Ichabod Crane
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Ichabod Crane is a fictional character in Washington Irving's short story "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow", first published in 1820.
Ichabod and his rival Brom Bones are both courting Katrina van Tassel. Dismissing the legend of the Headless Horseman, Crane later flees in terror from him (or perhaps Brom Bones masquerading as him). Crane is chased over the bridge near the Old Dutch Church of Sleepy Hollow and is never seen again. Irving implies that he vacated the town, but he also says that a legend arose that the Horseman carried Crane's body off. Crane's fate is left unknown.
Some characters from "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" may be based on actual early 19st century residents of Tarrytown, New York, and, according to a notation by Irving, the character of Ichabod Crane was based on a schoolteacher named Jesse Merwin whom Irving befriended in Kinderhook, New York in 1809. Irving very likely borrowed the name from a colonel in the US Army during the War of 1812 whom he had once met, also named Ichabod Crane. Colonel Crane is buried in New Springville Cemetery, in Bulls Head, [1] Staten Island, New York[2].
Adaptations in other media
- The Legend of Sleepy Hollow (1949), directed by James Algar, Clyde Geronimi and Jack Kinney, produced by Walt Disney Productions, and packaged with a companion 30-minute short "Mr. Toad" based on Kenneth Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Probably the best known version as it ran for years as part of the television Halloween special "Disney's Halloween Treat" (1969–1995). This animated interpretation features Bing Crosby as both the narrator and singular voice actor of the entire 30-minute piece. Whether the hellish Horseman is an actual ghost or a human in disguise is left unclear.
- Constable Ichabod Crane is a fictional character from the movie Sleepy Hollow, played by Johnny Depp. He is a New York police officer with an interest in science, sent to Sleepy Hollow to investigate a string of grisly murders. His horse is named Gunpowder. Ichabod's most notable traits in the movie include an ahead-of-his-time liking for post-mortem examinations and scientific methods. It is Ichabod who finally banishes the Hessian Headless Horseman (Christopher Walken) back to Hell, and sends Lady van Tassel (Miranda Richardson), the woman who has been controlling the undead rider, with him. Katrina Van Tassel (Christina Ricci) is seen at the end of the movie going back to New York with Ichabod along with a boy who helped Ichabod in the investigation.
- Ichabod Crane is a minor character in the Fables comic book. At one time, he was the assistant to the mayor of Fabletown before his dismissal on charges of sexual harassment of Snow White, his subordinate. He moved away from Fabletown, becoming estranged and embittered.
- "Searching for Ichabod Crane" (2005) is a short film by Sam Borowski about a young reporter who searches for Ichabod Crane, and eventually comes in contact with the apparition of the war hero.