The Legend of Sleepy Hollow
Encyclopedia
"The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" is a short story
by Washington Irving
contained in his collection The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent.
, written while he was living in Birmingham, England, and first published in 1820. With Irving's companion piece "Rip Van Winkle
", "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" is among the earliest examples of American fiction still read today.
settlement of Tarry Town (based on Tarrytown, New York
), in a secluded glen called Sleepy Hollow. It tells the story of Ichabod Crane
, who is a lean, lanky, and extremely superstitious schoolmaster from Connecticut
, who competes with Abraham "Brom Bones" Van Brunt, the town rowdy, for the hand of 18-year-old Katrina Van Tassel, the daughter and sole child of a wealthy farmer, Baltus Van Tassel. As Crane leaves a party he attended at the Van Tassel home on an autumn night, he is pursued by the Headless Horseman
, who is supposedly the ghost
of a Hessian trooper who had his head shot off by a stray cannonball during "some nameless battle" of the American Revolutionary War
, and who "rides forth to the scene of battle in nightly quest of his head". Ichabod mysteriously disappears from town, leaving Katrina to marry Brom Bones, who was "to look exceedingly knowing whenever the story of Ichabod was related". Although the nature of the Headless Horseman is left open to interpretation, the story implies that the Horseman was really Brom in disguise.
. An excerpt of Musäus:
The dénouement of the fictional tale is set at the bridge over the Pocantico River in the area of the Old Dutch Church and Burying Ground
in Sleepy Hollow
. The characters of Ichabod Crane and Katrina Van Tassel may have been based on local residents known to the author. The character of Katrina is thought to have been based upon Eleanor Van Tassel Brush, in which case her name is derived from that of Eleanor's aunt Catriena Ecker Van Texel
.
Irving, while he was an aide-de-camp to New York Gov. Daniel D. Tompkins
, met an army captain named Ichabod Crane
in Sackets Harbor, New York
during an inspection tour of fortifications in 1814. He may have patterned the character in "The Legend" after Jesse Merwin, who taught at the local schoolhouse in Kinderhook
, further north along the Hudson River
, where Irving spent several months in 1809.
The story was the longest one published as part of The Sketch Book
, which Irving issued using the pseudonym "Geoffrey Crayon" in 1820.
"The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" follows a tradition of folk tales and poems involving a supernatural wild chase, including Robert Burns
's Tam O' Shanter
(1790), and Bürger
's Der wilde Jäger, translated as The Wild Huntsman (1796).
Notable film
adaptations include:
Short story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
by Washington Irving
Washington Irving
Washington Irving was an American author, essayist, biographer and historian of the early 19th century. He was best known for his short stories "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" and "Rip Van Winkle", both of which appear in his book The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. His historical works...
contained in his collection The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent.
The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon
The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent., commonly referred to as The Sketch Book, is a collection of 34 essays and short stories written by American author Washington Irving. It was published serially throughout 1819 and 1820...
, written while he was living in Birmingham, England, and first published in 1820. With Irving's companion piece "Rip Van Winkle
Rip Van Winkle
"Rip Van Winkle" is a short story by the American author Washington Irving published in 1819, as well as the name of the story's fictional protagonist. Written while Irving was living in Birmingham, England, it was part of a collection entitled The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon...
", "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" is among the earliest examples of American fiction still read today.
Plot
The story is set circa 1790 in the DutchDutch-Americans
A Dutch American is an American of Dutch descent.Following the exploration of the American East Coast by Henry Hudson on behalf of the Dutch East India Company in 1609, Dutch settlement in the Americas started in 1613...
settlement of Tarry Town (based on Tarrytown, New York
Tarrytown, New York
Tarrytown is a village in the town of Greenburgh in Westchester County, New York, United States. It is located on the eastern bank of the Hudson River, about north of midtown Manhattan in New York City, and is served by a stop on the Metro-North Hudson Line...
), in a secluded glen called Sleepy Hollow. It tells the story of Ichabod Crane
Ichabod Crane
Ichabod Crane is a fictional character in Washington Irving's short story The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, first published in 1820.-Origin:...
