james gagney was the first choice for ROBIN,but i think because of other comitments he could not take it..who thinks he could have done as good a job as flynn???? as good an actor as gagney was i think flynn would have been the better robin......
sharehell yeah, Errol Flynn was totally the one fate had picked out-who else had as much panache and swashbuckler in them as Errol Flynn?
Cagney would have wrecked the film.
Saying Cagney would have wrecked the film is an exaggeration, but Flynn is just born to play this role, the same way Cagney was born to play Tom Powers, Rocky Sullivan, Cody Jarrett, or George M. Cohan.
Cagney did not only play gangsters for godsake. He had an excellent knack for comedy and light-hearted material. Yankee Doodle Dandy, Footlight Parade, and even One, Two, Three rank among his best films. He even did a good take of Bottom in Midsummer Night's Dream.
In short, I love Cagney, but Robin Hood and Alfred Doolittle are two roles I'm glad he did not end up playing.
Man, give her the *beep* overhead clause!
it would have been a much darker film if Cagney had done it, there would be more violence and deep morales, Flynn brought a colorful effect to the film that no one else could. Cagney is still one of America's greatest actors, but he didnt have that appeal that Flynn had as the courageous swashbuckler.
don't let anyone outside the family know what your thinking
<james gagney was the first choice for ROBIN,but i think because of other comitments he could not take it..who thinks he could have done as good a job as flynn????>
No way. Cagney never struck me as the swashbuckling type anymore than Flynn would've been a tough-talking New York gangster.
Both actors had their respective niches properly in films.
I think Flynn eclipsed Cagney as an actor, and no I don't think Flynn could have been Cagney's kind of Gangster, but he would have looked much more comfortable in a Zoot Suit with a Tommy Gun than Cagney would have looked in tights. This is silly no-body would be posting about this movie if Cagney had done it. None of you would have even ever seen it or heard of it. The reason this film is remembered is because it is the definative Errol Flynn swash-buckleing film.
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Horses for courses. This is Errol Flynn's course. Cagney would not have been any good as Robin Hood. But could you imagine Errol in Yankee Doodle Dandy? That's Cagney's course.
sharelike someone said before Errol Flynn is Robin Hood.
07BoardVet
"Victims aren't we all"
The replies all seem to be in consensus! James Cagney was a talented actor, and while I know he was considered for the lead, I just can't imagine him portraying Robin Hood, period, and definitely not the way Errol Flynn did! Flynn owned the role of swashbuckler, although he was more versatile than he was given credit for back in his day.
Having said that, some brought up the point early on that Cagney shouldn't be dismissed for the role just because he was American, considering that Vivian Lee was a British actress chosen to play the southern belle Scarlett O'Hara. That's a good point, but it was simply quite amazing that she could pull it off so brilliantly! So to be fair, I simply CANNOT see Cagney doing the same, but since I never saw his version of Robin, I can't really compare it to Flynn's!
Errol Flynn = Robin Hood! ;-D
I just can't imagine Cagney as Robin Hood. Not disrespect for James Cagney who was a great actor but he couldn't match Errol Flynn athleticism and charisma.
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who thinks he could have done as good a job as flynn????
Much as I love Cagney, that would have been...a bad idea.
cinefreak
Imagine this,
Robin Hood........James Cagney
Maid Marion.......Joan Leslie
Will Scarlet....... Jeffery Lynn
Sir Guy.............Humphrey Bogart
Prince John.........Edward G Robinson
Sheriff of Nottingham.......Holmes Herbert ( You know, the "Hoo Hoo" guy)
Much..............Frank McHugh
Little John...........Jack Carson
Friar Tuck........Pat O'Brien
King Richard.......Walter Huston
Men of Sherwood.......The Dead end Kids
And before you reply, YES I'M BEING SILLY
Edward G as Prince John: "NYA! We're taking over England,see? We're going to tax all the peasants, see? ME, PRINCE JOHN! I'M GONNA BE A BIG MAN SOME DAY, SEE?"
Cagney, as Robin: HOLY TAXATION, BATMAN! Oops, wrong Robin, sorry. I mean, " YOU DIRTY RAT, YOU TAXED MY PEOPLE!"
YES, I'M BEING SILLY AGAIN!
And before you reply, YES I'M BEING SILLY
Well you couldn't have picked a better target audience for your silliness. I appreciate that your cast consists only of Warner Brothers contract players!
(but it's Hugh Herbert that's the 'hoo hoo' guy. I believe Holmes Herbert played stuffy Brit types).
Oh! And as long as we're doing this let's cast Allen Jenkins as Guy of Gisbourne's best friend! I know he's not reflected in the original but you can't do urban 1930's Warner Brothers without Allen Jenkins!
cinefreak
but it's Hugh Herbert that's the 'hoo hoo' guy. I believe Holmes Herbert played stuffy Brit types).
I stand corrected :oD
I did some checking. It turns out that Holmes Herbert actually was in "The Adventures of Robin Hood". He was the referee in the archery contest.
I was thinking of the credits of all those old Warner Brothers films with a British theme from the 30's. When the list of actors and characters got to the bottom you'd always see the same names: Lumsden Hare, Ivan Simpson, Leonard Mudie and (sometimes) Holmes Herbert. It was as if they were some sort of conglomerate.
Oh...I almost forgot...Joan Blondell as Bess! And Abner Biberman as Guy of Gisbourne's right hand man, Lefty. Or possibly his left hand man Righty.
cinefreak
Oh! And as long as we're doing this let's cast Allen Jenkins as Guy of Gisbourne's best friend! I know he's not reflected in the original but you can't do urban 1930's Warner Brothers without Allen Jenkins!
How about as Dicon (sp?) the ex Knight who is sent to Kill Richard?
Okay I definitely need to get a life. TCM was showing this the other day and I had the sound turned off with the closed captioning on. I kept reading the cc with the voices of the actors I posted in the earlier post
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LOL at the Dead End Kids. You ARE being silly. Thanks for the laugh.
shareLOL at the Dead End Kids. And the hoo hoo guy? You ARE being silly. Thanks for the laugh.
shareFlynn of course
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