>Here are my choices in order of preference:
>
>Shane - a perfect western in every way.
>My Darlin' Clementine (there has to be at least one by John Ford and one with Henry Fonda, so this one handles both requirements while being an awesome movie on its own right)
>Lonesome Dove - future generations might move it up higher on the list. It improves with more views.
>Fistful of Dollars (there has to be at least one by Sergio Leone and one with Clint so this one does double duty also)
>High Noon (the music moves it up here)
>
>Near misses - Unforgiven, Outlaw Josey Wales, Magnificent Seven, Silverado, Open Range.

It's hard to disagree with any of those. John Ford for sure. Surprisingly, I have been watching a lot of John Wayne movies lately. I say surprising because Wayne was poison to me for his far right views. "Stagecoach," which was Ford's first feature, could easily be on your list. I decided to try it after reading a rave about it by Dave Kehr of the NY Times, a movie critic I trust. One of the extras on the Blu-Ray edition is a terrific commentary by the director Peter Bogdonovich . One of the first movies he worked on, not as the director, was a John Wayne movie. He said he picked Wayne's brain about movies as much as possible. He said Wayne told him it was nice to talk about movies with someone instead of politics. "Stagecoach" has its schmaltzy aspects, which just about all movies back then did, but the suspense and characterization are great.