It’s 3/3, Baseball Spring. So here’s a FlynnQuiz involving the most famous No. 3 of all, Babe Ruth.
One was Ruthian, the other Errolympian.
Both were hugely popular and beloved stars, and still are.
One’s career ended in 1935, the other’s exploded in 1935.
It’s astonishing to me that there’s no record of Errol Flynn and Babe Ruth ever meeting. For example, it’s hard for me to believe that Babe never attended a party up at Mulholland. They did, however, both know a famous director. In fact, this director had a significant role in the film careers of both Errol and Babe. Indeed, it may be the case that Babe’s having worked with this famous director impeded Babe from meeting Errol. Whatever the reason here’s the quiz question:
What famous director did both Errol Flynn and Babe Ruth work with?
Pitch No. 1: It involved a very big and famous premier in New York.
Pitch No. 2: It did not involve the wonderful Harold Lloyd film depicted below.
Pitch No. 3: Nor did it involve the Gary Cooper and Teresa Wright masterpiece depicted below.
images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com…
Speedy: One of Harold Lloyd’s greatest, featuring Babe Ruth.
Pride of the Yankees: a heart-wrenching Super-Duper Gary Cooper movie, featuring the stunningly gorgeous and talented Teresa Wright. Look for Ruth in the beginning of this music video tribute.
— Tim
A clip from the film, set in “Haverlock” before Babe hit the big time.
[img
[/img]
Lobby cards for the film.
[img]http://www.robertedwardauctions.com/auction/2008/spring/1920-babe-ruthheadin-homemovie-advertising-cards-complete-set-four-2.jpg[/img]
The film was a silent.
[img
[/img]
With a legendary world premier at Madison Square Garden (II).
A uniquely large screen and projector were created to show the film.
[img
[/img]
The following two civil war related scenes are from films connected to the mystery man connected to both Errol and Babe Ruth’s film careers.
[img
[/img]
[img
[/img]
Quiz-zical Tim!
As always, your challenges are not for the faint of finger (as in searching hither and yon) and I was no less LESS industrious.
To wit, I did a side by side of the contributing names (and in the case of Babe’s first, the credits are few and Intolerance’s MANY) in each of these cinematic efforts and COULD find but one nexus…
So, in the spirit of “team” work (having caught the ball me self), I offer a further assist
Since we’re talking degrees of separation here involving silents, “players” of that time, and Flynn… how’s about a friend in common to Flynn and the mystery man, AND still another matinee idyll AND… who wrote the ABSOLUTE best telling of the Barrymore body snatching (the first such “event” in 1942) story.
Here LIES the answer…
As they say in baseball, Sir Karl, you’ve got one good eye! (which happened to also apply to our mystery man)
Here’s a podt mortem or two of Weekend at Errol’s:
www.the13thfloor.tv…
GENTLEMAN Tim- thank you, indeed, for your tolerance of my MOST intolerant of errors… citing the WRONG movie , even with the hint of Mr. W as JWB.
I meant to credit the film BIRTH of a Nation!
To make amends, I share with you a famous quote of his and let’s see if it stands up to closer scrutiny:
“You can really double anybody. If the action is good enough, it can be a monkey with top-hat and spats.”
I hope the image takes!
[img]http://www.theerrolflynnblog.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/DFRW.jpg[/img]
What a great photo, Karl! You’d never catch Curtiz or Hitchcock hanging around with actors like that!
Yes, that’s our man, who “supervised”/directed Ruth twenty years before he directed (and tried to supervise) Flynn – the Great Raoul Walsh!
Here’s one of the most historic baseball films of all time – not an artistically significant one, but a very significant one in the history of baseball – because it starred Babe Ruth in his first film. The premier was historic, also, as it was shown in Madison Square Garden on an historically large and specially made screen, with an also specially made projector.
Unfortunately, much to the chagrin of The Babe, the film was funded by men of highly questionable character, resulting in a disaster for almost all involved. Babe used to carry around a bad $35,000 check he received from the crooked con artist/producers, swearing that if he ever got a hold of them he’d make them cash it.
The whole process left Babe very wary of Hollywood, and supposedly was on a serious hunt for Raoul, though, knowing what all know about Hollywood now, it likely wasn’t Raoul who did the ripping off, but moguls above him … Raoul may have been a “one-eyed bandit”, but he was certainly no thief! (Then again, he did ride with Pancho Villa, didn’t he …)