Howard Hill (born Lemuel Howard Hill and later cited Howard H. Hill;
["Lemuel" is verified as Hill's first name in th]
"Thirteenth Census of the United States: 1910"
image of original census page for John F. Hill family, "Wilsonville Town", Shelby County, Alabama, April 18, 1910. FamilySearch
FamilySearch is a nonprofit organization and website offering genealogical records, education, and software. It is operated by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), and is closely connected with the church's Family Histo ...
(free enrollment required for archives access), The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Salt Lake City Utah. Retrieved September 30, 2018. November 13, 1899 – February 4, 1975) was an expert
bowman who for over two decades, from the early 1930s into the 1950s, was often introduced or billed as "The World's Greatest Archer". He established the record for winning the most bow-and-arrow field tournaments in succession, a total of 196 competitions.
[Elkin, C. (2008)]
"The Legend's Story"
listing of Hill’s notable achievements in archery competitions and bowhunting, Howard Hill Archery website, Hamilton, Montana, December 10, 2008. Retrieved September 30, 2018. In addition, Hill served as a
supporting actor
A supporting actor is an actor who performs a role in a play or film below that of the leading actor(s), and above that of a bit part. In recognition of important nature of this work, the theater and film industries give separate awards to the ...
, trick-shot performer, and technical adviser on archery for Hollywood
shorts
Shorts are a garment worn over the human pelvis, pelvic area, circling the waist and splitting to cover the upper part of the legs, sometimes extending down to the knees but not covering the entire length of the leg. They are called "shorts" b ...
and feature films. He also produced and directed documentaries and instructional films on
bowhunting
Bowhunting (or bow hunting) is the practice of hunting game animals by archery. Many indigenous peoples have employed the technique as their primary hunting method for thousands of years, and it has survived into contemporary use for sport and hu ...
, and in the 1950s published two books on the subject, ''Hunting the Hard Way'' and ''Wild Adventure''.
[Vest, Caitlin]
"Howard Hill"
''The Encyclopedia of Alabama'', Alabama Humanities Foundation, a service of Auburn University Outreach, 2018. Retrieved October 1, 2018.
Early life and career
Lemuel Howard Hill was born in Wilsonville, Alabama, in 1899, the youngest of Mary E. (
née
A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...
Crumpton) and John F. Hill's nine children.
["Twelfth Census of the United States: 1900"](_blank)
Wilsonville Precinct, Shelby County, Alabama, June 9, 1900. ote: "Babie" (Howard) is listed on the second page of the John F. Hill family's record in that census. Also, Howard's parents actually had 10 children but one died in infancy in 1888.FamilySearch. Retrieved October 1, 2018. Growing up on a cotton farm, Howard learned how to use various tools, along with weapons of all types, including bows and arrows that his father made for him and his four older brothers.
He began using a bow at age four and by age six he received his own homemade archery set, which he used for target practice and for hunting in the woods surrounding his family's property.
["Howard Hill, Champion Archer Who Shot for Errol Flynn, Dies"](_blank)
obituary, archives of ''The New York Times'', February 6, 1975. Retrieved October 1, 2018. Later, when Howard attended high school in nearby
Columbiana, he proved to be an exceptional athlete in a variety of other sports, including baseball, basketball, football, and golf. On September 12, 1918, during
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, he registered for the United States military, but the war ended just two months later, so he never entered the service.
["United States World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917–1918"](_blank)
FamilySearch. Retrieved October 3, 2018. Hill subsequently confirmed in the 1940 census that he was a non-veteran. On his
draft
Draft, The Draft, or Draught may refer to:
Watercraft dimensions
* Draft (hull), the distance from waterline to keel of a vessel
* Draft (sail), degree of curvature in a sail
* Air draft, distance from waterline to the highest point on a vessel ...
card, he signed his name "Howard H. Hill", indicating that he had altered his full name, adding a middle "H" and dropping his first name Lemuel, as it is documented in the federal census of 1910.
Following his graduation from high school, Hill enrolled at age 19 at Auburn Polytechnic Institute (now
Auburn University
Auburn University (AU or Auburn) is a public land-grant research university in Auburn, Alabama. With more than 24,600 undergraduate students and a total enrollment of more than 30,000 with 1,330 faculty members, Auburn is the second largest uni ...
), where he continued to play baseball, football, and basketball.
[Henderson, Jeremy (2010).]
"The Legend of Howard Hill"
''The War Eagle Reader'' (Auburn, Alabama), June 18, 2010. Retrieved October 3, 2018. He completed two years of study at Auburn, paying his tuition and living costs at school with money he earned giving archery lessons during summer vacations.
