I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere

Sherlockian History: 29 Years Ago Today

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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvKNcoGkMc-3YukAQ8rUMNWJqdBwOva_Qu7fkHxc0GYF2E58llMKZVsfKg6Rhm-wDEZ6CvTAXSTPoSvPktSpyfpK_7I0CAuUEdMgwfdzqZlEpb-lNWYYlavqljDB-gifVBnNgS_6CVXXDa/s1600/Granada+Sherlock+Holmes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="A press still from Granada's The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, starring Jeremy Brett and David Burke." border="0" height="388" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvKNcoGkMc-3YukAQ8rUMNWJqdBwOva_Qu7fkHxc0GYF2E58llMKZVsfKg6Rhm-wDEZ6CvTAXSTPoSvPktSpyfpK_7I0CAuUEdMgwfdzqZlEpb-lNWYYlavqljDB-gifVBnNgS_6CVXXDa/s1600/Granada+Sherlock+Holmes.jpg" title="Granada's The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes" width="640" /></a></div>
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Without a doubt, one of the most influential and memorable portayals of Sherlock Holmes in recent years was that of Jeremy Brett in the Granada production.<br />
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Nearly 30 years ago today - on March 14, 1985 - <i><a href="http://amzn.to/1imscXc" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes</a></i> made its premiere on American television via PBS.<br />
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Michael Cox was the brainchild behind the production, and with the assistance of John Hawkesworth and a number of other writers, brought the series to life in an authentic Victorian era setting. It was lavishly produced and is remembered (at least in the first two or three series) as being very faithful to the original Canon.<br />
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Starring Jeremy Brett as Sherlock Holmes and David Burke as a level-headed, intelligent and ready-for-action Watson, the series burned an image of Sherlock Holmes into the minds of an entire generation. The series brought us guest stars that included such notables as Eric Porter, Roger Hammond, Jeremy Kemp, Joss Ackland, Gayle Hunnicut and more. <a href="http://amzn.to/1fxrpgV" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The soundtrack to the Granada Sherlock Holmes</a> series is another reason that it rates highly to us.<br />
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For a behind the scenes look at how the series came together and the challenges associated with mounting such a serious production, <i><a href="http://wessexpress.com/html/studyincelluloid.html" target="_blank">A Study in Celluloid</a></i> by Michael Cox himself does a wonderful job of getting into the details. [Disclosure: the book is published by <a href="http://wessexpress.com/" target="_blank">Wessex Press</a>, one of our sponsors. Please support them.]<br />
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And while you're at it, we'd also suggest that you kick back this evening and celebrate three decades of Granada by watching one of those early episodes.<br />
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<a href="http://wessexpress.com/html/studyincelluloid.html"><img alt="A Study in Celluloid - Michael Cox, producer of the Granada Sherlock Holmes series, takes readers behind the scenes with Jeremy Brett." border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQculGPSH9NlP6E-OGueAgqPyhYx63uOn1lN1zV4VnJ6OG-UtIms8O0b07DPWXmhoEPymZfMiIVoglU94utYUnYcPXvhLrJ3G7qbK56Faq4kXpuPb3J6u0RqNjR5XcXbXtWSsd2HHwSESp/s1600/celluloid350.jpg" title="A Study in Celluloid" width="128" /></a></div>
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Sherlockian History: 29 Years Ago Today

Without a doubt, one of the most influential and memorable portayals of Sherlock Holmes in recent years was that of Jeremy Brett in the G...

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by Scott Monty

Episode 62: Inside the BSI Weekend

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"those weekend parties" [SOLI] </h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBVF4zqaQGz-GBqRdclrrgA8WLrtw2YviEO16ewqkfL1ivBukvPlH5zmRGYGSxt9OPLa_zmwxpP6NX0GuYL58l2RIUdiUvEpMWNZ3owCMEqXkpnKt9AiYZzwxbj6QbpEY59iW7kCU0pqsu/s1600/2014+BSI+Dinner+-+Gruber.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="The #bsiweekend is comprised of a number of activities to celebrate the life of Sherlock Holmes." border="0" height="508" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBVF4zqaQGz-GBqRdclrrgA8WLrtw2YviEO16ewqkfL1ivBukvPlH5zmRGYGSxt9OPLa_zmwxpP6NX0GuYL58l2RIUdiUvEpMWNZ3owCMEqXkpnKt9AiYZzwxbj6QbpEY59iW7kCU0pqsu/s1600/2014+BSI+Dinner+-+Gruber.jpg" title="2014 BSI Weekend" width="640" /></a></div>
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While our last episode was recorded during the BSI Weekend in New York, we thought we'd cover some of the happenings in and around the <a href="http://bsiweekend.com/" target="_blank">BSI Weekend</a> itself.<br />
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Our opening comments center around collecting and what makes a collector, but then we quickly launch into actual audio clips with individuals we met during the weekend. Our audio files open with an interview with  Art Levine, who has been attending BSI dinners since 1954. He knew and associated with the likes of Edgar Smith, Christopher Morley, Rex Stout, Basil Davenport and more.<br />
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We then flit from one newly minted BSI to another. You'll hear the excitement and energy in their voices that testify to the thrilling nature of receiving an investiture in this literary society.<br />
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We reach deep into the mail (voice and e) for our listener comments. And this episode's Gas-Lamp from the March 1995 Baker Street Journal (Vol. 45, No. 1) harkens back to our previous episode and looks at the serendipity of collecting - particularly acquiring new books during the BSI Weekend - and touches upon the collection of one Mr. Vincent Starrett.<br />
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Links:</h4>
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<li>Gruber Photographers have been taking the BSI dinner photos for some years, using equipment that is over 100 years old. <a href="http://www.gruberphotographers.com/blog/baker-street-irregulars-banquet-2014/" target="_blank">Take a look at their setup and some photos from the dinner</a>. </li>
<li><i><a href="http://www.torontobootmakers.com/canadian-holmes/canadian-holmes-current-publication/" target="_blank">Canadian Holmes</a></i> - electronic edition</li>
<li><a href="http://www.christophermorley.org/knothole/knothole.html" target="_blank">The Christopher Morley Knothole Association</a></li>
<li><i><a href="http://www.bakerstreetjournal.com/" target="_blank">The Baker Street Journal</a></i> spring edition will contain the BSI Weekend recap - be sure to subscribe.</li>
<li>Our <a href="http://flip.it/oxPOZ">Flipboard magazine</a> and <a href="http://www.scoop.it/t/sherlock-holmes">Scoop.it!</a> site aggregate lots of content for your enjoyment.</li>
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Your thoughts on the show? Leave a comment below, send us an email, call us at (774) 221-READ (7323) or use the Speakpipe app right here on the site. Connect with us and other interested Sherlockians on <a href="https://plus.google.com/communities/114565123495685504221">The Sherlock Holmes Community</a> on Google+, <a href="http://facebook.com/ihearofsherlock">Facebook</a>, <a href="http://twitter.com/ihearofsherlock">Twitter</a> and <a href="http://ihearofsherlock.tumblr.com/">Tumblr</a>. And of course, our <a href="http://flip.it/oxPOZ">web- and app-based Flipboard magazine</a> is a nice collection of links, articles and images.<br />
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And above all, please let our sponsors know that you heard us rant and rave about their excellence during the programme: <a href="http://www.wessexpress.com/">Wessex Press</a> and <a href="http://www.bakerstreetjournal.com/">The Baker Street Journal</a>.<br />
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Episode 62: Inside the BSI Weekend

"those weekend parties" [SOLI] While our last episode was recorded during the BSI Weekend in New York, we thought ...

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by Scott Monty

Weekly Sherlock Links Compendium (February 15 - February 28, 2014)

