I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere

Happy 221B Day

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"apply 221B" [NAVA] </h4>
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As you no doubt have noticed today is 2/21 (as in 221B - get it?). As such, we thought it was an apt time to take a look back at a January 2010 entry in  <i>Smithsonian</i>: "<a href="http://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/Sherlock-Holmes-London.html">Sherlock Holmes' London</a>."<br />
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The piece opens with a description of a 30 year-old Arthur Conan Doyle heading into London from his Southsea home to attend a dinner with the publisher of <i>Lippincott's</i> with none other than Oscar Wilde in attendance. The dinner was auspicious in that it resulted in two commissions: Wilde's <b><i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Picture-Dorian-Gray-Three-Stories/dp/1936594625?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">The Picture of Dorian Gray</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=1936594625" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /></i></b> and Conan Doyle's <b><i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Sign-Four-Sherlock-Holmes-Mystery/dp/1451562462?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">The Sign of Four</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=1451562462" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /></i></b>. But for the purpose of the article, it was even more significant that it took place at the Langham Hotel, which itself turned up in no fewer than three Sherlock Holmes stories (Quick! Which three? Comments below, please.).<br />
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The article covers a bit about Conan Doyle's life and the ongoing life that has sprung from his most famous creation, but then also covers another character in his stories - one that plays a constant supporting, if transparent, role: the city itself. Conan Doyle's mastery of the language in order to effectively set the scene is readily observed in this passage from The Sign of Four - that novel born from the very dinner at the Langham:<br />
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It was a September evening, and not yet seven o'clock, but the day had been a dreary one, and a dense drizzly fog lay low upon the great city. Mud-coloured clouds drooped sadly over the muddy streets. Down the Strand the lamps were but misty splotches of diffused light, which threw a feeble circular glimmer upon the slimy pavement. The yellow glare from the shop-windows streamed out into the steamy, vaporous air, and threw a murky, shifting radiance across the crowded thoroughfare. There was, to my mind, something eerie and ghost-like in the endless procession of faces which flitted across these narrow bars of light - sad faces and glad, haggard and merry. Like all human kind, they flitted from the gloom into the light, and so back into the gloom once more.</blockquote>
And while those ghostly gas-lamps no longer fail at 20 feet, the piece takes us through London past and present, through the Holmes stories and Conan Doyle's life. Naturally, there's a stop at 221B. And even helpful commentary from longtime reader and <a href="http://www.sherlock-holmes.org.uk/">Sherlock Holmes Society of London</a> member Roger Johnson. We highly recommend you <a href="http://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/Sherlock-Holmes-London.html">check out the article</a> - especially if you're planning a pilgrimage to London and wish to visit some of the highlights.<br />
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Accompanying <a href="http://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/sherlock-holmes-london-10998186/">the article</a> is a quick video called "The Many Faces of Sherlock Holmes," with a look at Holmes of the stage and screen over the years, from Gillette to Norwood, Wontner to Owen, Rathbone to Neville, and Moore, Neville, Plummer, Rowe and Caine and even including Wilder.<br />
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Whew! We're glad they didn't stoop quite so low as <a href="http://www.shadowlocked.com/201102141482/lists/a-study-in-error-the-ten-worst-sherlock-holmes.html">the comprehensiveness of this list</a><a href="http://www.shadowlocked.com/201102141482/lists/a-study-in-error-the-ten-worst-sherlock-holmes.html">, titled "A Study in Errors</a>."<br />
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Do you have a favorite site or a favorite Holmes? Please feel free to share it with us as a comment. And while we have you here, what better way to celebrate this important date than to get yourself your very own 221B oval sticker? For your car, your laptop, your refrigerator - or anywhere you like.<br />
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<i>Tower Bridge image credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/vgm8383/3287091355/in/set-72157604928782321/">vgm8383 (Flickr)</a></i><br />
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Happy 221B Day

"apply 221B" [NAVA] As you no doubt have noticed today is 2/21 (as in 221B - get it?). As such, we thought it was an apt tim...

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by Scott Monty

The Real-Life Inspiration Behind Sherlock Holmes

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"this insignificant-looking man inspired me" [GREE]</h4>
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[<i>Editor's note: we're pleased to welcome another contributor to our site. "Athenae" shares her own insights and opinions on Sherlock Holmes at <a href="http://findingsherlock.tumblr.com/">Finding Sherlock</a>. If you would like a chance to be considered as a contributor, please see our <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/p/aboutcontribute.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Who We Are</a> page above.</i>]<br />
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Sherlock Holmes is a myth, a demi-god; a fictitious, heartless, blindly  intelligent, insightful and confident Übermensch. Everything we want and need to be  in a rapidly changing technologically-driven world. He could never be real.<br />
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Or  could he?<br />
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When Conan Doyle was attending the University of  Edinburgh as a medical student he attended a class with Dr. Joseph Bell.  According to Doyle’s 1892 Interview with <i>The Bookman</i>:<br />
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[Bell]  would sit in the patients’ waiting-room with a face like a Red Indian  and diagnose the people as they came in, before even they had opened  their mouths. He would tell them their symptoms, he would give them  details of their lives and he would hardly ever make a mistake…His great  faculty of deduction was at times highly dramatic. ‘Ah!’ he would say  to another man, ‘you are a soldier, a non-commissioned officer, and you  have served in Bermuda. Now how did I know that, gentlemen? He came into  the room without taking his hat off, as he would go into an orderly  room. He was a soldier. A slight authoritative air, combined with his  age, shows that we was an N.C.O. A slight rash on the forehead tells me  he was in Bermuda, and subject to a certain rash known only there.’ So  I got the idea for Sherlock Holmes.</blockquote>
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Bell was well known for more than just being the original Sherlock Holmes.  He was also considered to be an expert witness, who often took the stand at some of the more sensational murder trials during the latter half of the century.<br />
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<i>For more information on the Bookman and the origins of Holmes, see our recommended reading below. - Ed.</i><br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEd8HsRZo44vv7B0yeDXiF4utXJyTp614fnFT6Zqq-Y_xA7WUPBSCXJFAg83l7255717N4Lr_uyGu19TSPd-zfzqCnUmT-cpMar70y_18qwoW4uVOsZKLMpr67XWuZS10_UED6LDkNw0dJ/s1600/bookman350.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEd8HsRZo44vv7B0yeDXiF4utXJyTp614fnFT6Zqq-Y_xA7WUPBSCXJFAg83l7255717N4Lr_uyGu19TSPd-zfzqCnUmT-cpMar70y_18qwoW4uVOsZKLMpr67XWuZS10_UED6LDkNw0dJ/s1600/bookman350.gif" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Available from<br />
<a href="http://wessexpress.com/html/bookman.html">Wessex Press</a></td></tr>
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The Real-Life Inspiration Behind Sherlock Holmes

"this insignificant-looking man inspired me" [GREE] [ Editor's note: we're pleased to welcome another contributor to ...

