John Wayne’s Greatest Co-Star Was a Horse Named Dollor
John Wayne worked with countless famous co-stars over his long career, but his most enduring screen partner was a horse called Dollor. The animal appeared in every Western Wayne made from 1971's Big Jake through his final film roles, and their partnership reached its peak in Don Siegel's The Shootist, where Wayne insisted the script let him call the horse by name and eventually hands Dollor to a young Ron Howard.
Despite his association with horses on screen, Wayne told biographer Michael Munn, "I've never really liked horses and I daresay not many of them liked me too much." He had been riding since childhood—when he was still Marion Robert Morrison—and used a number of mounts over the years, from Duke the Miracle Horse in early B-movies to the notably smaller Appaloosa Zip Cochise in El Dorado.
Tall horses became a hallmark for the 6'4" actor. Confusion surrounds the horse's screen history and even its name, with some claiming the 1969 True Grit horse was Dollor.