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"...the gloom of winter evening had thickened into one gray curtain, a dead monotone of colour..." [REDC]</h4>
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This post is dedicated to east coast Sherlockian scion personality and recently departed friend Joe Moran - you will be dearly missed sir.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHgNwHJVlJg6l8vwElROcHRwKYeF-isgQSRQ0VI70qo3U4oYrwZHsQdtxoc8MhsnmA-IJyXq2OU9e9MY5H2t3GtcCbiVIj4Np2nIsUjCX9ICfGEr9Ssb_koUX7va1wj2Tcgw_2JxRmF6k/s1600/Joe+Moran.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="433" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHgNwHJVlJg6l8vwElROcHRwKYeF-isgQSRQ0VI70qo3U4oYrwZHsQdtxoc8MhsnmA-IJyXq2OU9e9MY5H2t3GtcCbiVIj4Np2nIsUjCX9ICfGEr9Ssb_koUX7va1wj2Tcgw_2JxRmF6k/s1600/Joe+Moran.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="text-align: start;">[Click the above photo to read Francine Kitts' </span><a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2014/02/remembering-joe-moran-bsi_23.html" style="text-align: start;">I Hear of Sherlock</a><span style="text-align: start;"> remembrance of Sherlockian <b>Joe Moran</b>. Photo taken at the 1991 'Back To Switzerland' event sponsored by the </span><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/shsl/12118766945/in/photostream/" style="text-align: start;">Sherlock Holmes Society of London</a><span style="text-align: start;">.]</span></span></td></tr>
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Wondering what happened in the Sherlockian world during the second half of February 2014? Gothic horror literature, a lifelong pursuit of Sherlockian-centric publishing, the minds behind UK Sherlock Con 'Elementary', a look at why someone wanted to exhume the body of Bertram Fletcher Robinson, role playing on <i>Baker Street</i>, Paget illustrations recreated in LEGO, combining five different Holmes adaptations to create one seamless video, Moriarty overload, a whimsical look at the 'rules' for writing a Sherlock pastiche, Keefauver on the Sherlockian brave new world, a discussion of whether or not BBC <i>Sherlock</i> has diminished strong female characters in the Canon and much more in the latest Weekly Sherlock Links Compendium by <a href="http://always1895.net/" target="_blank">Matt Laffey</a>.</div>
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<a href="http://mastersofhorroruk.blogspot.com/2014/03/interview-with-leslie-s-klinger-by.html" target="_blank">Masters of Horror recently interviewed</a> Sherlockian annotator extraordinaire <a href="https://twitter.com/lklinger">Leslie S Klinger</a> about how he first became interested in Sherlock Holmes, Dracula and the scholarly side of gothic horror literature, his work as the official technical advisor for the Warner Bros Guy Ritchie Sherlock Homes films, his favorite horror literature and films, what it is like being a recognized world-renowned expert and award-winning author in the Sherlockian world, and more. My favorite part of the interview is when Klinger discusses his greatest accomplishments as a writer so far: "I was deeply honored to receive the <a href="http://www.theedgars.com/">Edgar</a> for my <a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-New-Annotated-Sherlock-Holmes/dp/0393059162"><i>New Annotated Sherlock Holmes: The Complete Short Stories</i></a> [Edgar Award for 'Best Critical / Biographical Work', 2005]. I always explain, however, that I stood on the shoulders of <b>[William] Baring-Gould</b>’s work. I had three great advantages over Baring-Gould: (1) The Internet and its amazing depth of Victorian works (in GoogleBooks and elsewhere); (2) the Ronald B. De Waal bibliography of all things Sherlock Holmes (over 25,000 entries), published after Baring-Gould’s death; and (3) I got to start with the work of Baring-Gould! I spent 37 years reading about Holmes, and it was an incredible opportunity to be allowed to distill that reading into 3,000 footnotes! I’m immensely proud of every one of my books. A great highlight of my writing career was the amazing opportunity to study the manuscript of <i>Dracula</i>, owned by Paul Allen and seen (by 2007) by only one other scholar, who wrote nothing about it." Check out the entire interview for more insights into one of my favorite Sherlockians, Mr Leslie Klinger.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPsOgLK-h_NbHp30SeOO9V_fycjjUHwx9reOpEnFRytTIJSUazJo5z15CKm71psKGrsgs1mkDzR0Iyo6_wvM99uBeE4q9CAQBTObgHhnG6Mm6mFFYCD5C_mjIi-FDgcKCjr0V2JUbSgig/s1600/Klinger-Annotated.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPsOgLK-h_NbHp30SeOO9V_fycjjUHwx9reOpEnFRytTIJSUazJo5z15CKm71psKGrsgs1mkDzR0Iyo6_wvM99uBeE4q9CAQBTObgHhnG6Mm6mFFYCD5C_mjIi-FDgcKCjr0V2JUbSgig/s1600/Klinger-Annotated.jpg" width="527" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: start;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">[Cover of Klinger's New Annotated Sherlock Holmes, an essential tome for any Sherlockian library and serious fans of the mystery genre in general.]</span></span></td></tr>
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Dan Andriacco <a href="http://bakerstreetbeat.blogspot.com/2014/02/a-few-words-with-steven-doyle.html" target="_blank">interviewed Sherlockian publishing powerhouse Steve Doyle, BSI</a> ("The Western Morning News") about his life and work in the Sherlockian world which started at the tender age of 14 when he first received facsimiles of the <i>Adventures</i> and <i>Memoirs</i> to when he began publishing and editing his the legendary <i>Sherlock Holmes Review</i> (at 27 years old), a project that led him to <a href="http://www.wessexpress.com/">Wessex Press/Gasogene Books</a> and eventually becoming the publisher of the <a href="http://www.bakerstreetjournal.com/"><i>Baker Street Journal</i></a> and author of the acclaimed <a href="http://amzn.to/1csv7h8" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><i>Sherlock Holmes For Dummies</i></a>. For a sense of just exactly how long Mr Doyle has been in the game, check out this fantastic <a href="http://youtu.be/dLhe4tTl4bU">video interview from 1987</a> featuring a fresh-faced, 27 year old Steven Doyle discussing the <i>Sherlock Holmes Review</i>, the current state (c. mid-1980s) of the Sherlockian world, the ever-growing network of Sherlockian scholars and like-minded fans from around the world and how no detective will ever rival the powers of Sherlock Holmes. My favorite part of Andriacco's interview is the following:<br />
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<b>Andriacco</b>: What is the best part of being a Sherlockian?<br />
<b>Doyle</b>: "Being a Sherlockian gives you a key to a community of simply the best people I've been privileged to know. Literate, loyal, amazingly generous, absolutely delighting in the intellectual game of Sherlock Holmes. There's absolutely nothing like it." </blockquote>
I concur. Lastly, make sure to mark your calendars for Steve Doyle's Wessex Press-sponsored event <b><a href="http://www.wessexpress.com/html/g2b4.html">From Gillette to Brett IV</a>: Basil, Benedict and Beyond</b> taking place in Bloomington, IN on September 12-14, 2014. The conference will feature rare Sherlockian films, vendors, and an all-star roster of distinguished speakers, presenters, and events, one major highlight being screenings of the 75th anniversary prints of Basil Rathbone's <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0031448/"><i>The Hound of the Baskervilles</i></a> (1939) and <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0031022/"><i>The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes</i></a> (1939) at the state-of-the-art <a href="http://www.cinema.indiana.edu/">IU Cinema</a>. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: start;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">[Screenshot of Steve Doyle at 27 years old reading from an issue of his <i>Sherlock Holmes Review</i> during a 1987 interview.]</span></span></td></tr>
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<a href="http://bakerstreetbabes.com/podcast/episode-53-lars-mikkelsen-jonathan-aris-arwel-wyn-jones/"><b>The Baker Street Babes - Episode 53</b></a> finds Babes <a href="https://twitter.com/kafers">Kafers</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/orpheusetude">Taylor</a> making the trip to Birmingham, UK to attend a three day Sherlock Con (February 7 - 9, 2014) called 'Elementary' produced by <a href="http://www.starfury.co.uk/">Starfury Conventions</a> (a professional UK convention organizer) whose main attraction was an appearance by the one and only Benedict Cumberbatch. Also on the bill were a number of other BBC <i>Sherlock</i> personalities including actor Lars Mikkelsen who played the late, lamented Charles Augustus Magnussen ("His Last Vow"), <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0034877/"><b>Jonathan Aris</b></a> better known as Anderson (wonder if he had the beard?) and set-designer <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1564536/"><b>Arwel Wyn Jones</b></a> - all three of whom appear on Episode 53. Find out what Mikkelsen and Aris think about the tremendous popularity of the show as well as how appearing on one of the most popular UK show's in history has changed their lives. Jones opens up about life behind the BBC <i>Sherlock</i> camera and names some of his favorite sets he's created. As a bonus, the Babes talk to a sampling of Sherlockian cosplay participants capturing the mood and spirit of the conference through the eyes of dedicated fans. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: start;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">["The clues and the evidence have all pointed in one direction, that the only solution for the growing army of fans for Sherlock is an unofficial event. Indeed, it's elementary! A three day celebration, featuring guest talks, panel, discussions, and a fantastic opportunity for fans to gather around and share their enthusiasm for one of the best shows on TV today!"]</span></span></td></tr>
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<a href="http://www.westernmorningnews.co.uk/Conan-Doyle-murder-tale-totally-unreliable/story-11687514-detail/story.html"><b>Western Morning News</b></a> reported on the latest (and perhaps final) development in the controversial debate on whether or not Arthur Conan Doyle murdered author and journalist <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bertram_Fletcher_Robinson"><b>Bertram Fletcher Robinson</b></a> (who died on January 21, 1907) by purposely administering a fatal overdose of laudanum (via Gladys, Robinson's wife), opposed to Robinson's official cause of death which was typhoid fever and peritonitis following a visit to Paris. For those unfamiliar with this 'controversy', Doyle's alleged motive for murdering BFR was two-fold: the first was an attempt to cover up an adulterous affair [Doyle] had with his wife and the second was to hide the fact that [ACD] stole the plot of the <i>Hound of the Baskervilles</i>.<br />
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"The accusations were the results of research carried out by former driving instructor Rodger Garrick-Steele who wanted to exhume the corpse...and test it for traces of poison....Having examined the evidence, Sir Andrew [McFarlane, the chancellor of the ecclesiastical court] said: "This court has been driven to the conclusion that it cannot place any reliance on as assertion made by RGS which is not backed up by an independent piece of evidence or source. On the basis of the material that he has placed before this court he appears to be a totally unreliable historian." </blockquote>
Robinson expert <a href="https://twitter.com/Baskerville221B"><b>Paul Spiring</b></a> exhaustively explains the details of the controversy in the well-written "<a href="http://www.bfronline.biz/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=251&Itemid=9">Conan Doyle, Fletcher Robinson and the Hound</a>" -  and for further background see "<a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1494820/Did-Conan-Doyle-poison-his-friend-to-cheat-him-out-of-The-Hound-of-the-Baskervilles.html">Did Conan Doyle poison his friend to cheat him out of The Hound of the Baskervilles?</a>".<br />