, who is a lean, lanky, and extremely superstitious schoolmaster from Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
, who competes with Abraham "Brom Bones" Van Brunt, the town rowdy, for the hand of 18-year-old Katrina Van Tassel, the daughter and sole child of a wealthy farmer, Baltus Van Tassel. As Crane leaves a party he attended at the Van Tassel home on an autumn night, he is pursued by the Headless Horseman
Headless Horseman
The headless horseman has been a motif of European folklore since at least the Middle ages.The Headless Horseman is a fictional character who appears in a short story called “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” which is in a collection of The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon written by Washington Irving...
, who is supposedly the ghost
Ghost
In traditional belief and fiction, a ghost is the soul or spirit of a deceased person or animal that can appear, in visible form or other manifestation, to the living. Descriptions of the apparition of ghosts vary widely from an invisible presence to translucent or barely visible wispy shapes, to...
of a Hessian trooper who had his head shot off by a stray cannonball during "some nameless battle" of the American Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
, and who "rides forth to the scene of battle in nightly quest of his head". Ichabod mysteriously disappears from town, leaving Katrina to marry Brom Bones, who was "to look exceedingly knowing whenever the story of Ichabod was related". Although the nature of the Headless Horseman is left open to interpretation, the story implies that the Horseman was really Brom in disguise.
Background
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow was based on a German folktale set in the Dutch culture of Post-Revolutionary War in New York State. The original folktale was recorded by Karl MusäusJohann Karl August Musaus
Johann Karl August Musäus was a German author from Jena. He studied theology at the university of Jena, and would have become the pastor of a parish but for the resistance of some peasants, who objected that he had been known to dance.From 1760–62 Musäus published in three volumes his first...
. An excerpt of Musäus:
Old Dutch Church of Sleepy Hollow
The Old Dutch Church of Sleepy Hollow, listed on the National Register of Historic Places as Dutch Reformed Church , is a 17th century stone church located on Albany Post Road in Sleepy Hollow, New York, United States. It and its five-acre churchyard feature prominently in Washington Irving's...
in Sleepy Hollow
Sleepy Hollow, New York
Sleepy Hollow is a village in the town of Mount Pleasant in Westchester County, New York, United States. It is located on the eastern bank of the Hudson River, about north of midtown Manhattan in New York City, and is served by the Philipse Manor stop on the Metro-North Hudson Line.Originally...
. The characters of Ichabod Crane and Katrina Van Tassel may have been based on local residents known to the author. The character of Katrina is thought to have been based upon Eleanor Van Tassel Brush, in which case her name is derived from that of Eleanor's aunt Catriena Ecker Van Texel
Texel
Texel is a municipality and an island in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. It is the biggest and most populated of the Frisian Islands in the Wadden Sea, and also the westernmost of this archipelago, which extends to Denmark...
.
Irving, while he was an aide-de-camp to New York Gov. Daniel D. Tompkins
Daniel D. Tompkins
Daniel D. Tompkins was an entrepreneur, jurist, Congressman, the fourth Governor of New York , and the sixth Vice President of the United States .-Name:...
, met an army captain named Ichabod Crane
Ichabod Crane (Colonel)
Ichabod Bennet Crane was a military officer and probable namesake of the protagonist in Washington Irving's The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.-Personal life:...
in Sackets Harbor, New York
Sackets Harbor, New York
Sackets Harbor is a village in Jefferson County, New York, United States. The population was 1,386 at the 2000 census. The village was named after land developer and owner Augustus Sackett, who founded it in the early 19th century.The Village of Sackets Harbor is within the western part of the...
during an inspection tour of fortifications in 1814. He may have patterned the character in "The Legend" after Jesse Merwin, who taught at the local schoolhouse in Kinderhook
Kinderhook (town), New York
Kinderhook is a town in the northern part of Columbia County, New York, United States. The population was 8,296 at the 2000 census. The name of the town means "Children's Corner" in the language of the original Dutch settlers . The town of Kinderhook contains two villages, one of which is also...
, further north along the Hudson River
Hudson River
The Hudson is a river that flows from north to south through eastern New York. The highest official source is at Lake Tear of the Clouds, on the slopes of Mount Marcy in the Adirondack Mountains. The river itself officially begins in Henderson Lake in Newcomb, New York...
, where Irving spent several months in 1809.
The story was the longest one published as part of The Sketch Book
The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon
The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent., commonly referred to as The Sketch Book, is a collection of 34 essays and short stories written by American author Washington Irving. It was published serially throughout 1819 and 1820...
