Maid Marian's Hats

Joan Rice in the Aberdeen Evening Express

As many of you know, I am a family historian and genealogist - my site is here. And, it was while doing some research for a client that I discovered this little nugget of information. In the Aberdeen Evening Express dated 17th April 1952 - a few weeks after the world premiere of Walt Disney's 'Story of Robin Hood and his Merrie Men,' in London. It says:

Pretty Joan Rice, British film actress, who plays Maid Marian in Walt Disney's new picture, "The Story of Robin Hood and his Merrie Men," took a great fancy to the hats she wore in that film. And so she adapted two of them for her own use.

On the left is an exact replica of the hat she wore in the picture, and on the right, is another attractive adaption.

I do know that Joan had several keep-sakes from the movie, so I wonder if the hats are still around, somewhere? Please get in touch if you know!

One of my favourite stills of Joan Rice

And another of Joan Rice wearing 'that' hat.

This website is dedicated to the memory of Joan Rice (1930-1997), she will always be our Maid Marian. Down the years I have gradually pieced together her life story. If you click on the labels provided, you will find over 91 pages full of information about this beautiful British actress.

And if you are interested in finding out about your family history, please contact me via this blog or on my website here.

Richard Todd Autographs

Richard Todd as Robin Hood

It is always interesting to see memorabilia from Walt Disney's Story of Robin Hood and his Merrie Men (1952). John Nelson has shared some of his wonderful collection before and this signed autograph of Richard Todd is one of the best. John says:

"Sending you my Richard Todd autographed photo/Lobby card. These are possibly two of the nicest and most memorable items I have in my Story of Robin Hood collection.

Two of many posters, lobby cards and photos that Richard kindly signed for me over the years.

Signed at his desk he was very careful and quite meticulous in the way he signed them. The first one is a lovely 11x14 photograph I had enlarged from an original still, the clarity is amazing and the inscription even more so.

The lobby card story is quite amusing. He was signing so many items for me that he wrote "Robin Todd". We laughed and then he added Richard to the front of his Robin Todd autograph. 🏹

I have so many happy memories of meeting up with him. Always the perfect gentleman and sadly missed by his friends, family and his many admirers.

I hope you like them and can share them with the many followers of your wonderful "The Story of Robin Hood" website.

Keep up the great work, always interesting and informative".

Richard Todd signs as Robin Fitzooth

Below is John's signed lobby card showing Richard Todd's autograph as Richard Robin Todd.

'Richard Robin Todd'

It is interesting to see how garish these lobby cards were. We have seen before, that the whole set seem to have been printed in a way that coloured the costumes differently from the original movie. Was this to make the images brighter? And therefor more eye catching? Or was it due to the primitive printing techniques of the 1950s? If you know, please get in touch. 

If you have memorabilia or memories of the movie, or perhaps autographs of the wonderful stars that appeared in Disney's Story of Robin Hood, please get in touch.

Richard Todd's Signed Robin Hood Video

Signed video by Richard Todd

It is always great to see the memorabilia that readers have of Walt Disney's Story of Robin Hood and his Merrie Men (1952). So when I saw this signed video of our favourite movie, I must admit to being slightly envious of the owner. 

The signature is of the British actor Richard Todd (1919-2009), who played the part of Robin Hood for Walt Disney in 1951. The movie was filmed at Denham Studios and Burnham Beeches in Buckinghamshire, England. 

Richard Todd as Robin Hood

The Story of Robin Hood was released on VHS video for the first time in 1987. It was then released again as part of 'Walt Disney's Studio Film Collection,' on September 13th 1991 along with a laser-disc version.

'Wonderful World of Disney' version

A DVD version of the movie was available exclusively through the Disney Movie Club in America on April 7th 2006. Three years later it was released again in the USA - this time as part of the 'Wonderful World of Disney.' But sadly the DVD was not for sale in the UK and only available in Region 1 through import. 

Disney's 'Story of Robin Hood' has been voted one of the best Technicolor films ever made in England. So perhaps one day, a special edition will be available here in the UK. We hope, this DVD will contain extras such as un-released scenes, behind the scenes footage and of course the promotional 'Riddle of Robin Hood!' 

The Sheriff Shoots an Arrow !

