Kate’s 2¢: “The Eighty-Dollar Champion: Snowman, the horse that inspired a nation” by Elizabeth Letts

“The Eighty-Dollar Champion: Snowman, the horse that inspired a nation” by Elizabeth Letts

Kate’s 2¢: There is a plethora of in-depth biographies of authors and reviews of their books, that state the title, author, published date, and genre; as well as,     describing what the book is about, setting, and character(s), so, Kate’s 2¢ merely shares my thoughts about what I read.  I’m just saying…

   As Kristin Allison read this chronicle of man and horse’s rise from the lowest to the Highest, we not only come to love the man and the horse, but to learn so much about their lives, the behind-the-scenes of the highly competitive shows, and appreciation of living in a free society as opposed to one like the Nazi regime.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Snowman Foaled: February 29, 1948; died September 24, 1974 (age 26) was a former plow horse of mixed breed ancestry, possibly a cross of a grade horse with a US Army Remount stallion. He was purchased for $80.00 on his way to a slaughterhouse and became a champion in show jumping in the United States during the 1950s. During his career he was known as “The Cinderella Horse” due to his “rags to riches” story.[1]

Snowman was originally used for farm work and in 1956 was headed for the slaughterhouse at eight years of age. On that day, Harry de Leyer, a Long Island, New York, riding instructor, attended the horse auction in New Holland, Pennsylvania, looking for school horses. He arrived late, and the only remaining horses were those waiting to be loaded into trucks bound for slaughter plants. De Leyer made eye contact with a large gray horse that he purchased for $80. He first used Snowman as a lesson horse for children. De Leyer recognized talent in the horse after he sold him to a neighbor and the horse jumped high fences to return home. De Leyer then began training Snowman as a show jumper.

The horse began winning prestigious classes only two years after he was bought off the slaughter truck, and his career lasted five years. He was photographed performing unusual feats such as jumping over other horses,[2] and his calm disposition made him a favorite. He once won a leadline class and an open jumper championship on the same day.

Snowman also appeared on television shows (Johnny Carson’s for one, where Carson climbed on his back). He was the subject of two books, had his own fan club, and was flown abroad for “guest appearances”.

De Leyer kept Snowman through his retirement until the animal was euthanized in the fall of 1974 due to complications from kidney failure at the age of twenty-six.

Snowman was inducted into the United States Show Jumping Hall of Fame in 1992. In 2005, Snowman was made into a Breyer horse model on the Gem Twist mold, which is no longer manufactured. In 2013, Snowman was again introduced in the Breyer line on the Idocus mold. The 2013 model box reads “Snowman – Show Jumping Hall of Famer”.

Snowman is the subject of the book, The Eighty Dollar Champion: Snowman, the Horse That Inspired a Nation, by Elizabeth Letts, published by Random House in 2011, a No. 1 New York Times bestseller.[3][4] A documentary movie was made in 2016, Harry & Snowman, that features original footage of his years as an equestrian family member as well as a show ring competitor.[5] Snowman was featured in season 21, episode 8 of Mysteries at the Museum.[6] [1]

Also From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Elizabeth Letts was born on June 23, 1961, in Houston, Texas.[citation needed] She grew up in Southern California. As a teenager, she was a competitive equestrian three-day eventer. She attended Northfield Mount Hermon School and Yale College where she majored in History. She served in the Peace Corps in Morocco.

She is the author of multiple books: Quality of Care; Family Planning; The Butter Man; The Eighty-Dollar Champion: Snowman the Horse that Inspired a Nation, a #1 New York Times bestseller.;,[1] The Perfect Horse: The Daring U.S. Mission to Rescue the Priceless Stallions Kidnapped by the Nazis, which reached #5 on the New York Times bestseller list;[2] and Finding Dorothy. Elizabeth Letts also writes women’s fiction under the pen name Nora Carroll.

From NLS/BARD/LOC:

The Eighty-Dollar Champion: Snowman, the horse that inspired a nation DB73780

Letts, Elizabeth. Reading time: 10 hours, 44 minutes.

Read by Kristin Allison. A production of the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, Library of Congress.

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Animals and Wildlife

Bestsellers

Relates Dutch immigrant Harry de Leyer’s 1956 purchase of a gray horse from a slaughterhouse truck for eighty dollars. Recounts de Leyer’s Long Island boarding-school students riding the horse named Snowman, the discovery of Snowman’s jumping feats, and his victory at the 1958 National Horse Show. Bestseller. 2011.