I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere

Celebrating 40 Years of Dr. Watson's Neglected Patients

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"I am a busy man, and Dr. Watson has his patients to attend to." [CREE]</h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidzMfeSbEyUulEkZYulWxgcr5cvrjkYnwo63B2ClFRZmXsgNKXZoN2tT6f9RWyqCNDfSpdMsna2PzIyeq66l036exTvRX2P9fPsH0rg7fRwT2xkf5v7uq8ZiC7E6YkCeAI8bGSeIXB34zx/s1600/Dr.+Watson%2527s+Neglected+Patients+meeting.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Dr. Watson's Neglected Patients meeting in Denver" border="0" height="420" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidzMfeSbEyUulEkZYulWxgcr5cvrjkYnwo63B2ClFRZmXsgNKXZoN2tT6f9RWyqCNDfSpdMsna2PzIyeq66l036exTvRX2P9fPsH0rg7fRwT2xkf5v7uq8ZiC7E6YkCeAI8bGSeIXB34zx/s640/Dr.+Watson%2527s+Neglected+Patients+meeting.jpg" title="Photo from a recent meeting of Dr. Watson's Neglected Patients" width="640" /></a></div>
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In 1974, when Mary Ake and Nancy Wynn wanted to form a Denver area Sherlock Holmes group, they put a notice in the local newspapers to have an initial meeting at the <a href="http://www.littletongov.org/index.aspx?page=128" target="_blank">Bemis Libary</a> in Littleton, Colorado on a Wednesday evening.  "I expected 35 people to show up that night, no more," Mary Ake recalled when I spoke with her over the phone. "Instead, 250 people showed up in the meeting room which surprised me!"  <br />
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That evening, the crowd was treated to a talk by <a href="http://amzn.to/1KxCeRA" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Ron de Waal</a>, on his recent trip to England, and the meeting wrapped up with the attendees taking the group's oath.  "We had the oath," said Mary Ake, "and I was awed that everyone took it that night. We were a true scion society of the Baker street Irregulars (BSI)!"<br />
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Thus,  <a href="http://www.dwnp.com/" target="_blank">Dr. Watson's Neglected Patients</a> (DWNP) was formed. The group has allowed Denver area residents to connect and share their love of Sherlock Holmes.  Over the past 40 years the group has grown and continues to be active by hosting annual dinners, spring teas, and a monthly discussion/ trivia meeting.<br />
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<a href="http://amzn.to/1csZXGO" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Darlene Cypser</a>, author and the current <a href="http://www.dwnp.com/medicalboard.html" target="_blank">Chief Surgeon</a> of the group explains:<br />
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"I think DWNP is much more active than it was when I started and that is not just because of all the TV shows and movies. Of course, websites and Facebook pages help spread the word and let us interact in different ways. Sherlockians have long corresponded worldwide through the mail. Now that is a lot faster."</blockquote>
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One of the staples of the group is the monthly get-togethers of the Outpatients, a separate subset of DWNP members that meets to drink, have lunch, and discuss a story from the original Sherlock Holmes canon.  "Our first idea was to meet on Wednesdays at my home, and have it be mostly for fellow retirees," said Lawrence Feldman, the Staff Surgeon (i.e. Vice President) of DWNP. "When we began telling people about it, it seemed there were many similarly interested who were still working, and people expressed frustration that they could not attend on a work day. So I got the idea of moving the meetings to Sundays and having it be for lunch at a place like <a href="http://www.pintspub.com/" target="_blank">Pints Pub</a>, which provided a British ambience, and had supported DWNP in the past."<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dr. Watson's Neglected Patients logo</td></tr>
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The Outpatient meeting is the first Sunday of the month, and the group meets no matter if there are other events that day.  As Lawrence Feldman explains, "Meeting the first Sunday of every month sometimes puts us in conflict with holiday weekends, big football games, even Easter Sunday. Whenever I try to cancel the meeting for a month, the membership just flat out won't let me! So another tradition developed, to go on with the meeting on that first Sunday no matter what. And if some people can't attend every meeting due to these conflicts, that's ok too. This is when I first began to realize that these meetings were really important to people."<br />
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Other fun annual activities are the Sherlock Holmes Dinner which is every January and the annual spring tea hosted by the <a href="http://dwpconline.org/" target="_blank">Denver Woman's Press Club</a>.  "Members have organized our participation in cricket matches, plays, talks, tours of the CSI, and other get-togethers," said Darlene Cypser.  "One year I arranged for a local stunt team to demonstrate the art of Bartisu in a skit. They did a great job in the fight, even taking falls. It was quite thrilling. But one member had gone to the restroom, and she asked them if they would do it again. They obliged despite the fact that they were taking the falls on the hard floor without pads. I am sure they had quite a few bruises the next day!"<br />
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Upcoming events include a group viewing of the film, <i><a href="http://www.mrholmesfilm.com/" target="_blank">Mr. Holmes</a>, </i>dinner with <a href="http://www.redcircledc.org/" target="_blank">Peter Blau</a>'s group<i> The Practical but Limited Geologists, </i>and<i> </i>author talks and presentations as part of <i><a href="http://www.dmns.org/exhibitions/upcoming-exhibitions/the-international-exhibition-of-sherlock-holmes/" target="_blank">The International Exhibition of Sherlock Holmes, </a></i>which will be at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science beginning in October.<br />
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The attendance at the Outpatient Meetings is exploding, and DWNP will continue on as a group for Sherlock Holmes and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle fans to connect in the Denver  metro area.  There's only one change that Chief Surgeon Darlene Cypser would like to make.  "We would like to add more young people to DWNP, including kids."<br />
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For more information on Dr. Watson's Neglected Patients, please see their <a href="http://www.dwnp.com/" target="_blank">web site</a>, or their <a href="https://www.facebook.com/DrWatsonsNP" target="_blank">Facebook page</a>. <br />
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<i>For more of Derrick Belanger's I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere articles, click <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/search/label/Derrick%20Belanger#.VWHEBU9VhBc" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">here</a>.  To learn more about Derrick Belanger's Sherlock Holmes and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle books, click <a href="http://amzn.to/1ct0qc6" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">here</a>.</i><br />
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Celebrating 40 Years of Dr. Watson's Neglected Patients

"I am a busy man, and Dr. Watson has his patients to attend to." [CREE] In 1974, when Mary Ake and Nancy Wynn wanted to for...

