Wayne was still king of the B-movies during this period

Hate him if you like, but he became a top star with "Stagecoach" in '39.

It is weird to see someone like John Carrol getting so much scene stealing moves, but yea, The Duke wasn't quite The Duke yet in big studio's eyes.
Of course we all look back and could see where he was headed.
I recently watched The Big Trail again and it was obvious 10 years before Stagecoach he was a star. It was just nobody was able to see that epic movie because theaters were unable to show the format it was filmed in. Man, 10 years of talent wasted, but I love them B movies from the 30's anyway.

Well, at least he didn't do a "Singing Sandy" bit.

Wayne became an A-lister years earlier, and Republic was loaning him to the major studios more often than not. Stagecoach, Allegheny Uprising, The Long Voyage Home, Shepard of the Hills, Reap the Wild Wind, The Spoilers, Reunion in France...

John Ford, Henry Hathaway, Cecil B. DeMille and Raoul Walsh didn't make B-movies.

Yeah he wasn’t exactly the artsy fartsy type.