You younger readers may not have heard of “The Quiet Man”
but I hope you know who John Wayne is. The Quiet Man is a movie directed by the
famous John Ford who made a lot of movies with John Wayne. John Ford wanted to
make a movie that celebrated his Irish heritage. So he assembled an all-star
cast of the day including John Wayne, Maureen O’Hara, Barry Fitzgerald and Ward
Bond. Next he scoured Ireland for just the right location and found the perfect
place in Kong.
I have driven around Ireland many times and on one trip I
wanted to see the location for the movie. I had a hard time finding it and
actually got lost and ended up in an area of Ireland where they still speak
Gaelic. Next time I’m using a navigation system. Even though we got lost we saw
some incredible landscapes and things way off the beaten track. It doesn’t
bother me to get lost, it’s part of the adventure. Once we got there we found
it was well worth the trip.
The Quiet Man was made released in 1952 and the town looks
like it hasn’t changed at all. There are still the same pubs, the river, and
the ruins of a church. The only thing I can saw that had changed is I found a
bench with a memorial from John Ford in a nice quiet corner of town facing the
river that thanks the wonderful people of Kong for their friendliness and
making them feel at home during the shooting of the movie.
Also, if you can find it is the bridge in the beginning of
the movie where John Wayne first sees the place where he was born. It has been
dedicated the John Wayne Bridge. It is outside the town and we just stumbled
upon it.
A side note: This is why I like to rent a car and drive on
my trips. Trains and buses go from here to there. I like to play it more by ear
and take side trips when I want. You’ll be amazed how much you see and what you
may have missed if you were traveling any other way.
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