Hello all. I just finished this book by Earl Conrad. I get that Crane Eden is Errol Flynn and Tishey is Woodsie. A lot of what is in this book was mentioned in Conrad's Memoirs and MWWW (booze, sex, drugs, parties, ex-wife and lovers, the hotel, the island setting, raw hamburger, diving, producers, debt, etc.). What I didn't quite get was the mention of incest. Was this added to notch it up a bit because EC explored this subject with EF or because Earl Conrad was so upset about the cockroaches in his food and pranks played on him while staying with EF in Jamaica??? If you've read this book, can you please give me your thoughts?
— Kathleen
Anonymous
March 19, 2010 at 2:13 pm
I welcome meeting another Errol Flynn afficionado who actually bothered to read Earl Conrad's thinly disguised novel on his time spent with Flynn “Crane Eden”
I had read “Errol Flynn: A Memoir” first and years later learned about “Crane Eden”.
I respect Mr. Conrad as a superb author who has the incredible knack of pulling the reader right into the story. He is also a man who spent his entire life seeking the truth and if anyone ever got close to really understanding and explaining Errol Flynn it was Earl Conrad.
Over at the Zaca website I did a review of the BBC Radio Documentary “Errol Flynn's Lost Epic” which was about the making and the collapse of “William Tell”. If you haven't heard this broadcast you should get a copy because it is fantastic with many insights about Flynn the man. In any case Flynn's producer Barry Mahon speaks is interviewed on the broadcast and says that Errol Flynn essentially died from a morphine overdose that he deliberately tricked a doctor into giving him. I mentioned this in the review which is still posted over at the Zaca's archives, and I was savagely attacked by the legal representative of the Errol Flynn Estates who said that Mr. Mahon was 'a parasite, a leech, and a pornographer'.
However if you read “Crane Eden” you will discover that the title character dies of a morphine overdose that he tricks a doctor into giving him knowing full well he will expire. One can debate about the merits or lack thereof Barry Mahon, but the integrity of Earl Conrad is completely beyonnd reproach.
As to the issue you brought up from “Crane Eden” I was greatly disturbed to read it myself and every person will have to judge for themselves.
Best Wishes
Ralph Schiller
Anonymous
March 19, 2010 at 7:50 pm
It is entirely possible Mahon got the idea from Conrad's book, and consciously or not ingested it to the point of belief, rather than the other way around.
Anonymous
March 20, 2010 at 1:21 pm
Well Robert, I'd have to agree with you. After all, hasn't so much of that happened where EF is concerned?
Anonymous
March 20, 2010 at 7:21 pm
It sure has.
Anonymous
March 20, 2010 at 7:44 pm
Hi Ralph, I read the two books in the order you did also. I too was disturbed and perturbed and that is what we are left with. I'm not here to judge EF, I just file it all away. I will go to the Zaca website and look in the archives.
Anonymous
April 7, 2010 at 6:18 am
I just finished reading Cane Eden and after reading all of the other material that I have read regarding Errol, I feel that this book does paralell to some degree, his life, but only to a certain extent. I just don't believe that for one minute, that Errol had any inappropriate feelings towards his daughters! It's really unfortunate that was added to the book because there was so much more that COULD of been added.