I've watched this video every October for at least 8 years. I even emailed James years ago to thank him for it and he responded! Cinemassacre has changed, but what hasn't. I still always come back to this to complete my Halloween season.
Done the same thing, sometimes a month early though, Sad that I can't find it on CInnemasacre site anymore. That was where I would always post every year till i found it here on youtube
I grew up across the river from Sleepy Hollow but always loved to pay a visit during Halloween season. The village has orange and black street signs now, fully embracing ther Halloween heritage. Many houses also feature a horseman statue for decoration. Makes me proud to see a place near my home featured on Cinemassacre!
Fun video. I live in New York City and am a lifelong Legend of Sleepy Hollow geek, so I've gone up there to visit a number of times. Just wanted to mention a couple other Legend-related landmarks in the town. Major André's tree, where the Revolutionary War-era British spy John André was captured, used to stand on the edge of what is now Patriot's Park, right along the border between Sleepy Hollow and Tarrytown. There's still a plaque there marking its former location. The tree is prominent in Irving's story - he talks about its haunted reputation, and Ichabod had just passed it when he encountered the Horseman. There's a stream very nearby that runs through the park, and may be the same stream Irving had in mind where Ichabod first hears the "plashy tramp" of the ghost horse's hoof, though that I'm not sure about. The approximate location seems right, anyway. To my understanding, the "Broadway" that runs through town past the park pretty much follows the old road that ran through there for centuries, so it's likely to be the road along which the Horseman chased Ichabod. The village was actually called North Tarrytown until the 1990s (Sleepy Hollow may well be a name Irving just made up - I'm not aware of any evidence that anyone local called it that in his time). The residents voted to change the name and get some more of that sweet, sweet tourist money. They really milk it now - the Horseman is on all the street signs and municipal vehicles, and the sports teams at the public schools are all The Horsemen (don't know if the girls' teams are The Horsewomen). They go all out at Halloweentime, and there's a haunted hayride and lots of elaborate pageantry (including of course headless riders) at the Philipsburg Manor across from the Old Dutch Church, around the millpond Irving mentions in the story. A train stop or two south, closer to the city, is Irvington, the location of the author's beautiful, custom-built estate "Sunnyside." That's been preserved as a sort of Irving museum and is also a must-visit if you're a Legend fan.
This is one of my FAVORITE videos of yours, James. Ever. It's so spooky and atmospheric. Captures the season as well as the Washington Irving story itself. You have a great voice for narration.
My family and I moved to Sleepy Hollow in 2014 and we love it! It's so beautiful here, especially around fall! The scenery is beautiful and the people are all very nice!
I watch a lot of Headless Horseman/Sleepy Hollow videos and movies all throughout October. This is the first time I've seen this video, but it won't be the last. It is an excellent tour video. Thanks for posting it.
I grew up in northern NJ. I visited this town and cemetery a few times. To say the least, its amazing. I'm 41 now and living in San Diego. My family all lives in NY, NJ and VA. I visit the east coast about 3 times a year. I'm planning on going back to Sleepy Hollow for the first time since 1998, when I was only 22. This place is magical. In my will, I want to be buried here.
This was great and you saved me a trip to Sleepy Hollow to investigate these locations. However, I must say that the"The Halloween Capital of the World" is Salem MA. Go some weekend in October and you will find out why...
You need to go to Sleepy Hollow during the month of October. This video is good... but - does not embrace "The Real Halloween Capital of the World" in October. Lots to see.
I can't help but feel a connection between The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and the Scottish poem Tam O'Shanter. Both stories revolve around small townsfolk embracing local superstition, both feature a climactic chase on a horse and both feature ambiguous endings. The Horseman's indentity is left a mystery as to wether he was real or simply a prank. Much like the ending of Tam O'Shanter were we either accept the existence of the spirits or if they were simply drunken hallucinations.
Aidan Lynn I always kinda thought the original Halloween film also had that kinda Sleepy Hollow edge to it. Both involving local superstitions and twilight tales of an infamous figure (in this case, Michael Myers in place of The Horseman) that haunts a small quite town and later stirs a ruckus and causes trouble for our hero (Laurie Stroud in place of Ichabod) and later proving to be true after being denied as a real person by townsfolk.
