“John Wayne’s enormous popularity as a movie star and, more important, his status as an icon who represents American patriotism, masculinity, individuality and the American Dream itself more than justifies the academic value of examining his life and career in a university setting,” says film historian Rick Jewell, who is planning the celebration and will again be teaching a course on the western this fall.

A rare 3-D screening of the 1953 western Hondo heads a dynamic lineup of Wayne’s films, from early serials and B-westerns to classics such as Stagecoach, Red River and The Searchers, and dramas such as Sands of Iwo Jima and The Quiet Man. Panel discussions with Wayne’s colleagues and family members and film scholars from USC and elsewhere are on tap, with a full schedule viewable at www.usc.edu/visionsandvoices.

The idea evolved from the relationship between the School of Cinematic Arts and Gretchen Wayne and her decision to give a significant portion of Batjac’s records to its library. These artifacts will be used, along with memorabilia from the Wayne family, Warner Bros. and the USC Archives, in a career-spanning exhibit at the David L. Wolper Center in Doheny Memorial Library. “Duke: The Life and Legend of John Wayne” opens Sept. 26 and will be up through December.

Curator Sandra Garcia-Myers says the exhibit will include scripts, costumes, film props, photos, correspondence and unpublished articles Wayne wrote before he became a star. She says many items have never been seen by the public.

– Allison Engel