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by Scott Monty

"Really, Watson, You Excel Yourself" [HOUN]

<div class="separator" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.someecards.com/flirting-cards/ibm-computer-watson-jeopardy-ken-jennings-brad-rutter-funny-ecard"><img border="0" height="178" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFV-2uUN9gFHioic69GrIuwyJXungACT3JEMcvrOztkDGs0tc5r6f66oAjoW5QNMrrX7UtC6wyNUM9SqxE_Yzx-7wqERHvzavu5ucxbGTM1tK7PvhTD4YIBbZeskYP3czBD3a_0_vxBuZO/s320/Watson.png" width="320" /></a></div>Earlier this week, an IBM computer named Watson <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/17/science/17jeopardy-watson.html">beat two humans in a showdown on Jeopardy!</a> amid a wave of publicity.<br /><br />This was a huge step in the field of artificial intelligence (A.I.) and the ability for a computer to understand conversational language. The bonus is that it shared the same name as Sherlock Holmes's Boswell. In reality, it was named for T.J. Watson, the founder of of IBM, but it had more of the quality of Holmes, of whom Stamford said in <i>A Study in Scarlet</i>: "You seem to be a walking calendar of crime."<br /><br />The future of this technology, appropriately enough, seems to lie partly in the field of medicine, as <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/17/science/17jeopardy-watson.html">IBM said</a> it will "collaborate with Columbia University and the University of Maryland to create a physician’s assistant service that will allow doctors to query a cybernetic assistant."<br /><br />We wonder how Watson would have fared at the Battle of Maiwand, had his orderly Murray been an electronic assistant...<br /><br /><i>Please consider visiting our sponsors (in the right column and footer of the site) from time to time. It helps defray the costs associated with running this site.</i> <br />--

"Really, Watson, You Excel Yourself" [HOUN]

Earlier this week, an IBM computer named Watson beat two humans in a showdown on Jeopardy! amid a wave of publicity. This was a huge step i...

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by Scott Monty

New From Frogwares — The Testament of Sherlock Holmes

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"with my hands on the Testament" [IDEN]</h4>
For those interested in the intersection of the worlds of <a href="http://www.bakerstreetblog.com/search/label/games">gaming and Sherlock Holmes</a>, the latest news is bound to be welcome.<br />
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Frogwares Game Development Studio just announced the release of a new game for <b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/PlayStation-3-160-GB/dp/B003VUO6H4?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Playstation</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=B003VUO6H4" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /></b> and <b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Xbox-360-250GB-Console-Kinect/dp/B003O6JLZ2?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">XBox</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=B003O6JLZ2" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /></b>: <b><i>The New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes: The Testament of Sherlock</i></b>, to be released in the fall of 2011. The announcement on the <a href="http://www.frogwares.com/">Frogwares site outlines the plot</a>:<br />
<blockquote>
A mainstay genre of computer games, this new Holmes game is playable with a gamepad in a third person view, with revamped controls that suit the console. <i>The New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes</i> will immerse gamers in 1898 London as they conduct an incredible investigation. All the evidence suggests our hero is the main suspect in a case involving theft, fraud and double-crossings. Unable to prove his own innocence, Holmes is rapidly losing London's trust as doubt spreads through the city like wildfire. Even Doctor Watson's faith in his friend begins to waver, as the famous detective flees Scotland Yard and raises further suspicion; prowling around at night, destruction of evidence... would Holmes go so far as to commit murder?</blockquote>
Sounds intriguing to us! Below are some early screenshots of the game.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ9Z1i67VHgs7XdOoVGsYyUhOEPDvDaD0MWux9fqBzCtn3MBtDq2FotOeLH2xCVBfPPxyiFHH25uqxBuilOfx2_JeokbDhVlsM85L9zL9vhX3wou0phS8_238clNPNNj91Jes2RmCyaSTm/s1600/171459_10150093118256247_180258201246_6453798_5909248_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ9Z1i67VHgs7XdOoVGsYyUhOEPDvDaD0MWux9fqBzCtn3MBtDq2FotOeLH2xCVBfPPxyiFHH25uqxBuilOfx2_JeokbDhVlsM85L9zL9vhX3wou0phS8_238clNPNNj91Jes2RmCyaSTm/s200/171459_10150093118256247_180258201246_6453798_5909248_o.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVh0nAc5MgVrnDNBZxy4wgTeIQzWoQ22p0a7mvWvngALjoVCULEAFYu-0hmyNvKM3uGRmTSKuoFQRzUryAl0a7EORXWgSP08dSQizQ5kPkjG4ndGM3eiGIv2DiUxgksJRhEzSjem1OGjWO/s1600/175147_10150093118171247_180258201246_6453797_5417759_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVh0nAc5MgVrnDNBZxy4wgTeIQzWoQ22p0a7mvWvngALjoVCULEAFYu-0hmyNvKM3uGRmTSKuoFQRzUryAl0a7EORXWgSP08dSQizQ5kPkjG4ndGM3eiGIv2DiUxgksJRhEzSjem1OGjWO/s200/175147_10150093118171247_180258201246_6453797_5417759_o.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNBd75rbnAE5Tv_5YExfl0f5OSsnqP_6Ay_xXEKVbyVTGDlVzpxTUZlFdkKrAiz9A9A6Cm6UOa2dKXh8DjOYbNl9_e_CvassWsBwoQdmk80K-RSQRLdPTp_hyGB8u4ruN0Bc1_0KQQQjKX/s1600/185635_10150093118106247_180258201246_6453796_1098293_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNBd75rbnAE5Tv_5YExfl0f5OSsnqP_6Ay_xXEKVbyVTGDlVzpxTUZlFdkKrAiz9A9A6Cm6UOa2dKXh8DjOYbNl9_e_CvassWsBwoQdmk80K-RSQRLdPTp_hyGB8u4ruN0Bc1_0KQQQjKX/s200/185635_10150093118106247_180258201246_6453796_1098293_n.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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We'll be interested to see how the game turns out when it's finally released to the public. Are you a Sherlockian who also happens to be a gamer? Let us know if you'd be interested in becoming a game reviewer for our site by <a href="http://www.bakerstreetblog.com/p/about-me.html">filling out the form on the About page</a>.<br />
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New From Frogwares — The Testament of Sherlock Holmes

"with my hands on the Testament" [IDEN] For those interested in the intersection of the worlds of gaming and Sherlock Holmes , t...

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by Scott Monty

A Clever Publicity Play for "The Creeping Man"

