The Last Flight (1931 film)

The Last Flight
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	William Dieterle
Written by	John Monk Saunders (novel "Single Lady") John Monk Saunders Byron Morgan
Starring	Richard Barthelmess David Manners John Mack Brown Helen Chandler
Cinematography	Sidney Hickox
Edited by	Alexander Hall
Production company	First National Pictures
Distributed by	Warner Bros. Pictures
Release date	August 29, 1931
Running time	76 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

The Last Flight is a 1931 American Pre-Code ensemble film, starring Richard Barthelmess, David Manners, John Mack Brown, and Helen Chandler.

The film is known as a Lost Generation celebration of alcohol involving three young World War I veterans who opt to drink indefinitely and almost continuously in Paris with the vivacious and beautiful woman they've befriended.

The movie's most lasting impact was offscreen, however; shortly after the film's release, Cary Grant appeared opposite Fay Wray in a Broadway version of the story, Nikki, while he was still billed as "Archie Leach," and adopted his screen first name from the character he played on stage and Barthelmess had portrayed in the film version ("Cary Lockwood"). John Mack Brown was renamed "Johnny Mack Brown" later the same year when his career skidded from top-drawer films like The Last Flight and The Secret Six to B westerns; all of Brown's scenes had been reshot by the studio in an important movie with rising star Clark Gable substituting for Brown. Helen Chandler, who also starred with David Manners in the original Dracula opposite Bela Lugosi the same year, ironically fell victim to alcoholism later in life and was badly disfigured in a fire caused by falling asleep while smoking.