, which Irving issued using the pseudonym "Geoffrey Crayon" in 1820.
"The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" follows a tradition of folk tales and poems involving a supernatural wild chase, including Robert Burns
Robert Burns
Robert Burns was a Scottish poet and a lyricist. He is widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland, and is celebrated worldwide...
's Tam O' Shanter
Tam o' Shanter (Burns poem)
"Tam o' Shanter" is a poem written by the Scottish poet Robert Burns in 1790. Many consider it to be one of the best examples of the narrative poem in modern European literature....
(1790), and Bürger
Gottfried August Bürger
Gottfried August Bürger was a German poet. His ballads were very popular in Germany. His most noted ballad, Lenore, found an audience beyond readers of the German language in an English adaptation and a French translation.-Biography:He was born in Molmerswende , Principality of Halberstadt, where...
's Der wilde Jäger, translated as The Wild Huntsman (1796).
Film adaptations
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
adaptations include:
- The Headless Horseman (1922), a silent version directed by Edward Venturini, and starring Will RogersWill RogersWilliam "Will" Penn Adair Rogers was an American cowboy, comedian, humorist, social commentator, vaudeville performer, film actor, and one of the world's best-known celebrities in the 1920s and 1930s....
as Ichabod Crane. It was filmed on location in New York's Hudson River Valley. - The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. ToadThe Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. ToadThe Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad is a 1949 animated feature produced by Walt Disney. The film was released to theaters on October 5, 1949 by RKO Radio Pictures and is the eleventh animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series...
(1949), directed by James AlgarJames AlgarJames Algar was an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. He received the Disney Legends award in 1998.He was born in Modesto, California and died in Carmel, California.-Selected filmography:...
, Clyde GeronimiClyde GeronimiClyde "Gerry" Geronimi was an Italian-American animation director. He is best known for his work at Walt Disney Productions....
and Jack KinneyJack KinneyJack Ryan Kinney was an American animator, director and producer of animated shorts.Jack Kinney attended John Muir Junior High School in Los Angeles, California , and attended John C. Fremont High School there with Roy Williams...
, produced by Walt Disney Productions and narrated by Bing CrosbyBing CrosbyHarry Lillis "Bing" Crosby was an American singer and actor. Crosby's trademark bass-baritone voice made him one of the best-selling recording artists of the 20th century, with over half a billion records in circulation....
. It is an animated cartoonAnimationAnimation is the rapid display of a sequence of images of 2-D or 3-D artwork or model positions in order to create an illusion of movement. The effect is an optical illusion of motion due to the phenomenon of persistence of vision, and can be created and demonstrated in several ways...
adaptation of the story, paired with a similar treatment of Kenneth GrahameKenneth GrahameKenneth Grahame was a Scottish writer, most famous for The Wind in the Willows , one of the classics of children's literature. He also wrote The Reluctant Dragon; both books were later adapted into Disney films....
's The Wind in the WillowsThe Wind in the WillowsThe Wind in the Willows is a classic of children's literature by Kenneth Grahame, first published in 1908. Alternately slow moving and fast paced, it focuses on four anthropomorphised animal characters in a pastoral version of England...
. The climactic ride is more extended than in the original story, and the possibility is stressed that the visually impressive Horseman is in fact a ghost rather than a human in disguise. Later the Sleepy Hollow portion of the film was separated from the companion film, and shown separately as The Legend of Sleepy Hollow in 1958. - The Legend of Sleepy Hollow (1980), directed by Henning Schellerup. A made-for-television movie filmed in UtahUtahUtah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
, starring Jeff GoldblumJeff GoldblumJeffrey Lynn "Jeff" Goldblum is an American actor. His career began in the mid-1970s and he has appeared in major box-office successes including The Fly, Jurassic Park and its sequel Jurassic Park: The Lost World, and Independence Day...
as Ichabod Crane, Meg FosterMeg FosterMegan "Meg" Foster is an American actress best known for her roles in the TV miniseries version of The Scarlet Letter, Ticket to Heaven, The Osterman Weekend, and They Live .-Life and career:...
as Katrina, and Dick ButkusDick ButkusRichard Marvin "Dick" Butkus is a former American football player for the Chicago Bears. He was drafted in 1965 and he is also widely regarded as one of the best and most durable linebackers of all time. Butkus starred as a football player for the University of Illinois and the Chicago Bears. He...
as Brahm Bones. Producer Charles SellierCharles SellierCharles Edward Sellier, Jr. was an American television producer, screenwriter, novelist and director, best known for creating the American book and television series, The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams...
was nominated for an Emmy AwardEmmy AwardAn Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
for his work on the movie. The film is not closely adapted to the original story, depicting Crane as a skeptic regarding ghosts and the supernatural, although it foreshadows Tim BurtonTim BurtonTimothy William "Tim" Burton is an American film director, film producer, writer and artist. He is famous for dark, quirky-themed movies such as Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Ed Wood, Sleepy Hollow, Corpse Bride and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet...
