Little John was a legendary fellow outlaw of Robin Hood, and was said to be Robin's chief lieutenant and second-in-command of the Merry Men.
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He appears in the earliest recorded Robin Hood ballads and stories.[1] He also appears in the earliest chronicle references to Robin Hood, by Andrew of Wyntoun in about 1420 and by Walter Bower in about 1440, neither of whom refers to any other of the Merry Men, suggesting that Little John was particularly associated with him. In the early tales, Little John is shown to be intelligent and highly capable. In A Gest of Robyn Hode, he captures the sorrowful knight and, when Robin Hood decides to pay the knight's mortgage for him, accompanies him as a servant.[2] In Robin Hood's Death, he is the only one of the Merry Men that Robin takes with him.[3] He is also known to have disagreements with Robin Hood. In the 15th-century ballad most commonly called "Robin Hood and the Monk", after being ill-treated by Robin, Little John leaves in anger. When Robin Hood is captured, it is Little John who plans his leader's rescue. In thanks, Robin offers Little John leadership of the band, but John refuses. Later depictions of Little John portray him as somewhat less cunning than his medieval incarnation.
The earliest ballads do not feature an origin story for this character, but one was soon to follow. According to a 17th-century ballad, he was a giant of a man (at least seven feet tall) who was named John Little. Robin Hood first encountered him when he tried to prevent Robin from crossing a narrow bridge. The two men then fought with quarterstaves, and Robin was knocked into the river. Despite having won the duel, John agreed to join his band and fight alongside him. He was baptised by the Merry Men and then called Little John, as he most certainly was not Little. This scene is almost always re-enacted in movie and television versions of the story. In some modern film versions, Little John loses the duel to Robin. Starting from the ballad tradition, Little John is commonly shown to be the only Merry Man present at Robin Hood's death.
Despite a lack of historical evidence for his existence, Little John is reputed to be buried in a churchyard in the village of Hathersage, Derbyshire. A modern tombstone marks the supposed location of his grave, which lies under an old yew tree. This grave was owned by the Nailor/Naylor family, and sometimes some variation of "Nailer" is given as being John's surname. In other versions of the legends his name is given as John Little, enhancing the irony of his nickname.
In Dublin, there is a local legend that suggests that Little John visited the city in the 12th century and perhaps was even hanged there.[4]
Little John was also a figure in the Robin Hood plays or games during the 15th to 17th centuries, particularly those held in Scotland.
There are many historical figures named Little John and John Little, but it is debatable which – if any – are the inspiration for the legendary character.
Alan Hale, Sr. played the role of Little John in three movies. He first played Little John as a young squire in 1922's Robin Hood starring Douglas Fairbanks. He reprised the role opposite Errol Flynn's Robin in 1938's The Adventures of Robin Hood. And finally, he played an older Little John opposite John Derek, as Robin's son, in Rogues of Sherwood Forest from 1951.
Other notable film and TV Little Johns include Archie Duncan in the 1950s TV series, Nicol Williamson in Robin and Marian, Clive Mantle in the 1980s TV series Robin of Sherwood, Phil Harris as the voice of Little John the Bear in the 1973 Disney animated film Robin Hood, David Morrissey in Robin Hood and Nick Brimble in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves - both in 1991, and Eric Allan Kramer in 1993's Robin Hood: Men in Tights.
Kevin Durand plays John in 2010's Robin Hood In this incarnation, he was a Scottish Foot Soldier in the Crusades and fought Robin over a lost bet, claiming he was cheating, then joined Robin, Will, and Alan when the King was killed. His quarterstaff has a blade fixed to one end, similar to a splitting maul.
In the BBC's 2006 version of the tale, Robin Hood, Little John is played by Gordon Kennedy. John meets Robin when his band of outlaws tie up and steal from Robin's band. He dislikes Robin immediately, but soon accepts that Robin is trying to help the people of Nottingham and joins with him. John also has a wife called Alice and a son, both of whom believe he is dead until late in the first series. John is the oldest of the outlaws, and fights with a quarterstaff.
In the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Qpid", Little John is portrayed by Commander William Riker, as part of Q's recreated fantasy of Robin Hood.
In the Dick King-Smith novel Dragon Boy, looking at the adventures of a boy called John as he is raised by dragons after the death of his parents, it is implied that John- whose full name is John Little- will become the Little John of the Robin Hood mythos, the novel noting at one point that 'Little John' will become a giant of a man in future thanks to his healthy meals at the dragons' table.
"Little John" used as term of endearment for person with qualities related to that of being "little". Definition is fluid, but assigning the title "little" typically relates to a person who expresses kindness, compassion, empathy, and a certain level of optimism and joy toward life and other people. It also functions as an ironic name in this case, due to John being physically enormous, however that is not the original reasoning behind the naming of Robin Hood's "Little John."
It is a well documented fact that Lil' John has taken his stage name as a derivative to honor this well known literature figure.
Disputed/alleged burial locations:
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