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"the wondrous strength-giving serum" [CREE]</h4>
<a href="http://www.nashvillescholars.net/jbshawbio.html" target="_blank">John Bennett Shaw, BSI</a> ("The Hans Sloan of My Age") once said that the only requirement for a Sherlockian society meeting is "two Sherlockians and a bottle. In a pinch, dispense with the other Sherlockian." As a result, One would think that all we Sherlock Holmes enthusiasts do is drink.<br />
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Well, yes. But that's not <i>all</i>. We certainly <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2006/05/is-meaning-of-it-watson-card_8.html#.VXn-GM9Viko" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">enjoy the company of the people</a> that Holmes brings together. And <b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0823212718?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0823212718" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">the food</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0823212718" style="border: none; margin: 0px;" width="1" /></b> as well. When it all comes together - food, drink and the company of kinspirts - it makes for a wonderful experience, as <a href="http://www.sherlockpeoria.net/ViewFromSP/ViewSP2007/ViewSP102107.html" target="_blank">Brad Keefauver wrote about a few years back on Sherlock in Peoria</a>.<br />
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But when you delve into the<a href="http://www.bsiarchivalhistory.org/BSI_Archival_History/The_BSI.html" target="_blank"> history of the Baker Street Irregulars</a>, you'll find that the early leadership included such libation-inspired offices as the <a href="http://221bbakerstreetla.com/bs_tantalus.asp" target="_blank">Tantalus and the Gasogene</a> and that early meetings took place in a speakeasy. Not exactly what you'd call teetotalers. But probably inspired by a few mentions of adult beverages in the Canon:<br />
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"Between your brandy and your bandage, I feel a new man." [ENGR]</blockquote>
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"...I found my collar-ends undone and the tingling aftertaste of brandy." [EMPT]</blockquote>
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"As long as I have my trousers I have a hip-pocket, and as long as I have a hip-pocket, I have something in it." [HOUN]</blockquote>
This recent bit of artwork provides a nice homage to some of the characters we've come to know in the stories, with cocktails concocted to represent their personalities (note: one or two may represent individuals active on the forum from which this graphic was posted).<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dubbed <a href="http://redscharlach.livejournal.com/212275.html">"<i>A Study in Pink Gin</i>" on LiveJournal</a></td></tr>
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But the one cocktail that intrigues us is one called the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Monkey_Gland" target="_blank">Monkey Gland</a>. </div><div><br /></div><div>It's made of gin, orange juice, grenadine and absinthe, and seems to promise something of vigor.</div><div>Created in Paris in early 1923 (as seen in the April 23, 1923 <i>Washington Post</i> article below), its origins seem to have <a href="http://www.artofdrink.com/archive/popular-cocktails/monkey-gland" target="_blank">something of a marketing ploy</a> about them. Click through to read more about the history of the drink.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyahfQrbLfS231jqFWJtXg95Nrl_d9ldiI8SDgTRVErrTPzmgUTZp_SzrvugkSFWBbZVX0iNQvpZ0_lr-_6d5U6-hoYKONLaLn6L7Px5oHru3-meFkGWuZpY-8vl0o2fOMcsoYBHx5lt19/s1600/monkeygland.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyahfQrbLfS231jqFWJtXg95Nrl_d9ldiI8SDgTRVErrTPzmgUTZp_SzrvugkSFWBbZVX0iNQvpZ0_lr-_6d5U6-hoYKONLaLn6L7Px5oHru3-meFkGWuZpY-8vl0o2fOMcsoYBHx5lt19/s1600/monkeygland.png" /></a></div><div><br /></div>
But for us, there's an interesting bit of timing involved. "<a href="http://www.sherlockian.net/canon/stories/cree.html" target="_blank">The Adventure of the Creeping Man</a>" was published in March 1923 and - without giving away too much - concerns an elderly professor who goes to extreme lengths to win the affections of a younger woman. </div><div><br /></div><div>Let's just say he would have enjoyed the above drink.<br />
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Was Conan Doyle inspired by Frank's concoction? Perhaps he even visited the Parisian establishment and partook of the drink himself. Or perhaps the era of Prohibition inspired such outre innovations in the bartending world. </div><div><br /></div><div>What do you think?<br />
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<i>--</i><br /><br />
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<br /></div>

A Clever Publicity Play for "The Creeping Man"

"the wondrous strength-giving serum" [CREE] John Bennett Shaw, BSI ("The Hans Sloan of My Age") once said that the on...

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by Scott Monty

The Case of the Sherlock Holmes Sequel in Search of a Title

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"What sort of game is that, eh?" [DYIN]</h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYpFGq8jFukqC4oGUGxJq3QXc3nOWR-LUehaIAxNQaXz9GKQFxZ4fir_ky7ARdvZxQ6pT0us5Jkl_fiGV5Z2LXXAl8nkcpkr5a4OvtQP0n8NobyYfLJrT206Ocn7oh-CxK6AaiAB7aYLL3/s1600/Sherlock2.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYpFGq8jFukqC4oGUGxJq3QXc3nOWR-LUehaIAxNQaXz9GKQFxZ4fir_ky7ARdvZxQ6pT0us5Jkl_fiGV5Z2LXXAl8nkcpkr5a4OvtQP0n8NobyYfLJrT206Ocn7oh-CxK6AaiAB7aYLL3/s320/Sherlock2.PNG" width="640" /></a></div>
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The sequel to <b><i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Sherlock-Holmes-Robert-Downey-Jr/dp/B001OQCV6A?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Sherlock Holmes</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=B001OQCV6A" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /></i></b>, heretofore only known colloquially as "Sherlock Holmes 2" or in the IMDb as "<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1515091/">Untitled Sherlock Holmes Sequel</a>" now has a name.<br />
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Since it involves <a href="http://www.bakerstreetblog.com/2010/10/moriarty-may-have-been-engaged-vall.html">Professor Moriarty</a>, one might conjecture that the title would be something along the lines of <i>Sherlock Holmes: The Final Problem</i> or <i>Sherlock Holmes: Reichenbach Falls</i>. Or something inspiring and thrilling, like some of the titles from the Rathbone-Bruce days in the 1940s: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Sherlock-Holmes-Dressed-Basil-Rathbone/dp/B0000EMYKJ?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><b><i>Sherlock Holmes - Dressed to Kill</i></b></a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=B0000EMYKJ" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" />, <b><i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Sherlock-Holmes-Spider-Woman-Rathbone/dp/B0000APVCA?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Sherlock Holmes: the Spider Woman</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=B0000APVCA" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /></i></b>, or <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Sherlock-Holmes-Faces-Death-Rathbone/dp/B0000APVBL?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><b><i>Sherlock Holmes Faces Death</i></b></a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=B0000APVBL" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" />. As we said, thrilling. Exciting. Classic Sherlock Holmes.<br />
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Well, Warner Bros. are treating us to <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2011/02/to-explode-about-cree_9.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">an explosive sequel</a>, certain to continue the action-packed elements of the first. And they're backing that up with a title to match: <i><b>Sherlock Holmes: a Game of Shadows</b></i>.<br />
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What?<br />
<br />
Or perhaps better put by the sages at E! Online: <a href="http://www.eonline.com/uberblog/b226341_by_jove_sherlock_holmes_sequel_has_lame.html">By Jove, Sherlock Holmes Sequel Has a Lame Title!</a> They even include <a href="http://www.eonline.com/photos/gallery.jsp?galleryUUID=2570#98366">a slideshow on the worst sequel titles</a>, capped with Breakin' 2. Reminds us of when Wessex Press held <a href="http://www.bakerstreetblog.com/2007/07/i-never-can-resist-touch-of-dramatic.html">the sequel to their Gillette to Brett conference in 2007</a>. We joked that they should have called it <i>Gillette to Brett II: Electric Boogaloo</i>.<br />
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What are your thoughts on the name of the new sequel? Take the poll and let us know in the comments section.<br />
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<noscript><br /><a href="http://polldaddy.com/poll/4560039/">What do you think of the title of the sequel to "Sherlock Holmes"?</a><span style="font-size: 9px;"><a href="http://polldaddy.com/features-surveys/">online surveys</a></span><br /></noscript><br />
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The Case of the Sherlock Holmes Sequel in Search of a Title

"What sort of game is that, eh?" [DYIN] The sequel to Sherlock Holmes , heretofore only known colloquially as "Sherlock ...

