THEY DIED WITH THEIR BOOTS ON
They Died with Their Boots On is a 1941 black-and-white American western film from Warner Bros. Pictures, produced by Hal B. Wallis and Robert Fellows, directed by Raoul Walsh, and starring Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland. Written by Æneas MacKenzie and Wally Kline, the film is a highly fictionalized account of the life of General George Armstrong Custer, from the time he enters West Point military academy, through the American Civil War, and finally to his death at Little Big Horn. Custer is portrayed as a fun-loving, dashing figure who chooses honor and glory over money and corruption. The battle against Chief Crazy Horse is portrayed as a crooked deal between politicians and a corporation that wants the land Custer gave to the Indians. They Died with Their Boots On was the eighth and final film collaboration between Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland. (More from Wikipedia)
Although Custer’s Last Stand was one of the few Indian victories, it is probably the best known battle involving Native Americans and has been for decades. I recently saw a movie called They Died with Their Boots On – this catchphrase has been popular for years – that portrays George Armstrong Custer heroically; the 1941 movie was apparently highly fictionalized but notes that Custer graduated last in his class from the U. S. Military Academy at West Point. I had learned that about Custer in the “Final Jeopardy” question on a Jeopardy! show a long time ago.
(August 2013)
