Speaking of Errol Flynn: The swashbuckler, the teenager and the revolutionary.

I've updated this post from 2013.

Back in the early 1980s when the "Bob & Rog Show" was a staple on the local tavern circuit, we both looked to the film star Errol Flynn with considerable reverence as a symbol of sustained dissipation.

I've now managed to live seven whole years longer than Flynn, who died at 50 of the accumulated effects of his debaucheries.

Any similarities begin and end with alcohol, and in retrospect, there is little to admire in Flynn's off-screen existence. His final flirtation was with a teenage girl, and his last movies were cheapies set in Cuba. One of them, Cuban Rebel Girls, has long been a source of fascination owing to its wretchedness, although perhaps enough time has passed to render it a cult classic.

Well past his prime, Errol Flynn agreed to star in the basement-budgeted Cuban Rebel Girls for two reasons: he was fascinated by Fidel Castro, and he needed a quick tax write-off. Flynn plays "himself," an American news correspondent on assignment in Havana. He joins a group of Castroites who undertake several guerrilla raids; among the rebels is 17-year-old Beverly Aadland, actor Flynn's at-the-time girlfriend. Cuban Rebel Girls was hastily assembled in Cuba and New York by fly-by-night producer Barry Mahon. Sadly, it proved to be Errol Flynn's last film.

Actually, it turns out the proper descriptive word is not "last." It is "penultimate," but more about that in a moment. My attention was directed to these topics by a 2013 article in the newspaper of record, in which Flynn and Aadland are reunited in a biopic of sorts.

The Swashbuckler and the Teenager; Kevin Kline as Errol Flynn in ‘The Last of Robin Hood’, by John Anderson (NYT)

 ... “His early performances have a wonderful dash and bravura,” said Morris Dickstein, film critic, professor and author of “Dancing in the Dark: A Cultural History of the Great Depression.” “But like Barrymore, he eventually disappeared into his own caricature and made his ‘Wicked, Wicked Ways’ his calling card.” He added, “It would have been a sad case, except that he seems to have had a good time of it.”

Seems there was a time for another project, too: Cuban Story, a documentary rediscovered after decades on the shelf, and finally released in 2012. While it remains posted at YouTube, you can watch an excerpt: Cuban Story.

The entire movie surfaces on occasion, and usually is yanked quickly owing to copyright infringement. It may be available elsewhere, but the snippet's enough for me.

Film star with a cause, by John Paul Rathbone (Financial Times)

A recently rediscovered film about Fidel Castro is a rare chronicle of a defining moment in world history as well as Errol Flynn’s near-redemption.

It gives a whole new meaning to "In like Flynn," which upon closer examination sounds like a great name for a commemorative beer.

After all, I used to know someone who owns a brewery.

The series Once Upon A Time has run out of it, but Josh Dallas goes on forever in syndication.

Another day at the office with the missus.

I'm famously indifferent to television; consequently, this story is more than two months late, so for the record: The series Once Upon A Time has come to an end, after 150-something episodes.

These factoids matters primarily because the show brought a measure of fame and recognition to a fellow New Albanian, all-around nice guy Josh Dallas, who served as grand marshal during the 2012 Harvest Homecoming parade.

As it turns out, last year's sixth season of Once Upon A Time was Dallas's finale, as most of the original cast members had six-year contracts. Let's hope they get a cut of the residuals from the many hours of "content" the series is destined to become in the years ahead.

My personal favorite Josh Dallas moment came in a movie I've never watched: Thor (2011). the actor prepared for the part of Fandral by researching Errol Flynn and watching Flynn's Hollywood swashbucklers.

Josh and his wife, series co-star Ginny Goodwin, are quality folks. I feel very fortunate to have met them a few years back, and wish them all the best in the future.

‘Once Upon a Time’ to End With Season 7, by Debra Birnbaum (Variety)

The magic is over for “Once Upon a Time.”

The ABC series, which is currently in its seventh season, will end its (fairy tale) storied run with the current season, Variety has learned.

From The Who to Errol Flynn's Don Juan in two early morning song snippets.

As an expression of the strange way my brain processes and recalls music, consider two tunes playing interchangeably in my mind as I awoke this morning. Note that music plays constantly in my head, although deciphering the wacky algorithm responsible for selecting the playlist has proven impossible.

First, "Put the Money Down," a song by the Who, from an album I haven't played in years.