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by Belanger Books

Your Chance to Win on #IHOSE78

<h4 style="text-align: center;">
"a good practical knowledge of British law" [STUD]</h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ_MQATeE9_MtKMUoc_own_MU34cr7dUxmwv1-PnKeNRZ6ydB-NdhNCQg5w_yjcqjm6GzVdAlqRH68Q1LEfxzaekd4ILuyhbpltXCIXpl2Zy5ptmL2JJYu3GqPGcgA6qgAt17G5flpP3Y2/s1600/Lady+Justice+-+Old+Bailey.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Is it Rumpole or Holmes? Lady Justice at the OId Bailey" border="0" height="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ_MQATeE9_MtKMUoc_own_MU34cr7dUxmwv1-PnKeNRZ6ydB-NdhNCQg5w_yjcqjm6GzVdAlqRH68Q1LEfxzaekd4ILuyhbpltXCIXpl2Zy5ptmL2JJYu3GqPGcgA6qgAt17G5flpP3Y2/s640/Lady+Justice+-+Old+Bailey.png" title="Lady Justice atop the Old Bailey" width="640" /></a></div>
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As is our custom, we're preparing to record the next episode of <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/p/show-archives.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere</a> - the first podcast for Sherlock Holmes devotees. And as part of that, we'd like to give you a chance to participate in "Mental Exaltation," our regular quiz segment.<br />
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If you'd like to hear how this works, please have a listen to <a href="http://ihose.co/ihose77" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Episode 77</a>, beginning around 1:39:00:<br />
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<iframe frameborder="no" height="166" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/205682346&color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false" width="100%"></iframe><br />
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<div style="background-color: white; color: #0e0e0e; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px;">
<span style="line-height: 22.3999996185303px;">Here's how "</span><b style="line-height: 22.3999996185303px;">Mental Exaltation</b><span style="line-height: 22.3999996185303px;">" works:</span></div>
<ul style="background-color: white; color: #0e0e0e; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px;">
<li>Each month, we'll post a qualifying question to determine a listener who'll play / be played for on the program. Winner will be chosen at random from all correct entries.</li>
<li>If you'd like to enter, you must <a href="http://www.feedblitz.com/f/?Sub&publisher=445106&sitescope=45933" style="color: #006f85; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">subscribe to I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere by email</a>.</li>
<li>We'll either have a guest play on your behalf or we'll patch you into the show to have you play over the phone or Skype audio.</li>
<li>If your proxy or you succeed in passing the test, you'll have your choice of prizes: a random item from our I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere Grab-Bag of Goodies (that's the IHOSE GBG), or the voice of a member of the Baker Street Irregulars on your answering machine.</li>
</ul>
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<b>Qualify now</b></h4>
<div style="background-color: white; color: #0e0e0e; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px;">
<span style="line-height: 22.3999996185303px;">Once again, the Conan Doyle Estate has inserted itself and its already dubious reputation into the news with another lawsuit, this time <a href="http://ihose.co/freemrholmes" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">against the companies and individuals behind the new <i>Mr. Holmes</i> film</a>. Therefore, our qualifying question is legal in nature.</span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 22.3999996185303px;">You have until </span><b style="line-height: 22.3999996185303px;">Saturday, June 6 at 11:59 pm ET</b><span style="line-height: 22.3999996185303px;"> to qualify. And here's how to enter:</span><br />
<span style="line-height: 22.3999996185303px;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="background-color: white; text-align: center;">
<iframe frameborder="0" height="700" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" src="https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1it0B0haUxa6N6NpvA94xs5kTZx1LYIFJKjTQyRv54LY/viewform?embedded=true" width="760">Loading...</iframe><br /></div>
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<span style="line-height: 22.3999996185303px;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="line-height: 22.3999996185303px;">Good luck!</span><br />
<span style="line-height: 22.3999996185303px;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="line-height: 22.3999996185303px;"><i>Image source: <a href="http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Artists-impressions-of-Lady-Justice,_(statue_on_the_Old_Bailey,_London).png" target="_blank">Wikimedia Commons</a></i></span><br />
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<span style="line-height: 22.3999996185303px;">--</span><br />
<span style="line-height: 22.3999996185303px;"><br /></span></div>

Your Chance to Win on #IHOSE78

"a good practical knowledge of British law" [STUD] As is our custom, we're preparing to record the next episode of I Hear...

