The Errol Flynn Blog

I am back on the blog again and wish to thank our host David Dewitt and Rory Flynn for sharing these rare treasured photos of Errol Flynn.  I’ll be back later with a book that has an entire chapter on Sean Flynn.   Ralph Schiller

— Ralph Schiller

At the March 2011 Hollywood Collectibles Show in Chicago, Illinois one of Errol Flynn's actual co-stars will be there in person signing autographs.  

On top of that she was the star of the most obscure, impossible-to-find, and virtually unseen film in Errol Flynn's entire career.  The film is “Hello God” (1951).    Very little is known about this film other than it was shot in Italy, and was written and directed by William Marshall.   When Errol saw the finsished product, he was so horrified that he destroyed the print.   Director Marshall was able to re-recreate the film from outtakes, and shot additional scenes.   

The film played at a single film festival in Spain.   A legal representative of the Flynn estates once asked Patrice Wymore about “Hello God”.  She said she had seen the film and that Errol Flynn gave a wonderful performance as the ghost of an American soldier killed at Anzio Beach in World War Two.  

In William Marshal's own autobiographical novel, he strongly hints that “Hello God” was already filmed in Italy with an Italian actor. Then he simply re-shot the actor's close-ups with new footage of Errol Flynn.  

Outside of Ms. Wymore no one I know has ever seen the film let alone co-star in it with Flynn.   

I intend to attend the Chicago show and ask the lovely Ms. jackson several questions. 

Did she work in Italy on te film or were all her scenes shot in Califonia? 

 Did she ever work on camera or on set with Errol Flynn or were her scenes filmed after he tried to destroy the film? 

  Has she ever actually seen the film? 

  Does she have a copy of the film?

 Does she still have a copy of the screenplay?

The enigmatic “Hello God” is Errol Flynn's ghost film, in that many people doubt its very existence today or even back then. 

Sherry Jackson may be the key to solving this mystery!

Best Wishes

Ralph Schiller

— Ralph Schiller

Warner Brothers is releasing five Errol Flynn movie classics to DVD for the first time.

These can be ordered at the website:

www.WarnerArchive.com…

The titles being released are:

“Green Light” (1937)

“Footsteps In The Dark” (1942)

“Cry Wolf” (1947)

“Never Say Goodbye”  (1947)

“That Forsyte Woman” (1949)

These are DVD's 'On Demand' and are selling for $19.96 each.

You can order all of the above except for “Cry Wolf” as one set from WB for the bargain price of $47.88.

“Cry Wolf” can be ordered individually or as part of a Barbara Stanwyck set for $59.85 along with:

         “The Secret Bride” (1933)

         “The Woman In Red” (1935)

         “B.F.'s Daughter” (1949)

         “Man With A Cloak” (1953)

Also VCI Entertainment has released a new, restored version of Errol Flynn's last movie “Cuban Rebel Girls” (1959) on a double-feature DVD with “Prehistoric Women”.

The other Flynn movies contain some of his best screen work and are all fun to watch.   On the other hand “Cuban Rebel Girls” reminds us just low Flynn's film career had sunk to at the time he made it.   He is obviously in very bad health and in the closing scene looks like a walking zombie.   It's easily the worst 'swan song' or farewell film on any Hollywood movie great.  In fact it's even worse than Bela Lugosi's last movie “Plan 9 From Outer Space” (1959). 

Come to think of it, Lou Costello's last movie “The 30 Foot Bride Of Cndy Rock” was also released in 1959.    It was without his straight man Bud Abbott and is both unfunny and terrible but “Cuban Rebel Girls” makes it look like “Gone With The Wind”!

Best Wishes

Ralph Schiller

— Ralph Schiller

Please be advised that a new book “Hollywood Babylon – It's Back” by Darwin Porter and Danforth Price has extensive new and original material on Errol Flynn.   This book has over 20 references to Errol Flynn including a chapter on the short, happy life of Sean Flynn and his tragic fate in Cambodia.

This book and even another by this pair of authors follows in the footsteps of Kenneth Anger who wrote those two landmark “Hollywood Babylon” books in the 1970's.

Some of this material on Flynn is true and some of it is probably false or greatly exagerated but I don't know where exactly.  The book is currently available from Amazon.com…, where you can browse the Flynn passages.

Dark side or not this book does appear to be a fun read.

And by the way whatever happened to those remains discovered in Cambodia that were thought to be what's left of Sean Flynn?  Have they finished DNA testing?  

I suspect those remains where not in the end Sean Flynn.

Best wishes

Ralph Schiller

— Ralph Schiller

The brand new current issue of “Films Of The Golden Age” has a long article on the making of Errol Flynn's western “Rocky Mountain” (1950).   It contains many photographs taken on the set of the film and an extensive interview with actor Dick Jones who played the baby-faced Confederate soldier with the cute dog.

I found it to be fascinating and Dick Jones who also made “Virginia City” (1940) with Errol Flynn offers some rare insights on the star.

Best Wishes

Ralph Schiller

— Ralph Schiller

As we celebrate Errol Flynn, let us salute the beautiful women who over the years were his co-stars.

Errol Flynn made 55 motion pictures from 1933-1959.   Even though his last work was in a film over 51 years ago many of his leading ladies are still alive.

I was able to document that 17 of Errol Flynn's leading ladies are thankfully still with us.  Who are they?

Let us salute them by remembering them:

Can you identify the 17?

Best Wishes

Ralph Schiller

— Ralph Schiller

I wish to bring attention to a brand new book on the life of actress/model Jeanne Carmen who appeared in the Errol Flynn movie “Too Much, Too Soon” (1958).

The book is currently available from Amazon.com… under the title “Jeanne Carmen: My Wild, Wild Life” written by her son Brandon James based on her diaries.   I have not read this book as of yet, but am impressed that it has 562 pages, and therefore not a  piece of fluff.

Ms. Carmen writes about her adventures with Errol Flynn during the making of the film although they have no scenes together in it.  In fact Jeanne Carmen appears late in the story after John Barrymore’s death as a beautiful, buxom blonde stripper named ‘Tassles’ who works in the burlesque theatre with a rapidly fading Diana Barrymore.

I had the great pleasure of meeting Jeanne Carmen at several collectible shows and found her to be an intelligent, still beautiful-looking, eloquent woman with a great sense of humor.   She was the subject of a “E! Channel True Hollywood Story” and insisted to me that the story she related on Errol Flynn on the show was indeed true.  When I asked her about Flynn her first words were an emphatic “I liked him!”

She said that while they were shooting her striptease dance at Warner Brothers (which only lasts for a few seconds on screen) , Mr. Jack L. Warner himself sat in the front row cheering her on, and grinning from ear-to-ear like a naughty school boy.

Jeanne Carmen had definite opinions on te death of Marilyn Monroe which she said was a homicide not a suicide.  This is a major part of her book.   She even told me that while visiting Marilyn in 1962, she answered the front door and was shocked to see the U.S. Attorney-General Bobby Kennedy standing there and let him in!

Has anyone on this great blog site purchased and read this book as of yet?

If yes, then how about a book review for the rest of us?

So far the customer reviews for “Jeanne Carmen: My Wild, Wild Life” on Amazon have been positive.

Best Wishes

Ralph Schiller

— Ralph Schiller