I truly wish James would do more of this sort of thing. It's educational and entertaining, and I love the style of it, how by the end I was unsure of when he was quoting from the Washington Irving story and when he was writing his own narration. It was like the atmosphere of the place had influenced him into taking on the writing style from long ago. Well done!
how this video does not have 3 million more views is beyond me. this is a very, very, very, well msde video, James. i absolutely can not wait to watch it this October.
I want to go here so badly. I have always loved this story, and it's a must read every Halloween for me. There's something so inviting and comforting in it for me. It takes me right back to being a kid, and being in love with Halloween. Reading this story late at night, having nightmares about running away from the horseman. No story holds my heart quite like this one. Thank you for this, James. It feels like home.
0:31 That's not true. In the 1999 Tim Burton version, Ichabod Crane was not a school teacher. Nor was he in the television series which ran from 2013 to 2017. Still, I greatly enjoyed this video!
I'm from Maryland, born and raised. But if I could pick any other place to live, if not Maryland, it'd be *Sleepy Hollow, NY.* In general, it looks like a nice place to live and a perfect place to spend your Halloween :-)
HEAVYMETALmovie1981 it’s not the tranquil quaint town. High taxes, traffic jams at every turn. It’s brutal! Nice place to see once for the story, but it’s very city!
My family and I moved to Sleepy Hollow NY from the South back in 2014 and we love it! Sleepy Hollow New York is such a beautiful place to live and to raise a family... it's our home now.
Back in 2016 all year I couldn't stop thinking about going back to Sleepy Hollow in October. A year later in October 2017 I finally went back to Sleepy Hollow.
Just visited this place 2 days ago and I highly recommend it to everyone. Went to Salem Mass. Right after. Drove 4 hours and it wasn’t even close to the Halloween atmosphere sleepy hollow conveyed to me.
Very cool, James. As an AP Lit. teacher, I appreciate your passion for this story. Washington Irving is underrated; he was the first great American author. We read the first couple pages of the story every year around Halloween--there is no better piece of writing which introduces the setting.
I remember this story scared the hell out of me as a kid. What's odd though is that the Horseman isn't the only spirit mentioned in the story. There's a location in the story called "Raven Rock" haunted by the "Woman In White" she was a woman cought in a blizzard and died of exposure/hypothermia and her screams we're alleged to be herd before the onset of a winter storm. There's unfortunately not much else mentioned about her but just thought it was worth mentioning. But it's amusing how Icabod meets his fate from a literal Hadouken!!! Because Street Fighter was one of my favorite video games at the time I herd this story. But I agree that "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" is a part of American tradition and it's heritage, and is also the perfect Holloween folk tale that defines the word "classic"
Interesting tidbit, Raven Rock is also a real location just outside of Sleepy Hollow. I used to think that part of the story was an interesting bit as well, and spooked me when I was younger so I looked into it.
By the way, this is an excellent insight into what Sleepy Hollow looks like now. Thank you as it’s unlikely I’ll ever get the chance to visit from the UK. (PS. It’s a shame ‘Major Andre’s tree no-longer exists too)
His capture point is along Broadway in Irvington, 5 min down the road. A monument is built to him at his execution spot, in the country of his enemy. That speaks volumes to his character and the esteem he was held in
I can’t be the only one who thinks this, but I could listen to James’s narrations all night while curled up in bed. Still, this video is always so cozy. Definitely has a knack for storytelling.
so happy i found this video. I have visited sleepy hollow a few times and planned to this autumn as well however have not been able to yet... Watching this tonight put a smile on my face and reminded me why i need to make another visit soon. I love Sleepy Hollow.
I just found this video after binging your other ones and I have to say this is my favorite. I hope to get to go there one day during Halloween as well. Alas, I’m in Alabama and it’s definitely not easy for me to get there.
Awesome video. Thank you. I love the Headless Horseman and now I want to go to Sleepy Hollow. I grew up in the country surrounded by farms and I don't live that far away from where I grew up now but I always would think the Headless Horseman would be coming down the road by the apple orchard trying to get me when I was growing up. The sights,the sounds, the smells .....I love fall.