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by Scott Monty

"Valentine?" [BRUC]

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/wsmonty/4182493694/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="danc-01 by Scott Monty, on Flickr"><img alt="danc-01" height="240" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2745/4182493694_8b506e3732_m.jpg" width="205" /></a>We're used to seeing Sherlock Holmes as a creature of logic vs. emotion. Watson called him "an automaton - a calculating machine" in The Sign of Four, and it was only many years later in "The Three Garridebs" that he noted, "For the one and only time I caught a glimpse of a great heart as well as of a great brain."<br /><br />When it came to women - even <i>the</i> woman - Holmes was not moved:<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: purple;">"It was not that he felt any emotion akin to love for Irene Adler." [SCAN]</span></i></div><br />And Holmes reassured us that the softer emotion wasn't part of his character:<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: purple;"><i>"I have never loved, Watson, but if I did, and if the woman I loved had met with such an end, I might act even as our lawless lion-hunter has done." [DEVI]</i></span></div><br />But that's not to say that love didn't play a part of the plots of some of the 60 stories. Unforunately, we must admit that there are very few "happy ending" love stories in the Sherlock Holmes. When we do encounter love in Canon, it usually has some sort of dark side to it - twisted, tested, tortured, or tragic in nature.<br /><br />To mark the occasion of Valentine's Day, we're bringing you a quiz about love in the Canon. There are 10 questions; those who answer all questions correctly will be entered for a chance to win a Sherlockian collectible - a book, DVD or other piece of effluvium from our grab-bag.<br /><br /><center><script type="text/javascript">var host = (("https:" == document.location.protocol) ? "https://secure." : "http://");document.write(unescape("%3Cscript src='" + host + "wufoo.com/scripts/embed/form.js' type='text/javascript'%3E%3C/script%3E")); </script><br /><br /><script type="text/javascript">var m7x3p9 = new WufooForm(); m7x3p9.initialize({ 'userName':'bakerstreetblog',  'formHash':'m7x3p9',  'autoResize':true, 'height':'500'}); m7x3p9.display(); </script></center><br />If you're having trouble seeing the form on this page or in this email, simply <a href="http://bakerstreetblog.wufoo.com/forms/sherlock-holmes-valentines-day-quiz/">click here for the direct link</a>.<br /><br />Bonus question, just for fun - no points awarded:<br /><b><i>Roses are red, violets are blue... We can name the four Violets in the Canon; can you?</i></b><br /><br />One winner will be chosen at random from entries submitted via the form by February 21, 2011. Winner will be contacted by email.<br /><br />In the meantime, is there a love story in the Canon that has stuck with you, either because of its poignancy or tragic nature? Please share it as a comment.<br /><br />--

"Valentine?" [BRUC]

We're used to seeing Sherlock Holmes as a creature of logic vs. emotion. Watson called him "an automaton - a calculating machine...

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by Scott Monty

"I Shall Be Back" [SIGN]

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/wsmonty/5430227754/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="The Return of Sherlock Holmes by Scott Monty, on Flickr"><img alt="The Return of Sherlock Holmes" height="240" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5179/5430227754_d6ea30754c_m.jpg" width="180" /></a>The Culture Warrior column at <a href="http://www.filmschoolrejects.com/features/culture-warrior-sherlock-holmes-popularity.php">Film School Rejects</a> poses a question that must be asked: <a href="http://www.filmschoolrejects.com/features/culture-warrior-sherlock-holmes-popularity.php">Why Is Sherlock Back?</a><br /><br />Of course, we know that he never left us. But there were times after Conan Doyle's passing in 1930 when Holmes seemingly dominated the public consciousness - <b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Complete-Sherlock-Holmes-Collection/dp/B000EXZFRQ?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Rathbone</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=B000EXZFRQ" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /></b>, <b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Sherlock-Holmes-Complete-Ronald-Howard/dp/B000BBOUGI?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Howard</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=B000BBOUGI" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /></b>, <b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Hound-Baskervilles-VHS-Peter-Cushing/dp/6302717647?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Cushing</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=6302717647" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /></b>, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Sherlock-Holmes-Douglas-Wilmer/dp/B003NF97NA?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" style="font-weight: bold;" target="_blank">Wilmer</a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-color: initial !important; border-width: initial !important;"><b><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=B003NF97NA" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /></b></span> and <b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Private-Life-Sherlock-Holmes/dp/B00005JKHF?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Stephens</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=B00005JKHF" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /></b> took us from 1940-1970 or so on the big and small screen, but after Rathbone's indomitable presence in film, it was difficult to find a successor.<br /><br />Then of course, the significance of Nicholas Meyer, BSI ("A Fine Morocco Case") and his book <b><i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Seven-Cent-Solution-Reminiscences-Paperback/dp/0393311198?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">The Seven Per-Cent Solution</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=0393311198" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /></i></b> came roaring to the screen and blazed another trail that eventually ended in the coda that was <b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Adventures-Sherlock-Holmes-Boxed-Collection/dp/B000060MVK?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Jeremy Brett</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=B000060MVK" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /></b>.<br /><br />But the author of <a href="http://www.filmschoolrejects.com/features/culture-warrior-sherlock-holmes-popularity.php">Why Is Sherlock Back?</a> wants to know why we need three treatments of Holmes nearly simultaneously: namely, the Robert Downey Jr. "<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Sherlock-Holmes-Robert-Downey-Jr/dp/B001OQCV6A?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank"><b>Sherlock Holmes</b></a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=B001OQCV6A" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" />," the BBC's "<b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Sherlock-Season-One-Benedict-Cumberbatch/dp/B004132HZS?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Sherlock</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=B004132HZS" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /></b>," and "Cold Weather." We have our own ideas, complete with many other examples in recent and current popular culture, that show the argument isn't simply limited to this triad, but we're interested in what <u>you</u> think.<br /><br />Why indeed <b><i>is</i></b> Sherlock back? And if he never went away, what's behind the current fascination with him again?<br /><br /><i>Please consider visiting our sponsors (in the right column and footer of the site) from time to time. It helps defray the costs associated with running this site.</i> <br />--

"I Shall Be Back" [SIGN]

The Culture Warrior column at Film School Rejects poses a question that must be asked: Why Is Sherlock Back? Of course, we know that he nev...

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by Scott Monty

"From the Dummy's Chair" [MAZA]