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by Scott Monty

Sherlock Holmes and the American Civil War

<h4 style="text-align: center;">
"at the time of the Civil War" [CARD]</h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixt1spqhMKuup7l9e7AK8rvHVdBRPUauM08TVSsQlD4A44QHhEdwjfltSvRv0aNlm_En7jE1MkZQq-JQuK2zQBzMiIIPWinU5NYOoPz3k6eaojbddDCi1_pJhCA_pkQnz2PCek3MQrZnCh/s1600/I+had+fell+into+a+brown+study+-+CARD.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="A scene from The Cardboard Box - illustrated by Sidney Paget" border="0" height="432" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixt1spqhMKuup7l9e7AK8rvHVdBRPUauM08TVSsQlD4A44QHhEdwjfltSvRv0aNlm_En7jE1MkZQq-JQuK2zQBzMiIIPWinU5NYOoPz3k6eaojbddDCi1_pJhCA_pkQnz2PCek3MQrZnCh/s640/I+had+fell+into+a+brown+study+-+CARD.jpg" title=""I fell into a brown study" [CARD]" width="640" /></a></div>
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[<b><i>Editor's note: </i></b>The following is a guest post from Civil War author, lecturer and book reviewer Tom Elmore, who is also a Sherlockian and a member of <a href="http://www.hansomwheels.com/" target="_blank">The Hansom Wheels</a> of Columbia, South Carolina.]<br />
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The gas lit streets of 221B Baker Street in Victorian London and the battlefields of the American Civil War would appear to have little in common with each other. Yet on two occasions the effects of America's bloodiest conflict landed right in the study of the world's greatest detective, Sherlock Holmes.<br />
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Before we examine how Holmes and Dr. John Watson became entangled in the aftermath of the war, let us travel back two decades before these two men met and see how the war affected British life in general.<br />
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Most Sherlockians believe that Holmes and Watson were born sometime in the mid 1850s, with Watson preceding Holmes by two or three years. Consequently they were possibly too young to be aware of the events going on across the ocean; but given Holmes sharp mind it is possible that he may have picked up some details. Likewise, Watson's literary agent, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle who was born in 1859 would have had little, if any interest or recollections about the war.<br />
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However, their fathers would have certainly kept up with news of the war in the British newspapers as it was very much on the mind of the English people for various reasons. Some were worried about the impact the war would have on the British economy, others, still smarting from the American Revolution and the War of 1812, wanted to see American-style democracy fail.<br />
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A number of British government and military officials were particularly interested in the style of fighting, which is now called modern warfare, that was being waged. Several British officers went to America to observe the actions of both armies; the most famous being Sir Arthur James Lyon Fremantle of the Coldstream Guards. He traveled throughout the north and the south in 1863, witnessing the Battle of Gettysburg and later the New York City Draft Riots. Returning to England, Fremantle published his diary of his trip entitled <i>Three Months in the Southern States</i>. The book was a bestseller on both sides of the Atlantic though it incorrectly predicted a Southern victory.<br />
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Thanks to early Southern victories, the British took interest in many of the Confederate leaders, most notably Generals P.G.T. Beauregard and Robert E. Lee, both of whom would decline offers to command European armies after war. Allegedly, the famous photo of Lee in his full dress uniform was made at the request of Queen Victoria.<br />
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<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/AVvXsEjBkakmXZv69K6V9UW6jC9KQJEOcub3YpyKQFDwa7Hvri56IFYw0nzXC0NaivWvP-TwEIyP5IS9HCaifP80S6QstbyL9ffw-WVIMXPXxOPuLUOpi-kONIqQNkk8ngeHGWDe2SRBadBYZ8i5/s1600/Robert_E_Lee_in_1863.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBkakmXZv69K6V9UW6jC9KQJEOcub3YpyKQFDwa7Hvri56IFYw0nzXC0NaivWvP-TwEIyP5IS9HCaifP80S6QstbyL9ffw-WVIMXPXxOPuLUOpi-kONIqQNkk8ngeHGWDe2SRBadBYZ8i5/s640/Robert_E_Lee_in_1863.png" width="409" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gen. Robert E. Lee in his dress uniform</td></tr>
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Early in the war, there was strong public support in Great Briton for the south. Many Southern sympathizers showed their support by wearing a red and blue striped tie with white stars in the blue, a fashion statement that has been readopted by Southern partisans in recent years.<br />
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England gave the Confederacy "belligerent" status, which was just short of giving it full diplomatic recognition. Fear that England would take that next step dictated much of the foreign policies of U.S. President Abraham Lincoln's administration. Lincoln and his Secretary of State, William Seward, one of the best Secretaries of State ever, were constantly walking a tight rope, doing what they could to keep England out of the war without antagonizing the United Kingdom.<br />
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Seward’s job was not easy. In November 1861, the U.S. Navy warship <i>San Jacinto</i> intercepted the British mail ship <i>Trent </i>which was carrying two Confederate diplomats. Without authorization the <i>San Jacinto</i> fired two shots across the bow of the <i>Trent </i>and demanded that the diplomats be surrendered, which they were.<br />
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England was outraged and demanded the U.S. release the prisoners or risk going to war. However, public support for the actions of the <i>San Jacinto</i> in the North was so strong that giving in to British demands would have been a political disaster for the Lincoln administration. Consequently Seward, with Lincoln's blessing, cleverly crafted a letter to the British government stating though the U.S. had not acted illegally, he would release the prisoners anyway. He further stated that he was glad that the British government had protested as it seemed that the British were now going to recognize the rights of neutral ships, a long simmering issue of controversy between the two nations.  The plan worked, and another war was avoided.<br />
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A major asset to Lincoln and Seward was U.S. Ambassador to the Court of St. James, Charles Adams - grandson of founding father John Adams and son of the sixth president, John Quincy Adams. Adams assumed his post shortly after the Confederacy was granted belligerent status and immediately started working to see that Southern recognition went no further. He informed British politicians that the U.S. would view continued contacts with Confederate representatives and arm sales to the South as violations of England's neutrality. These measures worked and helped cool British sentiment towards Dixie.<br />
