I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere

Steven Dietz's Sherlock Play Is Quite Entertaining

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<b>"He had got back from the theatre about midnight." [RETI]</b></h4>
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Playwright Steven Dietz was commissioned by the Arizona Theatre Company in 2005 to write a Sherlockian play; the result was <i>Sherlock Holmes: The Final Adventure. </i>The world premier of <i>Sherlock Holmes </i>was produced in 2006 by the Arizona Theatre Company and the play was awarded an <a href="http://www.playbill.com/news/article/dietzs-sherlock-holmes-wins-2007-edgar-award-for-best-mystery-play" target="_blank">Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Play in 2007</a>. My wife and I were fortunate enough to attend the Ethington Theatre's recent production of the play. The Ethington Theatre is a small, intimate venue on the campus of Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, Arizona.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Playwright Steven Dietz</td></tr>
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Adapted from the 1899 play by William Gillette and Conan Doyle, Dietz's <i>Sherlock Holmes: The Final Adventure </i>retains some of the same plot points as the Gillette play while at the same time repackaging them with some new elements. Dietz's adaptation is a clever blending together of the major plots from <i>A Scandal in Bohemia</i> and <i>The Final Problem</i>, but unlike the Gillette script Dietz keeps the name of Irene Adler for the female lead character.<br />
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<i>Sherlock Holmes: The Final Adventure </i>is at heart still a mystery/adventure story, but Dietz also incorporates elements of romance and humor involving the characters of Holmes and Watson, which are themes that are not typically as prominent in the Canon. Holmes is portrayed as somewhat of a smug, condescending character who enjoys a joke at Watson's expense. As for the Doctor, he comes across as a bit of a bumbling oaf. It doesn't ruin his character, but that aspect of the Watson persona is certainly played up more than is typical. One of the most notable departures from the Canon is Holmes' romantic involvement with Irene Adler.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Megan Sprink-VanCamp as Irene Adler / Photo courtesy of GCU and Tim Trumble of Tim Trumble Photography Inc.</td></tr>
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The story is narrated throughout by Doctor Watson, as one would expect, and chronicles the tale of the scandal involving the King of Bohemia and the desperately sought after photograph of the king and Miss Adler. The photograph and the character of Godfrey Norton play a much larger part in the grand scheme of this adaptation than in <i>A Scandal in Bohemia. </i>After several attempts at retrieval of the photograph and just as many run ins with Professor Moriarty and his minions, the play culminates in that iconic struggle at Reichenbach Falls.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dylan Kim as Dr. Watson / Photo courtesy of GCU and Tim Trumble of Tim Trumble Photography Inc.</td></tr>
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<i>Sherlock Holmes: The Final Adventure </i>is a masterful meshing of the plots from two of the most well known stories from the original Sir Arthur Conan Doyle short stories. The audience is also presented with an interesting perspective on Holmes' two rivals; the evil Moriarty and the beautiful Irene Adler. Each of them outwit Holmes in various ways, but yet the contrast between their characters is very striking.<br />
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Steven Dietz does a fine job of marrying the quintessence of the Holmes and Watson characters with a few new characteristics resulting in a play which provides a couple of hours that are quite entertaining. And while Canonical purists may not appreciate <i>Sherlock Holmes: The Final Adventure </i>most folks will find it quite enjoyable; even those who are not hard-core Holmes fans.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Aaron Potter as Sherlock Holmes / Photo courtesy of GCU and Tim Trumble of Tim Trumble Photography Inc.</td></tr>
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<i><b>Editor's note:</b> J.D. Sutter is a new media consultant and founder of Porchlight Family Media. He has been a Holmes enthusiast since reading The Speckled Band in grade school. This is his first contribution to IHOSE.</i><div>
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Steven Dietz's Sherlock Play Is Quite Entertaining

"He had got back from the theatre about midnight." [RETI] Playwright Steven Dietz was commissioned by the Arizona Theatre...

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by J.D. Sutter

From Gillette to Brett IV: Suspiring in Indianapolis Part 2 (Electric Boogaloo)

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The fourth in our <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/search/label/%23G2B4" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">series of recaps</a> of #G2B4 is a continuation of <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2014/09/from-gillette-to-brett-iv-suspiring-in.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">the first</a>.<br />
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Up next was Bert Coules, the English writer and producer-director who served as Radio Dramatist for the BBC Sherlock Holmes starring Clive Merrison and Michael Williams, the only two actors in any medium to appear as Holmes and Watson in all 60 canonical stories. Coules is the author of <i>221 BBC</i>, published by Gasogene Books, a volume that takes the reader behind the scenes of the BBC series and includes a history of other radio adaptations of Holmes and Watson. </div>
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Drawing from his vast knowledge, experience, and love of audio drama, Coules made an eloquent case for the power and profundity of audio dramatizations of the Canon. He began with the pivotal year 1930, in which Conan Doyle died; Holmes made his radio debut; and NBC broadcast Edith Meiser's series of adaptations. Having noted the 1943 version of "The Boscombe Valley Mystery," starring the great Arthur Wontner, Coules then "put a bit of volcano in it" by playing for conference-goers several clips of rare broadcasts. Highlights included a sample of "The Speckled Band," starring Cedric Hardwicke (father of Edward) as Holmes, and another of William Gillette himself, in a radio version of his celebrated hit, <i>Sherlock Holmes</i>, a play which had earlier been represented in David Stuart Davies' lecture, via an excerpt from the HBO revival starring Frank Langella.<br />
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Coules laid down the practical rules for writing good audio drama. His example of the kind of writing that has failed to capitalize on the evocative power of sound: "My word, Virginia, that's a strange thing for an attractive 35-year-old brunette like you to say!" He concluded with a conference exclusive, a video clip of Merrison and Williams in the studio rehearsing "The Solitary Cyclist," that wowed the attendees. If you have not yet explored the work of Bert Coules, you owe it to yourself to do so.<br />
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After a break, the conference reconvened for the screening of the definitive version of "A Scandal in Bohemia," the initial episode of the incomparable Granada Television series, starring Jeremy Brett as Sherlock Holmes, and directed by the conference's next speaker, featured guest Paul Annett.<br />
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Thirty years have passed since this little film first graced the television screen, and it was pleasant to note how well it has weathered the test of time. Brett and his first Watson, David Burke, are still superb; Wolf Kahler's King of Bohemia is still a lumbering mass of arrogance; Gayle Hunnicutt's elegant and striking Irene Adler is still the stuff that dreams are made of; and the thunderous applause when Holmes turns briskly away from the king's outstretched hand was gratifying, to say the least. Once the familiar strains of Patrick Gowers' score had played the closing credits off, Annett took center stage, where he was joined by the Wessex Press's own Steven Doyle.<br />
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The interview that filled the next forty-five minutes was nothing short of glorious for fans of the classic series. Doyle's questions seemed to "anticipate all my wants" [SILV], and drew gem after gem from Annett's recollections of the all-important early days of the Granada series. One can only hope a recording or transcript of the interview may someday be made available, along with the unexpected thrill it featured: previously unseen footage of costume and makeup tests for Jeremy Brett and David Burke.<br />
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In the last few minutes, Doyle opened the floor to questions, and the audience responded enthusiastically on topics from Jeremy Brett's use of facial tics to convey the action of Holmes' mental machinery, to Annett's experience directing <i>The Beast Must Die</i>, based on James Blish's outstanding short story "There Shall Be No Darkness," and starring Peter Cushing, Charles Gray, and Michael Gambon.<br />
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Gambon's Professor Albus Dumbledore would have felt right at home in the Tudor Room of the Indiana Memorial Union for the banquet that followed; indeed, nothing but a banquet would have seemed appropriate after the Doyle/Annett show, and fortunately the feast was already scheduled. It was accompanied by a moving tribute to the late Michael A. Hoey, son of Rathbone's Inspector Lestrade, Dennis Hoey, and author of <i><a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2011/10/episode-36-michael-hoey-and-fabulous.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Sherlock Holmes and The Fabulous Faces: The Universal Pictures Repetory Company</a></i>.<br />
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Conference-goers mingled and made merry until the time had come for a return stroll to the IU Cinema for the screening of <i>The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes</i> (1939), the second outing of Rathbone and Bruce, a ripping yarn bolstered by the chilling Professor Moriarty of George Zucco and a fine damsel-in-distress turn by the always-reliable Ida Lupino.<br />
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In introducing the film and advocating on behalf of the Rathbone-Bruce series, Professor James Naremore did a top-notch job, as one would expect from a film scholar who has received a fellowship from the Guggenheim Foundation and who has recorded DVD commentaries for not one, but two, films of Orson Welles (<i>Mr. Arkadin</i> and <i>Touch of Evil</i>). <i>The Adventures</i> went over with the audience every bit as well as <i>The Hound</i> had done, and attendees dispersed afterward to various late-night gatherings and after-parties; some were even reported to have gone to bed.<br />
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The conference program declared:<br />
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"Half the fun of events like From Gillette to Brett IV is visiting with distant friends or shopping for Sherlockian treasure. With that in mind, over four hours of free time… have been built into the day." </blockquote>
On the one hand, the organizers were precisely correct: It is at least half the fun. On the other hand, they seem to have erred: The free time felt more like four minutes! Or perhaps it's a subjective problem; time does have a tendency to fly when one is breakfasting with Ray Betzner (<a href="http://vincentstarrett.com/">vincentstarrett.com</a>) at the Runcible Spoon, home of some of the crispiest bacon north of Kentucky; likewise, hours can turn to minutes when one lunches with Henry Boote at a café that makes onion rings fit to write grandma about, then walks it off by dropping in on the pub where Hoagy Carmichael wrote "Stardust."<br />
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Where does the break time go when spent over coffee with the <a href="http://bakerstreetbabes.com/" target="_blank">Baker Street Babes</a>' Ashley Polasek and <a href="http://221bcon.com/" target="_blank">221B Con</a>'s Crystal Noll? Back at the Lilly Library, a certain gracious lady and I were seated near each other when the Sacred Fragment of the Reichenbach letter was borne before us; it seemed we both felt as Booth Tarkington did, when he wrote to William Gillette: "I would rather see you play Sherlock Holmes than be a child again on Christmas morning." These are the moments when time slips away.<br />
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On Sunday a closing brunch gave attendees a time to reflect and to enjoy one another's company as the event drew to a close. Some even tried to say goodbye while in the midst of comparing schedules to determine the place and time of their next Sherlockian meetings. But the interval between now and January seems blissfully short, so as Basil Rathbone's Sherlock Holmes observed: "This time, we will say, 'Au revoir.'"<br />
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<i>Some photos courtesy of <a href="https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.729258210500479.1073741833.487420994684203&type=1" target="_blank">Wessex Press (Facebook)</a></i><br />
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From Gillette to Brett IV: Suspiring in Indianapolis Part 2 (Electric Boogaloo)