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If you are unfamiliar with the work of Bertram Fletcher Robinson, I highly suggest checking out some of <a href="http://mxpublishing.com/product/BFRCollection/Bertram+Fletcher+Robinson+Collection">Paul Spiring's books published by MX</a> such as <a href="http://always1895.net/post/3333540699/bertram-fletcher-robinson-aside-acd"><i>Aside Arthur Conan Doyle</i></a> which features 20 illustrated short stories (1899-1907) by BFR. Spiring's <a href="http://www.bfronline.biz/images/pdf/BFletcherRobinsonBibliography.pdf">bibliography of BFR</a> is available as a PDF online as are a number of BFR's short stories which are in the public domain. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqJ380ENO8-RwDXAQ1piC271m_k8K3frXCpVheEyHQzGxVBBw87TJ4DTskt9ckjBCJvgD_SfnACjIT9KV_H8uv3Bo_oHMRz-m8Kiv9yuYHVxz7rsieoJham55IDAUy55hrAqLghIvmh_Q/s1600/HOUN-dedicationtoBFR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="372" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqJ380ENO8-RwDXAQ1piC271m_k8K3frXCpVheEyHQzGxVBBw87TJ4DTskt9ckjBCJvgD_SfnACjIT9KV_H8uv3Bo_oHMRz-m8Kiv9yuYHVxz7rsieoJham55IDAUy55hrAqLghIvmh_Q/s1600/HOUN-dedicationtoBFR.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="text-align: start;">[ACD's dedication to BFR in the published version of </span><a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=5l8rUHN9STcC&dq=hound%20of%20the%20baskervilles&pg=PR6#v=onepage&q&f=false" style="text-align: start;">The Hound of the Baskervilles</a><span style="text-align: start;"> (1902). Spiring's essay on BFR and HOUN describes earlier and later versions of this dedication plus a variety of references made by ACD in letters to BFR's participation in the creation of HOUN, all of which make for fascinating reading, irregardless of the fantastic claims made by others regarding ACD and BFR.]</span></span></td></tr>
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<a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/fearlightgames/baker-street-roleplaying-in-the-world-of-sherlock"><b><i>Baker Street</i>: Roleplaying in the World of Sherlock Holmes</b></a> is a Victorian-era RPG designed for 3 to 5 players where you become an investigator working out of 221B Baker Street solving cases as Dr. Watson during the conspicuous absence of Sherlock Holmes, created by <b>Bryce Whitacre</b> for <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/profile/fearlightgames">Fearlight Games</a>. [<b><i>Editor's note</i></b>: <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2014/02/a-quick-look-at-baker-street-rpg-on.html#.Ux6fovmwJcQ" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">reviewed here on February 14</a>.]<br />
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"Featuring over 30 careers, 25 unique criminal extras, and rules for making your own nefarious villains, <i>Baker Street</i> features a robust investigation mechanic, easy character generation, and rules for making your own mystery. Some of the unique features of <i>Baker Street</i> are The Sherlock Die, Investigation Scenes, Clue Cards, Social Status, and the Threat Meter." </blockquote>
To date this Kickstarter campaign has 451 backers who have pledged a total of over $25,000 (original goal was $3,500) - and there are still 5 days to go! If you're interested, there's still plenty of Kickstarter reward levels ranging from pledges of $1, $10, $15,....to major pledges of $100 (appear in the game's artwork), $150 (receive limited edition hardcover version of rule book). Personally, I don't know much about RPGs (think <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dungeons_%26_Dragons"><i>Dungeon & Dragons</i></a> role playing games with a Sherlockian twist) but reading about <i>Baker Street</i> makes me want to find a few Sherlockians who are into RPGs. I'll probably buy this game once it's released regardless, if just to own the special <a href="https://s3.amazonaws.com/ksr/assets/001/667/655/f77ec712f352f2b3294ba3c45a1587cf_large.jpg?1393167323">Sherlockian die</a> (multi-sided dice custom made for playing this game). For an in-depth look at <i>Baker Street</i> check out this dramatic <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/fearlightgames/baker-street-roleplaying-in-the-world-of-sherlock/widget/video.html">video trailer</a>. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: start;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">[Rule book for <i>Baker Street</i> - for high level Kickstarter backers there is a special edition hardcover version bound in hunter green vellum with the official seal of the Conan Doyle estate embossed in gold foil on the front. Each book comes in a matching slipcover and will be hand-signed and numbered on the title page by the Baker Street designer, Bryce Whitacre.]</span></span></td></tr>
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<b><a href="http://mxpublishing.tumblr.com/post/76752761868/a-scandal-in-bohemia-illustrated-in-lego-all">"A Scandal In Bohemia" Illustrated in LEGOs</a></b> from MX Publishing is an attempt to capture the interest of younger readers by presenting the text of <a href="http://ignisart.com/camdenhouse/canon/scan.htm">"A Scandal in Bohemia"</a> with all the traditional Sidney Paget illustrations re-created in LEGO bricks! Available soon from <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Scandal-Bohemia-Adventures-Sherlock-Holmes/dp/1780926049">Amazon</a> and other outlets, this paperback release is one of the more creative presentations of a Canonical text I have yet to see. Other MX titles geared towards the younger Sherlockians of the world include: <a href="http://www.mxpublishing.com/product/9781780923161/Sherlock+Holmes+and+The+Missing+Snowman"><i>Sherlock Holmes and the Missing Snowman</i></a> (2012) where "a young girl's snowman has gone missing. Where can it have gone? There is only one man who can help. Sherlock Holmes, the most famous detective in the world."; two other MX titles of possible interest to a younger crowd include <a href="http://www.mxpublishing.com/product/9781780925233/Is+That+My+Holmes"><i>Is That My Holmes?</i></a> (2013) and <a href="http://www.mxpublishing.com/product/9781780925264/Is+That+My+Watson"><i>Is That My Watson?</i></a> (2013) written by Andrew Murray and illustrated by Deakin Brook: "It’s so hard to choose, so spare a thought for poor Sherlock Holmes – faced with so many Watsons old and new, what will he do?  Who’s too techno-garish?  Who’s too teddy-bearish? Who’s maybe too pretty? Who’s in the wrong city? Who’s the right Watson in Holmes’s own view? And is Sherlock’s Watson the Watson for you?"</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_JDQgoGFyRCISr3s_3jLsXlIhJVdimKJHWlovLHn4FZLsVS5bXhb9rKf98ATaB3Z3NIxH-33msRahF_uQNP8XcxpFCmyVV7UOmkQKVfZ56Ujz18u_AVESCugQLW-9PTb5BFq5M6WQsGI/s1600/SCAN-legos.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="496" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_JDQgoGFyRCISr3s_3jLsXlIhJVdimKJHWlovLHn4FZLsVS5bXhb9rKf98ATaB3Z3NIxH-33msRahF_uQNP8XcxpFCmyVV7UOmkQKVfZ56Ujz18u_AVESCugQLW-9PTb5BFq5M6WQsGI/s1600/SCAN-legos.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="text-align: start;">[A Lego-ized <b>Irene Adler</b> bidding goodnight to a bemused Holmes and Watson at the end of SCAN - click </span><a href="http://ignisart.com/camdenhouse/images/scan-09.jpg" style="text-align: start;">here</a><span style="text-align: start;"> for the original Paget illustration.]</span></span></td></tr>
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<a href="http://youtu.be/UCs6hjTwdSo"><b><i>The Sign of Four</i> 'mashup' video</b></a>, created by the talented Sherlockian from Iowa <a href="https://twitter.com/Sweeper887"><b>Monica Schmidt</b></a>, is an extremely clever video that combines dialogue scenes from various Sherlock Holmes adaptations including Jeremy Brett/Granada Series (1984-1994), Ian Richardson's <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sign_of_Four_(1983_film)"><i>The Sign of Four</i></a> (1983), Charlton Heston's <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0101631/"><i>The Crucifer of Blood</i></a> (1991), Peter Cushing's <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093971/"><i>The Sign of Four</i></a> (1968), Robert Downey Jr.'s <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0988045/"><i>Sherlock Holmes</i></a> (2009), and Vasily Livanov's "<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0080263/">The Bloody Signature</a>" (1979). Played in full, Ms Schmidt has managed to re-create most of the dialogue from Chapter 1 "The Science of Deduction" of <a href="http://ignisart.com/camdenhouse/canon/sign-01.htm"><i>The Sign of Four</i></a>. Let's hope Ms Schmidt has more video cleverness in store for us in the future.<br />
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<b><a href="http://alistaird221b.blogspot.com/2014/02/keep-moriarty-dead-there-are-other.html">Doyleockian</a></b> makes the case for 'less Moriarty and greater use of non-Moriarty Canonical villains' when constructing new Holmes adaptations and pastiches. Instead of pitting Holmes against the, one again, resurrected (ad nauseum squared) Napoleon of Crime, <a href="https://twitter.com/alistaird221b"><b>Alistair Duncan</b></a> suggests a laundry list drenched in Canonical depravity, avarice and skullduggery made up of villains such as "Baron Gruner, Culverton Smith, Isadora Klein, John Clay and/or Sir George Burnwell." Missing from Duncan's list - though equally capable in the scoundrel department in my opinion - are Josiah Amberley (RETI, gassed his wife and his chess opponent to death), Jack Ferguson (SUSS, assuming Master Jacky's year at sea served only to refine his sociopathic tendencies), James Windibank/Hosmer Angel (IDEN, even Holmes predicted him destined for greater evils) and Parker the Garrotter and Jew's harp virtuoso (EMPT, because I'm pretty sure a garrotter is by definition a bad guy all around). As the above enumerations show, you will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy (to paraphrase from Obi Wan Kenobi's description of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mos_Eisley_Cantina">Mos Eisley Cantina</a>) than in the Canon of Sherlock Holmes. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="text-align: start;">[“<b>John Clay</b>, the murderer, thief, smasher, and forger. He’s a young man, Mr. Merryweather, but he is at the head of his profession, and I would rather have my bracelets on him than on any criminal in London. He’s a remarkable man, is young John Clay...His brain is as cunning as his fingers, and though we meet signs of him at every turn, we never know where to find the man himself." (</span><a href="http://ignisart.com/camdenhouse/canon/redh.htm" style="text-align: start;">REDH</a><span style="text-align: start;">)]</span></span></td></tr>
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Girl Meets Sherlock's <a href="https://twitter.com/Pickwick12">Amy Thomas</a> posted the whimsically titled "<a href="http://girlmeetssherlock.wordpress.com/2014/02/19/how-to-write-a-pastiche-that-sparkle/" target="_blank"><b>How To Write a Pastiche That Sparkle$!</b></a>" which includes a number of very 'helpful' hints regarding how to compose a successful Holmes pastiche. In light of Duncan's entry above, I think the most important point is tip #1 "Include TONS of historical people. It’s called playing The Game. Who wants to read a pastiche where Holmes interacts in-depth with one historical person or situation? Subtlety is boring. Namecheck at least ten real-life characters, or you don’t deserve to call yourself a pastiche artist." I would go even further and suggest that the greater the number of historical and fictional figures included, the greater chance one has of achieving literary fame and fortune. Whenever I get around to writing my pastiche, it will include all three Moriarty brothers plus a fourth James Moriarty (but unrelated to the Professor, Colonel and Station Master) and a James Moriarty-bot built by none-other-than Thorpe Holmes, the 'other' Holmes brother from that masterpiece of all Sherlockian cinema, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1522835/"><i>Asylum's Sherlock Holmes</i></a> (2010). My only complaint about Ms Thomas' list is that she forgot item #6 which goes something like 'Make sure to establish that your pastiche is truly authentic by mentioning that said manuscript was discovered in your great-grandmother's attic in a box marked "Grandma's Les Liaisons Dangereuses: or Doctor's I've Known and Loved." </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="text-align: start;">[Thorpe Holmes, the cybernetic-ized brother of Sherlock Holmes, in </span><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1522835/" style="text-align: start;"><i>Asylum's Sherlock Holmes</i></a><span style="text-align: start;"> (2010).]</span></span></td></tr>
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On Sherlock Peoria, in "<a href="http://sherlockpeoria.blogspot.com/2014/02/standing-where-you-might-get-finger.html" style="font-weight: bold;" target="_blank">Standing Where You Might Get Finger Slipped</a>,"Brad Keefauver invites Sherlockians, perhaps dubious of the current Kickstarter campaign based around the notion of turning an obscure fan fiction piece into a web series, to pause for a moment and acknowledge the impressiveness of the <i>A Finger Slip</i> project:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"We live in an age where a young dreamer can get an idea to adapt an idea based on an idea, with both of the last two ideas based on two other ideas, then raise $13,000 to fulfill that dream, funded by folks who want to see that dream come true..." </blockquote>