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii8FbxoA-W95Wu_BYh5HV3LcvRjCb2afD23-G8fJBf-AsQb5P63hXREdB-ckT3cy2UINoVgv5OZel2h69943iylMu9fLH6Fgei2n4T_uDsh77AwQBAC1f-uoEYRx6WLMlHbHKLL5-7IZD_/s1600/maza-03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii8FbxoA-W95Wu_BYh5HV3LcvRjCb2afD23-G8fJBf-AsQb5P63hXREdB-ckT3cy2UINoVgv5OZel2h69943iylMu9fLH6Fgei2n4T_uDsh77AwQBAC1f-uoEYRx6WLMlHbHKLL5-7IZD_/s1600/maza-03.jpg" /></a></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><b>Editor's note</b>: This is part of a new feature on the Baker Street Blog we're calling "From the Dummy's Chair." Joining us to guest post for this column is Steven Doyle, BSI ("The 'Western Morning News'") is the author of the Edgar-nominated <b><i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Sherlock-Holmes-Dummies-Steven-Doyle/dp/0470484446?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Sherlock Holmes for Dummies</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=0470484446" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /></i></b>. Because of the limitations in the print world, he wasn't able to completely fit everything he wanted into the book. This series will become a real-time continuation of that labor of love. Steve is also half the team behind the <a href="http://www.wessexpress.com/">Wessex Press</a>.</span><br /><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">For a little background on the topic, the <i><b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Sherlock-Holmes-Reference-Library-Apocrypha/dp/0938501496?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Apocrypha of Sherlock Holmes</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=0938501496" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /></b></i>, please see the previous entry in this series that <a href="http://www.bakerstreetblog.com/2011/02/from-dummys-chair-maza.html"><b>appeared on February 3</b></a>.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><br /></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><div><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: large;">The Apocryphal Candidates in Chronological Order</span></b></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><i><b>The Mystery of Sasassa Valley</b></i></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">(<i>Chambers’s Journal</i>, Sep 6, 1879)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">This was Doyle’s first published story and it is a tale tinged with the supernatural. Peter Haining claims this tale has characters and situations which are archetypes of those in the Canon. Haining is the only person to propose this story for inclusion.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><b>The Mystery of Uncle Jeremy’s Household</b></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">(<i>Boy’s Own Paper</i>, 1887)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">“Uncle Jeremy’s Household” appeared in <i>Boy’s Own Journal</i> in early 1887, almost twelve months prior to <i>A Study in Scarlet</i>. There are a number of Holmesian overtones in the tale, and several Sherlockian commentators have asserted that this story contains prototypes of Holmes and Watson. As Peter Haining states, “Holmes and Watson did not spring fully finished into [Conan Doyle’s] mind, but rather developed from his musing on his university Professor, Dr. Joseph Bell, and the detective story genre as a whole.”</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">The concept is that “Uncle Jeremy’s Household” is an early trial-run of an intelligent detective with a partner solving a mystery, similar to the Holmes/Watson duo. They are not named Holmes and Watson, and they aren’t Holmes and Watson. But, there are undeniable elements in this tale that do turn up in the Sherlockian Canon. The well-known Sherlockian scholar James Holroyd points out, in the Spring, 1967 issue of <i><a href="http://www.sherlock-holmes.org.uk/journal.php">The Sherlock Holmes Journal</a></i> the following points:</span></div><div><br /><ul><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';">The narrator, named Hugh Lawrence, lives in Baker Street</span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';">His friend is named John H. Thurston</span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';">Lawrence studied medicine, was devoted to medicine, and had an “acid-stained finger</span></li></ul></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">But the question remains (and it is a big question): even if “Uncle Jeremy’s Household” is a precursor to Sherlock Holmes, does this qualify it as not only legitimate apocrypha, but as part of the Canon?</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"></span><br /><a name="more"></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><b><i>Angels of Darkness</i></b></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">(c. 1887)</span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTyib9wNbDdOwrnTvF6ibwufVW_cVtlH1gmDoQcjhUnC-SnCT7Jk8SAI_LJ24r3Sdvv2GpDgGFC7BfTk73bRaeKRSQ7y471IDJnQTINDRRge3G5IgknB63Bd8hlHy6PYGq1iZR3FRerVrY/s1600/164_angels-sm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTyib9wNbDdOwrnTvF6ibwufVW_cVtlH1gmDoQcjhUnC-SnCT7Jk8SAI_LJ24r3Sdvv2GpDgGFC7BfTk73bRaeKRSQ7y471IDJnQTINDRRge3G5IgknB63Bd8hlHy6PYGq1iZR3FRerVrY/s1600/164_angels-sm.jpg" /></a></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">Unpublished until 2000, when it was brought out in The Baker Street Irregulars’ <b><a href="http://bakerstreetjournal.com/angelsdarkness.html">Manuscript Series</a></b>, this play was written while Conan Doyle was still a young man in his early twenties. It is believed that this play was probably the last piece of Holmes related-literature to be suppressed by Doyle’s estate. <i><b><a href="http://bakerstreetjournal.com/angelsdarkness.html">Angels of Darkness</a></b></i> was started, then abandoned, before <i><b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Study-Scarlet-Sherlock-Holmes-Mystery/dp/1450596185?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">A Study in Scarlet</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=1450596185" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /></b></i> was published in 1887. It is essentially a rewrite of the American chapters of <i>A Study in Scarlet</i>, with the London action moved to San Francisco. It definitely is not a Sherlock Holmes story. Sherlock Holmes is in <i>Angels of Darkness</i>. But, it is a John H. Watson story. Strangely, however, it is not quite the Watson that we know through Watson’s own first-person accounts. Here he acts disreputably, and even ends up marrying a woman other than Mary Morstan. It is of course “apocryphal,”…or is it… and it contradicts <i>A Study in Scarlet</i> in many other details. And yet, it is a different account of major events told in <i>A Study in Scarlet</i>, with one of Study’s major characters involved.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><b><i>The Field Bazaar</i></b> (1896)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">“<b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/FIELD-BAZAAR-SHERLOCK-HOLMES-PASTICHE/dp/2876540592?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">The Field Bazaar</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=2876540592" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /></b>” is a genuine Sherlock Holmes story. Commentators characterize it as a parody, perhaps even the first. Written as a fundraiser for Edinburgh University’s effort to enlarge the university Cricket grounds. “The Field Bazaar” was originally published in the November 20, 1896 issue of <i>The Student</i>, a university magazine. But does this motivation for it being written really a parody? In the story, Holmes and Watson are at breakfast, and as he does on several occasions in the Canon, Holmes correctly reads Watson’s thoughts. In addition, it is told from Watson’s first person perspective, as are most tales in the Canon. While it may be humorous, it is very much in the spirit of similar episodes found in the sixty tales, and is thus a legitimate Sherlock Holmes story, and the first of the four unanimously agreed-upon apocryphal tales.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><b><i>The Lost Special</i></b> (1898)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><b><i>The Man with the Watches</i></b> (1898)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">These two stories that were originally published in 1898, but not collected into a book —<iframe align="left" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=thebakerstree-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=B004DNWHHY&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="align: left; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe> <i><b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Tales-Terror-Mystery-ebook/dp/B004DNWHHY?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Arthur Conan Doyle’s Tales of Terror and Mystery</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=B004DNWHHY" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /></b></i> — until 1923. This undoubtedly accounts in part for their relative obscurity. Hopefully you have taken time to read them, as they are the second and third unanimously agreed-upon apocryphal tales. <i>The Lost Special</i> features the appearance of “an amateur reasoner of some celebrity” who suggests a solution to the case of a missing train. This “amateur reasoner” has written a letter to the London Times, and to read it is to know this is Sherlock Holmes. Holmes’s first law of logic “once one has eliminated the impossible, etc” is even here.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">In <i>The Man with the Watches</i>, the “well-known criminal investigator” of the story is again clearly Sherlock Holmes. As Lord Donegall puts it, “the cold, systematic logif of the synthetic reasoning employed, and the condescending didacticism which marks the style and method of expression throughout, attest unerringly to the Master’s hand.” </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">What is interesting is that, in both tales, the detective fails to solve the mystery. Perhaps this is why Holmes’s name is not mentioned, perhaps Holmes’s vanity kept these failures from being associated with his name. It is important also to remember that both these tales fell into what is know as Holmes’s “hiatus,” the post-Reichenbach Falls/pre-Empty House period. In fact, these stories are much closer in time to the <i>Memoirs</i> than the <i>Return</i>, or even <b><i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Hound-Baskervilles-Sherlock-Holmes-Mystery/dp/1936594382?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">The Hound of the Baskervilles</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=1936594382" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /></i></b>, for that matter, and is perhaps evidence that, shortly after tossing Holmes over the falls, Conan Doyle was already feeling the urge to bring him back.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">In 1936, just six years after Doyle’s death, Christopher Morley and Edgar Smith were advocating their inclusion into the Canon. As an aside, these two tales have been included</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">in all French editions of The Complete Sherlock Holmes.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><b><i>Sherlock Holmes: A Drama in Four Acts</i></b> (a.k.a. <i><b>Sherlock Holmes</b></i>) (1899)</span><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Charles-Frohman-presents-Gillette-Sherlock/dp/B004JVVHN0?