I'm Patrick Wayne.
I was 15 back in 1955 when we headed to Monument Valley...
...to film The Searchers for John Ford.
Right now, I'm standing in the same cave where Natalie Wood...
...tries to escape from my father at the end of the film.
In those days, the 20th century was no more than a rumor...
...in Monument Valley.
We didn't have to fake being in the Old West. We were in the Old West.
No telephones, no radio.
Hundreds of miles from the nearest railroad.
Encamped in tents amid stifling heat and swirling sandstorms.
When you're eating dust at every meal, so isolated and insulated...
...you become a part of that whole life.
But, oh, was it ever beautiful.
So many magnificent vistas...
...just waiting to be captured by the keen eye of John Ford.
John Ford's love affair with the West elevated the Western genre...
...to new heights of critical acclaim.
He paints pictures that we wanna look at.
And he tells stories about people that interest us...
...and capture our imagination.
His career is tied closely to that of my father's.
High among the values my father most cherished...
...were honesty, trustworthiness, loyalty. And these were key elements...
...in his relationship with Ford.
My father loved The Searchers.
It's earned a place on the American Film institute's 100-best list...
...and I'm proud and honored to have been a part of it.
So if you really wanna know about John Ford...
...well, just watch this beautifully restored version of The Searchers.