Keefauver then takes his argument one step further by suggesting that those critical of the project need to remove their blinders and realize that an important aspect of the brave new Sherlockian world is the multiplicity of perspectives now available to Holmes enthusiasts. Keefauver also successfully addresses a point I raised in <a href="http://always1895.net/post/76517189042/weekly-sherlock-links-compendium-january-25-february">last week's post</a> regarding <i>Sherlock Peoria</i>'s ambiguity toward this brave new world: "I'm less and less sure of where I stand in our modern Sherlockian world for one simple reason: It's a much bigger place than it used to be and there are just so many, many places to stand now." Lastly, a point which should be unequivocally un-ambiguous is Keefauver's descriptive virtuosity as evidenced by the following turn of phrase: "And apparently, <i>A Finger Slip</i> has touched a lot of folks's mental private parts." Indeed it has.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: start;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">[An artist's rendering of what the Sherlockian world of tomorrow will look like. If you look closely those are flying deerstalker cars.]</span></span></td></tr>
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<a href="http://sherlockcares.com/scandal-baker-street-cam/" target="_blank">Sherlock Cares ran a reaction piece</a> to the recent <a href="http://www.dailydot.com/fandom/sherlock-bbc-moffat-milverton/"><i>Daily Dot</i></a> article "Sherlock Wrote a Female Character Out of a Classic Story, and Fans Aren't Happy" essentially agreeing with the notion that Moffat's adaptation "has modified the ending, and a critical moment, of an original Sherlock Holmes stories in which woman take decisive action and ultimately beat Sherlock Holmes in solving the problem." In the case of Irene Adler, instead of "beating" Holmes as occurs in the Canon, she must ultimately be saved from a beheading. With Mary Morstan, instead of shooting CAM Devil, she instead turns to Sherlock to 'save her' from CAM's blackmailing ways.<br />
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The crux of both articles comes down to this:<br />
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"In the original canon, there are many women whom even Sherlock Holmes admires for their strength of character, bravery, beauty, charm, and, yes, even their relative intelligence. But in BBC <i>Sherlock</i> it seems the women are there to serve “the boys.” And if the women are very, very lucky, “the boys” might rescue them and bestow a kiss...The moral in Sherlock is that women should not be smart, or if they are smart, they should not be ambitious for anything except love and marriage." </blockquote>
Is this evidence of Moffat and Gatiss' inherent sexism? Does BBC <i>Sherlock</i> systematically morph independent female characters into helpless victims while simultaneously re-asserting the patriarchal status quo? After teasing out the facts (i.e. the specific ways in which Moffat altered the Canon and portrayed various female characters) from the interpretation (i.e. are Moffat's alterations clear cut examples of sexism and/or a systematic strategy to put women 'back in their place'?), do the claims of either essay hold up under close scrutiny or are there alternate, gender-neutral interpretations of either adaptation? Whatever your stance on these issues, the points raised are worth thinking about and discussing. <br />
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The Consulting Detective <a href="http://sherlockcares.com/scandal-baker-street-cam/" target="_blank">wonders whether or not Steven Moffat is actually an Evil Genius</a>...or just a genius...or just evil. Actually, it only takes blog author Nick Cardillo half a paragraph to decide Moffat is "the world's most formidable evil genius", though later Cardillo defines 'genius' as knowing "how to tell a good story" and 'evil' as "showmanship and flair". Hmm, I was hoping for definitive proof that Moffat's ideas on relationships were cribbed from an ancient book bound and written on human skin or that he drinks the blood of virgin fanboys for inspiration, but no such luck this time. This post does make a good point regarding the somewhat ambiguous role of Mark Gatiss at the BBC and in relation to Moffat. Is it the case that Mycroft is to the British Government what Mark Gatiss is to Sherlock? Perhaps Gatiss is the true, bonafide super evil puppet master pulling and manipulating the millions of delicate threads controlling so-called 'feels', that as of yet undiscovered component to the autonomic nervous system no doubt produced in the medulla oblongata and responsible for pretty much anything on Tumblr similar to the sentiment "<a href="http://nerdfighters.ning.com/forum/topics/reichenbach-feels">I just finished re-watching "The Reichenbach Fall" and I had no idea I could feel so horrifyingly dead inside.... Anyone else?</a>" with a #feels tag - oh wait, <i>Sherlock</i> Season 3 has come and gone and I guess Sherlock coming back wasn't that big of a deal after all - certainly not as big of a deal as Sherlock shooting a dude in cold blood (but come on, he deserved it) and then sent off on a suicide mission only to be immediately recalled because of an animated GIF inexplicably appearing on everyone's screens. Now that's evil.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqXpDxN5BAR0rLO6Pj7CSFBHiZcwtMNyn1iqizemdpMO5XUeZF6GhEVWMGXCYIFXBJnqXQGBV4IrTBWuP7aXrZQ5aAfr5yd1kbTLXm2NtxKzm53glHXSHcU869ScsweCx6LdOWXDcvvKY/s1600/EvilGatiss.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqXpDxN5BAR0rLO6Pj7CSFBHiZcwtMNyn1iqizemdpMO5XUeZF6GhEVWMGXCYIFXBJnqXQGBV4IrTBWuP7aXrZQ5aAfr5yd1kbTLXm2NtxKzm53glHXSHcU869ScsweCx6LdOWXDcvvKY/s1600/EvilGatiss.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: start;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">[Is Mark Gatiss the real evil genius behind BBC <i>Sherlock</i>?]</span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div>
<b>Sherlockian Event Links:</b><br />
<br />
<a href="http://prioryscholarsnyc.com/"><b>The Priory Scholars of NYC</b></a> will hold their next event on Saturday April 12, 2014 from 12:30 - 4:00 p.m. at The Churchill Tavern (45 East 28th Street, New York, NY 10016). Please confirm your enrollment via email to Headmistress <a href="mailto:judith-freeman@hotmail.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Judith Freeman</a> no later than March 29, 2014. The discussion, led by Matt Laffey, will focus on "<a href="http://ignisart.com/camdenhouse/canon/spec.htm">The Adventure of the Speckled Band</a>." Quizmaster Nick Martorelli will moderate a SPEC quiz, where the highest scoring attendees will receive a selection of prizes including books, Sherlockian artifacts, comics, etc. All Sherlockian enthusiasts are welcome, from the hardcore Prioryists to the curious newcomers. Make sure to follow us on <a href="https://twitter.com/PrioryNYC">Twitter</a> and on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/PrioryNYC">Facebook</a> for updated info and pre-game discussion. This event is dedicated to the memory of Joe Moran who, for a time, was the reigning headmaster of the Priory Scholars of NYC, circa 1994.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://3garridebs.homestead.com/"><b>The Three Garridebs</b></a> of Westchester will hold their next meeting at 1:00 p.m. on March 22, 2014 at the <a href="http://www.hastingslibrary.org/">Hastings-on-Hudson Public Library</a>, NY. The discussion and quiz will be on "The Empty House" and attendees can expect the usual edifying lectures and always entertaining Sherlockian show-and-tell. Check out the <a href="http://3garridebs.homestead.com/">3Garridebs website</a> for more information. On a related check, check out the latest edition of the <a href="http://3garridebs.homestead.com/foolscapdocument.html"><i>Foolscap Document</i></a>, the newsletter of the Three Garridebs.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://chatham.patch.com/groups/chatham-playhouse-news/p/sherlock-holmes-the-final-adventure_43b3e460"><b>Sherlock Holmes: The Final Adventure</b></a> a theater production put together by the Chatham Players opens on March 7th and runs through March 22nd, 2014 at the <a href="http://www.chathamplayers.org/">Chatham Playhouse</a> (23 North Passaic Ave, Chatham, NJ 07928). Tickets are $20 for adults and $18 for youth/senior. "Join Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson as they face off against arch-enemy, Professor Moriarty, in the Stephen Dietz story inspired by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The case takes Holmes on a final adventure, which includes kidnapping, numerous disguises, underhand plotting twists and turns and a whole series of clues which even has the super sleuth’s sidekick scratching his head..." According to the synopsis, the play combines elements of "The Final Problem," "A Scandal in Bohemia," and <i>A Study in Scarlet</i> with further inspiration drawn from William Gillette's <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sherlock_Holmes_(play)"><i>Sherlock Holmes</i></a> (1899). Available dates and times can be found <a href="http://ccp.ticketleap.com/sherlock-holmes/">here</a>. (Thanks to Peter McIntyre and Bea Makara for the tip.)<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/new-directions-in-sherlock-tickets-6900426361"><b>New Directions in Sherlock</b></a> is a free one day conference sponsored by <a href="https://www.facebook.com/SherlockHolmesPastAndPresent">Sherlock Holmes Past & Present</a> happening on Friday, April 11, 2014 from 10:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. (BST) London, United Kingdom. "In this one-day symposium, we will screen "His Last Vow", attend presentations, and discuss Sherlock Holmes, the BBC <i>Sherlock</i> and aspects of neo-Victorian detective writing. The keynote speaker will be Dr. Benjamin Poore of University of York." </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<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="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuRIuOK6ScdkNjjd_LG05YooLGgRrGfxsB41cPf-eFHjqVTG8WqD6bnRT1Yjd69CqBpSrvCwabYRDsCjZNWZdEER5QC9J9Ico3xDyHPrunjPrQOpTK68cg7S7hPCCBWO6h9rLFLnA_ZMc/s1600/NewDirectionsSherlock.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuRIuOK6ScdkNjjd_LG05YooLGgRrGfxsB41cPf-eFHjqVTG8WqD6bnRT1Yjd69CqBpSrvCwabYRDsCjZNWZdEER5QC9J9Ico3xDyHPrunjPrQOpTK68cg7S7hPCCBWO6h9rLFLnA_ZMc/s1600/NewDirectionsSherlock.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: start;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">[Spend the day discussing all things BBC Sherlock, focusing primarily on "His Last Vow".]</span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b><a href="http://www.amateurmendicantsociety.org/2014/02/winter-meeting-report.html">The Amateur Mendicant Society of Detroit</a></b> convened for their annual Winter luncheon - populated by 44 brave Sherlockian souls who braved a harsh Midwestern winter - on February 1, 2014 in Birmingham, Michigan. Tantalus of the AMS, Robert Musial, reports on the various goings on including toasts by Gloria Longueil saluting The Woman, Mike Smith toasting Watson’s Second Wife, Rob Musial raising a glass to Mrs. Hudson, <a href="https://twitter.com/ReginaStinson"><b>Regina Stinson</b></a> saluting Mycroft Holmes and Jerry Alvin commemorating the mysterious Ezekiah Hopkins; a silent auction where a bottle of one of the <a href="http://221bcellars.com/">221B Cellars</a> wines (limited to 200 bottles total) went for $90; announcement of the winner of the highly coveted AMS Beggar's Cup, commemorating the best presentation given at an AMS event in the previous year, which went to both Jerry Alvin and Regina Stinson who both shared in the glory due to a tie; Chris Jeryan's “A Holmesian Menagerie” exploring the Canon's alphabetical bestiary (“adder” and “bee,” winding through “jellyfish,” “kipper,” “leech” and others and on to “petrel,” “venomous lizard” and “whale”); the outcome of the All-Canon Quiz; and finally concluding the luncheon with Anne Musial and David Mohan leading the group in the standard singing of “God Save the Queen” and Lascar Richard Jeryan with the traditional reading of Starrett's poem <a href="http://always1895.net/post/11857862603/starrett1-birthday-week-2011"><i>221B</i></a>.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOumaIp4xxWst7-riYpGQ8t9FEb3dT8sFgc9sRkKo48VMBqMgzSEa5MVO0eUPGtbwB_auhs5sBEQPg1P8tuOa4o0tWkWUVkpnMgp-RlN9ljwgwLIK1wOb_hvUdQjXEZ8EQKdIv4n6Qv84/s1600/AMS2014Cake.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOumaIp4xxWst7-riYpGQ8t9FEb3dT8sFgc9sRkKo48VMBqMgzSEa5MVO0eUPGtbwB_auhs5sBEQPg1P8tuOa4o0tWkWUVkpnMgp-RlN9ljwgwLIK1wOb_hvUdQjXEZ8EQKdIv4n6Qv84/s1600/AMS2014Cake.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: start;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">[Sherlock Holmes, 160 years young!]</span></span></td></tr>
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<br /><div>
--</div>
<div>
<br /></div>