[In the United States Census of 1940, Hill stated that his highest level of education achieved was completion of two years of college]
"Sixteenth Census of the United States"
Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California, April 12, 1940. FamilySearch. Retrieved October 3, 2018. Later, after getting married in 1922, Hill and his wife moved to
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
.
[“Alabama County Marriages, 1809–1950”](_blank)
FamilySearch. Retrieved October 1, 2018. There he found employment as a
machinist
A machinist is a tradesperson or trained professional who not only operates machine tools, but also has the knowledge of tooling and materials required to create set ups on machine tools such as milling machines, grinders, lathes, and drilling ...
with a division of
Hughes Tool Company
Hughes Tool Company was an American manufacturer of drill bits. Founded in 1908, it was merged into Baker Hughes Incorporated in 1987.
History
The company was established in December 1908 as Sharp-Hughes Tool Company when Howard R. Hughes S ...
, and he also played semi-pro baseball on the side.
When his interest in a possible career in baseball began to ebb, he considered playing golf professionally; but he returned again to his childhood passion for archery. Hill became a regular competitor in field events for the
longbow
A longbow (known as warbow in its time, in contrast to a hunting bow) is a type of tall bow that makes a fairly long draw possible. A longbow is not significantly recurved. Its limbs are relatively narrow and are circular or D-shaped in cross ...
; and by 1930 he identified himself vocationally as a "manufacturer" of archery equipment or "tackle" in
Opa-locka
Opa-locka is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 16,463, up from 15,219 in 2010. The city was developed by Glenn Curtiss. Developed based on a ''One Thousand and One Nights'' theme, Op ...
, located just north of Miami.
[Huntington, Cliff (2002)]
"L' One- shot!"
Stickbow.com website. Retrieved December 10, 2012.["Fifteenth Census of the United States"](_blank)
record of "Hill, Howard H." and his wife "Elizabeth H." in "Opa Locka City", Dade County, Florida, April 3, 1930. FamilySearch. Retrieved October 3, 2018. Soon, his growing involvement working in Hollywood films as an archery expert, stuntman, and adviser prompted the Hills to move to Los Angeles, California, where by 1940 they owned a home at 12007 Saticoy Street and Howard identified his full-time occupation then as a performer or "Artist" in motion pictures.
Earlier, in 1937 for Spectrum Pictures, Hill had performed in the
Western
Western may refer to:
Places
*Western, Nebraska, a village in the US
*Western, New York, a town in the US
*Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western world, countries that id ...
''
The Singing Buckaroo
''The Singing Buckaroo'' is a 1937 American Western film written and directed by Tom Gibson. The film stars Fred Scott, Victoria Vinton, William Faversham, Cliff Nazarro, Howard Hill and Charles Kaley. The film was released on January 15, ...
'', portraying the character Maneeto, a Native American friend of the film's star,
Fred Scott.
["The Singing Buckeroo (1937)"](_blank)
catalog, The American Film Institute
The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private funding and public membership fees.
Lead ...
(AFI), Los Angeles, California. Retrieved October 3, 2018. The next year he exhibited his expertise with the bow in ''Follow the Arrow'', a short film that includes a
skeet-shooting contest between Hill and a marksman armed with a shotgun.
In 1938 he also performed all the bow-and-arrow stunts for
Errol Flynn
Errol Leslie Thomson Flynn (20 June 1909 – 14 October 1959) was an Australian-American actor who achieved worldwide fame during the Golden Age of Hollywood. He was known for his romantic swashbuckler roles, frequent partnerships with Olivia ...
's
Technicolor
Technicolor is a series of Color motion picture film, color motion picture processes, the first version dating back to 1916, and followed by improved versions over several decades.
Definitive Technicolor movies using three black and white films ...
"
swashbuckler
A swashbuckler is a genre of European adventure literature that focuses on a heroic protagonist stock character who is skilled in swordsmanship, acrobatics, guile and possesses chivalrous ideals. A "swashbuckler" protagonist is heroic, daring, ...
" ''
The Adventures of Robin Hood
''The Adventures of Robin Hood'' is a 1938 American Technicolor swashbuckler film from Warner Bros. Pictures. It was produced by Hal B. Wallis and Henry Blanke, directed by Michael Curtiz and William Keighley, and stars Errol Flynn, Olivia de H ...
'', as well as portraying "Owain the Welshman" at the archery tournament, followed by additional stunts and trick shots for other films starring Flynn, including ''
The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex
''The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex'' is a 1939 American historical romantic drama film directed by Michael Curtiz and starring Bette Davis, Errol Flynn, and Olivia de Havilland. Based on the play '' Elizabeth the Queen'' by Maxwell Anders ...