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Ultimately, the diplomatic efforts of Lincoln, Seward and Adams, coupled with the Emancipation Proclamation and the growing number of Northern victories on the battlefield, ended all hope for South's longed for and much needed British diplomatic recognition.<br />
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Though no one named Sherlock Holmes fought for either the North or the South, there were three soldiers named S. Holmes, one for the Union, two Confederate. In addition there were 1122 Confederate soldiers whose last name was Holmes, while 2603 Union soldiers shared that last name. Among the latter was Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. who served as a lieutenant during the war and was wounded three times. His father, Oliver Wendell Holmes was a noted writer of his day who used his pen to support the North, and is credited as the man for whom Doyle named his detective.<br />
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Conversely, there were 54 John H. Watsons who served in the war, 33 for the North and 21 for the South, with one of the latter serving as an assistant surgeon of the 36th Texas cavalry.<br />
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In the literary world of Holmes and Watsons, there were two occasions where the American Civil War entered their Baker Street lodgings. The first was in "The Adventure of The Five Orange Pips," which originally appeared in <i>The Strand</i> magazine in November 1892. It was later included in <i>The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes</i> short story collection published the next year, and was one of Doyle's favorite short stories.<br />
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The plot involves John Openshaw whose uncle, Elias Openshaw suddenly came back to England in 1869 and settled on an estate in West Sussex after living for years as a Florida planter. During the Civil War he had served as a Colonel in the Confederate Army under Lt. Gen. Stonewall Jackson and Gen. John Bell Hood. (For the record there were eighteen soldiers whose last name was Openshaw, but all of them fought for the North.)<br />
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Being a bachelor, Elias allowed his nephew to stay at his estate, but strange things started happening. Although John could go almost anywhere in the house he could never enter a mysterious locked room containing his uncle's trunks. Then in March 1883 a letter postmarked from Pondicherry, India arrived for the Colonel inscribed only "<a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2015/03/krispy-kreme-could-have-avoided.html#.VWksqs_BzGc" target="_blank">K.K.K.</a>" with five orange pips (or seeds) enclosed.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw-WxWSJg0swj3SqKw5xhCbYlmNjnVfOllzqN2-OseFWV0wPHZsRuMVhKJtfwMzS-KcdULqSMifigVuqFQzyU01DksmjkAYIst-IzMBhJuGuBAj4FM6j_BWdIar8Xb9vf6fPTK2wnIQ_ja/s1600/Elias+Openshaw+gets+the+pips+%255BFIVE%255D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw-WxWSJg0swj3SqKw5xhCbYlmNjnVfOllzqN2-OseFWV0wPHZsRuMVhKJtfwMzS-KcdULqSMifigVuqFQzyU01DksmjkAYIst-IzMBhJuGuBAj4FM6j_BWdIar8Xb9vf6fPTK2wnIQ_ja/s1600/Elias+Openshaw+gets+the+pips+%255BFIVE%255D.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"What on earth does this mean?" [FIVE]</td></tr>
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Then papers from the locked room were burned and a will was drawn up leaving the estate to young Openshaw. Afterwards, the Colonel would lock himself in his room to drink or he would go forth in a drunken sally with a pistol in his hand. On May 2, 1883 he was found dead in a garden pool.<br />
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Then on January 4, 1885 Elias's brother Joseph receives a letter postmarked Dundee with the initials "K.K.K" and instructions to leave "the papers" on the sundial.  Despite his son's urging, Joseph Openshaw refuses to call the police. Three days later, Joseph is found dead in a chalk-pit. The only clue John Openshaw can furnish Holmes is a page from his uncle's diary marked March 1869 in which orange pips have been sent to three men, of whom two flee and the third has been "visited".<br />
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Holmes advises Openshaw to leave the diary page with a note telling of the destruction of the Colonel's papers on the garden sundial. After Openshaw leaves, Holmes deduces from the time that has passed between the letter mailings and the deaths of Elias and his brother that the writer is on a sailing ship.<br />
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Holmes also recognizes the "K.K.K" as the Klu Klux Klan, the Southern Reconstruction group. According to Holmes, the group had a sudden collapse in March 1869 and Holmes theorizes that the collapse was caused by the Colonel's maliciously taking their papers away to England. Holmes reaches for volume K of the American Encyclopedia and reads that the Klan got its name "from the fanciful resemblance to the sound produced by cocking a rifle." <br />
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(Holmes could not have been more incorrect, the Klan’s name came from Greek word <i>kuklos</i>, which means circle. While National Grand Wizard and former Confederate general Nathan Bedford Forrest did disband the Klan in 1869, but it was due to the increasing lawlessness of local chapters. Federal legislation passed in 1870 and 1871 all but outlawed the Klan and helped to further the group's demise until it was reorganized in 1915.)<br />
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The next day there is a newspaper account that the body of Openshaw has been found in the Thames River and the death is believed to be an accident. Holmes checks sailing records of ships that were at both Pondicherry in January and February 1883 and at Dundee in January 1885 and finds a Savannah, Georgia based a boat named <i>The Lone Star</i>.<br />
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Holmes confirms that <i>The Lone Star</i> had docked in London a week before. He then sends five orange pips to the captain of <i>The Lone Star</i> and a telegram to the police in Savannah that the Captain and two mates are wanted for murder. But The Lone Star never arrives in Savannah; there are severe gales and the only trace of the boat is a signpost marked "L.S." sighted in the middle of the North Atlantic.<br />
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This story would later be the basis for the 1945 film <i>Sherlock Holmes and the House of Fear</i> starring Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce as Holmes and Watson. However the film differed dramatically from the Doyle short story and contained no references to the American Civil War.<br />
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The second time the war was mentioned was "The Cardboard Box," which appeared in <i>The Strand</i> in January 1893. In England it was originally included in the short story collection <i>The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes</i> published in 1894, though American editions removed the tale due to its reference to adultery. In America it was included in the 1917 collection <i>His Last Bow</i>. While the story today is still included in all British editions of the <i>Memoirs</i>, some U.S. editions have it in <i>His Last Bow</i> as well as the <i>Memoirs</i>. Supposedly the events in this case took place between the years 1885-1891.<br />