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&link_code=bil&camp=213689&creative=392969" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Poster Charles Frohman presents William Gillette in his new four act drama, Sherlock Holmes 1900" src="http://ws.amazon.com/widgets/q?MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&ID=AsinImage&WS=1&Format=_SL160_&ASIN=B004JVVHN0&tag=thebakerstree-20" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=bil&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=B004JVVHN0" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';">Most Sherlockian scholars do not consider this legendary play to either part of the apocrypha or the Canon. A few do. This is the Gillette play, officially written by Arthur Conan Doyle and William Gillette, which had a successful run of over thirty years. The case for its inclusion is based primarily on this alleged co-authorship. In 1897, Conan Doyle wrote a five-act Sherlock Holmes play, which was sold to American theatrical agent Harold Frohman. One of Frohman’s clients was William Gillette. Frohman, who felt the play needed work, secured Doyle’s approval to have Gillette both rewrite and star in the play. Gillette dove in and made extensive changes. Then, in November of 1898, the manuscript was lost in a fire, but the industrious Gillette quickly rewrote the play from memory.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">Despite the play having elements from several Canonical tales, including “A Scandal in Bohemia,” “The Final Problem,” <i>A Study in Scarlet</i>, <i>The Sign of Four</i>, “The Boscombe Valley Mystery” and “The Adventure of the Greek Interpreter,” the play is almost certainly more Gillette than Doyle.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><b><i>The Adventure of the Tall Man</i></b> (c. 1900)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">When searching through Conan Doyle’s papers, one a Doyle biographer name Hesketh Pearson discovered an astonishing find —the outline/summary of an unwritten Sherlock Holmes story. This treasure-trove even included some dialogue. As Pearson described it in the August, 1943 issue of <i>The Strand Magazine</i>:</span></div><div><blockquote>Among Doyle’s papers I discovered the scenario for an unwritten Sherlock Holmes story, in which the detective, baffled by the criminal’s cunning, is reduced to the stratagem of frightening the villain into a confession of guilt. This is done with the help of an actor, who makes himself up to resemble the murdered man, pokes his ghost-like head into the bedroom window of the murderer and cries out his name in “a ghastly sepulchral voice.” The criminal gibbers with fright and gives the game away.</blockquote></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';">Well, perhaps we can see why Doyle never finished the tale! Several Various authors have attempted to complete the story, the best known being by Robert A. Cutter, BSI in 1947.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><b><i>The Man who was Wanted</i></b> (c. 1900)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">And then there is this, yet another unpublished Sherlock Holmes story, (this one complete) and also found by biographer, Hesketh Pearson. The story of this tale is a saga in itself. When Pearson revealed that there was an unpublished tale in 1942, the Baker Street Irregulars began lobbying for its publication. The Doyle estate, then run by Doyle’s sons, stalled, dithered, and then ultimately negotiated for its publication in <i>Cosmopolitan</i> magazine in 1948. Then, to everyone’s embarrassment, it is revealed that <b><i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Case-Man-Who-Was-Wanted/dp/B0016BXY1O?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">The Case of the Man Who Was Wanted</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=B0016BXY1O" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /></i></b> was actually authored by a man named Arthur Whitaker, who had written the story and sent it to Conan Doyle hoping for a collaboration. Doyle turned him down, purchased the story for £10, and never used it.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">So, how can a story known to be written by someone else be considered Canonical, or at least apocryphal? While scholars Green and Tracy agree that Whitaker wrote the story, Peter Haining asserts that “The opening scene between Holmes and Watson betrays the hand of the master,” and that the story must be partly written by Conan Doyle. While his critique of the writing is correct, there is, however, zero evidence to support co-authorship.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><b><i>A Gaudy Death</i></b> (1901)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">With the subtitle “Conan Doyle Tells The True Story of Sherlock Holmes’s End’” this interview appeared in the December 15, 1900 issue of <i>Tit-bits</i>, a weekly magazine published by the same publishers who put out <i>The Strand Magazine</i>. Doyle gave this interview after Holmes had supposedly died at the Reichenbach falls. What is really interesting is he does mention that he has the occasional urges to write more Holmes adventures, further adding credence to <i>The Man with the Watches</i> and <i>The Lost Special</i>. He also discusses how he came up with the idea for Holmes, switching from novels to serial adventures, and how he had to kill Holmes because he was “lower work that was obscuring my higher.” </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><b><i>The Speckled Band (aka The Stonor Case)</i></b> (1902)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">This classic story was adapted into a play by Conan Doyle himself out of dire financial necessity. When his play entitled <i>The House of Temperley</i> (based on his reworked his prizefighting novel, <i>Rodney Stone</i>) bombed, Doyle found himself holding a six-month lease on an empty theater. So, he turned to Sherlock Holmes to rescue him. He wrote <b><i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Speckled-Cambridge-Scholars-Publishing-Classics/dp/1443806080?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">The Speckled Band</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=1443806080" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /></i></b> in less than a week. It was a smash hit, and the day was saved.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><b><i>The Painful Predicament of Mr. Sherlock Holmes</i></b> (1905)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">When William Gillette decided he needed a curtain raiser for one of his non-Sherlockian plays, the came up with this short comedy sketch, The plot involves Sherlock Holmes, and a very talkative client who monopolizes the dialogue, not allowing Holmes to get a word in edgewise. There is speculation that this play was written by Arthur Conan Doyle, and Gillette would certainly have needed Doyle’s consent to write an original work involving Sherlock Holmes. But co-authorship is almost certainly not the case, and there is no evidence at all that Doyle had a hand in its writing.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><b><i>Some Personalia about Sherlock Holmes</i></b> (1917)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">This essay was featured in <i>The Strand Magazine</i> as a Christmas treat to its readers. It talks of the way Holmes had caught the public imagination, and Conan Doyle’s view on his character. <i>Some Personalia About Sherlock Holmes</i> was written by Doyle and appeared in a 1917 edition of <i>The Strand</i>. Doyle discusses receiving letters written to Holmes and ruminates on true life crimes that the author had some involvement in investigating.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><b><i>The Crown Diamond: An Evening With Mr Sherlock Holmes</i></b> (1921?)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">This is yet another Sherlockian play by Arthur Conan Doyle. The general presumption of most scholars is that it was written sometime in either 1920 or 1921, shortly before it was mounted on the stage. However, his son Adrian Conan Doyle has stated that it was written in the early 1900’s, and this author believes he is correct. It is my contention that, following the collapse of <i>The House of Temperly</i>, Doyle’s first stab at drafting a life-saving Sherlock Holmes play wasn’t <i>The Speckled Band</i>, but rather <i><b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/crown-diamond-evening-Sherlock-Holmes/dp/B0007HZNLM?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">The Crown Diamond</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=B0007HZNLM" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /></b></i>. There is internal evidence within the play itself to support the claim, and if you want a full discussion of the argument, see the March 2005 issue of <i>The Illustrious Clients News</i>. Whenever it was written, it wasn’t produced until 1921.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><b><i>The Truth About Sherlock Holmes</i></b> (1923)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">This was an essay published in <i>Collier’s</i> magazine, in which Doyle again explains where the idea for Sherlock Holmes came from.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><b><i>How Watson Learned the Trick</i></b> (1924)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">Now we come to the fourth, and final item that is unanimously accepted into the apocrypha. This story, written specifically for publication as a miniature book in library of <i>The Queen’s Dolls Hous</i>e. It was later published in <i>The Book of the Queen’s Dolls’ House Library</i>. It is very similar to <i>The Field Bazaar</i> — the familiar breakfast scene, but instead we find Watson taking a shot at deducing Holmes’s thoughts. Of course, he fails miserably. It is short (503 words) and has a peculiar motivation for being authored, and yet, once again, it is an authentic episode in the life of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><b><i>My Favourite Sherlock Holmes Adventures</i></b> (1927)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">This is a short piece Doyle wrote for <i>The Strand</i> in 1927. It is a listing of Doyle’s own </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">dozen favorite Holmes tales. It is interesting to read the list, which was compiled before <i>Case-Book</i> was published.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">And that’s it…everything that has been proffered as possible candidates for being considered Sherlockian apocrypha and/or Canonicity.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">What do you think? What do you make of this large deposit of non-Canonical writing? Should the Canon be formally expanded? There is one thing Sherlockians agree on — The Apocrypha of Sherlock Holmes makes fascinating reading.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;"><br /><i>Please consider visiting our sponsors (in the right column and footer of the site) from time to time. It helps defray the costs associated with running this site.</i></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: small;">--</span><br /><iframe align="left" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=thebakerstree-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=057361606X&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="align: left; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe><iframe align="left" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=thebakerstree-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=0938501496&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="align: left; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe>  <iframe align="left" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=thebakerstree-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=B001VH6M4O&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="align: left; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe><iframe align="left" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=thebakerstree-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=B004DNWHHY&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="align: left; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe>  </div>

