Sandman

The Sandman is a mythical character in central and northern European folklore who brings good dreams by sprinkling magical sand onto the eyes of people while they sleep at night.

Representation in traditional folklore

Traditionally, he is a character in many children's stories. He is said to sprinkle sand or dust on or into the eyes of the child at night to bring on dreams and sleep. The grit or "sleep" in one's eyes upon waking is supposed to be the result of the Sandman's work the previous evening.

Hans Christian Andersen's 1841 folk tale Ole Lukøje introduced the Sandman, named Ole Lukøje, by relating dreams he gave to a young boy in a week through his magical technique of sprinkling dust in the eyes of the children. "Ole" is a Danish name and "Lukøje" means "close eye". Andersen wrote:

There is nobody in the world who knows so many stories as Ole-Luk-Oie, or who can relate them so nicely. In the evening, while the children are seated at the table or in their little chairs, he comes up the stairs very softly, for he walks in his socks, then he opens the doors without the slightest noise, and throws a small quantity of very fine dust in their eyes, just enough to prevent them from keeping them open, and so they do not see him. Then he creeps behind them, and blows softly upon their necks, till their heads begin to droop. But Ole-Luk-Oie does not wish to hurt them, for he is very fond of children, and only wants them to be quiet that he may relate to them pretty stories, and they never are quiet until they are in bed and asleep. As soon as they are asleep, Ole-Luk-Oie seats himself upon the bed. He is nicely dressed; his coat is made of silken fabric; it is impossible to say of what color, for it changes from green to red, and from red to blue as he turns from side to side. Under each arm he carries an umbrella; one of them, with pictures on the inside, he spreads over the good children, and then they dream the most beautiful stories the whole night. But the other umbrella has no pictures, and this he holds over the naughty children so that they sleep heavily, and wake in the morning without having dreams at all.

E.T.A. Hoffmann (1776–1822) wrote an inverse depiction of the lovable character in a story called Der Sandmann, which showed how sinister such a character could be made. According to the protagonist's nurse, he threw sand in the eyes of children who wouldn't sleep, with the result of those eyes falling out and being collected by the Sandman, who then takes the eyes to his iron nest on the Moon, and uses them to feed his children. The protagonist of the story grows to associate this nightmarish creature with the genuinely sinister figure of his father's associate Coppelius. In Romanian folklore there is a similar character, Mos Ene (Ene the Elder).

In popular culture

A popular character in folklore, the Sandman is frequently referenced in popular culture. Some noteworthy examples include the following:

Film and television

The 1933 Walt Disney Silly Symphonies cartoon Lullaby Land ends with the Sandman putting the baby to sleep.

The 1934 Laurel and Hardy film Babes in Toyland (1934 film) depicts the Sandman putting Little Bo-Peep and Tom-Tom Piper to sleep.

In East Germany on Deutscher Fernsehfunk, Sandmännchen survived through the end of the Iron Curtain, which was really popular for many kids in The GDR and Reunified Germany today.

In the Apollo Theater talent television show, a stage name for Howard Sims, who comedically ushered failed acts offstage with a shepherd's crook.

In 1986 the TV cartoon series The Real Ghostbusters featured the Sandman in an episode entitled "Mr. Sandman, Dream Me a Dream."

In 2002 the TV cartoon series Courage the Cowardly Dog featured the Sandman in an episode entitled "Stormy Weather/ The Sandman Sleeps."

In 2002 the supernatural series Charmed featured the Sandman in an episode entitled "Sand Francisco Dreamin'"

The Sandman appears in The Santa Clause 2 (2002) and The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause (2006) portrayed by Michael Dorn. He is seen as a member of the Council of Legendary Figures alongside Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy, Cupid, Mother Nature, Father Time, and Jack Frost.

In 2005 the TV late-night talkshow The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson theme song mentions the Sandman.

The 2011 Joe Wright action film Hanna draws heavily on European folklore, with a deadly antagonist of the teen-aged lead character ironically associated to the benevolent Sandman, also through the Chemical Brothers soundtrack.

The 2012 Dreamworks film Rise of the Guardians features the Sandman as a main character. Although the Sandman doesn't speak, he uses his sand to communicate with the other Guardians.

The 2013 TV series Sleepy Hollow depicts the Sandman in an episode entitled "For the Triumph of Evil"

Music

The 1920 song "The Japanese Sandman" by Raymond B. Egan and Richard A. Whiting.

The 1954 song "Mr. Sandman" popularized by The Chordettes.

The 1957 song Morningtown Ride, recorded by The Seekers among others, in which the Sandman features as a character.

The 1963 song In Dreams, by Roy Orbison, which mentions the Sandman.

The 1971 song "Sandman" by America.

The 1971 song "Winter Wine" by Caravan (band), which mentions the Sandman.

The 1991 song "Enter Sandman" by Metallica.

The 2004 song "Blood Red Sandman" by Lordi.

The 2009 song "Sandmann" by Oomph!.

The 2013 song "Sandman" by HURTS (from their 2013 album "Exile").

The 2013 song "Sandman" by Kirsty McGee.

Literature

The Sandman graphic novel series by Neil Gaiman, depicts the Sandman as the main protagonist, Dream

References

Andersen, Hans Christian. Fairy Tales of Hans Christian Andersen. Retrieved October 20, 2010.
Tatar, Maria (2003) [1987]. Hard Facts of the Grimms' Fairy Tales. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. ISBN 978-0-691-01487-6.
Hoffman, E.T.A. (1817). "Der Sandmann". Die Nachtstücke.