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The mystery, involving murder and adultery in a dysfunctional family, has nothing to do with the American Civil War, but the conflict does come up when Holmes deduces that Watson is thinking about that conflict. When Watson demands an explanation, Holmes tells him:<br />
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"After throwing down your paper, which was the action which drew my attention to you, you sat for half a minute with a vacant expression. Then your eyes fixed themselves upon your newly framed picture of General Gordon, and I saw by the alteration in your face that a train of thought had been started. But it did not lead very far. Your eyes flashed across to the unframed portrait of Henry Ward Beecher which stands upon the top of your books. Then you glanced up at the wall, and of course your meaning was obvious. You were thinking that if the portrait were framed it would just cover that bare space and correspond with Gordon's picture over there."<br />
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"You have followed me wonderfully!" I exclaimed.<br />
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"So far I could hardly have gone astray. But now your thoughts went back to Beecher, and you looked hard across as if you were studying the character in his features. Then your eyes ceased to pucker, but you continued to look across, and your face was thoughtful. You were recalling the incidents of Beecher's career. I was well aware that you could not do this without thinking of the mission which he undertook on behalf of the North at the time of the Civil War, for I remember your expressing your passionate indignation at the way in which he was received by the more turbulent of our people. You felt so strongly about it that I knew you could not think of Beecher without thinking of that also. When a moment later I saw your eyes wander away from the picture, I suspected that your mind had now turned to the Civil War, and when I observed that your lips set, your eyes sparkled, and your hands clenched I was positive that you were indeed thinking of the gallantry which was shown by both sides in that desperate struggle. But then, again, your face grew sadder; you shook your head. You were dwelling upon the sadness and horror and useless waste of life. Your hand stole towards your own old wound and a smile quivered on your lips, which showed me that the ridiculous side of this method of settling international questions had forced itself upon your mind. At this point I agreed with you that it was preposterous and was glad to find that all my deductions had been correct."<br />
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"Absolutely!" said I. "And now that you have explained it, I confess that I am as amazed as before."</blockquote>
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Because of the way the story was published in America, this scene is added to "The Resident Patient" in some editions.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Henry Ward Beecher</td></tr>
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Henry Ward Beecher (1813-1887) was a celebrated and influential American Protestant clergyman. The charismatic minister averaged 2500 people to his Sunday sermons in his Brooklyn N.Y. church. Beecher was an outspoken abolitionist and expressed his views in the two national publications he edited. He also was an avid Northern supporter of the war, raising and arming a regiment.<br />
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Beecher visited Great Britain in 1863 and gave a successful series of lectures about the American Civil War across England and Scotland. These appearances help eroded British support for the South. When the war ended, Beecher was the main speaker when the American flag was re-hoisted above Fort Sumter.<br />
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Beecher's sister, Harriet Beecher Stowe, was the author of <i>Uncle Tom's Cabin</i> though some have speculated that her brother may have had a hand in the famous novel.<br />
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We are never told why Watson has an interest in Beecher, but it has led to speculation that Watson's father and/or an elder brother may have been an admirer of Beecher. However, some Sherlockians have theorized that Watson may have actually been born in the 1840s and fought in the American Civil War for the North, hence his chain of thoughts in the story.<br />
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In reality, the Beecher reference was an inside joke by Doyle. In 1874 Beecher was sued by a former employee, Theodore Tilton, who claimed that Beecher had an affair with Tilton's wife. (Mrs. Tilton claimed that Beecher believed in "free love.") The subsequent 1875 trial, while sensational, resulted in a hung jury.  All of which would have easily come to the mind of readers of The Cardboard Box at the time of publication.<br />
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While the references to the American Civil War in the Sherlock Holmes cannon are unique and interesting, they pale in comparison to a series of real-life coincidences that connect the character to the war.<br />
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<i>Our American Cousin</i> is an 1858 play in three acts by English playwright Tom Taylor. The comedy is about an awkward, boorish but honest American, Asa Trenchard, who meets his aristocratic British relatives when he goes to England to claim his family estate. It premiered in New York City on October 15, 1858 and was an immediate success. On April 14, 1865, Lincoln was assassinated while watching the play at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C.<br />
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Nine years later, 15-year-old Conan Doyle saw the play in London while on a three week Christmas holiday with an uncle.<br />
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Sixty-five years later, in 1939, Basil Rathbone portrayed Doyle's most famous creation for the first time. The 20th Century's-Fox's production of <i>The Hound of the Baskervilles</i> is still regarded by many as the finest film adaptation of any of Doyle's works. Rathbone's outstanding performance as Sherlock Holmes made him the living personification of the great detective for generations since.<br />
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Most of his fans would be surprised to known that according to Rathbone family lore the British actor was a distant cousin of Maj. Henry Rathbone, who with his fiancée Miss Clara Harris, accompanied the Lincolns to Ford's theatre that fatal night, proving once again that truth is stranger than fiction.<br />
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However, as Holmes said in "The Adventure of the Blanched Soldier," "But is it coincidence? Are there not subtle forces at work of which we know little?"<br />
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Sherlock Holmes and the American Civil War

