"Hey, is that real? She can't be."
"Ah, nonsense man. 'Tis only a mirage, brought on by your turrible thirst."
Oh, she was indeed for real. Maureen O'Hara. Beautiful young ingenue when she had her first major screen role in The Hunchback Of Notre Dame (1939), this fiery Irish lass was just smoking hot in The Quiet Man (1952). Mary Kate Danaher is my absolute favorite of all Maureen O'Hara's characters. A force of nature you dare not get on the bad side of, and one you'd die for at the drop of a hat. Innocent and sensual, and a woman you could trust with your heart and soul. Little wonder Sean Thornton was lost the moment he set eyes on her. The Quiet Man is one of my top favorite John Wayne movies because of Maureen O'Hara. The best of all their screen collaborations in my view because Mary Kate is every bit a match for Sean, scene for scene, line for line, and the tension between the two weaves the rich tapestry of this story into a seamless whole, and all of it flowing from the depths of Maureen's personality. She is the one truly bringing Mary Kate to life in this movie, far beyond the creation of any screenwriter. Without her, The Quiet Man fails. With her, the movie cannot be anything less than a classic.
And now, Maureen is gone. Like a mirage fading back into the mist. But she was for real. Very real indeed.
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