The Cast of 'Von Richthofen & Brown': Where are they now?

[Pete Hill]

The cast of the movie Von Richthofen & Brown: Where are they now?

The 1971 movie ‘Von Richthofen & Brown” (released in some countries under the title ‘The Red Baron’) was one of the more recent WW1 aerial dramas released in the cinemas.
The film was directed by Roger Coorman and released in the United States in July 1971.
The film used many of the replicas that used in the filming of previous movies The Blue Max and Darling Lili including Fokker DVII, Fokker Dr 1 and Pflaz replicas and Tiger Moths and Stampe SV4Cs converted to resemble WW1 fighters.

The film contains a number of historical liberties, several of which were repeated in the recent ‘Der Rote Baron’. The factual errors include:-
MvR spends the early phase of his combat career flying a Fokker DVII, before he receives his Triplane.
Oswald Boelcke is also shown flying a Fokker DVII and when he dies, it is due to a collision with MvR’s aircraft.
Lanoe Hawker and Roy Brown are depicted serving in the same squadron and both men fly SE5s instead of, respectively, a DH2 and a Sopwith Camel.
Werner Voss is depicted as serving in the same unit as MvR.
Herman Goering is depicted as serving in the Flying Circus before and at the time of MvR’s death.

The production was marred by the tragic death of one of the pilots employed for the flying sequences and serious injuries inflicted on another.

The Cast

Those who have departed.

John Philip Law, the American actor who played Von Richthofen, learnt to the basics of flight during filming and was able to take off and land one of the Stampes which made the aerial sequences more convincing. Law, a tall and handsome actor with blue eyes, was physically ideal to play the part. A prolific actor, Law starred in over a hundred movies, some of them good, many of them B-Grade or less. One movie he starred in, the 1986 sci-fi ‘Space Mutiny’ was so hilariously bad, it was spoofed on TV’s Mystery Science Theatre 3000 (one of my favourite TV shows). Another film he starred in was the 1970s Australian war film ‘Attack Force Z’, notable for featuring a young Mel Gibson. It is often believed that a regular character on ‘The Simpsons’, the struggling B-Grade actor Troy McClure, was inspired by Law’s career. The successful films that he appeared in during the late 1960s through to the early 70s are what he will be fondly remembered for and by all accounts, he was a friendly, charming character who never took himself too seriously. Law passed away at his home in Los Angeles in May 2008, at the age of 70.

Hurd Hatfield, the American actor who played the role of Anthony Fokker, appeared in films and TV productions from the mid-1940s after studying drama in the UK. The first film he appeared in was ‘Dragon Seed (1944) alongside Katherine Hepburn and this was followed by the starring role in ‘The Picture of Dorian Grey’ (1945). The film aroused some controversy at the time due to its avant-garde style and the hints of bi-sexuality in the lead-character. He gained numerous starring roles during the 1940s and then assumed smaller supporting parts in films thereafter. He played the role of Pontius Pilate in the 1961 Biblical epic ‘King of Kings’ and one of his last films was appearing in the 1989 Tom Selleck comedy ‘Her Alibi’. Having moved to Ireland during the 1970s, he died on Christmas Day at his home in County Cork in 1998. He was 81 years-old.

Robert La Tourneaux, the American actor who played Ernst Udet, had a difficult career. His first major role was playing the gay hustler Cowboy in the 1970 film ‘The Boys in the Band’. The controversy aroused by the film and La Tourneaux’s open-ness about his own sexuality, prevented him from getting many of the roles that he auditioned for and ‘Von Richthofen & Brown’ was one of the few movies that he ever appeared in. He later commented on Boys in the Band as being the ‘Kiss of Death’ for his career. He devoted most of his later career to the Theatre but again struggled to find worthwhile parts. He was arrested and briefly imprisoned for assault in 1983 and shortly afterwards was diagnosed with AIDs of which he died of in June 1986 at the age of 41.

Charles Boddington, one of the pilots hired to film the flying sequences, lost his life on 15th September 1970 when the Stampe ‘SE5’ he was flying crashed during a low-level pass on the second-last day of unit-filming. The following day, another pilot, Canadian Lynn Garrison, was badly injured when the two-seater Stampe he was flying crashed into a lake after colliding with a large bird. Garrison was knocked unconscious by flying debris whilst still at the controls. The Stampe went through five power-lines, rolled over and flew into the lake whilst inverted. Garrison’s head-injury required 60 stitches but he was already flying again by the following day. Actor Don Stroud, who had also been on board, walked away unhurt.

On a happier note:-

Don Stroud, who played the role of Roy Brown, is an American actor and he is 65 years-old. Born in Hawaii, Stroud is a talented surfer and he came 4th in the World Surfing Championships in Waikiki in 1960 when he was 17 years-old. He has appeared in nearly 300 films and TV shows during his career.

Barry Primus, the American actor who played the role of Herman Goering, is 71 years-old. He has worked as an actor, writer and director and has appeared in numerous films plus had a continuing role on the TV show ‘Cagney & Lacey’ 1982-88, playing Cagney’s Policeman Boyfriend Dory. He recently had a small part in the movie ‘Righteous Kill (2008) alongside Robert De Niro and Al Pacino. He is currently teaching acting classes at Loyola Marymount University.

