Harry & Snowman: Coming to Theaters

A feature documentary about Snowman, the “Cinderella horse,” coming in early 2015.

An immigrant who gave up on Olympic showjumping when he fled his war-torn country. A horse bound for the slaughter truck. A partnership that would win the 1958 showjumping Triple Crown and the hearts of horse lovers everywhere.

You may have read the story of Harry de Leyer and Snowman, the Amish workhorse he saved from the New Holland auction, in Elizabeth Letts’ The Eighty-Dollar Champion. It’s the kind of underdog triumph that seems made for the silver screen–and in early 2015, the documentary may be coming to a theater near you.

Harry & Snowman tells the story of the underdog pair through the voices of the people who were actually there to witness it, including Harry de Leyer and his family members.  The documentary was directed by Ron Davis, who is known for Miss You Can Do It and Pageant, both documentaries about beauty pageants. In January 2014, MGM also purchased the rights to The Eighty-Dollar Champion by Elizabeth Letts, but concrete plans to make a movie have not been publicized.

Screening dates and locations for the documentary version have not been announced yet, but stay tuned to the Harry & Snowman website!

And there is plenty of footage online to tide you over till it comes out–including  Snowman doing everything from jumping over other horses to playing at the beach with the kids.

If you haven’t read the book yet and want a good synopsis of Snowman’s amazing story, check out this interview with author Elizabeth Letts:

Go Riding!