Though there is no basis for thinking that John Wayne had 40 pounds of fecal matter in his digestive tract at the time of his death, another superstar was widely reported to have been suffering from similar digestive problems when he died: Elvis Presley.
Indeed, in her 1999 USA Today article, after Cathy Hainer makes her claim about Wayne, she then proceeds to say the same about Presley, stating that the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll had 60 pounds of fecal material in his colon. According to Charles C. Thompson II and James P. Cole’s 1991 book “The Death of Elvis: What Really Happened,” one shocking detail pathologists discovered in Presley’s autopsy was that his colon was dilated to almost twice its natural size, and compacted with “white, chalklike fecal material.” Pathologist Dan Warlick explained to the authors that he believed the grim state of the King’s bowel was the result of prolonged drug use, which can paralyze the digestive system. It appears that this disturbing detail may have been misattributed to Wayne’s death, with the actor dying just two years after the “Blue Suede Shoes” singer.
