Dr Syn

It looked like a good day to take a trip down memory lane today, so I went to the internet to find out a little about something I remembered from my childhood.  I distinctly remember a Disney movie about a guy in a scarecrow mask, sort of like Ray Bolger in 'The Wizard of Oz', who rode around on a horse and helped out people.  He was a smuggler, but all the money he made from dodging the tax man was given to the poor, sort of like Robin Hood. The only name or title that I could remember was 'Dr Syn', but that was enough.  A listing of all Disney theatrical features was no help, but when I entered the name 'Dr Syn' into Google, presto!

Turns out the Disney feature, originally titled 'The Scarecrow of Romney Marsh', and with a very young-looking Patrick McGoohan as the title character, was only in theaters for a short time, as part of a double-bill with 'The Sword in the Stone'.  It had a bigger presence on TV, as a 2-or-3 part feature on 'The Wonderful World of Color'. It was renamed and recut several times; check under 'In Other Media' in the Wikipedia article on Dr. Syn. 

Now for the best part - Youtube has a 12-minute clip of the beginning of the film.  The Scarecrow's men unload a shipment of smuggled booze, and then he and his two buddies have to ride like the wind to escape the King's excise forces.  I'm watching this piece of film, and I see the Scarecrow on top of the most beautiful dapple gray horse I've ever seen, and it hits me - that's why I always want to bet on a gray horse!  That's why I'm always looking for the gray horse in any post parade!  It's because of this movie I saw on TV when I was just a little kid.  That's stuck with me all my life.

Say what you want, I think the web is almost as good as a shrink.