Peter Finch as the Sheriff shooting an Arrow

John Nelson has been in touch recently and sent this fascinating close-up image of Peter Finch in his role as the Sheriff of Nottingham shooting and arrow. A scene that doesn't appear in the movie, Walt Disney's Story of Robin Hood and his Merrie Men (1952).

It is a coincidence, because we have recently looked at some pages of the original script and seen how some scenes were altered or even cut completely.

Another version of that image of the Sheriff of Nottingham shooting an arrow, appeared in Vanessa and Christian's stamp books that were featured on this blog three years ago. So this gives me an excuse to re-post that article :

This is Christian's copy of Walt Disney's Robin Hood Stamp Book  (above and below) which was published in New York in 1955 by Simon and Schuster. The story inside was adapted from Lawrence E. Watkin's screenplay by Willis Lindquist with illustrations (that could be coloured) by Hamilton Greene.

But what makes this book a 'must have' for all fans of Walt Disney's Story of Robin Hood and his Merrie Men (1952) is the four pages of coloured stamps that were each titled and numbered. The owner had to stick these sixty stamps in the correct places on each page of the book.

Christian's copy has the stamp's still intact and his book is nearly in mint condition.

Readers of the blog will be familiar with most of these images on the stamps, but seeing them in colour like this shows why this wonderful movie was described as the best Technicolor film ever made in England. 

It also is another example of Walt Disney's phenomenal amount of promotion and advertising behind his movie production. 

"BRING HIM DOWN," SHOUTS DE LACY

Included among the stamps is an image (shown above) of the Sheriff of Nottingham (Peter Finch) using a bow and arrow with a dead soldier in the foreground. It is stamp number '32' and has the title, "BRING HIM DOWN"  SHOUTS DE LACY." This is very interesting as the scene must have ended up on the cutting room floor, because it was never used in the movie.

Vanessa has also very kindly sent me a picture of the Spanish version of the stamp book that is in her collection.

I would like to thank John,Vanessa and Christian for sharing with us their memorabilia of this wonderful movie.

Disney's Robin Hood Script

There have been many highlights compiling this blog over the last ten years. But I am sure my readers will agree, few can compare with seeing images of the script from our favourite movie!

Front cover of the Robin Hood script

I am extremely grateful to Cindy who has kindly emailed me these images from Canada. The script belonged to her father-in-law who worked for Walt Disney during the 1950's.

Detail of the cover

I have enlarged a few of Cindy's pictures, so that the pages can be read.

First page of the script

First page describing the opening scene

It is a pity Disney cut part of the beginning scene at Huntington Manor with Stephen the steward. In the final edit only the Earl's Page can be seen by the hall doorway holding the golden hunting horn.

Final page of the script

Joan Rice as Maid Marian and Richard Todd as Robin Hood

Detail of the final page

Cindy's father-in-law was Noland Philip Blackburn. She says he:

Went to the United States with his mother and wanted to pursue an acting career.  He got his job at Disney and was a mail clerk and told us he would deliver Walt's coffee and lunch to him.  His career there was cut short due to the draft.  He had to hop on a train to get back to Canada to avoid the draft.  He obtained a lot of his collection from items that were being thrown out when he worked there and kept them all these years.

I am sure you will agree that seeing the original screenplay by Lawrence Edward Watkin has been fascinating. So I want to send a huge thank you to Cindy.

The script will eventually be auctioned.

There will be more to see soon!

Richard Todd, Joan Rice and Elton Hayes's Autographs

Richard Todd signs as Robin Earl of Locksley

Here is the second set of autographs kindly sent in by John Nelson. John says:

Just look at the wonderful inscriptions on them.  It was very kind of him to do this for me [Richard Todd],very patient,  and with his gifted neat hand wanted to make them as special and unique as he could for me.
I hope you like them.
He certainly was a wonderful gentleman and it was always a great pleasure meeting him.
You certainly work hard on your blog and I'm sure it is very much appreciated and enjoyed by all your followers .
I am also sending you my signed photos of Joan. I was given them by my very good friend Barry who had the good fortune of meeting her after a theatre performance.
I'm sure you will agree she looks beautiful in her Marion costumes.
He took some persuading in parting with them I can tell you. 