Kay O'Neill was a wonderful illustrator that I always associate with these stories. You know what is an excellent spooky short story that reflects the scary late 1940's in a supernatural way is Robert Bloch's "The Cloak". I must do a channel of my own reading some creepy stuff.
Tarrytown aka sleepy hollow IS an awesome place to visit during Halloween so many activities I would suggest to any and everyone to try it once I’m sure you WONT be disappointed !! Took my wife last year 2018 ..the foliage as walking through the cemetery is just beautiful!! Try it once people!!
This is a great video!👍😊 The Headless Horseman is a favorite icon of the fall & Halloween 🎃 season. More interesting to me than Dracula or Frankenstein, et al. & for of the reasons he stated: it’s a very personal story at the community/village-level that we can all identify with.
Ok ... I am years behind this video but as far as I'm concerned this is just more evidence of the fantastic value of Cinemassacre. As a child this story was always on my mind . As a result my 41 year(ish) old self found a lot of value from watching this video. I cant think of a single Halloween since I was younger than I care to do the math on...(we were early adopters of vhs so I had a recording of what was likely the first TV presentation. Damn ... I wish I still had that tape... ) I am sure we recorded over it with something like Die Hard (the tv edited version) which I now have on 15 media variations.... anyhow this was a fun video to watch.
Nice narration, you have a voice that could either put you to sleep or keep you awake in fright . The right decibel of voice is needed for that, and you have it . This was quite interesting and it actually kept me in suspense. Awesome job , maybe someday I will try going there , just for a history excursion. Thank you.
Thank you! Great video! I love Sleepy Hollow. Your video captured the essence of a truly well worded story that immerses the reader instantly into world of it's own.
Thanks for sharing my cousin lives near Sleepy Hollow and loves it especially during the Halloween & fall season ,very spooky place ,thanks for sharing ,
I am so glad you pronounced Washington Irvings name correctly. Unlike another video here on RU-vid. That in itself won you a like from me. Your research and filming was excellent.
Excellent! I too had no idea there was a real place named Sleepy Hollow. I now have several places to visit on my next trip to New England, preferably around Halloween. Another is definitely Salem, Massachusetts.
That was a pretty good video man. I would say that the concrete bridge would most likely be the one but you have to think how it looked 200 years ago also, the landscape was vastly different more than likely. I'm sure if one looked hard enough they could find some of the very first photos of Sleepy Hollow ever taken and that could give one a sense of what things might have look like. Also the van tassel's were a real family and had a daughter named Katrina that are buried in the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery and I would say they probably had land records of where their house was at so one could take and retrace some steps using that
I have actually play Sleepy Hollow as a theater once! Me and my theater group made our own version of the story! And I was playing Ichabod Crane! And the guy who played his/mine rival Brom Bones was a 10 years old little boy! I was 25 years old! It was really fun!
My family and I visited in 2012 and loved the place so much that we moved here permanently in 2014 and been here ever since... we love it here! Sleepy Hollow should be experienced at least once. Hope you get to visit
I used to pass by Sleepy Hollow on the metro north when I used to go to school in White Plains. Boring-looking, except on the foggiest days. Those are the days the town looks creepy. Funny enough, my gf at the time went to Washington Irving HS 😁
I absolutely love this video. So cozy. And there's a river close to where I live where there are remains of a bridge, which really reminds me of the one in the video. Also, The Headless Horseman (Disney Version) scared the shit out of 5 year old me.
The shattered pumpkin found near Ichabod's hat was the big giveaway that Ichabod's encounter with the ghost was all a prank set up by Brom because the narration before never said anything about the horseman having a pumpkin, but what SEEMED like a severed head. The pumpkin was part of the prank. In a way, Brom was the first Scooby Doo villian.
@@mikshinee87 Well, there are different ideas that the story gives us to choose from. It's a legend after all. One man in the story claims he saw him in the city where he became a lawyer. And Brom would laugh whenever the pumpkin found near Ichabod's hat was mentioned. Either Brom was a total psycho who laughs when thinking of a man he murdered or he remembered some fun he had scaring a man away from town. Like the people of Tarry Town, we come to our own conclusion.
