“Actor Ian Holm died June 19 at the age of 88, according to a statement from his agent. Holm had a long and varied acting career that saw him cast as a slew of characters, including Bilbo Baggins in the “Lord of the Rings” movie trilogy, Ash in Ridley Scott’s “Alien” and athletics coach Sam Mussabini in the 1981 movie “Chariots of Fire,” a performance for which he was nominated for an Oscar.”
And why would this veteran actor get a mention in this forum?
Your may recall the excellent documentary “The Adventures of Errol Flynn”?
Here’s part of a review in Variety:
“Imbued with the same swashbuckling spirit as its subject matter, this Turner Classic Movies documentary qualifies as must-see TV for anyone warned on the cinematic exploits of Errol Flynn, whose life on and off makes for a great deal of fun. Flynn crammed plenty of living into the quarter century between becoming an enormous star and dying at the age of 50, and this documentary is the perfect companion piece to a retrospective of his films- the kind of package that has made TCM a welcome have for movie buffs.”
Holm lent his marvelous speaking voice to this effort as he was, in fact… THE NARRATOR!
And it was an IMMEASURABLE contribution to the overall experience in its viewing MUCH LIKE a Korngold or Steiner score was to a Flynn film.
Rest well, Ian- with our thanks… AND, for this lesser known laurel that is acknowledged once again here today.
— Karl
David DeWitt
July 28, 2020 at 12:40 pm
Thanks so much, Karl …
barb
July 28, 2020 at 3:41 pm
Thank you for posting, Karl, I hadn’t heard that Ian Holm had died. He was a wonderful actor, of course, and he was perfect as the narrator of The Adventures of Errol Flynn. As you so eloquently noted, his contribution to the documentary *was* similar to what the superb film scores brought to Flynn’s films.
Ralph Schiller
July 28, 2020 at 5:12 pm
Thank-You Karl for this tribute to Ian Holm and his connection to Errol Flynn. Look for Ian Holm to steal a film directed by Woody Allen “Another Woman” among his many accomplishment.
Gentleman Tim
July 28, 2020 at 5:55 pm
Thank you, Karl. What an outstanding career he had! I have to watch, I mean listen, again to his work on TAOEF
[img]https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/31MNd44pVfL._AC_SY400_.jpg[/img]
btw, that’s the second great narrator with a Flynn connection here on the EFB since Olivia’s ascension into cinematic heaven. The other one can be heard in the R&B video posted by barb, the one in which Bullwinkle says goodbye to Olivia. (As barb pointed out, Bullwinkle gives his snake pit goodbye at about 20:10 in the video below.)
Who was this narrator and what was his connection to Flynn? … It was William Conrad, the famous radio voice who once performed a radio show with Errol back in ’52 in The Modern Adventures of Casanova (many a moon before he starred in Cannon.) Listen to his fantastic opening narration in this video!
barb
July 28, 2020 at 7:33 pm
Never knew about the William Conrad connection to Flynn, Tim. And what a voice Conrad had. As has been noted in this thread, whether music or narration (and so many other aspects, such as sound), it is all these elements that make movies what they are. Flynn was so fortunate to have such superb support in those areas.
Gentleman Tim
July 28, 2020 at 9:50 pm
Yes, indeed, he worked with the best of the best, barb – from Korngold to Curtiz to Iron Eyes Cody – because they all wanted to work with him. He was an immortal from the get-go in Hollywood, as soon as they saw him on the big screen in El Capitan Blood.
You may wonder why I include old Iron Eyes. Well, that’s because of his connection to both Errol, and, very notably, to William Conrad, who narrated all of Cody’s legendary Keep America Beautiful commercials.
“During the day, Cody worked on such pictures as “The Charge of the Light Brigade,” “They Died With Their Boots On,” “Wagon Train” and “My Little Chickadee.” At night, he made the rounds of the Hollywood party circuit with stars like Cooper and Errol Flynn”