The fourth in our series of recaps of #G2B4 is a continuation of the first . Up next was Bert Coules, the English writer and producer...

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by Tim Greer

From Gillette to Brett IV - Something for Everyone

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<br /><b><i>The third in our <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/search/label/%23G2B4" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">series of recaps</a> of #G2B4</i></b><div>
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By Ray Betzner, BSI</div>
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There is a memorable moment in “The Red-Headed League,” where Holmes sits in St. James's Hall listening to Sarasate and “wrapped in the most perfect happiness.”<br /><br />Such was the case in the Indiana University Cinema when a theater packed with Sherlock Holmes enthusiasts and a few dozen college students were enraptured by a 75th anniversary screening of <i>The Hound of the Baskervilles</i> starring Richard Green, Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce.  To be in a real movie theater, have the lights dimmed, the curtain raised and the familiar story unfold as it was designed to do would have been enough; but to be with fellow devotees who mouthed “Mr. Holmes, there were the footprints of a gigantic hound” along with the scene chewing Lionel Atwill was a “most perfect happiness" indeed.<br /><br />And that is really the point of a gathering like <a href="http://wessexpress.com/html/g2b4main.html" target="_blank">From Gillette to Brett IV</a>, which was held Sept. 12-14 at the University of Indiana under auspices of Steve Doyle and Mark Gagen's <a href="http://www.wessexpress.com/">Wessex Press</a>  While we all acknowledge the primacy of the original Canon, so many of us interact with Holmes through film, television, radio and digital media today that a weekend devoted to its explication is entirely appropriate.<br /><br />The primacy of the originals was certainly acknowledged early on, as we toured the treasures of the university’s Lilly Library. Have you ever picked up an incredibly good copy of <a href="http://www.indiana.edu/~liblilly/holmes/pages/pr4622-s9-1887_00001.shtml"><i>Beeton’s Christmas Annual</i> for 1887</a>?  I have. I had to give it back, of course, but Lilly Director Joel Silver was enormously generous, offering up opportunities to see treasures that a collector might take a lifetime to view. Of particular interest was the hand-written note Sherlock Holmes left at the Reichenbach and acquired by David A. Randall, the library’s first director. To have such a treasure before you brings goose-bumps.<div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Holmes letter to Watson from "The Final Problem" - Conan Doyle Manuscript at the Lilly Library</td></tr>
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<br /><br />I won’t recount in detail each presentation from Saturday, except to say there were insights and delights galore: Bonnie MacBird, the screenwriter behind such films as the original “Tron,” thoughtfully drew parallels between the BBC <i>Sherlock</i> series and the Canon; Kristina Manente, founder of <a href="http://bakerstreetbabes.com/" target="_blank">The Baker Street Babes</a>, educated us old Sherlockians into the ways of “headcanon” and other path of the newest generation of enthusiasts; David Stuart Davies left us crying with laughter as he showed that Sherlaugh Holmes was not a misprint; and Burt Coules walked through more than 80 years of Holmes on the radio with particular attention to the BBC radio adaptations of the complete Canon starring Clive Merrison. It made me sad that radio drama no longer flourishes on U.S. airwaves. <br /><br />Finally, Paul Annett discussed his involvement in the early years of the Granada television series starring Jeremy Brett. The early adaptations were lovingly recreated from both Arthur Conan Doyle’s words and Sidney Paget’s illustrations. Which makes it strange that Brett, who so looked the part when he started, wanted to wear a putty nose and use a funny walk as Holmes. Annett wisely talked him out of those notions and the series has gone on to become a beloved touchstone. <br /><br />The huckster’s room had a nice selection of wallet-depleting treats, including <a href="http://www.wessexpress.com/html/g2b4exhibit.html">treasures</a> from the collection of Steve Doyle, which were not for sale. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Basil Rathbone's tweed hat</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Paxton Whitehead's hat from "The Crucifer of Blood"</td></tr>
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<br />In all, it was the kind of event that blended old-school Sherlockians with new breed “Sherlock”-ians in a warm and welcoming atmosphere. <br /><br />We all hope that a fifth act of this long-running show will come along in three years or so.<div>
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<i>Photos courtesy of <a href="https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.729258210500479.1073741833.487420994684203&type=1" target="_blank">Wessex Press (Facebook)</a></i></div>
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From Gillette to Brett IV - Something for Everyone

The third in our series of recaps of #G2B4 By Ray Betzner, BSI There is a memorable moment in “The Red-Headed League,” where Holmes...

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by Scott Monty

From Gillette to Brett IV — Sherlock Holmes in Media and "Meta"

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<b><i>The second in our <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/search/label/%23G2B4" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">series of recaps</a> of #G2B4</i></b><br />
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This past weekend, September 12-14, 2014, I had the honor of
joining a group of almost 200 Sherlockians in Bloomington, Indiana at From Gillette
to Brett IV: "Basil, Benedict, and Beyond” — a  conference to celebrate Sherlock Holmes in film,
radio, television.</div>
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The event began Friday afternoon with a specially-arranged
exhibit at the renowned Lilly Library on Indiana University’s campus.<br />
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Library Director
Joel Silver gave a presentation on David A. Randall, BSI, the first Director of
the Lilly Library, who was responsible for finding many of the Lilly’s unique
treasures. At this presentation, Joel shared several of the awe-inspiring
valuables the Lilly has in its collection, among them: a Shakespeare First
Folio, a pristine copy of Edgar Allen Poe’s first publication, the epic poem “Tamerlane,” a signed copy of the first edition Mark Twain’s <i>The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn</i>, and one of the few surviving
copies of <i>Pilgrim’s Progress</i> (all of these
we could touch and even sniff in some cases). Then, of course, he showed us items
that would make any Sherlockian shiver with glee—the<i> Beeton’s Christmas Annual</i> of 1887, and a portion of Sir Arthur
Conan Doyle’s manuscript from “The Final Problem” (specifically, Holmes’ letter
to Watson  at Reichenbach falls).<br />
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The Lilly staff also provided presentations on
bookbinding, how to preserve one’s book collection, and standing displays of medieval
manuscripts, Victorian crime and horror fiction, the original manuscript of “The
Adventure of the Red Circle,” movie screenplay manuscripts (<i>Hound of the Baskervilles</i>, <i>Citizen Kane</i>), John Ford’s Academy Award
for <i>How Green Was My Valley</i> (which
you could hold and pose with) and more.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Author and artist Charles Prepolec<br />
"Would like to thank the Academy"<br />
that he's holding John Ford's "Oscar."</td></tr>
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The group then gathered to watch the 75<sup>th</sup>
Anniversary screening of <i>The Hound of the
Baskervilles</i> (1939) starring Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce. Seeing this
classic on the big screen was a thrill, especially in an audience of
enthusiastic Sherlockians.<o:p></o:p><br />
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The next morning (and during breaks) attendees visited the
dealers room to search for treasurers, while short Sherlock Holmes films showed
in the main presentation room. The dealer’s room was especially interesting in
that it held a special exhibit of Sherlockian movie and literary memorabilia provided
by Wessex Press co-owner and Gillette to Brett organizer, Steven Doyle</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Movie memorabilia from the Steven Doyle collection (left to right):<br />
Jeremy Brett's frock coat, Holmes costume worn by Captain Kangaroo, and<br />
a shirt worn by Sir Hugo Baskerville  in 1939's <i>Hound of the Baskervilles.</i></td></tr>
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The first speaker of the day was Bonnie MacBird, former
Development Executive from Universal and the original screenwriter of the film <i>Tron</i> (among other high-profile projects).
Bonnie explained how the screenwriting of the BBC <i>Sherlock</i> series is what makes it unique, special, and uniquely
canonical. She said specifically that the series maintained the essential
character of Holmes from the canon, that it made the relationship important between
Holmes and Watson, that “creed” or a “code of honor” was important to the
series (as it was in the canon) and that it thrilled us with “the ride,” or
entertained us as the original canon does. The series, she said, was also
written for the actors and for the collaborators (i.e. special effects), making
its transition to film a seamless one. Her only disagreement with the writing
on the series was the end of the last episode of season three, in which (SPOILER)
Holmes kills Magnusson, as it seemed to go away from the “code of honor”
introduced in earlier episodes.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bonnie MacBird</td></tr>
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The second speaker of the day, Kristina Manente, host of the
podcast<a href="http://bakerstreetbabes.com/" target="_blank"> <i>The Baker Street Babes</i></a>, discussed “How Fandom Plays the Game.” In her presentation, Kristina explained to “classic Sherlockains” how the new wave of Holmes fans, who primarily follow the BBC <i>Sherlock</i> series, convey their enthusiasm for
the characters. The “grand game” as played in this universe of fandom is
expressed primarily through social media: tumblr, Livejournal, and Ao3. She
explained new terms such as “headcanon,” “meta,” and “fancasting.” It became clear
that the new wave of Sherlockian fandom runs in tandem, and in some ways
tangentially, to the traditional activities of classic Holmes enthusiasts.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kristina Manente</td></tr>
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Prominent Sherlockian writer, editor, and playwright David
Stuart Davies then made us laugh with his talk on the comic
moments of Sherlock Holmes in the canon, on stage, film, and TV. He
discussed the silliness of the “untold tales,” how Gillette included humor in
his original play, Holmes’ creative put downs of Watson, his insults of
Lestrade, and how BBC’s <i>Sherlock</i> in “The
Empty Hearse” was using what was already implied in the canon itself. His
unique selection of clips kept us rolling with mirth.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">David Stuart Davies</td></tr>
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Fellow Brit Bert Coules, radio dramatist for the BBC Radio <i>Sherlock Holmes</i> series (among other wonderful BBC adaptations), followed Davies with a talk on the history of Sherlock Holmes on radio in Britain. As  the writer of the only production to bring to life the entire canon, Bert first acknowledged the American contribution to Holmes on radio, then expounded on the many British adaptions of Holmes to radio throughout the 20th century. The highlight his presentation was video of a recording session with Clive Merrison and Michael Williams, demonstrating how physical the actors were in their performances, as well as how the sound effects team did their jobs.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bert Coules</td></tr>
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After a group viewing of Granada Television premiere episode
<i>A Scandal in Bohemia</i> directed by Paul
Annett, Steven Doyle interviewed Paul about the monumental series. After
revealing tidbits about how the opening sequence was thrust upon him (quite
happily, Paul added), the creation of the music, and how Jeremy Brett received
guidance on his interpretation of Holmes, Paul shared an unseen video of the
makeup screen test for Jeremy Brett and David Burke.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Paul Annett discusses the similarities of his directing choices to the Paget illustrations</td></tr>
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At the banquet that followed Paul’s talk, Steve Doyle and
Mark Gagen paid tribute to the late Michael Hoey, the son of Dennis Hoey
(Lestrade of the Rathbone films), who was slotted to speak at the event. Michael’s
book about his father’s screenplay. <i>The
Drury Lane Theatre Mystery,</i> was released posthumously at the conference.<br />
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Gillette to Brett IV then wound up with the 75<sup>th</sup>
Anniversary showing of <i>The Adventures of
Sherlock Holmes</i> (1939) which was enjoyed by all. Seeing this fabulous film
on the big screen with a crowd of fans was the ultimate ending of a truly
enjoyable weekend of Sherlockian media mania. Mucho kudos to the boys from Wessex Press, Steve Doyle and Mark Gagen, who made it all possible!<br />
<br />
<i>Photos courtesy of <a href="https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.729258210500479.1073741833.487420994684203&type=1" target="_blank">Wessex Press</a> (Facebook). </i><o:p></o:p></div>
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From Gillette to Brett IV — Sherlock Holmes in Media and "Meta"

The second in our series of recaps of #G2B4 This past weekend, September 12-14, 2014, I had the honor of joining a group of almost ...

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by Ann Margaret Lewis

From Gillette to Brett IV - Suspiring in Indianapolis

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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy4C2gDvVO2s0tKwA8wdk1oeKHhumJl_59DFvHO5grb5Y-0dpiRNDzFN7KtAEMdaL2WRbDJuapDGHxC4N9_a4w4WxEh_c9PND_J2FqWqycJ44dblXIinFPCwVQ5kNXlCYndYTQVDPudbe0/s1600/G2B4header.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="235" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy4C2gDvVO2s0tKwA8wdk1oeKHhumJl_59DFvHO5grb5Y-0dpiRNDzFN7KtAEMdaL2WRbDJuapDGHxC4N9_a4w4WxEh_c9PND_J2FqWqycJ44dblXIinFPCwVQ5kNXlCYndYTQVDPudbe0/s1600/G2B4header.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<b><i>The first in our <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/search/label/%23G2B4" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">series of recaps</a> of #G2B4</i></b><br />
<br />
How many events would one be obliged to attend should he want to examine famous first editions of Shakespeare and Poe; dine with the Baker Street Babes; and experience the dash and panache of Basil Rathbone on the big screen? And what if he also wanted to handle an 1887 edition <i>Beeton's Christmas Annual</i>; behold the original manuscript of "The Red Circle"; and cast a misty eye over the very letter that Dr. Watson found at the head of the Reichenbach Falls?<br />
<br />
Shall we throw moderation to the winds, and add to his list the desire to size up Jeremy Brett's frock coat; to meet Brett's first Sherlockian director; and to look behind the scenes of the faithfully adapted BBC audio Sherlock Holmes, with the adapter himself as guide? But above all must come that most canonical of objectives: the renewing of old friendships and the making of new ones. How many events would one have to attend to accomplish all these objectives? Unlikely though it may seem, the answer is one, provided that the one in question was <a href="http://wessexpress.com/html/g2b4main.html" target="_blank">From Gillette to Brett IV: Basil, Benedict, and Beyond</a>, hosted by the <a href="http://wessexpress.com/" target="_blank">Wessex Press</a>.<br />
<br />
Held on the handsome campus of Indiana University at Bloomington, the conference began on Friday, September 12, in the Lilly Library, with an exhibition of treasures from the Lilly's rare book, manuscript, and special collections library, hosted by Joel Silver. Conference attendees received an up-close look at some of the most rare and valuable books in the world, including <i>First Folio of 1623</i>, <i>Tamerlane and Other Poems</i>, and many more, filled with lovely and underused English words like "suspire." Suspire, a verb meaning "to sigh" and "to yearn deeply for," describes both a sound and an emotion. It is what happened when Mr. Silver unveiled a pristine copy of <i>Beeton's Christmas Annual</i> for 1887 in a room full of Sherlockians – everyone suspired. Further wonders of the Lilly Library, from Basil Rathbone screenplays to George Washington letters, just kept on coming, but attendees eventually had to move on, as their agenda was positively filled with delights.<br />
<br />
Following a meet-and-greet reception in the Indiana Memorial Union, the locale shifted to IU Cinema, a jewel of a film theater sporting vintage flair and contemporary technology. Here a combined audience of conference attendees and local film buffs wrapped up the evening with the 75th anniversary screening of <i>The Hound of the Baskervilles</i> (1939), starring Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce. The classic film was well-received as ever, with Rathbone receiving strong support from Chief, in the title role.<br />
<br />
On Saturday morning, the vendor space was in full swing by 8:00 a.m., and for the next two hours buying and selling ran simultaneously with film screenings next door, first of "The Adventure of the Speckled Band," starring the superb <a href="http://amzn.to/YR0iNI" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Douglas Wilmer as Sherlock Holmes</a>, then of <i><a href="http://amzn.to/1wBUwNG" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Man with the Twisted Lip</a></i>, with Eille Norwood as the great detective.<br />
<br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003NF97NA/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B003NF97NA&linkCode=as2&tag=thebakerstree-20&linkId=N2ZXU3KZK4WUZ4IO"><img border="0" src="http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=B003NF97NA&Format=_SL160_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=thebakerstree-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B003NF97NA" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
     <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00L9IJ4HC/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B00L9IJ4HC&linkCode=as2&tag=thebakerstree-20&linkId=FNNCWMNDHQXVRJPS"><img border="0" src="http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=B00L9IJ4HC&Format=_SL160_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=thebakerstree-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B00L9IJ4HC" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />

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<br />
At 10:00 a.m. the conference lectures began, after introductory remarks by Steven Doyle and Mark Gagen of the Wessex Press. The first lecture session was author Bonnie MacBird's insightful discussion of screenwriting in the BBC series <i>Sherlock</i>, a presentation that made artful connections between Benedict Cumberbatch's portrayal of the character Sherlock Holmes and the archetype of the Byronic hero and its namesake, Lord Byron. MacBird's presentation was a skillful reiteration of the importance of the written word to the success of any drama, even one as visually driven as <i>Sherlock</i>.<br />
<br />
MacBird was followed by podcaster and Wessex Press author Kristina Manente of <a href="http://bakerstreetbabes.com/" target="_blank">The Baker Street Babes</a>, whose presentation, "How Fandom Plays the Game," offered an introduction to the enormous fan following of the BBC's <i>Sherlock</i>, a program whose record-breaking popularity has led many to discover the Canon for the first time. This fan base – often young, Internet-savvy, and passionate – is a group for whom Manente is uniquely qualified to speak (her Baker Street Babes podcast has over 40,000 followers on Twitter alone), and she expertly defined such phenomena as "headcanon" and "fancasting." Such explication is crucial for those who may be unfamiliar with the terms, though quite familiar with the practices, since most Sherlockians have probably engaged in a bit of mental fancasting. (In one interview, Leslie S. Klinger was asked who he would like to see as Holmes and Watson in a film; he speedily replied with Daniel Day-Lewis as Holmes and Kenneth Branagh as Watson, a brilliant bit of fancasting if ever there was one.) Manente's lecture, elevated by her infectious enthusiasm, did much to reveal that, call them what names they will, Sherlockians of all ages tend to play – and love – many of the same games.<br />
<br />
During the session break, the excellent television production <i><a href="http://amzn.to/XzSYF1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Man Who Disappeared</a></i> (1951), with John Longden as Holmes, was scheduled to receive a rare public screening, after which lectures resumed with the scintillating David Stuart Davies and his reflections on humor in the Canon. This session, a perfect mating of speaker and subject, was a crowd favorite, and Mr. Davies' insights, witticisms, sound effects, and general savoir faire were such that attendees seemed inclined even to forgive his use of an excerpt of Matt Frewer as Sherlock Holmes. (In all candor, the clip was a humorous one, though for reasons other than the filmmakers intended; nevertheless, it served the purpose of the discussion. Advantage: Davies.) In the present high-tide of Sherlockian interest and adaptation, it was well-befitting for someone to remind us that endless portrayals of Sherlock Holmes as Tortured Soul, Man Without a Heart, or Humorless Social Misfit are at best only telling part of the story, and Davies' refresher on the Canon's many comic delights was just the ticket.<br />
<br />
--<br />
<br />

From Gillette to Brett IV - Suspiring in Indianapolis

The first in our series of recaps of #G2B4 How many events would one be obliged to attend should he want to examine famous first editi...

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by Tim Greer

The Great Lost Sherlock Holmes Movie

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<h4 style="text-align: center;">
"this is treasure-trove indeed!" [BLUE]</h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzeFwxSq9nCUMlCEeQCLvOcK2-4yZPXXvvPfcrF4gunvW4C-ltMiWELIiPSo66mmptpnaiTzQWJ6x2UgBRqXgOxbg2yZ1IRgJfUyPvk8K3C-ytURHcxMgZymLL3pcpP-FJygE_xSxOEnnw/s1600/james_bragington.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="James Bragington was not an actor, and played only one role in his life: Sherlock Holmes in A Study in Scarlet (1914)" border="0" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzeFwxSq9nCUMlCEeQCLvOcK2-4yZPXXvvPfcrF4gunvW4C-ltMiWELIiPSo66mmptpnaiTzQWJ6x2UgBRqXgOxbg2yZ1IRgJfUyPvk8K3C-ytURHcxMgZymLL3pcpP-FJygE_xSxOEnnw/s1600/james_bragington.jpg" title="James Bragington as Sherlock Holmes in A Study in Scarlet" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
It sounds like a great contemporary, unwritten Sherlock Holmes tale - the <a href="http://bfi.org.uk/">British Film Institute</a> and the <a href="http://museumoflondon.org.uk/">Museum of London</a> putting out a call for help in finding a Sherlock Holmes lost for almost a century.<br />
<br />
But the effort is really happening, and Sherlockians have a role to play in solving this case.<br />
<br />
Originally made in 1914, <b><a href="http://old.bfi.org.uk/nationalarchive/news/mostwanted/study-in-scarlet.html"><i>A Study in Scarlet</i></a></b>, was directed by George Pearson for the Samuelson Company. As the first British film adaptation of a Holmes novel, the film was shot in a variety of locations reflecting the novel, including Worton Hall studios (for interiors), <a href="http://www.cheddargorge.co.uk/" target="_blank">Cheddar Gorge</a> in Somerset, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southport" target="_blank">Southport Sands</a> in Merseyside (which provided an excellent stand-in for the opening sequences of Mormons crossing Utah). Even though James Bragington was not an actor (but worked for the Samuelson Company), he managed to portray Holmes "excellently", according to Pearson's autobiography.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLvImad8r-40MacmgTw4K06HFKgoybjSirce1TABHlXenfcCyo6U8j1pQHa9ndJ-iQ29j7bLsFUxB1d-b-H9pk1OkSkh0CU0RXufzlsBCwFrPrTMyXwrCdd2hoKgtA3IyY2xpW4BUo37Ks/s1600/Sherlock+Holmes+exhibition+poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="The first Sherlock Holmes exhibition in England in more than 60 years." border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLvImad8r-40MacmgTw4K06HFKgoybjSirce1TABHlXenfcCyo6U8j1pQHa9ndJ-iQ29j7bLsFUxB1d-b-H9pk1OkSkh0CU0RXufzlsBCwFrPrTMyXwrCdd2hoKgtA3IyY2xpW4BUo37Ks/s1600/Sherlock+Holmes+exhibition+poster.jpg" title="The Museum of London's Sherlock Holmex Exhibition" width="226" /></a></div>
As the Museum of London prepares for <a href="http://www.museumoflondon.org.uk/london-wall/whats-on/exhibitions-displays/sherlock-holmes/" target="_blank">the largest temporary exhibition on Holmes</a> in over 60 years, locating a copy of Pearson's film (<a href="http://blog.museumoflondon.org.uk/case-missing-sherlock-holmes-film/" target="_blank">presumed lost due to war efforts</a>) is not just a feather in a Sherlockian's cap, but represents a great victory for Holmesian scholars. The 1914 <b><i>A Study in Scarlet</i> </b>is a capstone and a reminder about the flexibility and endurability of the Great Detective. Even with Holmes' predominance in popular culture, there is something uniquely thrilling about watching a cinematic narrative about Holmes and Watson. As the <b><i>Kinematograph Monthly Film Record</i></b> said in their November 1914 review of <i>A Study in Scarlet</i>:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
It is a truism to say that Sherlock Holmes is always welcome on the screen. The few film adaptations to be seen of Conan Doyle’s great series are, we believe, immensely popular with all classes of people, and there are certainly a great number yet of those famous detective adventures which might be turned into pictures with advantage. Personally we do not think that either the “legitimate” drama or the picture drama can recapture for us the first fine careless rapture we felt when we came upon these stories in their original version. But we are firmly of opinion that in visualising what is, at its finest, a purely literary pleasure, viz., a high-class detective yarn, the screen has hitherto proved itself a superior medium to the stage."</blockquote>
Bryony Dixon, curator, Silent Film, at the BFI National Archive said:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Every archivist dreams of finding lost films. But this is a film of great importance. Sherlock Holmes is internationally renowned as a great detective. It would be wonderfully appropriate if a super-sleuth could help us celebrate the centenary of this film with a chance to see it."</blockquote>
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If you have any knowledge about where a copy might be located, or can provide some insight into where to look, please e-mail <a href="https://www.blogger.com/Sherlock.holmes@bfi.org.uk">Sherlock.holmes@bfi.org.uk</a>
or spread the word via Twitter and Facebook by using the hashtag <i>#FindSherlock.  </i><br />
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<i>--</i><br />
<i><br /></i>

The Great Lost Sherlock Holmes Movie

"this is treasure-trove indeed!" [BLUE] It sounds like a great contemporary, unwritten Sherlock Holmes tale - the British F...

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by Gordon D

Sherlockian ALS #IceBucketChallenge

<h4 style="text-align: center;">
"the ice-cold reasoning of Holmes" [WIST]</h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJiC966qc22wCPiJ19D-ZLJjFPjZaf7koY-6GVcRnGUmTYCkKLlsXddpIuy38C8tScDz87vpoE-BSR8uNNGLtduY4bwJVhfpIePZsXfYh0AEhov_2sF3kE6M6E_UJOhaCE6yU-Q-CUOh3E/s1600/Sherlockian+ALS+Ice+Bucket+Challenge.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Tim Greer with a unique approach to the #IceBucketChallege" border="0" height="350" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJiC966qc22wCPiJ19D-ZLJjFPjZaf7koY-6GVcRnGUmTYCkKLlsXddpIuy38C8tScDz87vpoE-BSR8uNNGLtduY4bwJVhfpIePZsXfYh0AEhov_2sF3kE6M6E_UJOhaCE6yU-Q-CUOh3E/s1600/Sherlockian+ALS+Ice+Bucket+Challenge.PNG" title="A Sherlockian's take on the ALS #IceBucketChallenge" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
By now you should be familiar with the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. If not, please come out from under your rock so someone can douse you with a bucket of ice water.<br />
<br />
We (that is our executive editor, Scott) were challenged and produced <a href="http://youtu.be/BhrA3PBVf9c" target="_blank">a rather unusual response</a> a couple of weeks ago. So unusual that it prompted <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ty6-Ug1wk-0" target="_blank">a me-too video from none other than Sir Patrick Stewart</a>.<br />
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In the meantime we've seen other Sherlockians such as Baker Street Babes <a href="https://www.facebook.com/lyndsay.faye/posts/10152414598553073" target="_blank">Lyndsay</a>, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_6w0S332mCw&feature=youtu.be" target="_blank">Kristina</a>, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/ashley.polasek.1?fref=ts" target="_blank">Ashley</a> and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10101653795767151" target="_blank">Heather</a> (among others) have stepped up to take the challenge.<br />
<br />
Now here's where it gets interesting. Heather nominated one of our correspondents, <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/search/label/Tim%20Greer#.U_zyxfldWAU" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Tim Greer</a>. And here's Tim's cool response as he channels Sherlock Holmes:<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="338" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/piAnM0owxv8" width="600"></iframe></center>
<br />
So there you have it! We hope we'll be lucky enough to see 13 participants at <a href="http://wessexpress.com/html/g2b4main.html" target="_blank">From Gillette to Brett IV</a> (click for more information) band together for a group dousing. Perhaps the hotel pool can accommodate the Baker's (Street) dozen that's required. Pack your swimsuits!<br />
<br />
--<br />
<br />

Sherlockian ALS #IceBucketChallenge

"the ice-cold reasoning of Holmes" [WIST] By now you should be familiar with the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. If not, please com...

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by Scott Monty

Sherlock Takes Home 7 Emmys

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"It is to him that this trophy belongs." [BLUE]</h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiMpRlgtZNXiP945MvHseWxW5LzjZI2p3ss6VKtusm5gyHPkKmLZTU8y2O0_70f1sjLLlOVnj1D5qaTHwLmbirZDXQawSO8Cbw-KzrtQgKPSrlQnNWmX9EaTS2SeNwSsAyCEovXcH4Y-4X/s1600/Emmy+Cumberbatch+Moffat+Freeman.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Emmy winners all: Cumberbatch, Moffat and Freeman for Sherlock" border="0" height="330" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiMpRlgtZNXiP945MvHseWxW5LzjZI2p3ss6VKtusm5gyHPkKmLZTU8y2O0_70f1sjLLlOVnj1D5qaTHwLmbirZDXQawSO8Cbw-KzrtQgKPSrlQnNWmX9EaTS2SeNwSsAyCEovXcH4Y-4X/s1600/Emmy+Cumberbatch+Moffat+Freeman.png" title="Benedict Cumberbatch, Steven Moffat and Martin Freeman from Sherlock" width="640" /></a></div>
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<br />
In its third series, the BBC / PBS drama <i>Sherlock</i> has won seven Emmy Awards. Actors Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman as well as writer and co-creator Steven Moffat each picked up an award during <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/66th_Primetime_Emmy_Awards" target="_blank">the 66th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards</a> that aired on NBC on August 25.<br />
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Each of the two seasons had received Emmy nominations: Series 1 netted four nominations in 2011 and Series 2 brought in 13 nominations in 2012. This year Series 3 was nominated in 12 categories. But this was the year that nominations turned into wins for the show.<br />
<br />
Benedict Cumberbatch won for Outstanding Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie and Martin Freeman won for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or Movie. Freeman had been nominated in the same category in 2012 and received a BAFTA for Best Supporting Actor in 2011. Cumberbatch won a Critics Choice Award in 2012 for Best Movie/Miniseries Actor and had been nominated for an Emmy in 2012. Interestingly, he was up against Freeman in this category this year.<br />
<br />
This also marked Steven Moffat's first Emmy win for Outstanding Writing for a Miniseries, Movie or Dramatic Special, an award he received for the <i>Sherlock</i> episode "His Last Vow." In his speech, he called out Mark Gatiss, whom he said deserved to be up there with him, as Sherlock was just as much a product of his work as it was Moffat's.<br />
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Here is a playlist of <a href="http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL6m8pknf2xi_w_S3N7Zq2sr-vglTU_Hzv" target="_blank">the three nominations and/or speeches</a>.<br />
<br />
The awards not televised last night were part of a separate ceremony, the <b>66th Annual Creative Arts Emmy Awards</b>, held last weekend. That event brought home an additional four Emmy Awards for <i>Sherlock</i>: Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Miniseries or a Movie, Outstanding Sound Editing for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special, Outstanding Cinematography for a Miniseries or a Movie, and Outstanding Music Composition for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special (Original Dramatic Score). <br />
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The full array of nominations and wins can be seen below:<br />
<table class="wikitable" style="background-color: #f9f9f9; border-collapse: collapse; border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.399999618530273px; margin: 1em 0px;"><tbody>
<tr><td rowspan="5" style="border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em;">2014</td><td rowspan="5" style="border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/66th_Primetime_Emmy_Awards" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none;" title="66th Primetime Emmy Awards">66th Primetime Emmy Awards</a></td><td style="border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Primetime_Emmy_Award_for_Outstanding_Television_Movie" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none;" title="Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Television Movie">Outstanding Television Movie</a></td><td style="border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em;">"His Last Vow"</td><td class="no table-no2" style="background: rgb(255, 221, 221); border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle;">Nominated</td></tr>
<tr><td style="border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Primetime_Emmy_Award_for_Outstanding_Lead_Actor_in_a_Miniseries_or_a_Movie" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none;" title="Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie">Outstanding Lead Actor In A Miniseries Or A Movie</a></td><td style="border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benedict_Cumberbatch" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none;" title="Benedict Cumberbatch">Benedict Cumberbatch</a></td><td class="yes table-yes2" style="background: rgb(153, 255, 153); border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle;">Won</td></tr>
<tr><td style="border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Primetime_Emmy_Award_for_Outstanding_Supporting_Actor_in_a_Miniseries_or_a_Movie" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none;" title="Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie">Outstanding Supporting Actor In A Miniseries Or A Movie</a></td><td style="border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Freeman" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none;" title="Martin Freeman">Martin Freeman</a></td><td class="yes table-yes2" style="background: rgb(153, 255, 153); border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle;">Won</td></tr>
<tr><td style="border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Primetime_Emmy_Award_for_Outstanding_Directing_for_a_Miniseries,_Movie_or_a_Dramatic_Special" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none;" title="Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Miniseries, Movie or a Dramatic Special">Outstanding Directing For A Miniseries, Movie Or A Dramatic Special</a></td><td rowspan="2" style="border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em;">"His Last Vow"</td><td class="no table-no2" style="background: rgb(255, 221, 221); border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle;">Nominated</td></tr>
<tr><td style="border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Primetime_Emmy_Award_for_Outstanding_Writing_for_a_Miniseries,_Movie_or_a_Dramatic_Special" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none;" title="Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Miniseries, Movie or a Dramatic Special">Outstanding Writing for a Miniseries, Movie or a Dramatic Special</a></td><td class="yes table-yes2" style="background: rgb(153, 255, 153); border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle;">Won</td></tr>
<tr><td rowspan="7" style="border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em;">2014</td><td rowspan="7" style="border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em;">66th Creative Arts Emmy Awards</td><td style="border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em;">Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Miniseries or a Movie</td><td rowspan="7" style="border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em;">"His Last Vow"</td><td class="yes table-yes2" style="background: rgb(153, 255, 153); border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle;">Won</td></tr>
<tr><td style="border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em;">Outstanding Sound Editing for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special</td><td class="yes table-yes2" style="background: rgb(153, 255, 153); border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle;">Won</td></tr>
<tr><td style="border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em;">Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Miniseries or a Movie</td><td class="no table-no2" style="background: rgb(255, 221, 221); border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle;">Nominated</td></tr>
<tr><td style="border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em;">Outstanding Costumes for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special</td><td class="no table-no2" style="background: rgb(255, 221, 221); border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle;">Nominated</td></tr>
<tr><td style="border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em;">Outstanding Casting for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special</td><td class="no table-no2" style="background: rgb(255, 221, 221); border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle;">Nominated</td></tr>
<tr><td style="border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em;">Outstanding Cinematography for a Miniseries or a Movie</td><td class="yes table-yes2" style="background: rgb(153, 255, 153); border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle;">Won</td></tr>
<tr><td style="border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em;">Outstanding Music Composition for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special (Original Dramatic Score)</td><td class="yes table-yes2" style="background: rgb(153, 255, 153); border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 0.2em; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle;">Won</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<br />
<i>Image credit: Wikimedia and <a href="https://flic.kr/p/fgmgVp" target="_blank">Gage Skidmore (Flickr)</a></i><br />
--<br />
<br />

Sherlock Takes Home 7 Emmys

"It is to him that this trophy belongs." [BLUE] In its third series, the BBC / PBS drama Sherlock has won seven Emmy Awards...

+ Read more »

by Scott Monty

Episode 67: The Sherlock Holmes Collections

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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO-3D3-QMMJkpMb3JbA9U-xelP3i3ked-jn7p_eep2l9n6HUQSLyRB89lWMJr8euGPVYQgN1pK4W_xq2JGExsXQuUIc1L_kPkNfJYpqAHVx6o1PPMqOiYOBfR_OvJVRBZEEq2wex8cshls/s1600/Episode+67-Tim+Johnson.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Raggedy Sherlock & Watson with Tim Johnson of the Sherlock Holmes Collections" border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO-3D3-QMMJkpMb3JbA9U-xelP3i3ked-jn7p_eep2l9n6HUQSLyRB89lWMJr8euGPVYQgN1pK4W_xq2JGExsXQuUIc1L_kPkNfJYpqAHVx6o1PPMqOiYOBfR_OvJVRBZEEq2wex8cshls/s1600/Episode+67-Tim+Johnson.jpg" title="Tim Johnson, Curator of Special Collections and Rare Books & E. W. McDiarmid Curator of the Sherlock Holmes Collections at the University of Minnesota Libraries" width="640" /></a></div>
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Well, we've done it. We've finally produced a mega-episode. And what better topic to go all epic on you than the outsized <a href="https://www.lib.umn.edu/scrbm/holmes" target="_blank">Sherlock Holmes Collections</a> at the University of Minnesota Libraries? Our guest this episode is Tim Johnson, Curator of Special Collections and Rare Books and E. W. McDiarmid Curator of the Sherlock Holmes Collections at the University of Minnesota Libraries.<br />
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Tim gives us a nice history of the <a href="http://www.norwegianexplorers.org/" target="_blank">Norwegian Explorers of Minnesota</a> and the beginnings of the Sherlock Holmes Collections at the university, which was made possible through a number of personal relationships. It includes the additions from the collections of James Iraldi, Philip Hench, Edith Meiser, John Bennett Shaw and Allen Mackler that have contributed to the basis of the vast and varied items that number more than 60,000.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh08rPtJDH0DytPsdB_GzE8LVc9Q7OGLXgfqU0_1Tw4KnthqixCzNTd7LUVlkS_8Jr4dd5tuEgMwgZcHIbJ8Sja1eZuxI5gUsZs-BamZYarO5D4tLmHHuM5lu_0DIOLisWOBEvSDWlswcxH/s1600/John+Bennett+Shaw.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="The giant Sherlockian, John Bennett Shaw" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh08rPtJDH0DytPsdB_GzE8LVc9Q7OGLXgfqU0_1Tw4KnthqixCzNTd7LUVlkS_8Jr4dd5tuEgMwgZcHIbJ8Sja1eZuxI5gUsZs-BamZYarO5D4tLmHHuM5lu_0DIOLisWOBEvSDWlswcxH/s1600/John+Bennett+Shaw.jpg" title="John Bennett Shaw" width="220" /></a>We discuss much about the collections, including the challenge for a curator of books / librarian when it comes to looking after objects that go far beyond the printed page, as well as the changing nature of donor relations with respect to special collections.<br />
<br />
But we would have been remiss if we didn't spend time on John Bennett Shaw, BSI ("The Hans Sloane of My Age"), who was affectionately known as The Grand Acquisitor and who had all of the collecting discernment of a vacuum cleaner.<br />
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Tim opines on what's next for collectors and the Collections alike, and gives us a hint as to what to expect as far out as 2016. If you're a researcher or just a curious Sherlockian, there is much available to you, either on a visit to the library or to their site online.<br />
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Scott shares a tale of collecting woe - a long sought-after treasure disappears in the blink of an eye. What's a collector to do?<br />
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We head way back to an early edition of the <i>Baker Street Journal</i> - 1946, to be exact - to find our inspiration in "<i>De Jure Inter Gentes</i>" (Vol. 1, No. 3).<br />
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<h4>
Links:</h4>
<ul>
<li><u><a href="http://youtu.be/BhrA3PBVf9c" target="_blank">Scott's ice bucket challenge</a></u></li>
<li>The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2014/08/7th-circuit-orders-conan-doyle-estate.html" target="_blank">orders legal fees paid in #FreeSherlock case</a></li>
<li><a href="http://blog.museumoflondon.org.uk/case-missing-sherlock-holmes-film/" target="_blank">The case of the missing Sherlock Holmes film</a></li>
<li>Christies and the Museum of London team up to produce <a href="http://www.licensing.biz/news/read/museum-of-london-to-launch-sherlock-holmes-inspired-tweed/040600" target="_blank">a Sherlock Holmes tweed</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/michael-a-hoey-dead-producer-726417" target="_blank">Michael Hoey has passed away</a> at 79. Hear our interview with him on <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2011/10/episode-36-michael-hoey-and-fabulous.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Episode 36</a>.</li>
<li><a href="https://www.lib.umn.edu/scrbm/holmes" target="_blank">The Sherlock Holmes Collections</a> at the University of Minnesota Libraries</li>
<li><a href="http://umedia.lib.umn.edu/dasearch/%2522john%2520bennett%2520shaw%2522%2520talks?mode=basic" target="_blank">The John Bennett Shaw Talks</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.lib.umn.edu/pdf/holmes/Shaw100.pdf" target="_blank">The Shaw 100 - the Basic Holmesian Library</a></li>
<li>Tim's blog: <a href="http://umbookworm.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Special and Rare on a Stick</a></li>
<li>On Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/UMBookworm" target="_blank">@UMBookworm</a> (Tim), <a href="https://twitter.com/NEofMN" target="_blank">@NEofMN</a> (Norwegian Explorers)</li>
<li>On Facebook: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/572794092812100/" target="_blank">The Norwegian Explorers of Minnesota</a></li>
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More links available on <a href="https://plus.google.com/communities/114565123495685504221">The Sherlock Holmes Community</a> on Google+, as well as through our accounts on <a href="http://facebook.com/ihearofsherlock">Facebook</a>, <a href="http://twitter.com/ihearofsherlock">Twitter</a> and <a href="http://ihearofsherlock.tumblr.com/">Tumblr</a>. And of course, our <a href="http://flip.it/oxPOZ">web- and app-based Flipboard magazine</a> and our <a href="http://www.scoop.it/t/sherlock-holmes" target="_blank">Scoop.it page</a> are nice collections of links, articles and images.<br />
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--

Episode 67: The Sherlock Holmes Collections

Well, we've done it. We've finally produced a mega-episode. And what better topic to go all epic on you than the o...

+ Read more »

