Classic Movies of Legendary Couple, Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland

This month, let’s talk Legendary Classic Movie Couples! In the next few weeks, we are going to present the films of several of the movie couples that worked so well together, but also enjoyed successful movie careers apart from the other. On each “couple week”, we will first discuss the male actor and some of his individual performances on Monday, the female actor and some of her individual performances on Wednesday, and on Friday we will share their fabulous screen performances together. We have already talked about several of those pairings on previous posts (Tracy & Hepburn, Gable & Harlow), but not quite in this format.

We will begin this new format with one of our favorite screen couples-handsome Errol Flynn and lovely Olivia de Havilland. This wonderful pair appeared in many legendary motion pictures together, but today, let's talk classic movies of Errol Flynn.

Best known for his swashbuckler films, flamboyant lifestyle, and devil-may-care personality, Errol Flynn lit up the screen with his magnificent swordfights, flashing smile, and romantic love-scenes. There was an endearing roguishness to the characters he portrayed, a quality that made him a favorite with the ladies and the envy of the gentlemen in his audiences. According to some critics, his acting ability was not quite on par with many of his peers, but we certainly never noticed. The films he made during the 1930’s and 1940’s were always enjoyable to watch on the “late show” and we thought he was wonderful. From his first starring role in Captain Blood in 1935, Errol Flynn’s popularity soared for the next dozen years or so before his destructive lifestyle began taking a toll on his health and some of his performances. Subsequently, his career had its highs and lows throughout the 1950’s. Errol Flynn died from a heart attack in 1959 at the early age of 50.

Several of our favorite films of Errol Flynn (without Olivia DeHavilland) are The Prince and the Pauper (1937), with the Mauch twins; The Sisters (1938), with Bette Davis (although the story’s ending was changed to suit Hollywood) ; The Sea Hawk (1940), with




Brenda Marshall; Virginia City (1940), with Miriam Hopkins and Humphrey Bogart;
Footsteps in the Dark (1941), with Brenda Marshall; San Antonio (1945), with Alexis Smith; Cry Wolf (1947), with Barbara Stanwyck; Silver River (1948), with Ann Sheridan; Rocky Mountain (1950), with Patrice Wymore (his third wife); Hemingway’s The Sun Also Rises (1957), with Tyrone Power; and Too Much, Too Soon (1958), with Dorothy Malone.


The Errol Flynn classic we are spotlighting today is 1942’s Gentleman Jim, with beautiful Alexis Smith. The film tells the story of World Heavyweight Boxing Champion James J. Corbett, who defeated the great John L. Sullivan (played superbly by Ward Bond), by a knock-out in 21 rounds back in 1892. The movie follows Corbett’s rise in “bare-knuckles fisticuffs”, his scientific approach to boxing, and the climactic match with Sullivan. In this entertaining biopic, Errol Flynn, himself a capable pugilist, deftly portrays the title character. The brawling Corbett brothers are lots of fun to watch and Flynn is absolutely perfect as the swaggering, rather “swollen-headed” boxer. The scene between Errol Flynn and Ward Bond after Sullivan’s defeat is quite touching. Flynn and leading lady, Alexis Smith, also have a delightful screen chemistry as the bragging Corbett and the girl who wants to see him fall on his face and ends up falling for him. Gentleman Jim is a wonderful picture and one of our favorites of Errol Flynn. It is also one of Flynn’s personal favorites as well. Take a look at it when you get the chance.

**Trivia Question for Today: In Too Much, Too Soon, what self-destructive actor does Errol Flynn portray (much like himself)?

Trivia Answer for Previous Post: In Dinner at Eight, Kitty (Jean Harlow) tells Carlotta (Marie Dressler), as they go into dinner that she has been reading a book. To which a startled Carlotta replies, “Reading a book?” Kitty then tells her that it was a “nutty” kind of a book, all about civilization and how machinery was going to take the place of every profession. Carlotta looks at Kitty who is dressed in a skin-tight white satin gown and replies, “Oh my dear, that's something you need never worry about”.