"From the Dummy's Chair" [MAZA]

Editor's note : This is part of a new feature on the Baker Street Blog we're calling "From the Dummy's Chair." Joining...

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by Scott Monty

"Something to Explode About" [CREE]

"<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1515091/">Sherlock Holmes 2</a>" is currently filming on location in France, as you're probably aware. The movie is set in 1891, following the sequence of events in the first film, and involves none other than Professor Moriarty. And today, we have a still image from the filming.<br /><br />We know what you're thinking: will it be faithful to the Canon?<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5093/5429485779_c625ba00df_z.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5093/5429485779_c625ba00df_z.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Image courtesy of <a href="http://www.dailyblam.com/news/2011/02/07/new-still-from-sherlock-holmes-2-shows-an-explosive-scene">The Daily Blam!</a></i></td></tr></tbody></table>We're looking forward to bringing you more news about the film as the production moves along. But we're not simply going to provide you with updates that have already been made on other sites (although that will be part of our coverage). We'll be getting occasional updates from our new Hollywood correspondent - an individual who is acting as an official advisor to the film - Leslie Klinger, BSI ("The Abbey Grange"). Les is most well known for his work on <a href="http://www.amazon.com/New-Annotated-Sherlock-Holmes-Complete/dp/0393059162?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank"><b><i>The New Annotated Sherlock Holmes</i></b></a> and <a href="http://www.amazon.com/New-Annotated-Dracula-Bram-Stoker/dp/0393064506?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">The New Annotated Dracula</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=0393064506" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" />, not to mention the entire <a href="http://amzn.to/esYZsn"><b>Sherlock Holmes Reference Library</b></a>.<br /><br />Until then, we leave you with this gem from Vincent Starrett, BSI ("<i>A Study in Scarlet</i>"):<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><b>221B</b></div><div style="text-align: center;">Here dwell together still two men of note</div><div style="text-align: center;">Who never lived and so can never die:</div><div style="text-align: center;">How very near they seem, yet how remote</div><div style="text-align: center;">That age before the world went all awry.</div><div style="text-align: center;">But still the game’s afoot for those with ears</div><div style="text-align: center;">Attuned to catch the distant view-halloo:</div><div style="text-align: center;">England is England yet, for all our fears–</div><div style="text-align: center;">Only those things the heart believes are true.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">A yellow fog swirls past the window-pane</div><div style="text-align: center;">As night descends upon this fabled street:</div><div style="text-align: center;">A lonely hansom splashes through the rain,</div><div style="text-align: center;">The ghostly gas lamps fail at twenty feet.</div><div style="text-align: center;">Here, though the world explode, these two survive,</div><div style="text-align: center;">And it is always eighteen ninety-five.</div><br /><br /><i>Please consider visiting our sponsors (in the right column and footer of the site) from time to time. It helps defray the costs associated with running this site.</i> <br /><br /><iframe align="left" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=thebakerstree-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=B001OQCV6A&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="align: left; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe><br />  <iframe align="left" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=thebakerstree-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=0393064506&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="align: left; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe>  <iframe align="left" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=thebakerstree-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=039305800X&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="align: left; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe>  <iframe align="left" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=thebakerstree-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=0393059162&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="align: left; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe><br />--

"Something to Explode About" [CREE]

" Sherlock Holmes 2 " is currently filming on location in France, as you're probably aware. The movie is set in 1891, followin...

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by Scott Monty

"I Have Some Knowledge of...Baritsu" [EMPT]

