LEGEND OF SLEEPY HOLLOW, THE {TOLD BY GLENN CLOSE} (TV)

Summary

This production, depicted through a series of paintings, narrated by Glenn Close and later released as a book and audio album, is an adaptation of the 1820 short story by Washington Irving, "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow." The program begins in a "dreamlike" little town up the Hudson River from New York City, founded by Dutch settlers and, according to legend, under a spell from a Native American chief. One day, a gangly schoolteacher named Ichabod Crane arrives from Connecticut and takes a position in the one-room schoolhouse, and he becomes known for his strict-but-fair ways and habit of calling upon his students' families, particularly those with attractive young daughters and sumptuous dinner tables. The townsfolk are all impressed by the "learned gentleman" with his elegant manners, though he is unnerved when he hears the local tale of the Hessian trooper who lost his head in the Civil War and now rides through the old battlefield at night, searching for it, and vanishes in a burst of fire. The richest man in town, Baltus van Tassel, then invites Crane to give singing lessons to his only daughter Katrina, who is revered for her beauty. Knowing that she stands to inherit everything from her father someday, Crane resolves to win her hand, though strapping town hero Brom Bones, known for his "madcap pranks," is interested in Katrina as well.

Knowing that Crane will never fight him physically, Bones plays a series of embarrassing jokes on Crane, hoping to dissuade him from pursuing Katrina. Nevertheless, Crane is invited to a "merrymaking quilting frolick" at the Van Tassels' home, and eagerly dresses himself up and borrows a decrepit old horse, Gunpowder, to ride to the party. Bones arrives on his fearsome steed Daredevil, but Katrina's attention seems focused on Crane as she offers him large plates of food and dances with him, much to Bones' frustration. On the porch, the elders swap ghost stories, including that of the "Woman in White" who froze to death in a hillside cave. Bones then tells everyone how Hans Van Ripper was recently chased and nearly killed by the Headless Horseman, escaping just in time over the church bridge. Crane departs the party at "witching time" and is scared by noises he hears along the way, fearing the presence of the Woman in White. He spots a mysterious figure and demands its name, and is terrified when he sees that is headless and appears to be carrying its head under its arm. He flees on Gunpowder, heading for the church bridge where the Horseman is said to vanish, but the Horseman throws its head at Crane and hits him. In the morning, Crane is nowhere to be found, though his hat, horse and saddle are all found by the bridge, along with the remains of a shattered pumpkin. Nothing more is ever heard of the schoolmaster, and Katrina eventually marries Bones, though many believe that Bones was involved in Crane's disappearance, and a rumor circulates that he is alive and married in another town. Despite this, others claim that he was "spirited away" and that his ghost can still be seen running from the Horseman on chilly autumn nights. Commercials deleted.

Details

NETWORK: N/A
DATE: November 30, 1987
RUNNING TIME: 0:25:39
COLOR/B&W: Color
CATALOG ID: B:16649
GENRE: Children's programs
SUBJECT HEADING: Children's programs; Animation; Ghosts
SERIES RUN: N/A
COMMERCIALS: N/A

CREDITS

Mark Sottnick … Executive Producer
Doris Wilhousky … Associate Producer
Robert Van Nutt … Director, Adapted by, Paintings by
Washington Irving … Writer
Tim Story … Music by
Glenn Close … Narrator