— Tim
Archive for the ‘Behind the Scenes’ Category
The Irish at Last Stand Hill
18
May
They died with their boots on.
“Most of them had fled famine-ravaged Ireland in the 1840s and found, in the US Army, a secure meal-ticket and adventure, first in the Civil War – where the Irish fought on both sides – and later in the Indian Wars, as America spread westward across the Great Plains.”
“Errol Flynn played the swashbuckling Custer in the buckskin jacket, a jacket that in real life, we now know, had been made for him by 35-year-old Sergeant Jeremiah Finley from Co Tipperary, one of the Seventh Cavalry’s regimental tailors. Finley died on Last Stand Hill.”
How Irish was Flynn?
— Tim
The Man Who Would Not Be Blood
08
May
Whether it was asthma, a preference for stage over film and Hollywood, and/or love of a woman in London, the great Robert Donat backed out of playing Captain Blood. The rest is history. This is his story:
— Tim
The Sheriff of Savile Row? The Adventures of Modern Hood?
06
May
Evil I see, but Medieval? That haircut, and that outfit??
And what about Hood’s hoodie? Errol could be rolling over in stitches over this error.
— Tim
Hot Dog Diplomacy
30
Apr
“The Picnic That Won the War”
On Sunday, June 11, 1939, FDR & Eleanor hosted a picnic for the King and Queen of England at his summer “cottage” in Hyde Park. This was the legendary “Hot Dog Summit”, which is often credited with having very significantly increased America’s early support of England in World War II. As described by David Niven in the YouTube audio recording linked below, Errol was part of a “British Colony” radio program performed live in conjunction with the picnic.
“When Franklin Roosevelt invited Great Britain’s King George VI for a visit to the United States, the significance of the invitation did not go unnoticed. No reigning British Monarch had ever set foot on American soil, not even in colonial times. Ever since the Revolutionary War the United States and Great Britain oftentimes experienced tense relations, but Roosevelt’s invitation to the King carried great significance in the history of Anglo-American relations because it signified the dawn of a new era in American and British cooperation.”
“After two days in Washington, the tone of the royal couple’s visit transformed from formal to informal as they accompanied the Roosevelts to their home in Hyde Park, New York. The King and Queen’s stay in Hyde Park illustrated to the American people that although they were Royalty, they also enjoyed the simpler things in life. In contrast to the formal State Dinner at the White House, dinner at the Roosevelt’s Home “Springwood” was described to the press as a casual dinner between the two families; their evening entertainment was simple conversation, unfettered by formalities.”
“Even more relaxing and informal was the following day’s event – a picnic. FDR brought the couple to his new hilltop retreat, Top Cottage, on the eastern portion of his estate for an old-fashioned, American-style picnic. Much to the horror of FDR’s mother Sara Roosevelt, the King and Queen of England were served hot dogs on the front porch of the cottage. Although the press made a great deal about the hot dogs. (The picnic made the front page of the New York Times)”
“THE PICNIC THAT WON THE WAR”
David Niven describes the Hollywood British Colony radio show at 1:36:33 in this audio recording:
— Tim
Ratto Ranch: Rich in Hollywood History
04
Apr
Dashing actor Errol Flynn came to the 238-acre Ratto Ranch for the 1936 filming of “Charge of the Light Brigade.” Flynn also rode a horse alongside a moving steam train near the Stanislaus-Tuolumne County border for the 1939 film, “Dodge City.”
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Ratto Ranch was a setting for several famous Western films and TV shows, including “The Charge of the Light Brigade” starring Errol Flynn in 1936, “For Whom the Bell Tolls” with Gary Cooper and Ingrid Bergman in 1943, “High Noon” starring Cooper and Grace Kelly in 1952, and the TV series “Little House on the Prairie” in the 1970s-80s.
— Tim
The Ides of Flynn
15
Mar
Eighty-Five Years Ago Today (Sydney Time), on March 15, 1933, Errol Appeared Live AND On Film at the Prince Edward Theater in Sydney.
Errol was paid £2 to stand on stage in what he later described as a bad wig and bizarre naval uniform, appearing more like “an elderly keeper at a [Sydney brothel] than Fletcher Christian. The Ides of March ended bad for Caesar, but great for Flynn. It signaled the birth of Errol’s acting career.
A superb assembly of contemporaneous news articles by EFB Author “Isabel Australis”:
An intriguing history with some Errol and errors:
And here’s the cinematic Flynn himself, just as he appeared at the Prince Edward Theater, eighty-five years ago today, March 15, 1933 – On the Ides of Flynn:
— Tim
The Shape of Errol
05
Mar
Errol’s connection to The Shape of Water? The extraordinarily talented and beautiful Millicent Patrick. Before she worked on the shape of Gil-Man in Creature from the Black Lagoon, she worked on the shape of Errol.
“She began working as a “makeup illustrator” on an Errol Flynn film and worked her way up from there. Patrick created and designed the look of Mr. Hyde in Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and the Xenomorphs in the B-picture This Island Earth and of course the iconic Gil-Man himself from Creature from the Black Lagoon.”
* Lake Zaca near Santa Barbara, California, which may have inspired Templeton Crockett to name Errol’s future yacht “The Zaca”, is very frequently reported to have been the lagoon filming location in “The Creature from the Black Lagoon.” These reports however may be apocryphal. The true “Black Lagoon” may actually have been Wakulla Springs in Florida.
— Tim
A Spring Training Quiz
03
Mar
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.
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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