's similar 1999 treatment. - Tall Tales & LegendsTall Tales & LegendsTall Tales & Legends is a series created by Shelley Duvall, following her success with her first series, Faerie Tale Theatre. It ran from 1985-1987 on Showtime and comprised nine episodes, adapted from various American-based stories of bravery....
episode "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" (1987), starring Ed Begley, Jr.Ed Begley, Jr.Edward James "Ed" Begley, Jr. is an American actor and environmentalist. Begley has appeared in hundreds of films, television shows, and stage performances. He is best known for his role as Dr. Victor Ehrlich, on the television series St...
as Ichabod Crane, Beverly D'AngeloBeverly D'AngeloBeverly Heather D'Angelo is an American actress and singer.-Early life:D'Angelo was born in Columbus, Ohio, the daughter of Priscilla , a violinist, and Gene D'Angelo, a bass player and television station manager. She is of part Italian ancestry...
as Katrina Van Tassel, and Charles DurningCharles DurningCharles Durning is an American actor. With appearances in over 100 films, Durning's memorable roles include police officers in the Oscar-winning The Sting and crime drama Dog Day Afternoon , along with the comedies Tootsie, To Be Or Not To Be and The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, the last two...
as Doffue Van Tassel who is also the narrator. Produced and hosted by Shelley DuvallShelley DuvallShelley Alexis Duvall is an American film and television actress best known for her roles in The Shining, Popeye, Thieves Like Us and 3 Women....
. - In 1988 PBSPublic Broadcasting ServiceThe Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
and Rabbit Ears ProductionsRabbit Ears ProductionsRabbit Ears Productions is a children's series that aired from 1984-1995 on PBS. The series features famous actors such as Robin Williams, Raul Julia, Laura Dern, Denzel Washington, Danny Glover, and others narrating classic children's classics either well-known in the United States or from around...
produced a multi-award winning animated adaptation and a subsequent book depicting the Irving story. Illustrations, directing, and adaptation was done by Robert Van Nutt, music by Tim Story, and the narration by Glenn CloseGlenn CloseGlenn Close is an American actress and singer of theatre and film, known for her roles as a femme fatale Glenn Close (born March 19, 1947) is an American actress and singer of theatre and film, known for her roles as a femme fatale Glenn Close (born March 19, 1947) is an American actress and...
. - The Real GhostbustersThe Real GhostbustersThe Real Ghostbusters is an American animated television series based on the 1984 film Ghostbusters. The series ran from 1986 to 1991, and was produced by Columbia Pictures Television, DiC Enterprises, and Coca-Cola Telecommunications. "The Real" was added to the title after a dispute with...
featured an episode with a descendant of Ichabod Crane cursed by a headless apparition on a motorcycle who chases her. - In the Nickelodeon television series Are You Afraid of the Dark? (1992), the episode "The Tale of the Midnight Ride" serves as a sequel to the classic story. In this episode a boy moves to Sleepy Hollow where he develops a crush on a girl. One night after the Halloween dance, they see the ghost of Ichabod Crane and send him over the bridge that the Headless Horseman cannot cross, prompting the Headless Horseman to then come after them.
- The Legend of Sleepy Hollow (1999) was a Canadian television film starring Brent CarverBrent CarverBrent Carver is a Canadian actor.Carver is known for a variety of stage and film roles, including The Wars, Kronborg: 1582, Lilies, Larry's Party, Elizabeth Rex, Millennium, Shadow Dancing, and Unidentified Human Remains and the True Nature of Love...
and Rachelle LefevreRachelle LefèvreRachelle Lefevre is a Canadian actress. She has starred in the television series Big Wolf on Campus and had recurring roles in What About Brian, Boston Legal, and Swingtown. She played the vampire Victoria in the first two films of the Twilight saga, before being replaced by Bryce Dallas Howard...
which was filmed in MontrealMontrealMontreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
. - Sleepy HollowSleepy Hollow (film)Sleepy Hollow is a 1999 American period horror film directed by Tim Burton. It is a film adaptation loosely inspired by the 1820 short story "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" by Washington Irving and stars Johnny Depp, Christina Ricci, Miranda Richardson, Marc Pickering, Michael Gambon, Jeffrey Jones,...