Weekly Sherlock Links Compendium (February 15 - February 28, 2014)

"...the gloom of winter evening had thickened into one gray curtain, a dead monotone of colour..." [REDC] This post is dedicate...

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by campunity

Here's What the Ideal Sherlock Holmes Looks Like

<h4 style="text-align: center;">
"Sherlock Holmes was transformed" [BOSC]</h4>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKmtSYCTnqBqInneV4mS29q3-mGEmUxNuxfOtcbbDDg2W5_OrTODSwiDbi8mGBBp25eQacGtnxWwWd4YCcSlMUnWBFaz0GKu_kSyaeo4a4zKsw2r5KOTJoswvOOEKTlm8l2PqLlPxQmljc/s1600/Sherlock+Morphthing.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="What Sherlock Holmes would look like if you combined images of Robert Downey Jr., Benedict Cumberbatch, Jeremy Brett and Basil Rathbone" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKmtSYCTnqBqInneV4mS29q3-mGEmUxNuxfOtcbbDDg2W5_OrTODSwiDbi8mGBBp25eQacGtnxWwWd4YCcSlMUnWBFaz0GKu_kSyaeo4a4zKsw2r5KOTJoswvOOEKTlm8l2PqLlPxQmljc/s1600/Sherlock+Morphthing.JPG" title="Sherlock Holmes conglomerate image" /></a></div>
<br />
We all have an idealized image of Sherlock Holmes in our minds. Whether we were first introduced to the physical appearance of Sherlock Holmes as portrayed by Basil Rathbone, Peter Cushing, William Gillette, Jeremy Brett, Benedict Cumberbatch, Frederic Dorr Steele or Sidney Paget - or perhaps a version of our own imagination if we first read the Canon in a text-only format - each of us pictures Holmes in our own unique way when we read.<br />
<br />
It was a surprise to us then, when we happened upon the image above that's the result of <a href="http://morphthing.com/">MorphThing.com</a> - a site that combines two images into one. We thought the face looked oddly familiar - we could see some definite features of certain actors that have played Sherlock Holmes - but not quite on the mark of any single one.<br />
<br />
In this case, we discovered the process must have been performed twice, as we were told that the image is the result of combining Robert Downey, Jr., Benedict Cumberbatch, Jeremy Brett and Basil Rathbone. It certainly makes for a pretty Sherlock Holmes.<br />
<br />
Now all we need is another tool that takes the best part of each of their characterization of Holmes and combines that into one actor...<br />
<br />
<b>UPDATE (March 1, 2014):</b><br />
Dean Brown created an even better one, sourced from eight actors (Vasily Livanov, Robert Downey Jr, Jeremy Brett, Ronald Howard, Benedict Cumberbatch, Jonny Lee Miller, Basil Rathbone, Douglas Wilmer) and has shown the metamorphosis.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxLW2o3IRo0nU-aysIh9J-unf49JqopNnkqivUXRPOifrMUO2MFRv54D7JR_Too_hQ0yc0uj8pHHQAq1rCo7hduJFRHBDrrE-62TYku9mLWPer9Q5kqvDeIVFKCEmEUE0p4qKnD77vQaqq/s1600/Sherlock+Morphthing+8.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="The creative process on combining the images of Vasily Livanov, Robert Downey Jr, Jeremy Brett, Ronald Howard, Benedict Cumberbatch, Jonny Lee Miller, Basil Rathbone and Douglas Wilmer to create the ideal Sherlock Holmes" border="0" height="498" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxLW2o3IRo0nU-aysIh9J-unf49JqopNnkqivUXRPOifrMUO2MFRv54D7JR_Too_hQ0yc0uj8pHHQAq1rCo7hduJFRHBDrrE-62TYku9mLWPer9Q5kqvDeIVFKCEmEUE0p4qKnD77vQaqq/s1600/Sherlock+Morphthing+8.JPG" title="Sherlock Holmes morphthing of 8 actors" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<i>Image credit: <a href="https://plus.google.com/communities/114565123495685504221" target="_blank">Doug Palmer (Sherlock Holmes Community on Google+)</a></i><br />
--<br />
<br />

Here's What the Ideal Sherlock Holmes Looks Like

"Sherlock Holmes was transformed" [BOSC] We all have an idealized image of Sherlock Holmes in our minds. Whether we were firs...

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by Scott Monty

Diogenes Club Rules

<h4 style="text-align: center;">
"the strict rules of your order" [VALL]</h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizTyL-ZuRxbuwbcmYUhN8iNMvhZSARiNP0jUqGwUmYGdzM46IC1zEJWMQobuBZ-32MXg5c68hAErEEik9pjUOO3FG2QLDKgvFB88xLyGagJq2pAgBHa4KbUy8n0cZDA7EzMyYU_HBPR45-/s1600/Diogenes+Fight+Club.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="450" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizTyL-ZuRxbuwbcmYUhN8iNMvhZSARiNP0jUqGwUmYGdzM46IC1zEJWMQobuBZ-32MXg5c68hAErEEik9pjUOO3FG2QLDKgvFB88xLyGagJq2pAgBHa4KbUy8n0cZDA7EzMyYU_HBPR45-/s1600/Diogenes+Fight+Club.png" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
We all know that Mycroft was a member of the Diogenes Club. Watson is exposed to it in "The Greek Interpreter."<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"The Diogenes Club is the queerest club in London, and Mycroft, one of the queerest men. He's always there from a quarter to five till twenty to eight. It's six now, so if you care for a stroll this beautiful evening I shall be very happy to introduce you to two curiosities."<br />
<br />
"I cannot recall the name."<br />
<br />
"Very likely not. There are many men in London, you know, who, some from shyness, some from misanthropy, have no wish for the company of their fellows. Yet they are not averse to comfortable chairs and the latest periodicals. It is for the convenience of these that the Diogenes Club was started, and it now contains the most unsociable and unclubbable men in town. No member is permitted to take the least notice of any other one. Save in the Strangers' Room, no talking is, under any circumstances, permitted, and three offences, if brought to the notice of the committee, render the talker liable to expulsion. My brother was one of the founders, and I have myself found it a very soothing atmosphere."</blockquote>
As you can see, the institution has some fairly strict guidelines. When we stopped to think about it one day, it seemed reminiscent of <a href="http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Rules%20of%20Fight%20Club" target="_blank">the rules</a> laid out in the movie <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0137523/" target="_blank">Fight Club</a></i>. We then set out to write up the official rules of the Diogenes Club, in accordance with <i>Fight Club</i>.<br />
<br />
<b>1st RULE:</b> You do not talk in the Diogenes Club.<br />
<br />
<b>2nd RULE:</b> You <i>DO NOT</i> talk in the Diogenes Club.<br />
<br />
<b>3rd RULE:</b> If someone speaks outside of the Strangers' Room, three times, he will be expelled.<br />
<br />
<b>4th RULE:</b> Only one guy to a nook.<br />
<br />
<b>5th RULE:</b> One paper at a time.<br />
<br />
<b>6th RULE:</b> Shirts and shoes.<br />
<br />
<b>7th RULE:</b> Unclubbability will go on as long as it has to.<br />
<br />
<b>8th RULE:</b> If this is your first night at the Diogenes Club, you <i>have</i> to be unclubbable.<br />
<br />
--<br />
<br />
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Diogenes Club Rules

"the strict rules of your order" [VALL] We all know that Mycroft was a member of the Diogenes Club. Watson is exposed to it i...