This cut, recorded at roughly the same time as the songs appearing on the classic 1971 album Who's Next, first appeared on the compilation album Odds & Sods in 1974. It is by no means a well known track by my favorite band, which returns to Louisville early next year on its 50th anniversary (and purportedly final) tour.

Two days ago, I read a long interview with survivng members Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey at the on-line portal of a British newspaper. Did this somehow dislodge "Put the Money Down" from a shelf in the cranium ... or is it how perfectly the song's weary, angry and cynical lyrics describe local phenomenons like New Albany's Main Street Disprovement, Deforestation and Semi Trailer Non-Diversion Project, and my reaction to them?

Even more obscurely, also greeting me this morning was a theme from the 1948 Errol Flynn film, The Adventures of Don Juan. You'll hear it 12 seconds into this suite of Max Steiner's music from the movie.

Flynn's career headed south shortly after this one, but briefly, some of the old magic returned. Here's a clip.

Now, imagine New Albany's own Josh Dallas playing the role of Flynn in a biopic based on Flynn's colorful life.

Just saying.

Richard Atnip, if you're reading this ... pass the word, please. Do you see where the music leads me?

"My Favorite Year" ... and rest in peace, Peter O'Toole.

Peter O'Toole's passing prompted the usual flurry of remembrances, and in several of them, I was heartened to see references to My Favorite Year (1982).

On Twitter, Keith Olbermann recalled interviewing O'Toole some years ago and confiding that My Favorite Year was Olbermann's favorite O'Toole film, to which the actor replied that it probably was his personal favorite, too.

In My Favorite Year, O'Toole plays a disintegrating Hollywood matinee idol coming to earth in the 1950s, a character based on the real-life actor Errol Flynn. In need of a paycheck, Allan Swann agrees to perform on television, but misses one crucial aspect of the gig. Flynn was dead by the age of 50, which was O'Toole's approximate age in 1982; given the latter's legendary drinking and carousing, the self-referential nexus of the role is fascinating -- and he lived another three decades. How he did so remains unclear.

The movie is not racy, profane or particularly relevant to the modern world. However, it is a delightful glimpse of a time when movies and television collided.

The swashbuckler, the teenager and the revolutionary.

Back in the early 1980s when the Bob & Rog Show was a staple on the local tavern circuit, we both looked to the film star Errol Flynn with considerable reverence as a symbol of sustained dissipation. I've now managed to live three whole years longer than Flynn, who died at 50 of the accumulated effects of his debaucheries.

Any similarities begin and end with alcohol. Flynn's final flirtation was with a teenage girl, and his last movies were set in Cuba. One of them, Cuban Rebel Girls, has long been a source of fascination owing to its wretchedness, although perhaps enough time has passed to render it a cult classic.

Well past his prime, Errol Flynn agreed to star in the basement-budgeted Cuban Rebel Girls for two reasons: he was fascinated by Fidel Castro, and he needed a quick tax write-off. Flynn plays "himself," an American news correspondent on assignment in Havana. He joins a group of Castroites who undertake several guerilla raids; among the rebels is 17-year-old Beverly Aadland, actor Flynn's at-the-time girlfriend. Cuban Rebel Girls was hastily assembled in Cuba and New York by fly-by-night producer Barry Mahon. Sadly, it proved to be Errol Flynn's last film.

Actually, it turns out the proper descriptive word is not "last." It is "penultimate," but more about that in a moment. My attention was directed to these topics by yesterday's newspaper of record, in which Flynn and Aadland are reunited in a biopic of sorts.

The Swashbuckler and the Teenager; Kevin Kline as Errol Flynn in ‘The Last of Robin Hood’, by John Anderson (NYT)

 ... “His early performances have a wonderful dash and bravura,” said Morris Dickstein, film critic, professor and author of “Dancing in the Dark: A Cultural History of the Great Depression.” “But like Barrymore, he eventually disappeared into his own caricature and made his ‘Wicked, Wicked Ways’ his calling card.” He added, “It would have been a sad case, except that he seems to have had a good time of it.”

Seems there was a time for another project, too: Cuban Story, a documentary rediscovered after decades on the shelf, and finally released in 2012. While it remains posted at YouTube, you can watch the complete documentary: Cuban Story.

Film star with a cause, by John Paul Rathbone (Financial Times)

A recently rediscovered film about Fidel Castro is a rare chronicle of a defining moment in world history as well as Errol Flynn’s near-redemption.

It gives a whole new meaning to "In like Flynn," which upon closer examination sounds like a great name for a commemorative beer. After all, I know someone who owns a brewery.