(1999) was a feature film directed by Tim BurtonTim BurtonTimothy William "Tim" Burton is an American film director, film producer, writer and artist. He is famous for dark, quirky-themed movies such as Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Ed Wood, Sleepy Hollow, Corpse Bride and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet...
, though the adaptation takes many liberties with the plot and characters, changing Crane from the local schoolmaster into a police constable sent from New YorkNew YorkNew York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
to investigate recent murders, with the Horseman being used as a weapon against the local landowners. Johnny DeppJohnny DeppJohn Christopher "Johnny" Depp II is an American actor, producer and musician. He has won the Golden Globe Award and Screen Actors Guild award for Best Actor. Depp rose to prominence on the 1980s television series 21 Jump Street, becoming a teen idol...
starred as Ichabod Crane while Christopher WalkenChristopher WalkenChristopher Walken is an American stage and screen actor. He has appeared in more than 100 movies and television shows, including Joe Dirt, Annie Hall, The Deer Hunter, The Prophecy trilogy, The Dogs of War, Sleepy Hollow, Brainstorm, The Dead Zone, A View to a Kill, At Close Range, King of New...
plays the Headless Horseman. The cast also featured Christina RicciChristina RicciChristina Ricci is an American actress. Ricci received initial recognition and praise as a child star for her performance as Wednesday Addams in The Addams Family and Addams Family Values , and her role as Kat Harvey in Casper...
as Katrina, and Casper Van DienCasper Van Dien-Early life:Van Dien was born and grew up in Milton, Florida, the son of Diane , a retired nursery school teacher, and Casper Robert Van Dien, Sr., a retired U.S. Navy Commander and fighter pilot. There is a long military tradition in Van Dien's family. Aside from his father, his grandfather was a...
as Brom. - The Night of the Headless HorsemanThe Night of the Headless HorsemanFor the Murder, She Wrote episode, see List of Murder, She Wrote episodes#Season Three.The Night of the Headless Horseman was a computer animated one hour TV special that aired on Fox on October 28, 1999. As the title suggests, it was a retelling of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and was targeted at...
(1999) was an hour long computer animated FOX TV special utilizing motion captureMotion captureMotion capture, motion tracking, or mocap are terms used to describe the process of recording movement and translating that movement on to a digital model. It is used in military, entertainment, sports, and medical applications, and for validation of computer vision and robotics...
. - The Haunted Pumpkin of Sleepy Hollow (2002) was an hour long animated special from PorchLight EntertainmentPorchLight EntertainmentPorchLight Entertainment, Inc. is an American production company founded in 1995 by Bruce D. Johnson and William T. Baumann. It dedicates in television production and animation...
. - The HollowThe Hollow (2004 film)The Hollow is a 2004 teen horror movie, starring Kevin Zegers, Kaley Cuoco, Nick Carter and Stacy Keach. The movie premiered on the ABC Family Channel in October 2004. It tells the story of Ian Cranston , a high school teen who just found out he's the descendant of Ichabod Crane...
(2004) was a TV movie that premiered on the ABC Family channel starring Kevin ZegersKevin ZegersKevin Joseph Zegers is a Canadian actor and model. He is best known for his leading roles as Josh Framm in the Air Bud series, as well as playing Damien Dalgaard in the Gossip Girl series and the protagonist in Rock Mafia's The Big Bang...
and Kaley CuocoKaley CuocoKaley Christine Cuoco is an American film and television actress. She first came to attention for her role as Bridget Hennessy on the Emmy Award-winning sitcom 8 Simple Rules. She later starred as Billie Jenkins on the final season of the supernatural drama series Charmed...
. The adaptation focused on a teenage descendant of Ichabod Crane. - "The Legend of Sleepy Halliwell" (2004) was an episode of the TV show CharmedCharmedCharmed is an American television series that originally aired from October 7, 1998, until May 21, 2006, on the now defunct The WB Television Network. The series was created in 1998 by writer Constance M...