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by Scott Monty

Remembering Joe Moran, BSI

<h4 style="text-align: center;">
"this good gentleman" [NOBL] </h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB4ZJpmzUnLrzIVtLVu-eaYwYF4sT9J6TQba0GxHzPAwPivtTaZKV7Sp8dUAb9gJWl439OyMgYgKa-zVzBi1qBpDS7oJOom9wTFOoZk64BdfUB4FxH6dS1klphnyrLcJ6XibrjyaMCl4fg/s1600/Joe+Moran.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="432" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB4ZJpmzUnLrzIVtLVu-eaYwYF4sT9J6TQba0GxHzPAwPivtTaZKV7Sp8dUAb9gJWl439OyMgYgKa-zVzBi1qBpDS7oJOom9wTFOoZk64BdfUB4FxH6dS1klphnyrLcJ6XibrjyaMCl4fg/s1600/Joe+Moran.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
Joseph W. Moran, BSI ("Sir Augustus Moran, C.B.") died on February 18, 2014 at the age of 86. He was born in Cleveland, graduated from Yale in 1949 and worked for 43 years for NY Life Insurance Company as an actuary. Joe had 3 children, and one became an active Sherlockian -- Kathy, who is a member of <a href="http://www.norwegianexplorers.org/" target="_blank">The Norwegian Explorers</a>.<br />
<br />
At about 10 years old when Joe was supposed to be getting ready for bed, he was instead listening from the top of the stairs to the Holmes radio broadcasts that his dad had on the radio. The first Holmes story he read was "The Empty House" since it featured a Moran and he remembered that in junior high he did a book report on "Silver Blaze" -- and got a good grade.<br />
<br />
Reading the Canon then took a long hiatus, but Joe got back into it when he booked a tour to London in the 1970s and stayed at the <a href="http://www.parkplaza.com/london-hotel-gb-w1u-6lj/gbsherlo/" target="_blank">Sherlock Holmes Hotel</a>. He decided to buy the complete works to read on the plane. A few years later he visited his college roommate, who was a member of <a href="http://www.sherlock-holmes.org.uk/" target="_blank">The Sherlock Holmes Society of London</a>, and Joe was encouraged to join.<br />
<br />
His Sherlockian involvement became serious in the early 1980s when he attended the first Autumn in Baker Street weekend. He never missed another one. Joe joined and actively participated in all the local scions -- <a href="http://3garridebs.homestead.com/" target="_blank">The Three Garridebs</a>, the Montague Street Lodgers, <a href="http://mrshudsonscliffdwellers.homestead.com/" target="_blank">Mrs. Hudson's Cliffdwellers</a>, The Epilogues of Sherlock Holmes, <a href="http://prioryscholarsnyc.com/" target="_blank">The Priory Scholars</a>, etc.. At these meetings, Joe was always ready to discuss the rehabilitation and reputation of the much defamed Col. Sebastian Moran, who he believed was an "honorable soldier." He worked for 30 years on an unpublished treatise on the subject.<br />
<br />
He ran The Priory Scholars jointly for some years and was also their quizmaster. One of the highlights of Joe's early involvement was meeting Jeremy Brett at a Priory Scholars meeting. Brett was on tour promoting the Granada TV series and was invested in the scion at that meeting.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoJq6JD5Mz_pABRhQkGVCCwbWKc4bmy_Ut41OruK8Ni1n4ycehR3kSfFg5Ut406Am4dQMr-nDeWje0YkmdVFe2MJZpLudqqe2qKprKji2xO9Idz1dWLEUJ6_orO-U7A9YoWG2550Jyz5yg/s1600/Joe+Moran+-+BSI+2014.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoJq6JD5Mz_pABRhQkGVCCwbWKc4bmy_Ut41OruK8Ni1n4ycehR3kSfFg5Ut406Am4dQMr-nDeWje0YkmdVFe2MJZpLudqqe2qKprKji2xO9Idz1dWLEUJ6_orO-U7A9YoWG2550Jyz5yg/s1600/Joe+Moran+-+BSI+2014.jpg" width="426" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo of Joe at the 2014 BSI Dinner, courtesy of <a href="http://www.gruberphotographers.com/blog/baker-street-irregulars-banquet-2014/" target="_blank">Gruber Photography</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Joe attended his first <a href="http://bsiweekend.com/" target="_blank">BSI weekend</a> in the early 1980s and wandered into the Algonquin Hotel where he was greeted by Tom Stix, who asked him to join him for breakfast the next morning. John Bennett Shaw was also at the breakfast table and Joe was delighted that he got to listen to CBS news interviewing Shaw right then and there.<br />
<br />
One of Joe's favorite Sherlockian adventures -- and there were many -- was <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/shsl/sets/72157640111002945/" target="_blank">the Reichenbach Centennial</a> in 1991 in Switzerland with 120 people dressing in costume for 9 days. He tells the story of the reenactment at Reichenbach Falls. The dummies were on bungee cords and the first time they went over the Falls they landed upright, so they had to be hauled back up to try again.<br />
<br />
Joe was a member of <a href="http://www.ash-nyc.com/" target="_blank">The Adventuresses of Sherlock Holmes</a> and took the name "An Honourable Soldier." He has been published in many Sherlockian periodicals, including <a href="http://www.bakerstreetjournal.com/" target="_blank"><i>The Baker Street Journal</i></a>, <i>The Sherlock Holmes Journal</i>, <i>The Serpentine Muse</i>, and <i>Prescott's Press</i>.<br />
<br />
In 2000, he won the Marlene Aig-Patricia Moran Award for Sherlockian Scholarship and Good Comradeship given by The Montague Street Lodgers. The Three Garridebs awarded him the Georgia Amick Award for best scholarly presentation in both 1994 and 1997, the Two Shilling Award in 1998, the Prescott Prize in 2004, and the William P. Schweickert Award in 2007.<br />
<br />
Joe may be the only Sherlockian who, on the night he received his investiture, had his suitcase stolen from the car with his new investiture in it. Joe was invested into the Baker Street Irregulars in 1991 as "Sir Augustus Moran, C.B."<br />
<br />
Joe and his trademark deerstalker cap will be missed at all Sherlockian events, but especially those in the New York metropolitan area.<br />
<br />
Joe's memorial service has been set for Saturday, March 1st at 11:00 a.m. at the <a href="http://www.lacny.org/" target="_blank">Larchmont Avenue Church</a>, 60 Forest Park Road, corner of Larchmont and Forest Park<br />
<br />
A reception at the church will follow.<br />
<br />
If you would like to send a letter of condolence there are two addresses:<br />
     The Moran Family<br />
     636 Ethan Allen Hwy.<br />
     Ridgefield, CT 06877<br />
<br />
     Kathy Moran<br />
     2200 Bryant Ave. S., Apt. 101<br />
     Minneapolis, MN 55405<br />
<br />
If you would like to make a donation as a memorial to Joe, his family suggests <a href="http://www.beaconsociety.com/" target="_blank">The Beacon Society</a> to bring Sherlock Holmes to young people. Donations may be made online (at the website) via PayPal, or checks in any amount made payable to The Beacon Society and sent to:<br />
     Carol Cavaluzzi<br />
     The Beacon Society<br />
     6409 Terese Terrace<br />
     Jamesville NY 13093<br />
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If you have memories of Joe that you would like to share, please add a comment below. There is also <a href="http://jjffh.com/book-of-memories/1808445/Moran-Joseph/service-details.php" target="_blank">a site with a book of memories</a> set up, where you may add your thoughts. He touched many lives and was a true gentleman.<br />
<br />
<i>Image credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/shsl/12118766945/in/photostream/" target="_blank">Sherlock Holmes Society of London (Flickr)</a></i><br />
--</div>
<div>
<br /></div>

Remembering Joe Moran, BSI

"this good gentleman" [NOBL] Joseph W. Moran, BSI ("Sir Augustus Moran, C.B.") died on February 18, 2014 at the ag...

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by Francine Kitts

What Would a Sherlock Holmes Theme Park Look Like?

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"Holmes clapped his hands with amusement" [MAZA]</h4>
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<br />
We were as shocked as you when the news broke that there are plans afoot to create a <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2561719/Sherlock-theme-park-Detective-set-25m-attraction-plot-enactments-holograms-bringing-characters-life.html" target="_blank">£25m Sherlock Holmes theme park</a>. That it is planned for Portsmouth, not London, makes sense to those who are aware of the connection between Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and the town, as well as that the considerable collection of noted Holmesian and Doylean scholar <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2007/08/episode-08-to-keep-memory-green.html#.Uwe18PldV8E" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Richard Lancelyn Green</a> resides at the <a href="http://www.conandoylecollection.co.uk/" target="_blank">Portsmouth Library</a>.<br />
<br />
Evidently, the new theme park will house the collection and will also contain a ‘world-class multimedia experience’ as part of it. You'll also be able to see recreations of Baker Street scenes, Holmes's life and even holograms of characters.<br />
<br />
As fascinating as this sounds, we wondered what would happen if we put a more Disney-like approach together, where we could envision rides, attractions and other thematic creations that brought the Canon to life. What might they look like?<br />
<br />
Inspired by fellow Sherlockians on Facebook, we began to put together some initial thoughts:<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>The Mycroft Holmes All-You-Can-Eat Buffet</li>
<li>The Diogenes Club, where you can escape from the screaming children</li>
<li>Flume ride that takes you down the Reichenbach Falls</li>
<li>Race hansom cabs against other guests</li>
<li>Goose (turkey?) legs with embedded carbuncles</li>
</ul>
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But we think this would be much more enjoyable if we got your input. What kids of rides and attractions could you imagine at such a theme park? Tell us in a comment below.</div>
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<br />

What Would a Sherlock Holmes Theme Park Look Like?

"Holmes clapped his hands with amusement" [MAZA] We were as shocked as you when the news broke that there are plans afoot t...