"at the time of the Civil War" [CARD] [ Editor's note: The following is a guest post from Civil War author, lecturer and...

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by Scott Monty

The Secret of Sherlock’s Statue

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"For a long time he gazed upwards at it" [ABBE]</h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit6tHwNCl9Ui9uKScy080R8HW2O3fJ-aF8Ws_7bQ_jY0fWnUa9O-o7OFjQcU8WvKc_kAfcdMW7kS4_B12txkFSDJcT-Zwe3wlPiGJ1yX_EmAkwgHE4gz40qVlZOZ-u2W04jF9pVPDxsUew/s1600/statue.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img alt="Yes, we know this is the Sherlock Holmes statue in London, not Edinburgh" border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit6tHwNCl9Ui9uKScy080R8HW2O3fJ-aF8Ws_7bQ_jY0fWnUa9O-o7OFjQcU8WvKc_kAfcdMW7kS4_B12txkFSDJcT-Zwe3wlPiGJ1yX_EmAkwgHE4gz40qVlZOZ-u2W04jF9pVPDxsUew/s640/statue.jpg" title="Sherlock Holmes statue" width="640" /></a></div>
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Princes Street in Edinburgh, Scotland is one of the city’s main thoroughfares. Dominating the Princes Street Garden is an imposing 200 foot tall Victorian monument to Sir Walter Scott, described by writer Bill Bryson as looking like a “Gothic rocket ship.”<br />
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But a few minutes stroll up Leith Street will take you to Picardy Place and you will see a much smaller monument – a monument commemorating the birthplace of that other well-known Scottish writer so near and dear to our hearts, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.  Doyle was born May 22nd, 1859 at 11 Picardy Place, near the top of Leith Walk. The building where he was born is no longer there but in its place is an oversized statue of Sherlock Holmes – a statue which has a secret unknown to most Sherlockians, even those who have stood before it and admired their literary hero.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_lOHVU6ldHN0fvJmGDKIiGhosvE164wqQQwULTJBWRte4UqQny6IMcPLVXpNTIJ7H-Ibk_yiQxKup-BjYbEaHoEh8CyV_jM9Z54eIbXS6mP5djOPUfgec62pbPcawyI9y0QKH4uGD55bg/s1600/Holmes+with+me.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Bob Stek and Sherlock Holmes in Edinburgh" border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_lOHVU6ldHN0fvJmGDKIiGhosvE164wqQQwULTJBWRte4UqQny6IMcPLVXpNTIJ7H-Ibk_yiQxKup-BjYbEaHoEh8CyV_jM9Z54eIbXS6mP5djOPUfgec62pbPcawyI9y0QKH4uGD55bg/s640/Holmes+with+me.jpg" title="Bob Stek with the Sherlock Holmes statue" width="426" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our contributor Bob Stek, BSI and the Sherlock Holmes statue.</td></tr>
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Within sight and a few hundred feet from the statue stands <a href="http://www.nicholsonspubs.co.uk/theconandoyleedinburgh/" target="_blank">The Conan Doyle Pub</a> on York Place.  A plaque on the exterior of the pub shares some history of Picardy Place as well as a snippet of misdirection about what Holmes is contemplating as he gazes downward. The plaque reads:<br />
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Located close to The Conan Doyle is Picardy Place, where the pub’s namesake, the great author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, was born on May 22nd 1859. There have been houses on this site since 1685, when French refugees (who had fled the province of Picardy, due to the revocation of the Edict of Nantes when Louis XIV declared Protestantism illegal) built Picardy village. Today, an over life-sized bronze statue of Conan Doyle’s greatest creation, Sherlock Holmes, stands opposite his birthplace. The most famous fictional detective is portrayed in meditation on the death of his author.</blockquote>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh23hc0iTOthSCqqL_tYEWPXZ9ir1fMJDPWHhCffbNt1thqwXdcg5IWWVzaGD4mKPmvSPu-zu9SNQKPXzQrxC9DEXpbbc-JhNXLwHTBcx9Qv4BC_dvhpJNQEA8lR_MAs55LuC9p-EixCjA9/s1600/Conan+Doyle+pub.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="The Conan Doyle Pub in Edinburgh" border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh23hc0iTOthSCqqL_tYEWPXZ9ir1fMJDPWHhCffbNt1thqwXdcg5IWWVzaGD4mKPmvSPu-zu9SNQKPXzQrxC9DEXpbbc-JhNXLwHTBcx9Qv4BC_dvhpJNQEA8lR_MAs55LuC9p-EixCjA9/s640/Conan+Doyle+pub.jpg" title="The Conan Doyle, Edinburgh" width="640" /></a></div>
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Standing directly in front of the statue and looking up, it might appear that Holmes is deep in thought, looking towards the pavement, perhaps reflecting upon being at the site of the birthplace of Doyle, perhaps musing about his own seeming immortality as well as ‘the death of his author.’ </div>
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During his long career Holmes could be contemplative – we know that he carefully studied a rose and concluded that the “highest assurance of the goodness of Providence seems to me to rest in the flowers.” [NAVA] Nonetheless Sherlockians admire Holmes for his ability not just to see, but to observe, to notice a trifle, and to deduce from it a clue and thereby solve a mystery. Holmes actively looked and observed. He once told Inspector Gregory that “I only saw it because I was looking for it.” [SILV]</div>
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It was not beyond Holmes to get on his hands and knees to carefully examine something on the ground, be it a footprint or tobacco ash.  Can we apply Holmes’ methods here, at his own statue? Perhaps Holmes is not in metaphysical contemplation, staring without seeing, without observing. But at what could he be looking?<br />
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An examination of the area in front of the statue reveals only stone pavers – no engraved dancing men or coded message to be seen.  But notice that the statue is on a pedestal and raised more than six feet off the ground.  From a slightly higher elevation on Picardy Place Roundabout, one can see his feet and that the bronze casting includes a portion of the ground upon which Holmes is standing.  At this distance, however, nothing can be seen or observed.<br />
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A modern day high tech solution might be to rig a selfie stick - or even better, a remote controlled quadcopter with a digital camera - and flit around and survey what is near to Holmes’ feet. Instead we will be true to the Master and his methods and physically position ourselves to use our own eyes.  With no handy step-ladder to be found, we note that there is a ledge about 18 inches high around the base of the pedestal. Even Watson’s war wound (gimpy leg or shoulder – take your pick) would not prevent him from stepping up on the corner of this ledge to get a closer view.  Due to recent rain, my photo shows a puddle of water partially obscuring something of interest. But when you are in Edinburgh, climb upon that corner ledge and confirm for yourself that there is indeed the “footprint of a gigantic hound!”<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF0W2AtPvE2VPuq1wcZDFa5ckZcID1FOpoMhJnIjrA8v7kROYeLjtlBDgG9O_z-h9jseCsEs6P8Gs8Ahc8z25M5Bn3Fipf-Y-Afjqcao1GBY-5_JKWoFdIPHsazEHDfieeQjO0CGc2Auga/s1600/hound+footprint.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt=""Mr. Holmes, they were the footprints of a gigantic hound!"" border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF0W2AtPvE2VPuq1wcZDFa5ckZcID1FOpoMhJnIjrA8v7kROYeLjtlBDgG9O_z-h9jseCsEs6P8Gs8Ahc8z25M5Bn3Fipf-Y-Afjqcao1GBY-5_JKWoFdIPHsazEHDfieeQjO0CGc2Auga/s640/hound+footprint.jpg" title="The footprint of a gigantic hound!" width="640" /></a></div>
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But wait – there is more!  Seen more clearly in the photo below is the pawprint of a much smaller animal – a clue outside the bounds of Canonical knowledge certainly.  Whatever could it mean?<br />
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We are, after all, at the birthplace of Doyle. Did Doyle keep a pet which the sculptor wished to acknowledge? But that would be a very obscure bit of trivia to include, especially since Doyle was unlikely to even be aware of a family pet in the first year or so of his life.<br />
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If it is unrelated to Doyle’s birth, perhaps it is related to his birthplace. Picardy Place has no connection itself - but what of the city of Edinburgh, the city which approved the building of this memorial to one of its famous residents. Can we deduce a connection with Edinburgh? The paw print is not of sufficient size to be a companion print of a gigantic hound. It would have to belong to a much smaller dog.  That would most likely rule out half spaniel, half lurcher Toby from <i>The Sign of Four</i>. Is there a small dog strongly associated with Edinburgh, a small dog perhaps contemporaneous with Doyle?<br />
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Of course! No need to eliminate any impossible or improbable suspects, there is only one answer – <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greyfriars_Bobby" target="_blank">Greyfriars Bobby</a>! Known throughout Scotland, Bobby, a Skye terrier, was born about 1855 and for fourteen years guarded the grave of his owner. The statue of Bobby sits at the corner of Candlemaker’s Row and George IV Bridge, just a one mile walk from Picardy Place. A plaque on the base reads "A tribute to the affectionate fidelity of Greyfriars Bobby. In 1858, this faithful dog followed the remains of his master to Greyfriars Churchyard and lingered near the spot until his death in 1872."<br />
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I only hope that no damage is done to the corner of the pedestal of the Holmes statue by legions of Sherlockians trying to see the two paw prints. Perhaps the city of Edinburgh would be wise to invest in a stone step or two to avoid wear on the ledge.<br />
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I am indebted to Rupert Maragh of the UK for introducing me to the ‘secret of the statue.’<br />
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<i>Robert Stek, BSI will be joining David Stuart Davies at the Arthur Conan Doyle Centre in Edinburgh during the <a href="https://www.edfringe.com/" target="_blank">Fringe Festival</a> in August, 2015. David Stuart Davies will be presenting “An Evening with Sherlock Holmes and Conan Doyle” and Dr. Stek will speak on “The Unusual Friendship of Conan Doyle and Harry Houdini.”</i><br />
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The Secret of Sherlock’s Statue

"For a long time he gazed upwards at it" [ABBE] Princes Street in Edinburgh, Scotland is one of the city’s main thorough...