. A headless horseman murders the teachers at Magic School by beheading them. - Halloween Hound: The Legend of Creepy Collars is the second-season premiere of the PBSPublic Broadcasting ServiceThe Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
series WishboneWishbone (TV series)Wishbone is a television show which aired from 1995 to 1998 and reruns from 1998 to 2001 in the United States featuring a Jack Russell Terrier of the same name. The main character, the talking dog Wishbone, lives with his owner Joe Talbot in the fictional modern town of Oakdale, Texas...
. In this episode, the show's central character and narrator, a talking dog named Wishbone, imagines himself as Ichabod Crane and re-enacts the Headless Horseman story in his imagination as his owner, a boy named Joe Talbot, goes on a Halloween night scavenger hunt.
Stage and music adaptations
- Sleepy Hollow (1948), a Broadway musicalBroadway theatreBroadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
, with music by George Lessner and book and lyrics by Russell Maloney and Miriam Battista. It lasted 12 performances. - The Legend of Sleepy Hollow (1989), a one-act stage adaptation by Kathryn Schultz Miller.
- The Legend of Sleepy Hollow for Speaker & Orchestra (1999), a 15 minute composition by Robert Lichtenberger; it premiered October 2001 by Lincoln's Symphony Orchestra (Lincoln, NE) conducted by Tyler White.
- The Legend of Sleepy Hollow (2009), an operaOperaOpera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
, with music by William Withem and libretto by Melanie Helton; it premiered March 27, 2009, in the Concert Auditorium at Michigan State UniversityMichigan State UniversityMichigan State University is a public research university in East Lansing, Michigan, USA. Founded in 1855, it was the pioneer land-grant institution and served as a model for future land-grant colleges in the United States under the 1862 Morrill Act.MSU pioneered the studies of packaging,...
. - Sleepy Hollow (2009), a musical with book and lyrics by Jim Christian and music by Tom Edward Clark. It premiered at Weber State UniversityWeber State UniversityWeber State University is a public university located in the city of Ogden in Weber County, Utah, USA. It was founded in 1889 and is a coeducational, publicly supported university offering professional, liberal arts and technical certificates, as well as associate, bachelor's and master's degrees...
in Ogden, UtahOgden, UtahOgden is a city in Weber County, Utah, United States. Ogden serves as the county seat of Weber County. The population was 82,825 according to the 2010 Census. The city served as a major railway hub through much of its history, and still handles a great deal of freight rail traffic which makes it a...
on October 30, 2009. It received the 2009 Kennedy Center American College Theater FestivalKennedy Center American College Theater FestivalThe Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival is a national theatre program dedicated to the improvement of collegiate theatre in the United States...
Musical Theatre Award. - The Hollow (2011). Book by Hunter Foster, music & lyrics by Matt Conner, directed by Matt Gardiner; premiered at Signature Theatre in Washington, DC (Eric Schaeffer, Artistic Director).
Audio books
- Ed BegleyEd BegleyEdward James Begley, Sr. was an Academy Award-winning American actor.-Biography:Born in Hartford, Connecticut, Begley began his career as a Broadway and radio actor while in his teens. He appeared in the hit musical Going Up on Broadway in 1917 and in London the next year. He later acted in...
was the Narrator for a recording on both LP and audio cassette by Caedmon Records (ISBN 978-9995389598). - Sleepy Hollow (1998). Produced for the Radio TalesRadio TalesRadio Tales is an American series of radio dramas produced by Generations Productions. This series adapted classic works of American and world literature such as The War of the Worlds, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, Beowulf, Gulliver's Travels, and the One Thousand and One Nights...
series on National Public Radio. The program was released on audiocassette by Durkin Hayes Publishing Ltd in 1998 as a part of both its DH Audio catalog and its “Paperback Audio” line (ISBN 0886469031). - The Legend of Sleepy Hollow (2005). Produced by The Colonial Radio Theatre on the AirColonial Radio TheatreThe Colonial Radio Theatre on the Air is an award winning radio drama production company based out of Boston, Massachusetts. Officially established in 1995 by Jerry Robbins and Mark Vander Berg, Colonial can be heard nationwide on XM/Sirius Satellite radio...
