farewell," a 1974 novel by the innovative Austrian writer and filmmaker Peter Handke. Profiled in "Through a Catholic Lens: Religious Perspectives of 19 Film Directors from Around the World", ed. by Peter Malone. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Press, 2007. John Wayne gave the eulogy at his funeral. His filmmaking experience proved valuable in the Navy during World War II. He photographed the attack on Omaha Beach on D-Day for the OSS.