John Wayne’s ‘Holy Grail’ High School Yearbook Sold for More Than Fans Expected on ‘Pawn Stars’
Movie star John Wayne represented America itself for his fans, making even his high school yearbook worth something. The item in question ended up on Pawn Stars in a negotiation that left fans thinking that it wouldn’t fetch a very high price. However, they were surprised to discover that Wayne’s high school yearbook actually earned way more money than they were expecting.
John Wayne went to Glendale Union High School
Wayne was born Marion Robert Morrison in Winterset, Iowa, to parents Clyde Leonard Morrison and Mary “Molly” Alberta Brown. However, the family picked up and moved to Palmdale, California, and then again to Glendale in 1916. There, his father worked as a pharmacist.
Wayne went to Glendale Union High School, where he was an incredibly active student. He participated in extracurricular activities in addition to his academic efforts. Wayne played on the football and debate teams, served as the president of the Latin Society, and wrote for the sports column in the high school’s newspaper.
Other notable alumni include actors Terry Moore, Madeleine Stowe, and Gloria Talbott. X-Men trilogy producer Ralph Winter also attended the school, as well as Bob’s Big Boy restaurant founder Bob Wian.
A John Wayne yearbook ended up on ‘Pawn Stars’
The official Pawn Stars YouTube channel uploaded a clip from season 7, where a seller named Ken brought a 1925 senior high school yearbook that featured Wayne himself. He mentioned that he was a Western fan, but the movie star himself never appealed to him, so he wanted to make some extra cash to go on a vacation.
Ken bought Wayne’s senior high school yearbook for only $1, but he was asking for $1,500 from the pawn shop to make a significant profit. He flipped to the page that featured the actor’s class photo, as well as photographs depicting him playing football.
Pawn Stars‘ Corey Harrison explained in a confessional that the yearbook’s value dropped significantly without having a signature. He offered Ken $750, noting that he had a Ronald Reagan yearbook before that was a hard sell.
Ken managed to talk Corey up to $800, which they agreed on.
Multiple YouTube comments called the Wayne senior yearbook “the holy grail of high school yearbooks. However, some of them were still surprised to see it go for $800, considering that it was only an old yearbook without a signature.
Where did John Wayne go to college?
After Wayne was plastered throughout his high school yearbook, he applied to the U.S. Naval Academy to pursue his dream career that he didn’t tell very many people about. Instead, he went to the University of Southern California (USC) to major in pre-law with a football scholarship.
Unfortunately, a broken collarbone injury from a bodysurfing accident resulted in the end of his football career. As a result, he lost his athletic scholarship and had to leave the university.
Wayne went to work in the props department at Fox, which is where he met a future frequent collaborator in John Ford. His movie career solidified him as one of Hollywood’s biggest stars of all time.
