The Duel is usually not listed on Errol Flynn's official filmography, and for a good reason. It is one of the few existing copies of a 30 minute episode from his 1957 adventure in television, The Errol Flynn Theater. Apparently, 26 episodes were made between 1956 and 1957; of those, two or three are thought to be available. The Duel is one of them. Back in the late 80s, Rhino Home Video put out a series of VHS tapes of famous classic Hollywood actors in otherwise obscure television roles. Errol Flynn was one of the stars, and The Duel was a 30 minute episode of the Errol Flyn Show they somehow managed to pluck off an obscure archive somewhere and transfer to VHS. Strangely and unfortunately, the Rhino VHS copy lacks the 60 second introduction to the teleplay by Errol (a glaring oversight). Fortunately, the intro is available on YouTube, where the entire episode resides in four segments (the introduction segment is listed below).
I've actually had the VHS tape for several years, but hadn't watched it until today. Who watches VHS tapes any more. I don't think I've even owned a VHS machine for about ten years. Anyway, the hotel in Des Moines has VHS combo TVs, so this was a good oportunity to finally watch The Duel.
Overall, not too shabby. Errol was at the height of his comeback, with The Roots of Heaven and The Sun Also Rises on the horizon. He looks suprisingly fit, even more so when we now know that his health was in serious decline, and he would be dead in a couple of years. The story, by Alexander Dumas, is a good one, and Flynn plays the evil Lord Brandt convincingly. As for the plot:
"A heartless ruthless English lord, swimming in gambling debts, attempts to settle with his creditors by intimidating and blackmailing a well-to-do heiress by threatening to use his superior dueling skills against her suitor."
All in all, good stuff. It's too bad more episodes of The Errol Flynn Theater aren't available. While it's true he only did them to raise some quick cash, and he was nea rthe end of the road in the late 50s, if The Duel is any indication, they show a body of solid work by Errol as he saw his career back on the rise, if however briefly.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s27-EgBR1HA
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