'', ''
Dodge City
Dodge City is the county seat of Ford County, Kansas, United States, named after nearby Fort Dodge. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 27,788. The city is famous in American culture for its history as a wild frontier town ...
'', and ''
Virginia City
Virginia City is a census-designated place (CDP) that is the county seat of Storey County, Nevada, and the largest community in the county. The city is a part of the Reno– Sparks Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Virginia City developed as a boom ...
''.
Achievements and honors
Among his many achievements in archery, Howard Hill in 1928 set a new world record for the farthest recorded flight shot with a bow and arrow, at .
That same year, he won his 196th field archery competition in a row.
Hill, though, was not only one of the most decorated archers in the modern era of target shooting, hunting, and flight archery competitions, he was also a celebrated writer and producer. During his career, he produced 23 films about archery for
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...
He also produced 10 different films of his own and was a technical adviser in far more motion pictures, providing his expertise in the field. As a bowhunter himself, he killed over 2,000 animals with his longbow, including a 10,000-pound African bull elephant, becoming the first white man to kill such an animal with an arrow.
To accomplish that feat he used a 41-inch-long (100 cm) arrow while pulling a 115-pound bow.
Numerous local, state, and national organizations devoted to the sport of archery have honored Hill. He was inducted into the
Alabama Sports Hall of Fame
The Alabama Sports Hall of Fame (ASHOF) is a state museum located in Birmingham, Alabama, dedicated to communicating the state’s athletic history. The museum displays over 5,000 objects related to athletes who were born in Alabama or earned fame ...
in Birmingham in 1971, the Archery Hall of Fame in
Springfield, Missouri
Springfield is the third largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and the county seat of Greene County. The city's population was 169,176 at the 2020 census. It is the principal city of the Springfield metropolitan area, which had an estimat ...
, in 1972; and into the Bowhunters Hall of Fame in
Squaw Valley, California, in 1975. His remarkable achievements have been highly regarded internationally as well as in the United States. In Canada, for example, Archery Toronto currently recognizes Hill as "one of the three greatest archers of the last century", the other two being, in that organization's estimation, the legendary
Japanese Zen
:''See also Zen for an overview of Zen, Chan Buddhism for the Chinese origins, and Sōtō, Rinzai school, Rinzai and Ōbaku for the three main schools of Zen in Japan''
Japanese Zen refers to the Japanese forms of Zen, Zen Buddhism, an orig ...
bowman Awa Kenzō and
Byron Ferguson, a native of Alabama like Hill.
Performing
Hill enjoyed the challenge of making remarkably difficult trick shots, such as shooting an apple or prune off the top of someone's head from a distance of 60 feet. After accomplishing that, he would perform the same bow-and-arrow stunt with an even smaller item from a greater distance. He produced several short documentaries that highlighted other difficult trick shots. Some others included hitting a small coin flipped into the air and splitting a wooden ball in half while it was rolled across the ground. He would also perform difficult shots standing on one leg or while lying on the ground and holding the bow with his feet.
Beyond Hill's great ability at trick shooting and hitting stationary targets, he demonstrated amazing skills hunting wild game, especially with his traditional longbow. Some of his great trips were filmed or documented, including ''Howard Hill vs. Lion'' and ''Howard Hill vs. Elephant''. The marksmanship and daring that Hill exhibits in just those two films exemplify why many archers consider him to be among the greatest hunters of all time.
Partial filmography
Acting
Feature films and documentaries
*''The Last Wilderness'' (1935) – Himself
*''
The Singing Buckaroo
''The Singing Buckaroo'' is a 1937 American Western film written and directed by Tom Gibson. The film stars Fred Scott, Victoria Vinton, William Faversham, Cliff Nazarro, Howard Hill and Charles Kaley. The film was released on January 15, ...
'' (1937) – Maneeto – Grant's Indian Friend
*''
The Adventures of Robin Hood
''The Adventures of Robin Hood'' is a 1938 American Technicolor swashbuckler film from Warner Bros. Pictures. It was produced by Hal B. Wallis and Henry Blanke, directed by Michael Curtiz and William Keighley, and stars Errol Flynn, Olivia de H ...
'' (1938) – Owain the Welshman (credited)
*''
San Antonio
("Cradle of Freedom")
, image_map =
, mapsize = 220px
, map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = United States
, subdivision_type1= U.S. state, State
, subdivision_name1 = Texas
, s ...
'' (1945) – Henchman (uncredited) (final film role)
*''
Tembo'' (1951, Documentary) – Himself
*''
Deep Sea Fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inc ...
'' (1952, Short documentary) – Himself
Short subjects (Warner Bros.)