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by Scott Monty

Sherlock Holmes and the Mystery of Einstein's Daughter

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"I guess you are the daughter" [STUD] </h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxd3ioM-7fGkNgllClHxvI6rl5gJdswCkhslgB97kwffUP3-xSHF-O1AU_lb9EsxVlewQaOcADoej9IG9O6ykLdmME1ojiKXJU0xl7K5OJ66UFcHEqTKS7UaX5FI5KZ4bB4nqjFbqfss9f/s1600/11578385654_a2f6595de5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxd3ioM-7fGkNgllClHxvI6rl5gJdswCkhslgB97kwffUP3-xSHF-O1AU_lb9EsxVlewQaOcADoej9IG9O6ykLdmME1ojiKXJU0xl7K5OJ66UFcHEqTKS7UaX5FI5KZ4bB4nqjFbqfss9f/s1600/11578385654_a2f6595de5.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<o:p> </o:p>Do you ever read a book that makes you want to read more? I
don't mean like the way you can only eat just one potato chip, or the way a
book leaves you with a cliffhanger so you can't wait for the next in the series
to come out. When I finished reading <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1780925727/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1780925727&linkCode=as2&tag=theconblo04-20" target="_blank"><i>Sherlock Holmes and the Mystery ofEinstein's Daughter</i></a>, by Tim Symond, I found that it had sparked a desire to
read more about Einstein and to go back and reread the cannon.</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2013/12/my-sherlockian-holiday-reading-list.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">I mentioned before</a> that I have this (questionably) bad habit of buying more books than I can read.
One such book was the biography of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0743264746/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0743264746&linkCode=as2&tag=theconblo04-20" target="_blank">Albert Einstein by Walter Isaacson</a>.
It has sat on my book self staring at me in accusation for well over five
years. (I don't guilt easily.) I had an increased urge to finally read <i>Einstein
</i>after reading this latest pastiche because, as the title suggests, Einstein's real life (and a rather mysterious part of it) is a key plot point in the story. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Einstein and his first wife, who was a brilliant mathematician
in her own right, had a child out of wedlock. Nothing is known about that child
and what ever became of her. It's a mystery that (apparently) still baffles
many modern day historians. But would it baffle the great Sherlock Holmes? <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Additionally I wanted to go back and reread the Canon because I realized I've read so many pastiches that the Canonical facts were
starting to get blurry from the pastiche versions. Doyle often made references
to previous stories by having Watson mention old cases in his writing.
This is a very popular practice among pastiche writers. It's a way for writers
to contextually place their stories in the Sherlock world, but it's also a way
(and I think it's the real reason most writers do it) to wink knowingly at the
Sherlockian scholars among the readers. Symonds also does this but he also puts
a reference guide in the back for the stories that he references (seven, in
case you were wondering), and I found this very helpful. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Tim Symond has written several Sherlock Holmes pastiches,
but I wasn't aware of them until he reached out to us late last year. The
fist thing that struck me about his work was how well researched it is.
The details of both the regions they travel, and the political climate are very vivid. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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In this story, a much older Holmes and Watson decide to travel back to Reichenbach Falls (why and how Watson gets Holmes to go is pretty entertaining). In order to travel safely, they are
forced to contrive an elaborate scheme to avoid the pursuits and vengeance of
Professor Moriarty's henchman, Colonel Sebastian Moran. Upon their arrival, they are asked to investigate the past of Albert Einstein, by the Dean of a Swiss university, as a kind of background check before they admit the promising
physicist into their school. The investigation takes them all across Eastern
Europe and into some very interesting settings and situations. <o:p></o:p></div>
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This pastiche is told from a stronger Watson viewpoint than
most Sherlock Holmes stories are. I liked the strong portrayal of Watson but personally
felt like Holmes was almost a supporting cast member instead of a lead or co-lead.
Also, without giving anything away, there are several character conflicts you
expect to encounter in the book, based on the setup, that don't happen.
They seem to be setup to happen in later books (?) or maybe this is a theme
carried over from Symond's previous books, I'm not sure, but I found this just a little frustrating. (BTW I don't think being frustrated by a book's ending is necessarily a bad thing, the author should finish the story the way he intended to tell it, not the way the reader expects it to happen.)<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p>I enjoyed <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1780925727/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1780925727&linkCode=as2&tag=theconblo04-20" style="font-style: italic;" target="_blank">Sherlock Holmes and the Mystery of Einstein's Daughter</a>; it </o:p>isn’t long, it was a quick read, and the details are very engrossing. Plus, in my opinion, any book that makes me want to read and learn more is a good
book.<br />
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<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=theconblo04-20&o=1&p=8&l=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&ref=ss_til&asins=1780925727" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe>

Sherlock Holmes and the Mystery of Einstein's Daughter

"I guess you are the daughter" [STUD] Do you ever read a book that makes you want to read more? I don't mean like th...

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by Tac Anderson

That Was No Lady

<h4 style="text-align: center;">
"Fairly took me in, he did." [MAZA] </h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTaHUrlOOnZGp-Uhrf54gk43mZDmY14sb4SvErQ13O-c2xjhoL0-5DSOmyI-NyI4SsdWlWkQoxeAjHaQZpcQIwIuG_LluUiDtqyrkiVg55ib_z9Sk2b6V6XCbBPh9YzOa2vSQE0McWtYb0/s1600/Sherlock+Holmes+in+drag.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Sherlock Holmes in drag" border="0" height="346" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTaHUrlOOnZGp-Uhrf54gk43mZDmY14sb4SvErQ13O-c2xjhoL0-5DSOmyI-NyI4SsdWlWkQoxeAjHaQZpcQIwIuG_LluUiDtqyrkiVg55ib_z9Sk2b6V6XCbBPh9YzOa2vSQE0McWtYb0/s1600/Sherlock+Holmes+in+drag.jpg" title="That was no lady!" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
In a recent post, we were treated to an old bit of Irregular "scholarship" in which Rex Stout, BSI ("The Boscombe Valley Mystery") supposedly proved that <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2014/02/watson-actually-was-woman.html#.UwWLIvmwJcQ" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Watson Was a Woman</a>.<br />
<br />
In Profile By Gaslight, Edgar Smith opened with the following introduction to "Watson Was a Woman" by Rex Stout:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>Freedom of speech and freedom of the press are watchwords with Americans, and there can be no faltering in our determination to stand with Voltaire in defending to the last breath the right of our opponents to be as subversive as they please. Yet when our most cherished institutions are under bold and ruthless attack, we can be forgiven if we search our hearts in an effort to sift tolerance from folly. Mr. Rex Stout, who has otherwise and elsewhere exhibited every evidence of soundness of mind and reverence of soul, here launches a heterodox doctrine that challenges the very foundation of our faith. We are torn between an embittered urge to burn him at the stake and a generous compulsion to let him have his say. Calm in the knowledge that our faith is strong, we choose to let him have his say.</i></blockquote>
<br />
And have his say he did, using questionable chronology, numbers seemingly picked out of a hat for his convenience, and an acrostic concluding that Watson was IRENE WATSON. Stout himself admitted, "All this is very sketchy."<br />
<br />
Very sketchy indeed. But it was Dr. Julian Wolff, BSI ("The Red-Headed League") who came to Watson's defense in a responsive essay, using another acrostic - Stout's own weapon of choice - to eviscerate him and his argument:<br />
<br />
     <span style="font-size: large;"><b>N</b></span>aval Treaty<br />
     M<span style="font-size: large;"><b>U</b></span>sgrave Ritual<br />
     Re<span style="font-size: large;"><b>T</b></span>ired Colourman<br />
     Mis<span style="font-size: large;"><b>S</b></span>ing Three-Quarter<br />
     Soli <span style="font-size: large;"><b>T</b></span>ary Cyclist<br />
     Shosc<span style="font-size: large;"><b>O</b></span>mbe Old Place<br />
     Blue Ca<span style="font-size: large;"><b>R</b></span>buncle<br />
     Copper B<span style="font-size: large;"><b>E</b></span>eches<br />
     The Susse <span style="font-size: large;"><b>X</b></span> Vampire<br />
     The  Gloria  <span style="font-size: large;"><b>S</b></span>cott<br />
     Case of Iden<span style="font-size: large;"><b>T</b></span>ity<br />
     Nobel Bachel<span style="font-size: large;"><b>O</b></span>r<br />
     The  I l l ustrio <span style="font-size: large;"><b>U</b></span> s Client<br />
     The Resident Pa<span style="font-size: large;"><b>T</b></span>ient<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRaf6IE7aGGhEau4MCoLBJmX6_D-Hy95LM-IZCDuOB22WHUeI2Lt89byeMRuJtD99IiRH0kZ0j57kA2KJS_qzkd4gE4lzK_MSt8qGUqQnAcze-zDssomdEfvHR1IhLsK3kAZKfTDjJ25D0/s1600/Nuts+to+Rex+Stout.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Nuts to Rex Stout" border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRaf6IE7aGGhEau4MCoLBJmX6_D-Hy95LM-IZCDuOB22WHUeI2Lt89byeMRuJtD99IiRH0kZ0j57kA2KJS_qzkd4gE4lzK_MSt8qGUqQnAcze-zDssomdEfvHR1IhLsK3kAZKfTDjJ25D0/s1600/Nuts+to+Rex+Stout.jpg" title="Nuts to Rex Stout" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
Of course, Wolff also enumerated examples within the Canon that decisively proved that Watson could not have been a woman: his medical degree (at the time, only granted to males), his membership in the 5th Northumberland Fusiliers, and most decisively, Lestrade's description of Watson as obtained by the servants at Appledore Towers: "middle-sized, strongly built man - square jaw, thick neck, moustache..." [CHAS].<br />
<br />
This type of tongue-in-cheek scholarship and playful literary banter was one of the hallmarks of early Baker Street Irregularity. We still enjoy the mental calisthenics that such a pursuit affords us, even if the publishing platforms have changed over the years.<br />
<br />
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<i>Image credits: Warner Bros. and <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/bionicteaching/5886647862/" target="_blank">Tom Woodward</a> (Flickr)</i><br />
--<br />
<br />

That Was No Lady

"Fairly took me in, he did." [MAZA] In a recent post, we were treated to an old bit of Irregular "scholarship" in ...