and released by Blackstone Audio. Faithfully adapted from the book by Washington Irving, this production has an elaborate music score by Jeffrey Gage, sound effects, and a full cast. Originally released as a "Halloween Pick" by Barnes & NobleBarnes & NobleBarnes & Noble, Inc. is the largest book retailer in the United States, operating mainly through its Barnes & Noble Booksellers chain of bookstores headquartered at 122 Fifth Avenue in the Flatiron District in Manhattan in New York City. Barnes & Noble also operated the chain of small B. Dalton...
bookstores, the production went on to win the Ogle Award for "Best Fantasy Production of 2005." The cast includes Lincoln Clark as Ichabod Crane, Joseph Zamparelli Jr. as Brom Bones, and Diane Capen as Katrina Van Tassel. The book was dramatized, produced and directed by Jerry Robbins. On Halloween 2005, the production was broadcast coast to coast on XM Radio's Sonic TheaterSonic TheaterSirius XM Book Radio, formerly known as Sonic Theater , is a channel on the Sirius XM Radio network that specializes in playing Audio Books and Radio Dramas. It is available on channel 80 on Sirius and on XM . The program director is Josephine Reed...
, and repeated the following year. It continues to be one of Colonial's most popular titles in release. - BBC Radio 7 (and later BBC Radio 4 Extra) has repeatedly broadcast a three-part reading of the story with Martin Jarvis as the Narrator.
- Historic Hudson Valley produced with Berger Platters, a dramatic reading of "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" (2008) with musical effects by Matt Noble. Parent's Choice gave it the Silver award in 2009, noting; "Here, master storyteller Jonathan Kruk delivers the story as an audio book, with colorful eloquence backed by orchestral radiance. While remaining true to Irving’s original text, Kruk boosts the story’s energy through his highly skilled reading."
Local impact
- In 1997 the village of North Tarrytown, New York, where many events of the story took place, changed its name to Sleepy HollowSleepy Hollow, New YorkSleepy Hollow is a village in the town of Mount Pleasant in Westchester County, New York, United States. It is located on the eastern bank of the Hudson River, about north of midtown Manhattan in New York City, and is served by the Philipse Manor stop on the Metro-North Hudson Line.Originally...
. The high school teams are named "The Horsemen". - In 2006, a large statue depicting the Headless Horseman chasing Ichabod CraneIchabod CraneIchabod Crane is a fictional character in Washington Irving's short story The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, first published in 1820.-Origin:...
was placed along Route 9 in Sleepy Hollow/Tarrytown, New York. - A not-for-profit organization Historic Hudson ValleyHistoric Hudson ValleyHistoric Hudson Valley is a not-for-profit educational and historic preservation organization headquartered in Tarrytown, New York, in Westchester County...
has held since 1996 Legend Weekend at Philipsburg Manor, Sleepy Hollow, New York, featuring a rider portraying the headless Hessian, and a storyteller retelling The Legend of Sleepy Hollow as a historic celebration attended by thousands annually before Halloween.
Placenames
- Town and village names:
- Sleepy Hollow, IllinoisSleepy Hollow, IllinoisSleepy Hollow is a village in Kane County, Illinois, United States. The population was 3,553 at the 2000 census.Various streets in the village are named after characters in Washington Irving's The Legend of Sleepy HollowOther streets are named after trees. Still other streets, particularly in the...
, many of the street names reflect characters from the tale, and the image of the Headless Horseman can be found on many of the city's landmarks and publications. - Sleepy Hollow, CaliforniaSleepy Hollow, Marin County, CaliforniaSleepy Hollow is a census-designated place in Marin County, California. It is located south of downtown Novato, at an elevation of 177 feet . Its population as of the 2010 census is 2,384....
has Ichabod Ct., Crane Dr. and Van Winkle Dr.
- Sleepy Hollow, Illinois
- Subdivision names:
- Bethel, ConnecticutBethel, ConnecticutBethel is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States, about sixty miles from New York City. Its population was 18,584 at the 2010 census. The town center is defined by the U.S. Census Bureau as a census-designated place...
, "Sleepy Hollow Estates", Ichabod Lane, Legend Drive, and Katrina Circle - Roanoke, VirginiaRoanoke, VirginiaRoanoke is an independent city in the Mid-Atlantic U.S. state of Virginia and is the tenth-largest city in the Commonwealth. It is located in the Roanoke Valley of the Roanoke Region of Virginia. The population within the city limits was 97,032 as of 2010...