*''
Sword Fishing'' (October 21, 1939) "Bow & Arrow Adventures"
*''Wild Boar Hunt'' (January 21, 1940) "Bow & Arrow Adventures"
*''Shark Hunting'' (November 9, 1940) "Bow & Arrow Adventures"
*''Hunting the Hard Way'' (May 17, 1941) "Bow & Arrow Adventures"
*''Points on Arrows'' (December 27, 1941) "Hollywood Novelties"
*''King of the Archers'' (February 6, 1943) "Hollywood Novelties"
*''The Man Killers'' (May 29, 1943) "Broadway Brevities" (20 minutes)
*''Hunting the Devil Cat'' (December 18, 1943) "Hollywood Novelties"
*''Filipino Sports Parade'' (June 17, 1944) Technicolor "Sports Parade"
*''Outdoor Living'' (November 4, 1944) "Warner / Vitaphone Novelties"
*''Champions of the Future'' (November 18, 1944) Technicolor "Sports Parade"
*''Cavalcade of Archery'' (January 12, 1946) Technicolor "Sports Parade"
*''The Lazy Hunter'' (October 26, 1946) Technicolor "Sports Parade"
*''Battle of the Champs'' (January 18, 1947) Technicolor "Sports Parade"
*''Art of Archery'' (October 6, 1951) Technicolor "Sports Parade"
*''
Cruise of the Zaca
''Cruise of the Zaca'' is a short documentary on 16mm about a trip taken by Errol Flynn in 1946 on his boat the '' Zaca'' to collect specimens with his father, Professor Theodore Thomson Flynn, an eminent marine biologist. The trip was done in as ...
'' (December 6, 1952) "Technicolor Special" (20 minutes, filmed 1946–47)
Technical adviser and archery instructor
*''
Across the Wide Missouri'' (1951)
*''
The Bandit of Sherwood Forest
''The Bandit of Sherwood Forest'' is a 1946 American Technicolor adventure film directed by Henry Levin & George Sherman and starring Cornel Wilde, Anita Louise, Jill Esmond and Edgar Buchanan.
Plot
Robin Hood's son (Cornel Wilde) returns to ...
'' (1946)
*''
Buffalo Bill
William Frederick Cody (February 26, 1846January 10, 1917), known as "Buffalo Bill", was an American soldier, Bison hunting, bison hunter, and showman. He was born in Le Claire, Iowa, Le Claire, Iowa Territory (now the U.S. state of Iowa), but ...
'' (1944)
*''
The Adventures of Robin Hood
''The Adventures of Robin Hood'' is a 1938 American Technicolor swashbuckler film from Warner Bros. Pictures. It was produced by Hal B. Wallis and Henry Blanke, directed by Michael Curtiz and William Keighley, and stars Errol Flynn, Olivia de H ...
'' (1938)
“Splitting-the-arrow” shot
While performing in the role of an archer in ''The Adventures of Robin Hood'' (starring
Errol Flynn
Errol Leslie Thomson Flynn (20 June 1909 – 14 October 1959) was an Australian-American actor who achieved worldwide fame during the Golden Age of Hollywood. He was known for his romantic swashbuckler roles, frequent partnerships with Olivia ...
), Hill made perhaps the most iconic bow-and-arrow shot in American film history: Robin Hood shooting his own arrow to split a competitor's arrow already embedded in a distant target. In 2006, cast members of the Australian-American television series ''
MythBusters
''MythBusters'' is a science entertainment television program, developed by Peter Rees and produced by Australia's Beyond Television Productions. The series premiered on the Discovery Channel on January 23, 2003. It was broadcast internatio ...
'' were unable to replicate the end-to-end splitting of an arrow, so they concluded that Hill probably used a shaft made of bamboo, not wood, for the famous shot.
Byron Ferguson, a renowned bowhunter himself and a trick-shot expert, was able to perfectly split an arrow lengthwise using a modern laminated longbow, a shot that was filmed for the television special ''Extreme Marksmen'' and broadcast on the
History Channel
History (formerly The History Channel from January 1, 1995 to February 15, 2008, stylized as HISTORY) is an American pay television network and flagship channel owned by A&E Networks, a joint venture between Hearst Communications and the Disney ...
in 2008. Byron Ferguson, however, did not split a wooden arrow but telescoped a modern aluminum arrow into another. The aluminum and carbon-fiber arrow shafts used by modern archers are more consistent and straighter than wood arrows, making for more consistent shots. That makes Hill's feat truly impressive since he used only cedar wood arrows. Hill had designed and used specially made aluminum shafts to hunt African elephants for his full-length color film ''
Tembo'' (1951).