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by Scott Monty

Watson Actually Was a Woman

<h4 style="text-align: center;">
"an experience of women which extends over many nations and three separate continents..." [SIGN] </h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmuwFbpLNYq4CzzjsBG_-e0mtOi6QHAR6wbD38j9WpClKxutQdO-R-Du47_XpDVMCJ785ZKaXuW1Ovae8rOysaza4A77UyEgmHydworPyIcSUmp3ory82Mt2aUuUQRaPDq8L6sE6Dt24wD/s1600/Joan+Watson.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="435" data-original-width="700" height="396" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmuwFbpLNYq4CzzjsBG_-e0mtOi6QHAR6wbD38j9WpClKxutQdO-R-Du47_XpDVMCJ785ZKaXuW1Ovae8rOysaza4A77UyEgmHydworPyIcSUmp3ory82Mt2aUuUQRaPDq8L6sE6Dt24wD/s640/Joan+Watson.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<br />
<br />
In all the recent debates among Sherlockians over the CBS program <a href="http://www.cbs.com/shows/elementary"><i>Elementary</i></a>, one will often find vehement disagreement over the decision of the show's creator's decision to cast Lucy Liu as "Joan Watson."  They will say that it destroys the all-male dynamic of Holmes and Watson's relationship, they will worry that it will develop into a romantic relationship, they will say "It's simply <b><i>not</i></b> Holmesian!"  All the while, the assumption seems to be that the idea of casting Watson as a female role is a new (and perhaps dangerous or ill advised) idea.  As we'll see, that simply is not the case.<br />
<br />
Let us consider an article published in <i>The Saturday Review of Literature</i>, March 1, 1941, written by a certain Rex Stout, creator of another famous detective, Nero Wolfe.  The article, based on a speech Stout had given to the Baker Street Irregulars earlier that year, was entitled "<a href="https://www.nerowolfe.org/pdf/stout/home_family/BSI/Watson_was_a_woman.pdf" target="_blank">Watson Was a Woman</a>." Stout, apparently with tongue implanted firmly in cheek, opens his article thusly:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
You will forgive me for refusing to join in your commemorative toast, "The Second Mrs. Watson," when you learn it was a matter of conscience. I could not bring myself to connive at the perpetuation of a hoax. Not only was there never a second Mrs. Watson; there was not even a first Mrs. Watson. Furthermore, there was no Doctor Watson.<br />
Please keep your chairs.</blockquote>
<div>
<br />
"Please keep your chairs," indeed.  To address a gathering of Sherlockians, opening with the words "there was no Doctor Watson" seems to be a potentially disastrous idea.  Remember, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle had only died about a decade before Stout dared to give his speech and publish his article.  I can only imagine the outrage that must have taken place among some of the Sherlockians who first read or heard these words!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6T_ZEHufnIn9IldsyV9PgBE1yqf5SoO3AC2DhjOv3JyiEiW-Cay9qckqNBPSpvgA6KGLvlDqO1ikfe7h2tGihQgzjKTYTgJie-WhxLpm-Ebgye7AaaXroAogcoV1FkPxtgms1nA1j58dP/s1600/Rex+Stout.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="704" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6T_ZEHufnIn9IldsyV9PgBE1yqf5SoO3AC2DhjOv3JyiEiW-Cay9qckqNBPSpvgA6KGLvlDqO1ikfe7h2tGihQgzjKTYTgJie-WhxLpm-Ebgye7AaaXroAogcoV1FkPxtgms1nA1j58dP/s640/Rex+Stout.jpg" width="500" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
It gets better, though.  Mr. Stout goes on to quote from one of Watson's earliest impressions of Holmes, in A Study in Scarlet: ...he had invariably breakfasted and gone out before I rose in the morning."  Aha! A clue...  Stout continues:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
I was indescribably shocked. How had so patent a clue escaped so many millions of readers through the years? That was, that could only be, a woman speaking of a man. Read it over. The true authentic speech of a wife telling of her husband's-- but wait. I was not indulging in idle speculation, but seeking evidence to establish a fact. It was unquestionably a woman speaking of a man, yes, but whether a wife of a husband, or a mistress of a lover, . . . I admit I blushed.</blockquote>
<br />
So here we have it!  Not nearly as coy as the creators of <i>Elementary </i>would be seventy years later, Rex Stout presents the theory that Watson was a woman, and not just any woman: either the wife or mistress of Sherlock Holmes! "My blushes, Watson!" (I can almost hear the great detective saying it...)<br />
<br />
Mr. Stout finds more proof in Watson's statement about Holmes's prowess on the violin: ". . . his powers upon the violin . . . at my request he has played me some of Mendelssohn's Lieder. . ." He writes: "Imagine a man asking another man to play him some of Mendelssohn's Lieder on a violin!"  Stout goes on to develop his theory of Watson as the wife of Sherlock Holmes.  He finds particularly interesting Watson's role as a "reformist wife," in his attempts to break Holmes of his cocaine addiction.<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: ivory; font-size: 16px; line-height: 25.600000381469727px; text-indent: 6%;"><br />
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Further on is possibly the most incredible (or the most ridiculous, depending on your point of view) bit of deduction in the entire article.  In an almost acrobatic feat of acrostics, Rex (I don't think he'd mind me calling him "Rex") arranges eleven of the adventures in the canon in the following order:<br />
<br />
     <span style="font-size: large;">I</span>llustrious Client<br />
     <span style="font-size: large;">R</span>ed-headed League<br />
     <span style="font-size: large;">E</span>ngineer's Thumb<br />
     <span style="font-size: large;">N</span>orwood Builder<br />
    <span style="font-size: large;"> E</span>mpty House<br />
<br />
     <span style="font-size: large;">W</span>isteria Lodge<br />
     <span style="font-size: large;">A</span>bbey Grange<br />
     <span style="font-size: large;">T</span>wisted Lip<br />
     <span style="font-size: large;">S</span>tudy in Scarlet<br />
     <span style="font-size: large;">O</span>range Pips<br />
     <span style="font-size: large;">N</span>oble Bachelor<br />
<br />
IRENE WATSON!  All he has to do after this bit of legerdemain is to connect the name "Irene Watson" with the classic description of Irene Adler as "the woman," and his case is complete.<br />
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Towards the end of the article, Stout admits: <br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"All this is very sketchy... I am now collecting material for a fuller treatment of the subject, a complete demonstration of the evidence and the inevitable conclusion."</blockquote>
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Presumably no further treatment of the theory was forthcoming, and one has to wonder if the whole thing, speech and subsequent article, was just a little fun at his fellow Sherlockians' expense.<br />
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It's plain to see, then, that the idea of Watson as a woman is hardly a novel one; inflammatory for some Sherlockians, certainly, but not new.  It's no secret that Watson has appeared in many different guises over the years: old man, young man, doddering, comical, and intelligent. Indeed, in the world of film and TV adaptations, Watson has been presented as a woman in 1971's <i>They Might Be Giants</i> (Dr. Mildred Watson becomes the companion of Justin Playfair, a man who thinks he is Sherlock Holmes), and as a robot in the animated series <i>Sherlock Holmes in the 22nd Century</i> (a robot companion programmed to believe his is the original Dr. Watson).  To borrow from Ecclesiastes,"there is nothing new under the sun."<br />
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[You can read the Rex Stout article in its entirety <a href="https://www.nerowolfe.org/pdf/stout/home_family/BSI/Watson_was_a_woman.pdf">here</a>, or if you'd prefer a PDF of the article as it appeared in The Saturday Review of Literature in March of 1941, <a href="http://www.unz.org/Pub/SaturdayRev-1941mar01-00003">here</a> for the first two pages and <a href="http://www.unz.org/Pub/SaturdayRev-1941mar01-00015">here </a>for the final page.]<br />
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UPDATE:<br />
Julian Wolff, MD, BSI wrote the retort courteous: <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2014/02/that-was-no-lady.html#.UwZUjfldV8E" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">That Was No Lady</a>.<br />
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Watson Actually Was a Woman

"an experience of women which extends over many nations and three separate continents..." [SIGN] In all the recent debate...

+ Read more »

by Cory Howell

25 Percent Americans Share This Trait with Sherlock Holmes

<h4 style="text-align: center;">
"But the Solar System!" [STUD] </h4>
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You wouldn't call Sherlock Holmes ignorant, would you? But that's the very nature of the insults we've been seeing hurled at Americans across the web over the past few days.<br />
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According to a study conducted by the National Science Foundation, only <a href="http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jazBjrI8ZFm0e4fMwCtO_2WEbI3w?docId=a31a943f-befb-4a3d-8de7-cce861b955fd" target="_blank">74% of the 2,200 respondents knew that the Earth revolves around the Sun</a>.<br />
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Recall that after first meeting Sherlock Holmes as recounted in <i>A Study in Scarlet</i>, Dr. Watson attempted to summarize his new flatmate's skills as follows:<br />
<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">SHERLOCK HOLMES - his limits</span></div>
<ol>
<li>Knowledge of Literature. - Nil.</li>
<li>        "          "  Philosophy. - Nil.</li>
<li>        "          "  Astronomy. - Nil.</li>
<li>        "          "  Politics. - Feeble.</li>
<li>        "          "  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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When it came to the workings of a small set of planets and a star within the Milky Way galaxy, Watson found it absurd that Sherlock Holmes had no working knowledge in this area:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
That any civilized human being in this nineteenth century should not be aware that the earth travelled round the sun appeared to be to me such an extraordinary fact that I could hardly realize it.<br /><br />"You appear to be astonished," he said, smiling at my expression of surprise. "Now that I do know it I shall do my best to forget it."<br /><br />"To forget it!"<br /><br />"You see," he explained, "I consider that a man's brain originally is like a little empty attic, and you have to stock it with such furniture as you choose. A fool takes in all the lumber of every sort that he comes across, so that the knowledge which might be useful to him gets crowded out, or at best is jumbled up with a lot of other things, so that he has a difficulty in laying his hands upon it. Now the skilful workman is very careful indeed as to what he takes into his brain-attic. He will have nothing but the tools which may help him in doing his work, but of these he has a large assortment, and all in the most perfect order. It is a mistake to think that that little room has elastic walls and can distend to any extent. Depend upon it there comes a time when for every addition of knowledge you forget something that you knew before. It is of the highest importance, therefore, not to have useless facts elbowing out the useful ones."<br /><br />"But the Solar System!" I protested.<br /><br />"What the deuce is it to me?" he interrupted impatiently; "you say that we go round the sun. If we went round the moon it would not make a pennyworth of difference to me or to my work." </blockquote>
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We're going to take a leap of imagination and suppose that the NSF respondents may not have quite the same level of logical faculties and capacity for facts as Sherlock Holmes. But it's still interesting that we can find a connection with our favorite detective in the news.<br />
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<h4>
Related: </h4>
If you haven't yet had the opportunity, you might listen to <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2013/07/episode-54-how-to-think-like-sherlock.html#.UwKEDcRDuSo" target="_blank">our interview with Maria Konnikova</a>, author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0670026573/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0670026573&linkCode=as2&tag=thebakerstree-20"><i>Mastermind: How to Think Like Sherlock Holmes</i></a>, who delves into the psychological possibilities of brain-attics in every one of us.<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;"><span style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2013/07/episode-54-how-to-think-like-sherlock.html#.UwKEDcRDuSo" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix6B51xz10aWe3c-4ZhKlCtHU0CnwC0cjMpDPR8YIUOfQIHWc7gxql86MCq-xOhT61L_AT4QWaDLkPLQIVp4qijifpYbSbdhBBCbXF25N98zYoBUPME3LK_xWtoTqOdwIF3v01n9vsVq88/s1600/Maria+Konnikova.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2013/07/episode-54-how-to-think-like-sherlock.html#.UwKEDcRDuSo" target="_blank">Interview with Maria Konnikova</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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Image credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/8011986@N02/2681416387/" target="_blank">Bill Brooks (Flickr)</a><br />
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