“Your pictures are not unlike you” [3GAB]
When we read the Sherlock Holmes stories, each one of us has a vision in our head how Sherlock Holmes should look.
Sometimes, it's influenced by portrayals of Holmes in various forms of media. So some think of Basil Rathbone while others think of Jeremy Brett, while others think about Douglas Wilmer, Peter Cushing, or Benedict Cumberbatch.
But before all of that, the public imagined Sherlock Holmes to look just as Sidney Paget and Frederic Dorr Steele drew him. Their iconic images meant that Sherlock Holmes could be instantly recognized.
But imagine if Charles Kerr had his way. He was the artist who illustrated the frontispiece for The Sign of Four for Spencer Blackett in 1890. And his Sherlock Holmes bore a striking resemblance to Inspector Clouseau (can you make out the mustache?):
Let's be thankful that Sherlock Holmes and the boys Baker Street Elementary look the way they do...
Baker Street Elementary follows the original adventures of Sherlock Holmes and John Watson, as they and their friends work through the issues of elementary school in Victorian London. An archive of all previous episodes can be viewed at www.bakerstreetelementary.org.
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