Richard Todd signs as Robin Fitzooth of Huntingdon

Richard Todd's signature as Robin Hood

Joan Rice as Maid Marian

Joan's letter (below) is sent from The Pavilion Theatre, Bournemouth and dated 6th December 1969. She writes:

Dear George,

Thank you very much for your sweet letter - I am glad you enjoyed the play. Please forgive me but I cannot send you a photograph as I haven't got round to organising a new still session yet. May I reciprocate your best wishes. Many thanks. I hope you will have a lovely Christmas and prosperous New Year. 

Yours Sincerely

Joan Rice 

Joan Rices's letter

Joan Rice as Maid Marian

Elton Hayes's signature

Many thanks to John Nelson for sharing this collection of autographs. To see a whole assortment of memorabilia from Walt Disney's Story of Robin Hood and his Merrie Men please click here. 

Laurence's autograph collection

Above is the fabulous autograph collection owned by Laurence. The 'Memorabilia' section has many examples like this.

Please get in touch if you would like to share any collections or memories you have of this wonderful classic. 

In the sidebar there is a whole range of subjects connected to this movie. They include information about the lives of the stars that appeared in the film, the people involved in its production and the legend that inspired it. 

Autograph Collection

It is always a pleasure to hear from people who have collections and memorabilia connected to Walt Disney's live action film The Story of Robin Hood and his Merrie Men (1952). John Nelson has recently been in touch to show his enviable assortment of autographs from the stars of our favourite film.

He writes:

"Hello again.
Wonderful reading all the news and updates on the Robin Hood Disney blog.
I thought the following enclosed photos maybe of interest to your many readers.
They are part of my cherished collection and special because they are so rare in this form.  Joan on the same page as James and the Little John inscription added by James Robertson Justice, the uncommon autographs of Hal Osmond and Clement McCallin.
All these fine actors long gone but their memory still kept alive through your wonderful blog.
Keep up the good work, always interesting and informative."

Below are some examples of his collection:

Hal Osmond (1902-1959)

Hal Osmond as Midge the Miller

Hal Osmond 

Clement McCallin (1913-1977)

Clement McCallin as Earl of Huntingdon

James Hayter (1907-1983)

James Hayter as Friar Tuck

James Hayter

Joan Rice (1930-1997)

Joan Rice as Maid Marian

James Hayter and Joan Rice

James Robertson Justice (1907-1975)

James Robertson Justice as Little John

James Robertson Justice

There is more of John's collection to follow. And don't forget there are over 68 pages of memorabilia, including curtains, jigsaw puzzles, film projectors, stamp books and records that can be seen here. Or click on the link 'Memorabilia' below this page or in the task bar.

Robin Hood Printed Fan Card

I have shown this image before, but Matt Crandall has managed to help me identify its original purpose. An online auction site describes the item above as:

"... full-color promotional card [10"x 8"] of Robin Hood, Maid Marian, Friar Tuck and two of the Merrie Men was produced by WDP to publicize the studio's 1952 feature film. The Story of Robin Hood was Disney's second all-live-action film, and it was made at Denham Studios in England with funds the could not be repatriated to the USA. Richard Todd, Joan Rice, Peter Finch, Hubert Gregg and Patrick Barr starred in the movie directed by Ken Annakin. 
Disney began producing these handsome prints in the 1930s, and they are called fan cards because they were generally sent to persons who wrote a "fan" letter to the studio or given out to those who attended a Disney promotional event."

Matt runs the excellent Disney's Alice in Wonderland blog which is well worth a visit.

Robin Hood's Curtains

Disney's Robin Hood curtains c.1952

Since starting this blog I have been astonished at the huge amount of promotion that went into Walt Disney's films. By clicking on the label Memorabilia you can see over 66 pages of merchandise connected to the live-action movie The Story of Robin Hood and his Merrie Men (1952).

Walt Disney was quick to realise the potential of selling various spin-offs. Back in the 1930's Herman 'Kay' Kamen had been hired by Walt to license his products and after the success of Snow White, there were 2,183 different items on sale. 16.5 million drinking glasses alone were sold. Kamen negotiated a fortune for himself and the Disney brothers.

