145: Halloween Special III: The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

“If I can but reach that bridge,” thought Ichabod, “I am safe.”

This is the story of schoolmaster Ichabod Crane and his ride home after an evening spent trying to woo Katrina Van Tassel at a party hosted by her father at their idyllic farm in rural New York. It’s a terrifying ride–perhaps as deadly as Ichabod’s pursuer is headless. For this third HTDS Halloween special, we “rewind” to one of the oldest ghost stories in American lore: Washington Irving’s “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.”

Starting with a headless Germanic tale, we’ll hear some of the literary history behind the stories of headless riders on horseback; get a brief bio on this year’s featured author; and then … we’ll see if we can reach that covered bridge before it’s too late.

____

Connect with us on HTDSpodcast.com and

• go deep into episode bibliographies and book recommendations
• join discussions in our Facebookcommunity
• get news and discounts from The HTDS Gazette
• come see a live show
• get HTDS merch
• or become an HTDS premium member for bonus episodes and other perks.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices