I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere

Langham Hotel Incorrectly Claims to Be Sherlock Holmes' Birthplace

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"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 />
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But there's some controversy swirling around the hotel at present.<br />
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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 />
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<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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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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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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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>
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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>
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"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>
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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>
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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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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>
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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 />
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“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 />
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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 />
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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 />
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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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7th Circuit Orders Conan Doyle Estate To Pay Legal Fees, Give Up "Extortion"

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by Scott Monty

Sherlock Holmes's Resume Looked Like This

<h4 style="text-align: center;">
"my professional qualifications" [ENGR] </h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJ5CYNuvplE73f-Avjo0XR-l6UWzuouSYTCKxTYto3Pqh-qdOAYSKpEjFXODBEF-rziZ1gZMPP7y5h3HZ9DF69HDQppdnzZBGc92vuvgnD73reVGvV6Oys8tMtVbSYi-yVH7M0zM3UHkx_/s1600/Douglas+West.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img alt="A Douglas West watercolour of Holmes meeting an inspector at the rail station" border="0" height="462" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJ5CYNuvplE73f-Avjo0XR-l6UWzuouSYTCKxTYto3Pqh-qdOAYSKpEjFXODBEF-rziZ1gZMPP7y5h3HZ9DF69HDQppdnzZBGc92vuvgnD73reVGvV6Oys8tMtVbSYi-yVH7M0zM3UHkx_/s1600/Douglas+West.jpg" title="At the station - Douglas West" width="640" /></a></div>
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Would you hire Sherlock Holmes if you had the chance? Okay, but what if you weren't familiar with him through the 60 stories that make up the Canon? What if you had to simply look at his qualifications jotted down on a single piece of paper?<br />
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Think about that for a moment.<br />
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Professionals are often faced with making judgments based on having only cursory information rather than the whole picture. This applies to things that require immediate action as well as some others where, even if we're given more time, we simply don't have access to the same information as someone who might be more intimately familiar with a person or situation.<br />
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For example, Watson made up a list based on his first few weeks with Holmes. It went something like this:<br />
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<h4>
SHERLOCK HOLMES - his limits</h4>
<ol>
<li>Knowledge of Literature. - Nil.</li>
<li>Knowledge of Philosophy. - Nil.</li>
<li>Knowledge of Astronomy. - Nil.</li>
<li>Knowledge of Politics. - Feeble.</li>
<li>Knowledge of Botany. - Variable. Well up in belladonna, opium, and poisons generally. Knows nothing of practical gardening.</li>
<li>Knowledge of Geology. - Practical, but limited. Tells at a glance different soils from each other. After walks has shown me splashes upon his trousers, and told me by their colour and consistence in what part of London he had received them.</li>
<li>Knowledge of Chemistry. - Profound.</li>
<li>Knowledge of Anatomy. - Accurate, but unsystematic.</li>
<li>Knowledge of Sensational Literature. - Immense. He appears to know every detail of every horror perpetrated in the century.</li>
<li>Plays the violin well.</li>
<li>Is an expert singlestick player, boxer, and swordsman.</li>
<li>Has a good practical knowledge of British law.</li>
</ol>
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So if one were to sum up these and some other time-based activities of Sherlock Holmes and made a visual representation of the same - an infographic, for example - it might look something like this:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDfIPQfsXmLjmrdi2tSPyoszt-BBsfx49OBvlXWB2TTgS9emGmrDV0yj3uTgX3gseQCNI7N5NYrr70j-oRXlbhU1kp-q63rkVyjPK-bdIfGeXNdLmbc_tNvh6XAhyphenhyphenvGoRHBCIpaQhg8XAL/s1600/Sherlock+Holmes-Resume-Infographic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDfIPQfsXmLjmrdi2tSPyoszt-BBsfx49OBvlXWB2TTgS9emGmrDV0yj3uTgX3gseQCNI7N5NYrr70j-oRXlbhU1kp-q63rkVyjPK-bdIfGeXNdLmbc_tNvh6XAhyphenhyphenvGoRHBCIpaQhg8XAL/s1600/Sherlock+Holmes-Resume-Infographic.jpg" /></a></div>
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McGraw-Hill created this to support and promote its new book <a href="http://mhprofessional.com/product.php?isbn=0071825576"><i>The Infographic Resume: How to Create a Visual Portfolio that Showcases Your Skills and Lands the Job</i></a>.</div>
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Do you spot any glaring errors? Is something missing that you would have included?</div>
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