DR. WALLACE: My uncle told me that you met the actor John Wayne "back in the day" and that you had a conversation with him that included the dangers of smoking cigarettes. Well, John Wayne happens to be my favorite actor, even though I'm only 20 years old.

How can this be? It's because my favorite uncle is also a huge John Wayne fan. When I was young, he let me watch John Wayne movies with him. I grew up to love western movies, especially those that featured "Duke."

When you met him, what did he say to you? — Curious John Wayne Fan, via email

CURIOUS JOHN WAYNE FAN: I did indeed have the pleasure of meeting John Wayne one day, just a short time before he passed away. I had the exciting opportunity to speak with him at Hoag Hospital in Newport Beach, California. I was invited to see John with the editor of a local newspaper who was a personal friend of John's.

I asked "Duke" several questions — which film did you enjoy making the most? ("The Quiet Man.") Who is your favorite female actor that you worked with? (All of them!)

And I was very pleased to hear John Wayne say that he read my column. He reminded me to, "Keep telling your young readers to avoid cigarettes no matter what."

John said that he survived the sands of Iwo Jima and drove cattle across the Rio Grande, but that he could not whip cigarettes. This legendary actor sadly passed away shortly thereafter from lung cancer.

Teens, I agree that it is your choice to smoke or to be tobacco-free. But I also feel it's my responsibility to do everything I can to encourage teens who do smoke to give up their habit before severe damage is done and to persuade those who don't yet smoke to never start. This also goes double for vaping, something that did not exist back in big John's era.

PET FOOD CONCERNS

DR. WALLACE: I know that you are a pet lover; I've been reading your column regularly for some time. I hope you can answer my question because I, too, am a big pet lover. Presently, I am the owner of two faithful and wonderful dogs.

Recently, I heard on television that thousands of dogs had become sick from eating tainted dog food. This shocked and pained me to hear. Can you inform me where our country gets most of its pet food from and if it is even safe? - Pet lover, via email

PET LOVER: I wish I knew the specific answer to your question, but I don't, and I do find this troubling. Most pet owners would agree with you that any and all pet food should be healthy and devoid of toxic substances.

My advice would be to carefully read labels on food you might feed to your dogs.

Furthermore, regularly scour the internet to check for pet food recalls. If you buy pet food online, take note of the country of origin for each brand. You can also conduct an online search — brand by brand — to see what you can learn. You might also seek out blogs, chat rooms and websites that discuss the best foods to feed your dogs.

Finally, check into podcasts. There are likely several good programs that will provide in depth discussions that you might find useful in answering your important pet concerns.

And when you get a chance, give each of your dogs a scratch behind the ears from me!

Dr. Robert Wallace welcomes questions from readers. Although he is unable to reply to all of them individually, he will answer as many as possible in this column. Email him at [email protected]. To find out more about Dr. Robert Wallace and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

Photo credit: jagdprinzessin at Pixabay