based on the legend In 1564, the material was made into a tragicomic play by the English poet Richard Edwardes (Damon and Pythias). The best-known modern treatment of the legend is the German ballad Die Bürgschaft, written in 1799 by Friedrich Schiller, based on the Gesta Romanorum version. (In this work, Damon is sentenced to death, not Pythias.) In 1821, the Irish poet John Banim wrote a play based on the legend (Damon and Pythias). Familiarity with this play led Justus H. Rathbone to found the fraternal order Knights of Pythias. In 1914 in the United States, Universal Pictures produced and released the film Damon and Pythias starring William Worthington and Herbert Rawlinson in the title roles. In 1915, the book The Story of Damon and Pythias by Albert Payson Terhune was published. It was "adapted and illustrated from the photo-play conceived and produced by The Universal Film Manufacturing Company", referring to the 1914 film starring William Worthington and Herbert Rawlinson. This book, like the German ballad, casts Damon as the condemned and the one who must return in time to save Pythias. In 1925, William Faulkner published Damon and Pythias Unlimited in the New Orleans Double Dealer, one of several "sketches" he wrote for the paper when he moved there. The short story "Pythias" by Frederik Pohl, published in 1955, entwines the mythic elements with modern political and psychokinetic concerns. The film The Delicate Delinquent (1957) features characters "Mike Damon" (Darren McGavin, but imagined for Dean Martin) and "Sidney Pythias" (Jerry Lewis). As released, the film only vaguely resembles the legendPythias avoids jailbut intends instead to be a testament to the Martin & Lewis friendship. In a 1959 Leave It to Beaver episode, Beaver's father relates the Damon and Pythias story and Beaver donates his homework to friend Larry to prove their friendship. Larry confesses moments before Beaver loses a week of recesses. The 1962 MGM film Damon and Pythias remains true to the ancient story; it stars Guy Williams as Damon and Don Burnett as Pythias. In Japan, the 1940 short story "Run, Melos!" by Osamu Dazai and an earlier nursery tale by Miekichi Suzuki are based on the legend, as is a 1992 anime produced by Toei Company, Ltd. The Dreamworks animated film "Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas" (2003) features the title character going on a journey to find a treasure, while his best friend remains