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by Spocklock

The Mystery of William Gillette's Romantic Lead in the 1916 Sherlock Holmes Film

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"became entangled with this young person" [SCAN]</h4>
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William Gillette famously wanted a love interest in his play "Sherlock Holmes", hence his telegram to Arthur Conan Doyle: "May I marry Holmes?" When he filmed the play in 1916, the silent movie that was thought lost but is  <a href="http://ihose.co/1916film" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">now being revealed   to the world</a>, Miss Alice Faulkner was there, ready to nestle up to Holmes in the final scene. The question is, <b><i>who played Alice Faulkner in the film that we're all going to be seeing this year?</i></b></div>
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We have always known that the actress was Marjorie Kay. But, well, who was Marjorie Kay? The <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0443130/" target="_blank">Internet Movie DataBase</a> and similar sources tell little or nothing about her. The answer can now be revealed, thanks to inquisitive questions on my part   and skillful genealogical research on the part of talented Sherlockian and historical researcher (and my good friend) <a href="http://wellreadsherlockian.com/" target="_blank">Leah Guinn</a> (her website is wellreadsherlockian.com and she's on Twitter as <a href="http://twitter.com/leahguinn" target="_blank">@LeahGuinn</a>).</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtKJ8lC7chOSTOQEVKWmQENEcEXbXNNk4XxJyadgbByFHgyXaejwCMqMESU0H5smX3HYaMBzJlnVcsoJ0RCJA6OFldQl6PrCpDa3hC7ATu5mVvWwl3REBkjAuRhgQsv4O-0CL8QlFOkRlg/s1600/Marjorie+Kay.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Marjorie Kay, actress" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtKJ8lC7chOSTOQEVKWmQENEcEXbXNNk4XxJyadgbByFHgyXaejwCMqMESU0H5smX3HYaMBzJlnVcsoJ0RCJA6OFldQl6PrCpDa3hC7ATu5mVvWwl3REBkjAuRhgQsv4O-0CL8QlFOkRlg/s1600/Marjorie+Kay.jpg" title="Marjorie Kay" /></a></div>
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<div class="">
The most remarkable thing we've discovered is that when she made the 1916 film, starring opposite the 62-year-old Gillette, Marjorie Kay was 17 years old. But there's a lot more to her life story than one film. Some highlights:</div>
<div class="">
<ul>
<li>Marjorie Kay was born November 2, 1898, in Detroit. (That date comes from a passport application she submitted in May 1916. We have not been able to see her actual birth certificate.) Her parents were  Canadian-born: Robert D. Kay, a jeweller,   and his wife, Margaret Griffin Kay. A number of newspaper mentions call her "a society girl".</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="">
<ul>
<li>In 1916, presumably after completing <i>Sherlock Holmes</i> (which was released May 15 of that year), she joined the Naval Nurse Corps and went to Europe, where the United States was already providing hospital services even though it would be more   than another year before the US entered World War I. Between May and September she worked at a hospital at Neuilly-sur-Seine and possibly other hospitals, and drove an ambulance. Along the way the Detroit society girl made the acquaintance of Mrs. William   K. Vanderbilt, a pillar of New York society. (There were multiple Vanderbilts; this one was the former Anne Harriman Sands Rutherford, who had married a grandson of the original "Commodore" in 1903.)</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="">
<ul>
<li>She came home from Europe in September, aboard the <i>SS Rochambeau</i>. Among the keepsakes she brought back was a belt to which were attached 154 military buttons, collar ornaments, shoulder badges, hat badges and belt buckles from Allied armies   and even those of Germany and Austria. The young nurse clearly got to know her patients well.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="">
<ul>
<li>Not too long after her return, she was apparently chosen as the model for a Red Cross fund-raising poster. She was dressed in nurse's garb and her hands and arms were outstretched. The key word on the poster: "Give." She was proud of it, and   kept a copy of the poster on the walls of the apartment that she and her husband occupied decades later in Hartford, Connecticut.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="">
<ul>
<li>She died June 25, 1949, in Hartford. An obituary says she had been married three times. Details of her marriages are far from clear, but at the time of her death she was officially Mrs. William L. Anderson.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="">
<ul>
<li>The obituary traces her career between 1916 and 1949 on the authority of "friends" who "recalled" that she had studied as a coloratura soprano and sung with Enrico Caruso at the Metropolitan Opera. Sometime in the 1920s she settled in Hartford,   opened a dancing school and later managed a talent agency.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="">
<ul>
<li>A 43-word obituary in <i>Variety </i>also mentioned Caruso, and said Kay had performed in "The Night Boat", a musical that ran on Broadway for most of 1920 before going on tour. (Much earlier,<i> Film Daily</i> in 1918, referring to Kay as "recently returned"   from France, said she had been signed to co-star in a movie depicting her war experiences. It would appear that nothing came of that project.)</li>
</ul>
</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg04dl9cKqhsTTgtUgwINlBX5TnFJuU9mFUPo7QVY9QFI4SJdhqz1QzrdJY-wrudFwPlyYQp6c9a7jSKu_371a40vAhcDBgG0iwPws5ND3rpodU4QX1FgnN3EB8bC8MU5_wpJK18uOfak99/s1600/sherlock_holmes_1916-full-still.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg04dl9cKqhsTTgtUgwINlBX5TnFJuU9mFUPo7QVY9QFI4SJdhqz1QzrdJY-wrudFwPlyYQp6c9a7jSKu_371a40vAhcDBgG0iwPws5ND3rpodU4QX1FgnN3EB8bC8MU5_wpJK18uOfak99/s640/sherlock_holmes_1916-full-still.jpg" width="512" /></a></div>
<br class="" /></div>
<div class="">
There you are — a few facts about the young woman who played Sherlock Holmes's love interest and was immortalized in celluloid. Totally absent from the evidence, so far, is any hint of how she got the role in the first place. There is clearly   more of the story to be told, and our research is continuing.</div>
<div class="">
<br class="" />
<i>If you're unable to attend the screening of Sherlock Holmes at the San Francisco Silent Film Festival this weekend, you won't want to miss an opportunity to <a href="http://ihose.co/1916bluray" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">pre-order the DVD and Blu-ray</a>, which will be released in October.</i><br />
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</div>

The Mystery of William Gillette's Romantic Lead in the 1916 Sherlock Holmes Film

"became entangled with this young person" [SCAN] William Gillette famously wanted a love interest in his play "Sherl...