"Tembo"
(1951), AFI. Retrieved October 3, 2018.
The splitting-the-arrow scene in ''The Adventures of Robin Hood'' is explained by Hollywood stuntman Buster Wiles in his 1988 book ''My Days With Errol Flynn
''My Days With Errol Flynn'' is an autobiography of Vernon “Buster” Wiles that focuses predominantly on the times he spent with actor Errol Flynn in Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood during the late 1930s and 1940s.
The book, which was first ...
''. In it Wiles reveals that although Hill had split the end off of several arrows, he was unable to split the arrow exactly as scripted (from end-to-end). Finally, a specially constructed arrow with a large bladed head was used and shot at the target arrow along a concealed wire. Nevertheless, Hill's accuracy was otherwise so precise that he routinely hit extremely small targets in both live and filmed demonstrations.
''You Bet Your Life''
On February 17, 1955, Hill appeared as a contestant on ''You Bet Your Life
''You Bet Your Life'' is an American comedy quiz series that has aired on both radio and television. The original and best-known version was hosted by Groucho Marx of the Marx Brothers, with announcer and assistant George Fenneman. The show deb ...
'', a popular American quiz series hosted on both radio and television by comedian Groucho Marx
Julius Henry "Groucho" Marx (; October 2, 1890 – August 19, 1977) was an American comedian, actor, writer, stage, film, radio, singer, television star and vaudeville performer. He is generally considered to have been a master of quick wit an ...
.["You Bet Your Life #54–23 Groucho meets a psychiatrist (Secret word 'Door', Feb 17, 1955)"](_blank)
''You Bet Your Life'', video copy of original broadcast, originally posted October 23, 2013 on YouTube, Alphabet, Inc., Mountain View, California. Retrieved February 21, 2019. In that televised broadcast, Hill describes the most challenging trick shot he ever performed and also briefly discusses his experiences hunting elephants with a bow and arrow. He and his game partner then attempt to win the show's grand-prize of $1,500; but they lose, failing to answer correctly a question relating to the Battle of Hastings
The Battle of Hastings nrf, Batâle dé Hastings was fought on 14 October 1066 between the Norman-French army of William the Conqueror, William, the Duke of Normandy, and an English army under the Anglo-Saxons, Anglo-Saxon King Harold Godw ...
. Ironically, considering Hill's profession, archers played a pivotal role in that battle, which occurred in England in 1066.[Editors of '']Encyclopædia Britannica
The (Latin for "British Encyclopædia") is a general knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It is published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.; the company has existed since the 18th century, although it has changed ownership various time ...
'' (2019)
"Battle of Hastings"
''Encyclopaedia Britannica'', online edition, updated February 4, 2019, Chicago, Illinois. Retrieved February 21, 2019. According to some historical accounts, the Anglo-Saxon
The Anglo-Saxons were a Cultural identity, cultural group who inhabited England in the Early Middle Ages. They traced their origins to settlers who came to Britain from mainland Europe in the 5th century. However, the ethnogenesis of the Anglo- ...
king, Harold II
Harold Godwinson ( – 14 October 1066), also called Harold II, was the last crowned Anglo-Saxon English king. Harold reigned from 6 January 1066 until his death at the Battle of Hastings, fighting the Normans, Norman invaders led by Willi ...
, died in the fighting after being "struck in the eye" by a Norman
Norman or Normans may refer to:
Ethnic and cultural identity
* The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries
** People or things connected with the Norm ...
arrow.
Personal life and death
Hill was married only once. On October 31, 1922, he married Elizabeth Hodges, a native of Ashville, Alabama
Ashville is a city in and one of the county seats of St. Clair County, Alabama, United States, other seat being Pell City. Its population was 2,212 at the 2010 census, down from 2,260, at which time it was a town. It incorporated in 1822.
Hist ...
, who was his former high-school English teacher. They remained together for 53 years, until Howard's death at age 75 in February 1975. His gravesite is located in the Ashville Ashville or Asheville may refer to:
Places United States
* Ashville, Alabama
* Ashville, Louisville, Kentucky
* Ashville, New York
* Asheville, North Carolina
** Asheville metropolitan area
** Asheville School
** Asheville High School
** Ashe ...
Cemetery in St. Clair County, Alabama.
References and notes
External links
*
*
Bow Hunters Hall Of Fame
European Howard Hill Archery Association
Howard Hill Archery
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hill, Howard
1899 births
1975 deaths
American male archers
Auburn Tigers men's basketball players
Auburn Tigers football players
Players of American football from Alabama
People from Shelby County, Alabama
American hunters
Warner Bros. short films
American men's basketball players