The Runner in some version of The Surprising Adventures of Baron Munchausen (the one with illustrations by Gustave Doré) is recruited by the Baron by dint of his singular ability for great swiftness of foot. “I had travelled but a few miles from Constantinople when I saw a slim, lean man running straight across the country with great swiftness, though he had fastened to each of his feet a mass of lead weighing at least fifty pounds.” When the Baron asks about the weights, the runner says “As I had no longer any use for my speed, I lessen it by help of this weight, for when you go slowly you go surely…” In a tale that follows, the Baron’s accomplices, the Runner, the Listener, the Marksman, the Strong Man, and the Blower, all aid him in winning a wager with the Grand Turk of Cairo over the quality of a certain wine, else he lose his head. If provided a name, perhaps a good one would be “Berthold”.
Creators/Key ContributorsGustave Doré, Rudolf Erich Raspe
First Appearance Baron Munchausen’s Narrative of his Marvellous Travels and Campaigns in Russia (1785)
First Publisher ○
Appearance List Literature: The Surprising Adventures of Baron Munchausen; or Baron Munchausen’s Narrative of his Marvellous Travels and Campaigns in Russia (English, 1785), The Adventures of Baron Munchausen: A New and Revised Edition; Illustrations by Gustave Doré (English, 1865, 2012) [Internet Archive], Aventures du Baron de Münchhausen; illustrées par Gustave Doré (French, 1866) [Internet Archive], Aventures du baron de Münchhausen; Illustrations par Gustave Doré (French, 1893) [Wikisource], The Surprising Adventures of Baron Munchausen; Illustrated by Willaim Strang and J. B. Clark (English, 1895) [Internet Archive], Mr. Munchausen (1901). Film: Baron Munchausen’s Dream (1911, Georges Méliès), Münchhausen (1943, Josef von Báky with script by Erich Kästner), The Fabulous Baron Munchausen (1961, Karel Zeman), The Very Same Munchhausen (1979, Mark Zakharov), The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1988, Terry Gilliam). Pulps: Beadle’s Half Dime Library #9 – The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (Nov 12, 1877), “How Münchhausen and the Allies Took Berlin” by Hugo Gernsback in Amazing Stories (Feb 1928). Comic strip: Baron Munchausen (1935-1937, Klaus Nordling).
Sample Read The Adventures of Baron Munchausen: A New and Revised Edition; Illustrations by Gustave Doré [Internet Archive]
Description The Runner in some version of The Surprising Adventures of Baron Munchausen (the one with illustrations by Gustave Doré) is recruited by the Baron by dint of his singular ability for great swiftness of foot. “I had travelled but a few miles from Constantinople when I saw a slim, lean man running straight across the country with great swiftness, though he had fastened to each of his feet a mass of lead weighing at least fifty pounds.” When the Baron asks about the weights, the runner says “As I had no longer any use for my speed, I lessen it by help of this weight, for when you go slowly you go surely…” In a tale that follows, the Baron’s accomplices, the Runner, the Listener, the Marksman, the Strong Man, and the Blower, all aid him in winning a wager with the Grand Turk of Cairo over the quality of a certain wine, else he lose his head. If provided a name, perhaps a good one would be “Berthold”.
