The DUKE was no “Quiet Man” in real life – he cheated on his wives with co-stars MAUREEN O’HARA, MARLENE DEITRICH and MORE – book.
Movie legend John Wayne was famous as a two-fisted cowboy where his he-man character preferred knock-down bar fights to babes.
But in real life, he was a serial womanizer, who cheated on his wives with stunning screen sirens including Marlene Dietrich and his greatest love — Maureen O’Hara.
Still, he made no excuses, saying: “The guy you see on the screen isn’t really me. I’m Duke Morrison and I never was and never will be a film personality like John Wayne.”
The former college football star and father of seven kids with three wives didn’t have to chase gals, though — they hunted him.
A heavy boozer and smoker of four to five packs of unfiltered cigarettes daily, he’d already been cheating on first wife Josie when he plunged into an affair with sultry Dietrich, author Scott Eyeman wrote in “John Wayne: The Life And Legend” .
“Wayne tried to be a better husband, but that attempt failed when Marlene sauntered into his life,” writes the author.
When the German-born sexpot, known for her lesbian affairs, first spied the 6-foot-4 hunk strolling into the Universal Studios commissary, she turned to her director Tay Garnett and purred: “Daddy — buy me that!”
Wayne was cast as her leading man in her 1940 flick “Seven Sinners” and Dietrich invited him into her dressing room, where he asked her for the time.
“Dietrich lifted her skirt to reveal a garter with a watch attached,” says the book.
“She looked at the watch, then moved toward Wayne, saying: ‘It’s very early darling. We have plenty of time.’
” She was so hot for Wayne, she’d leap onto him wrapping her legs around the actor when he walked on the set", says the book.
He later confided that the hottest sex romp in his life was with Dietrich at The Excelsior Hotel in Rome, where “I took her on the staircase.”
Perhaps his greatest love — and hers, too — was Maureen O’Hara, his leading lady in five flicks including 1952’s "The Quiet Man" and "Big Jake" in 1971.
Their affair was no secret.
During that time, he was wed to Esperanza from 1946 to 1954 and Pilar from 1954 to 1973.
Robert Mitchum’s actor-son Christopher recalled working with them on Big Jake, revealing: “Duke was truly in love with that woman.”
Mitchum believed they didn’t marry because “Maureen was strong and tough and John probably didn’t think he could control her.”
Wayne battled lung cancer in 1964, and died from stomach cancer at age 72 on June 11, 1979.
Weeks before, Maureen visited him for two days.
At one point during his chemotherapy, Wayne ordered his son Patrick to get his .38 revolver so he could end his agony,writes Eyeman.
Patrick and other son Stacy refused and suicidal Wayne raged at them.
When it came to other actors, Wayne had a favorite — James Garner. “They rave about (Marlon) Brando and (George C.) Scott,” said Wayne, “but they couldn’t hold a candle to him.”
