"The Big Trail" (which was largely doomed by cutting-edge camera tech and the great depression) was Wayne's first starring role. After appearing in small background parts in the late-20s, Wayne was cast by director Raoul Walsh in his epic Western. According to documentarian Richard Schickel, who featured Walsh in his series "The Men Who Made the Movies," it was actually the director who gave Wayne his stage name. In an interview with True West, Schickel recalled how Walsh and director John Ford both felt a sense of ownership over launching the young star's career. "[Walsh] was very proud of, as he feels — I think it was a source of contention between he and Ford [laughs] — that he sort of found John Wayne," he said. "Raoul believed that he gave Wayne his name. He said he was reading a book about the American revolutionary general 'Mad' Anthony Wayne; he thought Wayne would be a good name for Marion Morrison. That's how the name came about."
That doesn't quite match up with Wayne's own recollection, but it seems at the very least his stage name came from people within the industry, whether it was Walsh, studio execs, or a combination of both. Neither, however, could claim credit for Wayne's famous nickname: Duke.
