Shooting Feats by Howard Hill....Know Any?

[Nala]

Hey all,

I got out a favorite video of that I haven't seen in a while and watched it.  It was the first Byron Ferguson Trick Shot video.  In the video he is going to try and hit some quarters out of the air and he makes a remark about how Howard Hill once shot 10 DIMES IN A ROW out of the air without missing and that the best he has ever been able to do was 7 pennies.  He also made the remark that through his life Howard Hill was said to have taken THOUSANDS of ducks on the wing with his bow.

After hearing those 2 feats I got out my older Howard Hill Archery catalog and looked at his bows and read a bit about what else he had accomplished with his bow.  What an INCREDIBLE man.  He was pulling VERY heavy bows with ease and would try and shoot several times a week up until his death.

I started thinking about what some of the other feats or amazing shots he may have accomplished that I have not heard about.  So I thought I'd ask the experts here if they have any information or stories about Howard Hill and his expertise with his longbow.

Do you know of any incredible archery shots made by Hill?  If you have any information about his shooting and his proficiency with his bow over his life you should post it.

Any information you have will be appreciated.

Thanks for the time.

Nala

[Don Batten]

Craig Elins's book talks about a few. I have a dvd that is made up of Hill shorts. Got some good stuff on there. DB

[woodchucker]

I know that he regularly shot 75-100 yards and cleanly killed game.

Now THAT is a feat in itself.....Most of todays compound-laser-rangfinder-sight-shooters can't even HIT targets at those ranges.

[vermonster13]

Get a hold of Dtala, he knew Howard for a few years and has a lot of good stories.

[mike g]

Nala....
    Mr. Hill liked to shoot an arrow straight up, and as the arrow came down he would shoot it with another arrow....

[SCATTERSHOT]

I read that he shot an elk at 185 yards in front of witnesses.

he also did all of the trick shooting in the movie Robin Hood with Errol Flynn.

[sidebuster]

In Cavalcade of Archery he shoots a prune off a guy's head with a razor head.

[PAPALAPIN]

He also did the stunt shooting in the "Black Swan" and several others.

When I was a Kid, some time last millennium, I saw him shoot live at the FOX Theater in Houma, LA.  I was about 7.  The one thing I remember was him setting off the primers on shotgun casings (primer only, no powder, no shot).  As I remember it,  he set off about 10 - 12 of them with no misses.

[bjk]

Come on...stick to the topic...great shooting, not what you think was a bad idea 7/80 yrs ago.

The guy could shoot...if I had to have someone shooting an apple off my head (something I would avoid with great pains), it would be him...nobody else who has ever lived or currently lives....NOBODY  The Robinhood movie should be a testament alone, along with the shooting of a "robinhood".

[mrbowhunter]

FROM THE BOOKS I READ
IN THE ROBIN HOOD MOVIE HE SHOT THE PEOPLE WITH REAL ARROWS THEY WORE A 11X12" BLOCK OF WOOD WITH A STEEL BACKING.WHEN ASKED WHAT WAS THE HARDEST SHOT HE SAID WHEN THEY WHERE RUNNING ON HORSE BACK.HE ALSO SAID IF HE MISSED HIS MARK THERE WOULD BE SEVERE INJURY OR DEATH!WHEN YOU WATCH THE MOVIE YOU CAN SEE THE BLOCK UNDER THE CLOTHES. AFTER READING BOOK IS WHAT INSPIRED ME TO BE A TRAD. ARCHER 8 YRS. AGO.

[DesertDude]

Like I said  sorry if i offend anyone with my comments.

[Stone Knife]

Desert Dude, I'm a fan of Howard Hill but not really offended by your comments. I have watched a few of Howard's videos and some other big names in archery, and it seems back in there day anything went. in some of the films long shots were taken and game was just wounded and then persuaded and finished off, all involved seemed OK with it. Don't forget that at one time birds of prey were not protected and were considered pests by many. Things differ in today's day and age most hunters are very ethical and would never kill half the kind of animals that were killed back in the thirties. I don't agree with all that was done in the good old days but i still enjoy the old films and have a great respect for the archers of yesteryear.

[woodchucker]

Amen Jim!!!!!

[DesertDude]

Stone, Thanks for your comments. HH was a great archer and shot. I've seen most of his films and was very impressed. Some times you say something and it's out before you think it through. (Mondays)   mark

[vermonster13]

The man did what was considered ethical for his times and let's leave it at that.

[Jim now in Kentucky]

I have seen the prune stunt.My guess is the guy had the long hair  to cover the steel helmet he  was wearing. Who's to say the broadhead wasn't made of rubber too.  It was a great shot,  but it was entertainment, after all.

Again, not taking away from the shooting, just saying  it may not have been quite as dangerous as it looked.

[Stone Knife]

In one of my DVD's, Howard shoots an apple off the barrel of a guy's lever action rifle that he is holding by his side. The apple is not far away from the guy's body at all, and when viewed in slow motion it appears Howard intentionally hit the side of the apple that was away from the guy so as not to ricochet his arrow into his body. Or at least i like to think he was good enough to pick what side of the apple to hit.

[Van/TX]

Don't know about 1000's of ducks  :D  ...Van

 

[V I Archer]

a conservative estimate of 1500 rabbits!

[Van/TX]

I kilt more Armadillos than HH        ...Van