, and Longwood, FloridaLongwood, FloridaLongwood is a city in Seminole County, Florida, USA. The population was 13,745 at the 2000 census. As of 2006, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau is 13,491. It is part of the Orlando–Kissimmee-Sanford Metropolitan Statistical Area....
, "Sleepy Hollow", street names such as Ichabod and Horseman - Pearland, TexasPearland, TexasPearland , is a city located along the Gulf Coast region in the US state of Texas within the metropolitan area and is in the counties of Brazoria, Fort Bend, and Harris. As of the census of 2000, the city's population was 37,640. As of 2008, Pearland is estimated to have a population of 90,700...
"Sleepy Hollow", street names such as Washington Irving Dr., Sleepy Hollow Dr., Crane Dr., Tarrytown Ln., Brom Bones Blvd. - Falls Church, VirginiaFalls Church, VirginiaThe City of Falls Church is an independent city in Virginia, United States, in the Washington Metropolitan Area. The city population was 12,332 in 2010, up from 10,377 in 2000. Taking its name from The Falls Church, an 18th-century Anglican parish, Falls Church gained township status within...
, Sleepy Hollow Road and Ichabod Place - Hampden Township, PennsylvaniaHampden Township, PennsylvaniaHampden Township is the largest municipality in Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 24,135 at the 2000 census.-Geography:...
, "Sleepy Hollow", Ichabod Court, Brom Court, and Katrina Court.
- Bethel, Connecticut
- Schools:
- The Ichabod Crane School District, Valatie, New YorkValatie, New YorkValatie is a village in Columbia County, New York, United States. The population was 1,819 at the 2010 census.The Village of Valatie is in the center of the Town of Kinderhook on US 9.-Geography:Valatie is located at ....
. The school's sports teams are called "The Riders" and a silhouette of Ichabod Crane on his horse is often representative of the home team while a silhouette of the Headless Horseman is representative of the opponent. The wings in the junior high school are also named for characters and places, such as Katrina Van Tassel and Sleepy Hollow.
- The Ichabod Crane School District, Valatie, New York
See also
- Sleepy Hollow CemeterySleepy Hollow CemeterySleepy Hollow Cemetery in Sleepy Hollow, New York is the resting place of numerous famous figures, including Washington Irving, whose story "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" is set in the adjacent Old Dutch Burying Ground. Incorporated in 1849 as Tarrytown Cemetery, it posthumously honored Irving's...
was founded in 1849, and is adjacent to the Old Dutch Burying Ground. They are separately owned and administered.
External links
- The Legend of Sleepy Hollow original text with human-read audio.
- "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" from The Harvard Classics (1917), hosted online at Bartleby.comBartleby.comBartleby.com is an electronic text archive, headquartered in New York and named after Herman Melville's story "Bartleby the Scrivener". It was founded under the name "Project Bartleby" in January 1993 by Steven H. van Leeuwen as a personal, non-profit collection of classic literature on the website...
. - "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" at American Literature.
- "Sleepy Hollow", a non-fiction update on the story's locale, written by Washington Irving in 1839.
- Old Dutch Burying Ground of Sleepy Hollow, the churchyard where Ichabod Crane sought sanctuary.
- Sleepy Hollow Cemetery. Founded in 1849, it is adjacent to but separate from the Old Dutch Burying Ground.
- List of locations related to "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow".
- "Rip Van Winkle" and "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" - Irving's Fictions of Revolution. (directed by Tim BurtonTim BurtonTimothy William "Tim" Burton is an American film director, film producer, writer and artist. He is famous for dark, quirky-themed movies such as Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Ed Wood, Sleepy Hollow, Corpse Bride and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet...
). - "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow in Concert" Annual festival featuring Irving's original narrative and orchestral score by Steven Smith
- "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" Brickfilm (LegoLegoLego is a line of construction toys manufactured by the Lego Group, a privately held company based in Billund, Denmark. The company's flagship product, Lego, consists of colorful interlocking plastic bricks and an accompanying array of gears, minifigures and various other parts...
movie). - The unabridged "Legend of Sleepy Hollow" (Episode Number 174) is read in its entirety in Mister Ron's Basement Podcast
- A Librivox Podcast version of "Legend of Sleepy Hollow" can be found here as well