Robin Hood Stamp Book

 Another fine example of Disney’s impressive promotion for The Story of Robin Hood and His Merrie Men (1952) is this collectable book, published in New York in 1955 by Simon and Schuster. The story was adapted from Lawrence E. Watkin’s screenplay by Willis Lindquist and illustrated by Hamilton Greene, whose artwork could be coloured.

What makes the book especially appealing for fans is the set of four pages of titled, numbered colour stamps—sixty in total—that the owner had to place in the correct spots throughout. Many readers of my blog will recognise the images, but seeing them in full colour helps explain why the film was praised as the finest Technicolor production ever made in England.

One stamp is particularly intriguing: No. 32, titled “BRING HIM DOWN” SHOUTS DE LACY. It shows the Sheriff of Nottingham (Peter Finch) drawing a bow over a fallen soldier—a moment never seen in the finished film, suggesting it was left on the cutting-room floor.