Inherited Risk: Errol and Sean Flynn in Hollywood and Vietnam

On April 6, 1970, the charismatic Sean Flynn rode his motorcycle into a roadblock, was captured by the Vietcong, and vanished into the jungle. Errol's son shared his father's good looks, charm, athleticism, courage, and artistic talent. But Sean also inherited his father's love of risk, compelling him to lead an equally romantic but tragically brief life.

The story of both men's chillingly similar lives begins with Errol. He was born in Australia, where his mother either beat him or ignored him. He spent his early adult life in the savage outposts of New Guinea as a tobacco planter, gold prospector, bird trapper, diamond smuggler, and slave trader. By the time fame arrived, drinking, drugs, and sex with underage girls assured him legendary status for recklessness, as well as an early death.

Sean was obsessed with his father, a remote and mythical figure. Never able to break free from Errol's overpowering legacy, Sean established his own heroic reputation. The father played a daredevil on screen, the son -- as brilliant and daring as his father -- was driven to increase the stakes. His final gallant and suicidal gesture carried the Flynn tradition to its inevitable conclusion.