John Wayne Asked For Special Inscription on His Grave before Death, but Kids Left It Unmarked near Tree for 20 Years

• John Wayne continued smoking and chewing tobacco despite having once been diagnosed with cancer, and the disease finally took his life.
• After his death, the actor's children tried to hide his grave so it wouldn't become a "shrine."
• Years later, they changed their hearts and went with something beautiful to honor him and his fans.

As a young adult, John Wayne started chain smoking, until 1964 when he was diagnosed with lung cancer. The actor battled the disease and won but struggled with new ailments over the next few years.

The star visited Boston's Massachusetts General Hospital on April 3, 1978, where he had open-heart surgery. The operation was successful, and he was returning to his old self when on January 10, 1979, he was hit by more ailments.

The celebrity had gone to the UCLA Medical Center for a routine gallbladder surgery when things took a turn. Two days later, he underwent a nine-and-a-half-hour procedure where his stomach and lymph nodes were removed.

Some of the removed tissue proved cancerous, and a pathology report revealed that the disease could've spread to other body parts. As if that wasn't enough, John battled bronchitis in April and started having abdominal pains that landed him back at UCLA on May 1.

The following day he had surgery to remove an intestinal obstruction, but more cancer was found. He fought the resurfacing of cancer by undertaking experimental treatment. He then suddenly went into a coma and never woke up. Barney Strohm, the hospital's administrator, revealed that the actor had been unwell during his final few days.

The star felt ill and then recovered until he couldn't fight anymore. His three sons were with him at the hospital when he died of cancer on June 11, 1979, at 5:35 p.m., at the age of 72.

His daughter, Aissa, once described John as a loving father and grandfather. She revealed that it was "cute" seeing him being "jolly" with his grandchildren.

Aissa was with her father during his final moments. She recalled holding his hand and asking him if he knew who she was, and his final words to her would remain the heartwarming balm that stayed with her. John decidedly told his daughter he knew who she was, stating:

"You're my girl. I love you."

The Iowa-born celebrity married thrice, divorced twice, and had seven children. He was born on May 26, 1907, to Mary Alberta and Clyde Leonard Morrison, before becoming one of Hollywood's stars whose acting career began in the twenties when silent movies were still a thing.

John started his career as an extra and a prop man. After a decade of this, he finally landed his breakthrough role in 1939's "Stagecoach," and honed his skills by studying Harry Carey's mannerisms and the way he rode a horse.

He appeared in 179 television productions and movies as part of his massive credits. In 1970, he won the Oscar Award for "True Grit," and the American Film Institute chose him as one of the greatest male stars of classic American cinema.

John had anticipated his death because he left his children with specific instructions of what to write on his grave, but they chose not to fulfill his last wishes. The actor's offspring didn't obey him because they thought they were doing what was best for the late star.

Why Was John's Grave Unmarked for 20 Years?

After succumbing to stomach cancer, John's children didn't give him a traditional burial. His sons Ethan and Patrick Wayne laid their father to rest where other celebrities like Bobby Hatfield and Kobe Bryant were buried.

John's gravesite lies on a hill by a tree in California's Pacific View Memorial Park in Newport Beach. Before passing on, the actor had asked his children to mark his gravestone with the Spanish words, "Feo, Fuerte y Formal," which means "ugly, strong, and dignified," but they decided to leave his grave unmarked.

Ethan explained they wanted their father to rest in peace and didn't want his grave to become a shrine. He also said it was done out of respect for other people as they wouldn't want their loved ones' graves walked all over by John's adoring fans.

The US flag flew in the wind while the desert appeared in the background of the bronze plaque.

John's grave has a view of the Pacific Ocean and Newport Bay. Six miles away, airplanes would be flying in and out of the John Wayne Airport. The airport was renamed in the late star's honor upon his death. The area where he was buried was where he had lived and gone sailing for years.

What Inscription Appeared on John's Grave 20 Years after His Death?

Two decades after John's children chose not to mark his grave, they finally had a change of heart. In 1998, his sons finally added his screen name, an inscription, and images to honor him well.

John's new grave marker included an engraving of him riding a horse as a tribute to his Western films, which he became famous for. Instead of inscribing the Spanish words the actor had wanted, his sons chose a quote that they thought was more befitting, which read:

"Tomorrow is the most important thing in life. Comes into us at midnight very clean. It's perfect when it arrives, and it puts itself in our hands. It hopes we've learned something from yesterday."

Ethan thought it remarkable that his father's fans wanted to see his grave. He acknowledged that while his father was a family man, he was a public person with a great relationship with his fans.

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