Rooster Cogburn (character) 1978 TV sequel starred Warren Oates in the featured role. The 2010 film stars Jeff Bridges as Cogburn. John Wayne won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role as Cogburn in the 1969 film. On January 24, 2011, Jeff Bridges was nominated for the same award for his portrayal of Cogburn. Reuben Cogburn was born on July 15, 1825. Cogburn was a veteran of the American Civil War who served under Confederate guerrilla leader William Quantrill, where he lost his eye. He was married first to an Illinois woman who left him to return to her first husband
True Grit (1969 film) he has a restaurant, his wife Nola leaves him because of his degenerate friends, and has a clumsy son named Horace), calling it "about the best scene I ever did." Garry Wills notes in his book, "John Wayne's America: The Politics of Celebrity", that Wayne's performance as Rooster Cogburn bears close resemblance to the way Wallace Beery portrayed similar characters in the 1930s and 1940s, an inspired if surprising choice on Wayne's part. Wills comments that it's difficult for one actor to imitate another for the entire length of a movie and that the Beery mannerisms temporarily recede during the