Corin Redgrave, the British actor who played Lanoe Hawker, will celebrate his 70th birthday on July 16th this year. A member of a British acting dynasty and brother to Vanessa Redgrave, he has appeared in many film, stage and TV-productions such as A Man for All Seasons, Excalibur, Enigma & Four Weddings and a Funeral. He survived a severe heart-attack in 2005 and is also currently undergoing treatment for cancer. He appeared on stage in the West-End in March 2009 in the play ‘Trumbo’ and he dedicated the opening night’s performance to his niece actress Natasha Richardson who had lost her life in a skiing accident the previous week.

Stephen McHattie, the Canadian actor who played the role of Werner Voss, is 62 years-old and still actively working in film and theatre. He has appeared in many film, stage and TV productions and he recently appeared in the movies The 300 & Watchmen. He lives in Canada with his second wife Lisa and they have 3 children.

Brian Foley, the American actor who played Lothar von Richthofen, lives in the USA. His film career after Von Richthofen & Brown was not exactly stellar (one movie he appeared in during the 1980s was Screwballs-II.) But he has more recently built up a successful career in live theatre as a character actor, traditional clown, mime-artist and acting-teacher.

Peter Masterson, the American actor who played Oswald Boelcke, turned 75 last June and he has worked as an actor, director, producer and writer, mostly the latter. He directed the successful film The Trip to Bountiful and co-wrote the hit Broadway musical The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas.

Roger Corman, the Director of Von Richthofen & Brown, is 83 years-old and is still working. He is best-known for his numerous film adaptations of short-stories by Edgar Allen Poe during the 1960s, most of which starred Vincent Price. A prolific director, he was able to make up to seven movies a year. Von Richthofen & Brown was actually one of the very few films he ever made that had a large budget. A number of directors and actors who later achieved fame, worked with Corman in their early days such as Martin Scorsese & James Cameron. Actors Jack Nicholson, Robert De Niro and Dennis Hopper who amongst those who got their first acting roles in Corman movies.

Pete.

[Reinout]

Very nice Pete! You must spend a lot of time on the internet gathering all of this information.

Which film is next, Aces High?

Kind regards,

Reinout

[Pete Hill]

Hi Reinout,

Thanks for that. As a matter of fact, I am working on 'Aces High' right now! Kind regards Pete

[Pete Hill]

Come to think of it, wonder if I will be doing one of these for 'Flyboys' in 30 or 40 years time????!!
Pete

[Major Larabee]

Just to clear somthing up, the SE5 that my father was flying when he was killed was not a converted Stampe, it was in fact the last remaining Miles built full size replica. Two of these were built for Blue Max and powered by Gipsy Queen engine's. The other A/C was lost in a mid air with the camera helicopter durring filming of Zeppelin a month earlier.

[Pete Hill]

Hi Major,

Thanks for clearing that up and apologies for the error. I am sincerely and very sorry for the loss of your father in such tragic circumstances. If you don't mind me asking, how old were you when he died?
Kind regards Peter

[Major Larabee]

Originally Posted by Pete Hill

Hi Major,

Thanks for clearing that up and apologies for the error. I am sincerely and very sorry for the loss of your father in such tragic circumstances. If you don't mind me asking, how old were you when he died?
Kind regards Peter

I was eight years old when Dad was killed. This pic was sent to me recently of him taking off for the last time.

[bristol]

A picture which I have no doubt you will treasure (and look at with pride) as long as you live.

Cheers,
Dave.

[Pete Hill]

I agree with Bristol, it is a highly emotional image.

I think I remember another forum member saying that the movie's director Roger Corman was so upset by your father's death, and the near-loss of Garrison and Stroud, that he left the film in an in-complete state. That may explain some of the untidy editing in the film.

I recently read about the production of the WW2 Pearl Harbour epic 'Tora, Tora, Tora!' in 1970. The film used five vintage B-17s for one of its aerial sequences and one day on location, the pilot of one of them, whilst on a practice flight, radioed in to say that one of his aircraft's wheels was stuck and wouldn't come down. The movie's director Elmo Williams ordered a camera crew to rush out to the runway and film the B-17 as it came in to land on one wheel. Thankfully the plane landed safely with no injuries to the crew and only minor damage to the aircraft. Williams decided to use the footage in the movie and in-corporated the stuck-wheel into the script.
I can't help wondering, what Williams would have done with the footage if the B-17 had crashed and the men on board had been injured or killed?

Another film was the original version of 'Flight of the Phoenix' with Jimmy Stewart. The movie's production crew built a flyable version of the improvised aircraft and the original script planned to show the aircraft landing when the survivors had reached safety. However when the day came to film the scene, the plane crashed and the stunt pilot was killed. Therefore in the finished film, we see the aircraft descending to land and going out of view behind a sand-dune and then we cut to the next shot of the actors walking away from the airstrip as if they had just landed.

Pete

[Major Larabee]

The Phoenix was built by Tallmanz Aviation and the stunt pilot was infact the well known Paul Manz!
I wonder how Elmo Williams felt when his brother Burch was killed in the Mid Air between the Se5 and Camera helicopter durring the filming of Zeppelin???
As for Roger Corman, well i best not go there, many i have spoken with, including the person who sent me that image and Derrek Piggot who was also flying at the time blame Corman's impatience and temper for the crash
As for the legal battle after wards, well thats another story