We have seen newspaper articles from the time of the premiere of The Story of Robin Hood that show the window displays in London shops. Blog readers have sent in images of jigsaw puzzles, bows and arrows, projectors, books, comic strips, stamps, shirts and sweet ciggarettes - all connected to our favourite movie. But I was not expecting to see curtains!

The images of curtain remnants promoting Robin Hood were kindly sent in by Laurence from his personal collection. He wishes he could have had them hanging in his bedroom in the early 1950's. I am sure many of my readers will agree!

Letters From Richard Todd

John's autographs of Richard Todd and Ken Annakin

I received a wonderful email from John Nelson last week. John is a huge fan of Walt Disney's Story of Robin Hood and his Merrie Men (1952) and a regular visitor to this web site. He has been fortunate enough to have met both Richard Todd (1919-2009) (who played Robin Hood) and Ken Annakin (1914-2009) (the producer of the movie). John has kindly allowed me to show his two letters from Richard Todd.

But first here is John's email:

Hello to all.
Here are three items from my personal collection sent to me by Mr Richard Todd, in my opinion the finest of all Robin Hoods on film.  Errol being a close second.
I had the great pleasure of meeting Richard on many occasions and corresponded with him for many years.  I met Ken in Los Angeles a few years ago, sadly he has also passed away.
I found them both to be friendly, obliging, and very kind gentlemen and I am sure they would have been delighted with your interesting and very informative "The Story of Robin Hood" site.
It appears Richard had fun making the movie and mastering the art of archery and swordplay becoming quite proficient in both and I am sure he would not have minded me sharing these personal letters and photo with you for the pleasure and enjoyment of your many followers.
He certainly was an amazing, talented actor.  Hasty Heart, The Dambusters, Rob Roy, being among my favourites. The Story of Robin Hood being the top of my list.
Wishing you continued success.  Keep up the good work.

My kindest regards to you.
John Nelson

Below is John's first letter from Richard Todd:

It is particularly interesting to read this:

'I don't know how my version of Robin Hood compared with the various other ones that have been filmed but I truly think that Walt Disney, his script writer and the producer Perce Pearce, captured the youthful adventurous spirit of the traditional image of the characters of mythology, possibly based on both fact and history.

The Robin Hood film will always be one of my favourite memories despite a few awkward moments during the filming.' 

I wonder which 'awkward moments' Richard Todd is referring to?

Below is John's second letter:

Richard Todd gives another fascinating insight into the making of the film when he says:

'I had a certain amount of training in the basic skills of swordplay while I was at drama school and later during those films requiring any fencing. I worked and trained with experts both in the United Kingdom and America.

I was given some weeks of training and practice in archery for my role in Robin Hood and became quite proficient. My teacher had been the champion archer of England and I greatly enjoyed working with him and carried on using a bow and arrow for some years for pleasure.' 

Frustratingly I can't put a name to 'the champion archer of England' who trained Richard Todd. 

In his biography Caught In The Act (1986), Todd mentions that, 'a gymnasium was set up for me at Pinewood Studios, and here, under the watchful and energetic tutelage of Paddy Ryan, the doyen of British stunt men, I worked out almost daily, and practiced back-flips and tumbles that I hadn't tried since my early army days. Rupert Evans, a former Champion at Arms of the British Army, coached me in sword-play, and he and Paddy worked with me throughout the picture. In addition, I had hours of tuition in archery and practice on horseback, with and without bows and arrows. I may not have been the greatest celluloid Robin Hood, but I was certainly going to be the fittest.'

The Tough Guy Agency supplied stunt men and fight-training for The Story of Robin Hood and other action films of that period. It was managed by Mickey Wood (1897-1963) the self-defence and physical training expert. But it is unknown wether Rupert Evans (1911-1995) and Paddy Ryan (1911-1999), who are both mentioned by Todd, were connected to this company. 

Rupert Evans with James Hayter (as Friar Tuck)

Ryan, a former Desert Rat, is considered to be the 'father of English stunt men' and credited with performing one of the film industries best known stunts. This was his spectacular high fall from the castle turrets in the movie Ivanhoe (1952) into an eight feet deep moat. 

But who was the champion archer who trained Richard Todd?

A big thank you to John Nelson for contacting me with these fascinating letters.

If you can help in identifying 'the champion archer' who trained Richard Todd in 1951 please get in touch.

To read more about the life of Richard Todd please click here.