An extraordinary amount of cast and crew members involved in the John Wayne-starring 1956 film, The Conqueror, developed cancer following the film’s controversial production.
91 out of the 220 crew members developed cancer and 46 died of the disease. The director and several of the stars also died later of cancer, some at quite a young age. The scandal led the US Defense Department to remark that they might have “killed John Wayne”.
Movie Flopped on Release
John Wayne’s part in The Conqueror was originally written for Marlon Brando, and evidence remains in the final script that Brando was the first pick to play Genghis Khan in the movie.
At the time, reviews noted the miscasting of Wayne and “embarrassingly silly lines” (The Monthly Film Bulletin). The film is now considered a critical and commercial flop.
Documentary Aims to Highlight Downwinders’ Plight
The documentary calls upon the stories of the residents of the area in and around the town of St. George, Utah, which is only 137 miles from the Nevada Test Site, where more than 900 nuclear tests were carried out.
Activists protesting the tests and campaigning for compensation for them and their families are known as “Downwinders”. The Conqueror was filmed just outside St. George in the Utah desert.
No Danger, According to Atomic Energy Commission
The Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) disregarded locals’ complaints about the ill effects of having nuclear testing so close to their town, saying that the residents were a safe distance away.
When farmers in the area found that their livestock were dying, the AEC insisted that it was due to their own negligence.
Wayne Himself Skeptical of Cancer Link
Towards the end of his life, Wayne expressed skepticism of the link between cancer and the film’s production, noting that him and his co-stars became heavy smokers.
However, the director, Dick Powell, and Wayne’s co-star, Susan Heyward, still both died relatively young, in their 50s. Some children have even developed cancer in St. George.
Producer Shipped Potentially Radioactive Sand to Movie Lot
Not only did they film in an area that potentially exposed the crew to radioactivity from the nuclear test site, but the producer also made the decision to ship sand from the area to film interior scenes.
Eccentric billionaire Howard Hughes paid to have 60 tons of the Utah sand delivered to a sound stage back in Hollywood.
Producer Hughes Bought Every Copy of the Movie
Hughes, apparently wracked with guilt over the production, bought up every copy of the movie for $12 million.
The billionaire became reclusive and reportedly watched the film on repeat in the penthouse suite of one of the hotels he lived in in the run-up to his death.
Downwinders Say Problem Was Ignored Until Hollywood Was Affected
In the documentary, Mary Dickson, a downwinder who survived thyroid cancer, suggests that the problem was ignored until it affected someone high-profile.
The Defense Department, in an internal document, wrote that they were worried they could have “killed John Wayne”.
Recent Oppenheimer Buzz Might Help Spread Awareness
The excitement of the release of Christopher Nolan’s film, Oppenheimer, was hoped by some activists to help renew a bill that would allow fairer compensation for those suffering from the effects of culpable radiation exposure.
The movie follows the events up to and surrounding the Trinity nuclear test. The documentary, “The Conqueror: Hollywood Fallout”, hopes to give a smaller but more focussed boost to downwinder activists.
Original Compensation Bill Passed in 1990
The Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, which expires this month, was intended to compensate victims of US nuclear tests during the Cold War.
An expansion of the bill which would include the children of victims passed the Senate but has so far been blocked by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mike Johnson.
