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To the greatest Errol Flynn. His talents went beyond the big screen, as I had the chance to confirm when I read his autobiography "My Wicked Wicked Ways". He wanted to be a writer and, at times, he considered his swashbuckler roles as minor ones. I couldn't disagree more. His portrayal of characters such as Captain Blood and Robin Hood have remained as icons of what adventure looks like.
To my dearest friend I never met. Happy Birthday, Errol!
Tremendous adventure score from The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938) performed life by John Wilson Orchestra. What a privilege must have been to be able to enjoy it like that. The soundtrack by Erich Wolfgang Korngold went on to win an Academy Award for Best Music in 1938. Initially, though, he turned down the idea of writing the score of an adventure film that would literally save his life, as he would later put it.
While in Hollywood he learned that the Nazis were about to invade Austria and, feeling he had to secure a source of revenue in the United States and also get his family out of Austria before the invasion, he accepted the assignment. He would go on to win the Oscar. For the rest of his life, Korngold, grateful that this successful assignment allowed him to stay in America and be safe from the Nazis' murderous persecution, would playfully quip, "Robin Hood saved my life."
Illustration process and development for the “Robin Hood” Shopping Pad. Different techniques approached and a final design.
To Errol Flynn.
The man who changed forever the face of adventure. The minute he stepped into his “Captain Blood”, audiences reacted like a thunderstorm. Not only for his looks, but for his charm, his audacity, his nobleness, his slyness and his great talent. I don’t think I have ever seen anything so moving on screen than his pairings with Olivia de Havilland and this particular line from “They Died with Their Boots On” is my all-time favorite:
George Armstrong Custer: Walking through life with you, ma'am, has been a very gracious thing.
No matter how much time passes, no matter how many movies we watch, there are memories and people that we carry along the way. Forever.
Norman or Saxon, what's that matter? It's injustice I hate, not the Normans.
- Robin Hood (Errol Flynn) in The Adventures of Robin Hood