by Scott Monty

Langham Hotel Incorrectly Claims to Be Sherlock Holmes' Birthplace

<h4 style="text-align: center;">
"the Langham called for news" [LADY]</h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpxe57KxuQqId4nyrYbV8l1iHuTfMiSvzDijJ4tA_S3Tzr99bJOd80ZIUxZod165wwcUfiRQ3NkkjyHH0nl9r2RueEfOV0780es_xaokAuLF58Vh5i4ml4b9iSRRUxeqdvtWofLk7hVbVt/s1600/Langham+Hotel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="The "birthplace" of Sherlock Holmes?" border="0" height="472" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpxe57KxuQqId4nyrYbV8l1iHuTfMiSvzDijJ4tA_S3Tzr99bJOd80ZIUxZod165wwcUfiRQ3NkkjyHH0nl9r2RueEfOV0780es_xaokAuLF58Vh5i4ml4b9iSRRUxeqdvtWofLk7hVbVt/s1600/Langham+Hotel.jpg" title="The Langham Hotel, London (courtesy of Langham Hotels)" width="640" /></a></div>
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The <a href="http://london.langhamhotels.co.uk/" target="_blank">Langham Hotel</a> in London is a legendary establishment - one that has been part of the London scene since 1865. The grand hotel was constantly the part of the literary, royal and celebrity scene since the day that the Prince of Wales performed the opening ceremony.<br />
<br />
But there's some controversy swirling around the hotel at present.<br />
<br />
Before we get to that, let's make sure we're all up to speed with the facts. Sherlockians are well aware of the famed hotel for at least two reasons:<br />
<ol>
<li>It was mentioned in no less than three Sherlock Holmes stories (Captain Morstan - Mary's father - was staying there in <i>The Sign of Four</i>; the King of Bohemia holed up there whilst in London in "A Scandal in Bohemia"; and the Hon. Philip Green gave the Langham as his London address in "The Disappearance of Lady Frances Carfax").</li>
<li>The Lippincott Dinner was held by J.M. Stoddart, editor of <i>Lippincott's Monthly</i>, on August 30, 1889 and it marked the first meeting between Arthur Conan Doyle and Oscar Wilde. The dinner eventually resulted in <i>The Sign of Four</i> and <i>The Picture of Dorian Gray</i>, both published in <i>Lippincott's</i>.</li>
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It is the latter point on which we wish to dwell.</div>
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<br /></div>
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In <a href="http://www.sherlock-holmes.org.uk/event_info.php?id=210" target="_blank">March 2010, in a joint event</a> between the management of the Langham, the Sherlock Holmes Society of London, the Oscar Wilde Society and the City of Westminster, the occasion was marked by the presentation of a Green Plaque:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTCQsY-aEvrL-KH2u6KojR387YylqcxZVP7XRHPeQ3G5b0RsqAk_g9x3u-mVLFnHgTDkqZqDeWPGq9U29FR7aOqWu6uZlkmyqfb_qF04oj9yOMzC9YbsjdxK3gA4xQy37kk93lALV_SLTm/s1600/Langham+Green+Plaque.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt=""You have been to the Lippincott's dinner, I perceive."" border="0" height="365" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTCQsY-aEvrL-KH2u6KojR387YylqcxZVP7XRHPeQ3G5b0RsqAk_g9x3u-mVLFnHgTDkqZqDeWPGq9U29FR7aOqWu6uZlkmyqfb_qF04oj9yOMzC9YbsjdxK3gA4xQy37kk93lALV_SLTm/s1600/Langham+Green+Plaque.jpg" title="Arthur Conan Doyle met Oscar Wilde at the Langham Hotel - Green Plaque" width="400" /></a></div>
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<div>
As we know, <i>The Sign of Four</i> was the second installment in what would become the canon of some 60 Sherlock Holmes stories - four novels and 56 short stories. It was written, as indicated above, after the commission from Lippincott's, and eventually made its complete appearance by October 1890.</div>
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<br /></div>
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And now that we've reached 2014, the Langham Hotel announced via its media centre an <a href="http://london.langhamhotels.co.uk/media/exclusive_sherlock_holmes_package.htm" target="_blank">Exclusive Sherlock Holmes Package</a> for Sherlock Holmes aficionados to mark the 125th anniversary of that fateful dinner between the editor and the two literary greats - a package that will be available in conjunction with the Museum of London's special exhibition <a href="http://www.museumoflondon.org.uk/london-wall/whats-on/exhibitions-displays/sherlock-holmes/" target="_blank">Sherlock Holmes, The Man Who Never Lived And Will Never Die</a>. But in doing so, the hotel overstated its role:</div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
This summer, The Langham celebrates its claim to be <b><i>the authentic birthplace of Sherlock Holmes</i></b> by marking a milestone 125th anniversary with a special package. [<i>Emphasis ours - ed.</i>]</blockquote>
<div>
"Now just a moment," we hear you saying, "that can't be. Sherlock Holmes first appeared in <i>A Study in Scarlet</i>, published in <i>Beeton's Christmas Annual</i> in 1887." And you would be correct.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Arthur Conan Doyle, a young and struggling doctor practicing in Southsea, Portsmouth and it was in 1886 on "March 8 that he started work on <i>A Study in Scarlet</i>" (Lycett, Andrew. <i><a href="https://amzn.to/2HAGruP" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Man Who Created Sherlock Holmes</a></i>, pp. 126) and took his inspiration from Dr. Joseph Bell for the character. The original observation and deduction by Holmes of Watson when they were introduced in that story was "an early display of the 'science of deduction' [that] set a pattern for every subsequent Sherlock Holmes story." (Stashower, Daniel. <i><a href="https://amzn.to/2MMyYx3" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Teller of Tales: The Life of Arthur Conan Doyle</a></i>, pp. 77)</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
It should be clear that if any locale has the honor of claiming to be birthplace of Sherlock Holmes it is No. 1 Bush Villas, Southsea - not the Langham Hotel. It is there that Doyle conceived of and created the character, as he waited for patients in his sitting room.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMnLYE21roRj8mtweO_CP84cofwcfgiv3-arBQuG8XRSm0W27a-sTeHKhUcTZ5DG51nUPpvJZhfSn6QV8CP-u54X4Zc_nfOBqW3924-wkD70I9_VjnrKHCmAKCNWprU7_ddIiu5xRPLRa7/s1600/Doyle+-+Southsea+plaque.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="The Southsea brown plaque commemorating Conan Doyle." border="0" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMnLYE21roRj8mtweO_CP84cofwcfgiv3-arBQuG8XRSm0W27a-sTeHKhUcTZ5DG51nUPpvJZhfSn6QV8CP-u54X4Zc_nfOBqW3924-wkD70I9_VjnrKHCmAKCNWprU7_ddIiu5xRPLRa7/s1600/Doyle+-+Southsea+plaque.jpg" title="Plaque commemorating Arthur Conan Doyle's relationship with Portsmouth" width="640" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
Perhaps you think we're being a little harsh in our judgment; after all, Lippincott's helped to serialize the stories. While that may be true, the <i>Strand Magazine</i> had far more to do with that beginning in 1891. Plus, we're a little taken aback at just how much credit Team Langham wants to claim with regard to the origins of Sherlock Holmes. Lest you be in any doubt, here's the second paragraph of their press announcement:</div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The Langham played an important part <b><i>in the creation of</i></b> Conan Doyle’s most famous character. A regular visitor to The Langham in the 1880’s, Conan Doyle selected The Langham as the venue for a meeting that was pivotal in the development of Sherlock Holmes 125 years ago. On 30 August 1889, a dinner was held at The Langham between Arthur Conan Doyle, Oscar Wilde and Joseph Marshall Stoddart, Managing Editor of <i>Lippincott’s Magazine</i>, a monthly title publishing original fiction. Conan Doyle described this meeting as ‘a golden evening for me’, adding that ‘The result of the evening was that both Wilde and I promised to write books for “Lippincott’s Magazine” – Wilde’s contribution was “The Picture of Dorian Gray”, while I wrote “The Sign of Four”, in which Holmes made his second appearance.’ And so the famous series of Sherlock Holmes mysteries <b><i>was born</i></b>. [<i>Emphasis ours</i>]</blockquote>
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In fact, we even took to Twitter to tell <a href="http://twitter.com/Langham_Hotel" target="_blank">@Langham_Hotel</a> that they had the facts wrong:</div>
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<a href="https://twitter.com/Langham_London">@Langham_London</a> We're aware of the meeting that led to SIGN, but to call it the birthplace of Holmes is completely incorrect.<br />
— I Hear of Sherlock (@IHearofSherlock) <a href="https://twitter.com/IHearofSherlock/statuses/502456497771913216">August 21, 2014</a></blockquote>
<script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></center>
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While the <a href="http://london.langhamhotels.co.uk/rooms/sherlock_holmes_package.htm" target="_blank">Sherlock Holmes Package</a> at the Langham looks delightful - a Grand Room, English breakfast and two tickets to the Exhibition; avid fans can upgrade to the Arthur Conan Doyle suite in the hotel's famed cupola tower with "a separate sitting room, a writer’s corner and features books, DVDs and eclectic memorabilia from the legendary sleuth" - we have yet to hear back from the hotel's press team or to see a correction on their media centre. </div>
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If you would like to learn more <u>facts</u> about the life of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, a great place to start is <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2007/11/episode-13-arthur-conan-doyle-life-in.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Episode 13 of our podcast</a>, in which we interviewed Jon Lellenberg and Daniel Stashower, editors of Arthur Conan Doyle: A Life in Letters.<br />
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Langham Hotel Incorrectly Claims to Be Sherlock Holmes' Birthplace

"the Langham called for news" [LADY] The Langham Hotel in London is a legendary establishment - one that has been part of th...

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by Scott Monty

About the Sherlock / Doctor Who Crossover

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"there lives a young doctor who" [RETI] </h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwRX23yds6pIjI4snmRKYSIPjLVJ5dfbbAgU8E99snQCIchOMBxosmQsMw9q0Q4YwdaK7Eo9oIxVsyLrlewBiWpDCH7aYmLw9-RhQvDRXHB1FcO5mTf_BHf-s6dNygKeZP1RlhuoqFvOCL/s1600/Cumberbatch+Moffatt+Smith.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Dr. Whodunnit?" border="0" height="420" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwRX23yds6pIjI4snmRKYSIPjLVJ5dfbbAgU8E99snQCIchOMBxosmQsMw9q0Q4YwdaK7Eo9oIxVsyLrlewBiWpDCH7aYmLw9-RhQvDRXHB1FcO5mTf_BHf-s6dNygKeZP1RlhuoqFvOCL/s1600/Cumberbatch+Moffatt+Smith.jpg" title="Benedict Cumberbatch, Steven Moffat and Matt Smith at the BAFTAs" width="640" /></a></div>
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Fans of the Steven Moffat/Mark Gatiss produced shows <i>Sherlock </i>and <i>Doctor Who</i> have long wanted the modern-day Holmes and the Time Lord to meet. Aside from the usual fanfic, there have been some fairly brilliant fan-created videos, from the melding of <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3bGYljQ5Uw" target="_blank">Sherlock and eleventh Doctor Matt Smith</a> episodes into a coherent story to <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JoSDbku7Cio" target="_blank">Wholock—The Musical</a>. Even Moffat is not immune to the crossover siren call. At a <a href="http://www.flickeringmyth.com/2014/08/steven-moffat-wants-doctor-whosherlock-crossover-happen.html" target="_blank">question and answer session</a> after the premiere of the new season of <i>Doctor Who</i> at St. David's Hall, Cardiff, Wales in early August, the showrunner stated that if it were up to him the two would meet.<br />
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“Look I’m going to come clean on this: I would… Go speak to Benedict Cumberbatch, Martin Freeman, Mark Gatiss and Sue Vertue, OK? They’re all in the way. I’m not the killjoy, it’s that lot. It’s probably not going to happen.”</blockquote>
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<a href="http://cdn.screenrant.com/wp-content/uploads/Doctor-Who-Sherlock-Crossover-Show.jpg"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/proxy/AVvXsEgqNK7sb6aJLNYqZCtqUrEVMyb2QDTR1qdCvrvGglLtoItmPp9gLxCvEJe_-O87z2bx9A55Vs-yOCoFs_jyrejkupNgNBYn2s2yiNgmb54PYAH6tp9QA0UFeYSLzpdu9gEcAOf6qmOefTQpe99YcK5DwNUdYwCkew3aGInY5QX2pLCRQqcAVDnIB4R4LUa4L2_Evsc=" /></a></div>
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Moffat went on to say,<br />
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“You know in some ways, I think Mark [Gatiss] has got a point when he says that however good you imagine [the crossover], it would be almost better in your imagination than it would be if the two grand old egotists actually met. They’d just both go off in opposite corners and sulk that there was someone cleverer than them.”</blockquote>
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Aside from the continuity problem in which the 2012 <i>Doctor Who</i> Christmas special “The Snowmen” established that Sherlock Holmes was a fictional character created by Arthur Conan Doyle, the mixing of two such different universes presents unique difficulties.<br />
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There are fan bases for <i>Sherlock</i> who enjoy it as a smart mystery series and who are uninterested in science-fiction and may even have never heard of <i>Doctor Who</i>. The same is true for <i>Doctor Who</i> fans who aren't interested in mysteries or <i>Sherlock</i>.<br />
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Once establishing that Doctor Who’s reality coexists in Sherlock’s reality, does that mean when Benedict Cumberbatch comes upon a mysterious death or baffling crime, he now has to eliminate the possibility that the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dalek" target="_blank">Daleks</a> or <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cybermen" target="_blank">Cybermen</a> were somehow involved? Will he act as consultant for <a href="http://u.n.i.t./" target="_blank">U.N.I.T.</a>?<br />
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In a science-fiction universe where anything could happen, The Doctor running into Sherlock Holmes, whether in Victorian times or the modern day, does not seem so odd. But to have The Doctor appear in the real-world present-day London of John and Sherlock would reduce the pair to cartoon. “<i>But are we to give serious attention to such things? This Agency stands flat-footed upon the ground, and there it must remain. The world is big enough for us. No ghosts need apply</i>,” said Holmes in "The Adventure of the Sussex Vampire.” Nor time-traveling Doctors either, he could have added.<br />
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Doyle himself resisted crossovers. Of course, Holmes never met the Doyle-created contemporary Professor Challenger, hero of the science fiction novel <a href="http://amzn.to/1vZ8ium" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><i>The Lost World</i></a> and others. But there was another crossover where Doyle could have earned big money that he turned down flat.<br />
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Doyle brother-in-law and fellow author E.W. Hornung created the amateur cracksman (that is burglar and safecracker) A.J. Raffles and his friend Bunny Manders as a sort-of inverted Holmes and Watson. Raffles was a very popular short story series and there had been calls to have that amateur detective and gentleman thief meet. According to Andrew Lycett in <a href="http://amzn.to/1o3Ar9R" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><i>The Man Who Created Sherlock Holmes</i></a>, in 1913 American publisher of <i>Everybody’s Magazine</i>, Trumbull White <br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“had been lobbying Arthur [Conan Doyle] and Willie Hornung to write a new series that pitched Holmes against Raffles. To this end, he canvassed the support of both William Gillette and Kyrle Bellew, the American actors synonymous with these two characters on stage. On a previous visit to Windlesham [Doyle’s home] he had found Arthur very hospitable, but unenthusiastic about the idea for a series. Returning to England…he still hoped to bring Holmes and Raffles together, claiming he could guarantee Arthur $100,000 in revenues if this went ahead. Unmoved, Arthur sought to fob off on the American with something from the bottom drawer.”</blockquote>
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In pastiche Holmes has worked with or against Tarzan, Dracula, Dr. Jekyll, Fu Manchu, and many other fictional characters. And fun though it might be, that’s where Sherlock Holmes meeting Doctor Who should stay, in pastiche. Let's hope that cooler heads will continue to prevail at <a href="http://www.hartswoodfilms.co.uk/">Hartswood Films</a>. It's bad enough that Jim Moriarty is able to hijack every video screen in England (or was it just the Greater London area?) like some Whovian alien baddie, we don't need Ben and Martin to come face to face with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zygon">Zygons</a> as well.<br />
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The twelfth Doctor Peter Capaldi will premier in the new season of Doctor Who on BBC One on August 23.</div>
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Who knows? Perhaps the argument is still open for debate. And then we might all be treated to a Whodunnit...</div>
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About the Sherlock / Doctor Who Crossover