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCRQpGHbZCc7IAXG49_0Oq-HEwTldfwPMtMDl37p1ZhcihEDZg8bhcaoawwB8LXzP3ITWjf1ePc9KQvNREdEG8pb68l8q1atMLLbWwuZB0yrCgCM-70Tmj4uXyJZ-48icPBRwYZLDnwaEP/s1600/FINA_Holmes_reichenbach.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCRQpGHbZCc7IAXG49_0Oq-HEwTldfwPMtMDl37p1ZhcihEDZg8bhcaoawwB8LXzP3ITWjf1ePc9KQvNREdEG8pb68l8q1atMLLbWwuZB0yrCgCM-70Tmj4uXyJZ-48icPBRwYZLDnwaEP/s200/FINA_Holmes_reichenbach.jpg" width="136" /></a></div>As you are probably aware, the "Japanese system of wrestling" that Holmes described in "<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Return-Sherlock-Holmes-Vol-Grange/dp/B00007G1WI?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">The Adventure of the Empty House</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=B00007G1WI" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" />" (in telling how he and Professor Moriarty settled their dispute at the Reichenbach Falls) was referred to as <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baritsu">baritsu</a></i>.<br /><br />But in fact, the term was an invention of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's - perhaps unintentionally, as the actual martial art <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bartitsu">bartitsu</a></i> was invented by E. W. Barton-Wright  just two years prior to the story being written. It's quite possible that Doyle heard the term in passing and simply misremembered it, sealing its identity incorrectly for some 100 years.<br /><br />However, for the last two years, the <b><a href="http://bartitsu.org/">Bartitsu Society</a></b> has built its presence on the web, and not without a little nod to Sherlock Holmes. In fact, they have been helping with the production of a documentary about the activity for the last year, and now the film is in the final stages of development. <a href="http://www.bartitsu.org/index.php/2011/02/bartitsu-the-lost-martial-art-of-sherlock-holmes-update-2/">According to their site</a>:<br /><blockquote>Hosted by Tony Wolf, <i>Bartitsu: The Lost Martial Art of Sherlock Holmes</i> traces the history, loss, rediscovery and modern revival of E.W. Barton-Wright’s “New Art of Self Defence”. It was shot in Italy, Switzerland, the UK and the USA and features interviews with martial arts historians Harry Cook and Graham Noble, authors and Bartitsu enthusiasts Mark Donnelly, Will Thomas and Neal Stephenson, and self defence historian Dr. Emelyne Godfrey.</blockquote><blockquote>The 55-minute documentary is an international co-production between the Cletarte cultural association, Broken Art, Ran Arthur Braun and Tony Wolf and will be distributed by the Freelance Academy Press.</blockquote>The trailer for the film is available on <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZDNaC-2HW-A">YouTube</a>:<br /><br /><br /><br /><center><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/ZDNaC-2HW-A" title="YouTube video player" width="640"></iframe></center><br /><br />We'll try to keep up to speed on the developments of this project. Of course, if you hear before we do, please let us know.<br /><br /><br /><iframe align="left" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=thebakerstree-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=B00262QZHW&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe>  <iframe align="left" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=thebakerstree-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=B00262O5ZG&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="align: left; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe>  <iframe align="left" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=thebakerstree-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=1905605102&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe>  <iframe align="left" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=thebakerstree-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=B0037K7HYC&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe><br /><br />--

"I Have Some Knowledge of...Baritsu" [EMPT]

As you are probably aware, the "Japanese system of wrestling" that Holmes described in " The Adventure of the Empty House ...

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by Scott Monty

"Vanderbuilt and the Yeggman" [SUSS]

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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgawMDhJjXzNN4LsqbGUvYw3JkyIVYwO-i053rgG1o6_-MLnAC77pFrXRQyzFvrnMsYnOXxQZ3JrmC3s4gz0Z9ewaJBDdDJtNUQ36q2u5N5RjHCAHQhHyC4-sL3TF6uFamdux5fpZYNqKM/s1600/rouby.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgawMDhJjXzNN4LsqbGUvYw3JkyIVYwO-i053rgG1o6_-MLnAC77pFrXRQyzFvrnMsYnOXxQZ3JrmC3s4gz0Z9ewaJBDdDJtNUQ36q2u5N5RjHCAHQhHyC4-sL3TF6uFamdux5fpZYNqKM/s1600/rouby.jpg" /></a></div>
<b><i>Editor's note: </i></b>Our correspondent for obituaries of members Baker Street Irregulars (sometimes referred to as "Stand with me here upon the terrace") is Francine Kitts, BSI ("Lady Hilda Trelawney Hope"), who has this duty annually at the BSI dinner. We welcome her to this role here.<br />
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Jason Pierre Rouby, BSI (“Vanderbilt and the Yeggman”) died in Little Rock, AR on January 15, 2011 at the age of 87. He was a reporter for several newspapers, including the Arkansas Gazette, was a regional planner, and was active in community services and charitable organizations. During World War II he served in the US Army as a machine gunner and qualified as a sharp shooter. He was a member of the 80th Reconnaissance Troop, a division of General Patton’s Army and served as a French interpreter in several war trials. He was awarded three Bronze Stars for his involvement in the Battle of the Bulge.<br />
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In addition to being a contributing member of The Baker Street Irregulars, Mr. Rouby was a member of the <a href="http://www.sh-whoswho.com/index.php?refsociety=250">Maiwand Jezails</a> in Omaha and founded The Arkansas Valley Investors, Ltd. in Little Rock. He traveled around the country a few times a year giving talks on Sherlock Holmes and later donated his Sherlockian books and memorabilia to the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. He was investitured into the Baker Street Irregulars in 1968.<br />
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A touching <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kGC7DPUvb5Y">commemorative video of Mr. Rouby</a>, prepared by his grandson David Aaron Rouby, can be seen below:<br />
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Do you have any personal memories of Jason Rouby? Please share them in the comments section below.<br />
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"Vanderbuilt and the Yeggman" [SUSS]

Editor's note: Our correspondent for obituaries of members Baker Street Irregulars (sometimes referred to as "Stand with me here ...

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by Francine Kitts

Was Sherlock Holmes Right About Oysters?

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<b>"Shall the world then, be overrun by oysters?" [DYIN]</b></h4>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCVTORicK7eQYQrXKJr_SJs_ud8BJmCuuQWWJgTq36nE-QlXKhzzjT6VbouYNiAStRZYM1Wmdo26SwBiJoPsW0nV_UqqumZ0imJdkfeDlsbjrYK9dcESOpmBJ8sVroowRJ1TfIszWFLD6m/s1600/Oysters.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="If you're about to take over the world, a scowl is necessary." border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCVTORicK7eQYQrXKJr_SJs_ud8BJmCuuQWWJgTq36nE-QlXKhzzjT6VbouYNiAStRZYM1Wmdo26SwBiJoPsW0nV_UqqumZ0imJdkfeDlsbjrYK9dcESOpmBJ8sVroowRJ1TfIszWFLD6m/s1600/Oysters.jpg" title="Frowning oysters" width="640" /></a><br />
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In "The Adventure of the Dying Detective" Holmes, in a fevered state, wondered if the world would be overrun by oysters.<br />
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The answer is: apparently not.<br />
<blockquote>
<i>"I cannot think why the whole bed of the ocean is not one solid mass of oysters, so prolific the creatures seem."</i></blockquote>
In recent years, the oyster population has been on a downturn due to overharvesting or disease.<br />
The good news is that may be on the rebound now, as <a data-cke-saved-href="https://www.capebretonpost.com/lifestyles/local-lifestyles/annamarie-hatcher-oyster-population-rebounding-339017/" href="https://www.capebretonpost.com/lifestyles/local-lifestyles/annamarie-hatcher-oyster-population-rebounding-339017/">oyster populations make a comeback</a>.<br />
<br />
We know that Sherlock Holmes was ill—or at least feigning illness—when he deliriously opined about oysters. While we can't comment on the validity of the current study's findings, you can click through to the article to read more.<br />
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In the meantime, perhaps you'll join us in in celebrating as Holmes did in <b><i>The Sign of Four<img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=B001OLZSKG" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /></i></b>:<br />
<blockquote>
<i>"Only that I insist upon your dining with us. It will be ready in half an hour. I have oysters and a brace of grouse, with something a little choice in white wines. Watson, you have never yet recognized my merits as a housekeeper."</i></blockquote>
If you'd like to prepare your own, a great resource is <a href="https://amzn.to/33cIheD" target="_blank"><b><i>Dining With Sherlock Holmes: A Baker Street Cookbook</i></b></a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=thebakerstree-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=0823212718" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /> by Julia Rosenblatt, BSI ("Mrs. Turner")<br />
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<i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Image credit: <a href="https://flic.kr/p/5gXDbv" target="_blank">sr320 (Flickr)</a></span></i><br />
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