"there lives a young doctor who" [RETI] Fans of the Steven Moffat/Mark Gatiss produced shows Sherlock and Doctor Who have ...

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by James C. O'Leary

7th Circuit Orders Conan Doyle Estate To Pay Legal Fees, Give Up "Extortion"

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"your fees will be assured and you will be given a perfectly free hand" [ILLU]  </h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFx6ndmTPzu2yXhWAqxgXyOvNwvfLpWd0JjnkZ5PDKDlI01w_3v4Ym2yNCjhCG4fVN_EGPzUJDDbhOxguPAZsixJElLV__x4KJvBnUMfEcR_SmTKZ5iZbKSNOyGUfKKfPwSq3FT7vnrMw1/s1600/BERY.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img alt=""Your money or your life."" border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFx6ndmTPzu2yXhWAqxgXyOvNwvfLpWd0JjnkZ5PDKDlI01w_3v4Ym2yNCjhCG4fVN_EGPzUJDDbhOxguPAZsixJElLV__x4KJvBnUMfEcR_SmTKZ5iZbKSNOyGUfKKfPwSq3FT7vnrMw1/s1600/BERY.jpg" title="A scene from The Beryl Coronet" width="442" /></a></div>
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For those who have been following the <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/search/label/%23FreeSherlock#.U-BFFPldWSo" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">#FreeSherlock saga</a> (click for our previous coverage), you'll know that the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2014/05/an-eyewitness-account-to-free-sherlock.html#.U-BEUPldWSo" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">heard arguments in June</a> regarding the appropriate copyright of the Sherlock Holmes stories.<br />
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<b>Background</b></h3>
The plaintiff, <b>Leslie Klinger, BSI</b>, had sued for declaratory judgment on the Sherlock Holmes stories, looking for the first 50 to be declared clearly in the public domain, while the <b>Conan Doyle Estate, Ltd.</b>, the business entity representing the financial interests of the relatives of Conan Doyle, indicated that Sherlock Holmes as a character was not fully formed until the last story had been written.<br />
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The 7th Circuit, under Judge Richard Posner, <a href="http://www.scribd.com/doc/234319104/Klinger-v-Conan-Doyle-Estate-Ltd-7th-Circuit-Court-of-Appeals-Decision" target="_blank">issued a judgement in June</a> (well worth reading; also available <a href="http://media.ca7.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/rssExec.pl?Submit=Display&Path=Y2014/D06-16/C:14-1128:J:Posner:aut:T:fnOp:N:1363624:S:0" target="_blank">here</a>), less than a week following the oral arguments, indicating that the first 50 stories were indeed in the public domain in the United States, and that any character elements that an author might wish to use in new stories would require the permission of the CDE. But stories incorporating elements prior to those stories being written were fair game.<br />
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In that June decision, Posner pulled on examples ranging from <i>Henry IV Part 1</i> and <i>Part 2</i>, <i>Henry V</i> and <i>The Merry Wives of Windsor </i>to the <i>Star Wars</i> saga to delineate the features of "flat" and "round" characters and the timing of their character development. Judge Posner said that "perpetual, or nearly perpetual copyright looms once "one realizes that the Doyle estate is seeking 135 years (1887–2022) of copyright protection for the character of Sherlock Holmes." He further indicated that later "alterations do not revive the expired copyrights on the original characters."<br />
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<b>Fees Awarded</b></h3>
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That brings us to <a href="http://media.ca7.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/rssExec.pl?Submit=Display&Path=Y2014/D08-04/C:14-1128:J:Posner:aut:T:op:N:1392405:S:0" target="_blank">the decision this week</a> (also available as an embedded document below), in which the court considered a request from Klinger to reimburse him the nearly $31,000 in legal fees that he incurred in the appeal. Not included in this request was an additional $39,000 in district court fees.<br />
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The court decided unanimously in favor of Klinger, awarding him the full amount. Saying that "the defendant's only defense bordered on the frivolous," it was clear that the strength of the case was with the plaintiff and that the fees were not unreasonable.<br />
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And then Posner went one further by deriding the Conan Doyle Estate, Ltd. business strategy as one that induced publishers succumb to the pressure to pay a fee or face high legal fees if they didn't. <br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The Doyle estate’s business strategy is plain: charge a modest license fee for which there is no legal basis, in the hope that the "rational" writer or publisher asked for the fee will pay it rather than incur a greater cost, in legal expenses, in challenging the legality of the demand. The strategy had worked with Random House; Pegasus was ready to knuckle under; only Klinger (so far as we know) resisted. In effect he was a private attorney general, combating a disreputable business practice—a form of extortion—and he is seeking by the present motion not to obtain a reward but merely to avoid a loss.</blockquote>
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In case you think "extortion" is a bit of a stretch, here's an excerpt from the letter that CDE sent to Pegasus Books:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
If you proceed instead to bring out <i>Study in Sherlock II</i> [the original title of <i>In the Company of Sherlock Holmes</i>] unlicensed, do not expect to see it offered for sale by Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and similar retailers. We work with those compan[ies] routinely to weed out unlicensed uses of Sherlock Holmes from their offerings, and will not hesitate to do so with your book as well.</blockquote>
Beyond the extortionate element of the decision, the court also noted that the CDE, in enlisting the support of Amazon et al. in a boycott, was violating anti-trust laws.<br />
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Perhaps the CDE will take the court's final recommendation to heart:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
It’s time the estate, in its own self-interest, changed its business model.</blockquote>
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<b>A Man for All Seasons</b></h3>
But perhaps the most notable and noble accolade in the decision are about Leslie Klinger himself. The court notes that Klinger "<b>has performed a public service</b>...with substantial risk to himself" and yet has simply asked to recoup only his costs, while he "<b>deserves to be rewarded</b>" for "exposing the estate's unlawful business practices."<br />
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You can read the entire decision below.<br />
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<div style="-x-system-font: none; display: block; font-family: Helvetica,Arial,Sans-serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 12px auto 6px auto;">
<a href="http://www.scribd.com/doc/235846211/Klinger-v-Conan-Doyle-Estate-Ltd-7th-Circuit-Court-Awards-Damages" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View Klinger v. Conan Doyle Estate Ltd. - 7th Circuit Court Awards Damages on Scribd">Klinger v. Conan Doyle Estate Ltd. - 7th Circuit Court Awards Damages</a> by <a href="http://www.scribd.com/ihearofsherlock" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere's profile on Scribd">I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere</a></div>
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