+ Read more »

by Chris Redmond

Conan Doyle Estate Sues Mr. Holmes

<h4 style="text-align: center;">
"the relentless threat" [VALL]</h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQUNjtAk2lVJ44KqegrJ3hOhoBIKfmY9FudUPQytinmnLtvqtglAZku8BTpLBptlU0gLbpzb8CrRg6av7fwgFemiI_cX8FkRMZBN2ek3SBqSJSLHIWL092FKZ47kvCFuN_dCAwYmBUT4bG/s1600/I%2527m+outraged+-+animated.gif" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQUNjtAk2lVJ44KqegrJ3hOhoBIKfmY9FudUPQytinmnLtvqtglAZku8BTpLBptlU0gLbpzb8CrRg6av7fwgFemiI_cX8FkRMZBN2ek3SBqSJSLHIWL092FKZ47kvCFuN_dCAwYmBUT4bG/s640/I%2527m+outraged+-+animated.gif" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
Well, they're at it again.<br />
<br />
The Conan Doyle Estate, Ltd. - that business entity that takes responsibility for the financial interests (certainly not the reputational interests) of Conan Doyle's descendants - is suing to have the film <i>Mr. Holmes</i> halted. In a lawsuit filed the day before what would have been <a href="http://ihose.co/156ACD" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's 156th birthday</a> (classy!), the CDEL named the film studio Miramax, its distributors Roadside Attractions and director Bill Condon - as well as publisher Penguin Random House and screenwriter Mitch Cullin, author of <i><a href="http://amzn.to/1FGJURG" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">A Slight Trick of the Mind</a></i>, upon which the film is based - as defendants in the suit.<br />
<br />
Previously, the CDEL was under fire by Leslie Klinger, BSI ("The Abbey Grange"), who was defending his right to publish <i><a href="http://amzn.to/1StK5Fe" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">In the Company of Sherlock Holmes</a></i> without submitting to its extortionate requests. He filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court in Illinois. Ultimately, the U.S. courts determined that the first 50 of the Sherlock Holmes stories are in the public domain, with only the last 10 falling under copyright protection. [Details directly below]<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEXuBHB1UG0-XeN2MBsUFMuVj9oNzo0okKGhaRZKDNC3YhU38HH4tEQsjWLSifIUNZmAhjgxAeSSFEmjrPDWn5VFah2zHn8SF_l5lWm7jhcZ4p3is1-YJcU1RFYmjyJiygYFnbYsNO9Swx/s1600/dividing+line.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEXuBHB1UG0-XeN2MBsUFMuVj9oNzo0okKGhaRZKDNC3YhU38HH4tEQsjWLSifIUNZmAhjgxAeSSFEmjrPDWn5VFah2zHn8SF_l5lWm7jhcZ4p3is1-YJcU1RFYmjyJiygYFnbYsNO9Swx/s1600/dividing+line.jpg" /></a></div>
<h3>
Timeline of Events</h3>
<ul>
<li><b>February 14, 2013</b>: Initial lawsuit filed by Leslie S. Klinger against the Conan Doyle Estate, Ltd.'s heavy-handed attempt to block <i>In the Company of Sherlock Holmes</i> on Amazon and other bookstores - <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2013/02/imagine-that-you-can-bully-me-chas_14.html#.VWDK7PlViko" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">"don't imagine that you can bully me" [CHAS]</a></li>
<li><b>April 17, 2013</b>: Our coverage on <a href="http://ihose.co/ihose51" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Episode 51</a> of IHOSE</li>
<li><b>December 27, 2013</b>: Leslie Klinger granted an initial victory in the case - <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2013/12/plaintiff-victorious-in-free-sherlock.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">"Ha! Nothing could be better." [STOC]</a></li>
<li><b>December 30, 2013</b>: A special <a href="http://ihose.co/freesherlock" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">#FreeSherlock episode</a> of IHOSE, featuring intellectual property legal scholar and expert Betsy Rosenblatt, BSI ("Lucy Ferrier")</li>
<li><b>January 4, 2014</b>: The Conan Doyle Estate issues a press release indicating that it would appeal the decision but that it is still the winner because it holds trademarks on the characters - <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2014/01/conan-doyle-estate-business-entity-on.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">"spinning fine theories" [NOBL]</a></li>
<li><b>May 22, 2014</b>: An eyewitness recounted what happened during the appeal hearing - <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2014/05/an-eyewitness-account-to-free-sherlock.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">"A higher judge had taken the matter in hand" [STUD]</a></li>
<li><b>June 16, 2014</b>: The appeal was denied by Judge Richard A. Posner, who rebuked the "quixotic" attempt by the Conan Doyle Estate, Ltd. to seek "perpetual, or nearly perpetual copyright protection" of the Sherlock Holmes character. <a href="https://www.scribd.com/doc/234319104/Klinger-v-Conan-Doyle-Estate-Ltd-7th-Circuit-Court-of-Appeals-Decision" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">"during these fruitless quests" [HOUN]</a></li>
<li><b>July 18, 2014</b>: After the CDEL filed an emergency petition with the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) on July 11, the petition was turned down - <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2014/07/the-us-supreme-court-denies-conan-doyle.html#.VWDPSflViko" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">"the last and highest court of appeal" [STUD]</a></li>
<li><b>July 20, 2014</b>: A discussion of all things #FreeSherlock on <a href="http://ihose.co/ihose66" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Episode 66</a> of IHOSE. </li>
<li><b>August 5, 2014</b>: The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals ordered the CDEL to cease extortion and pay Klinger's legal fees - <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2014/08/7th-circuit-orders-conan-doyle-estate.html#.VWDR0vlViko" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">"your fees will be assured and you will be given a perfectly free hand" [ILLU]</a></li>
<li><b>November 3, 2014</b>: The SCOTUS refused to hear arguments in the case - <a href="https://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2014/11/supreme-court-wont-hear-freesherlock.html#.XC5mtlxKjb0" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">"the final discussion of those matters which lie between us" [FINA]</a></li>
<li><b>May 23, 2015</b>: <a href="https://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2015/05/conan-doyle-estate-sues-mr-holmes.html#.XvWd3UVKjb2" target="_blank">Conan Doyle Estate sues Miramax</a> over the release of the film <i>Mr. Holmes</i></li><li><b>August 29, 2015</b>: Conan Doyle Sues Own Estate from Beyond the Grave (satire) - <a href="https://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2015/08/conan-doyle-sues-own-estate-from-beyond.html#.X0f44MhKjb0" target="_blank">"opening a grave without the consent of next-of-kin" [HOUN]</a></li>
<li><b>September 5, 2015</b>: <a href="https://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2015/09/conan-doyle-estate-reaches-settlement.html#.XvWaHEVKjb0" target="_blank">Settlement reached</a> between CDEL and Miramax</li>
<li><b>November 23, 2015</b>: <a href="https://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2015/11/bombshell-interview-with-author-mitch.html#.XvWc40VKjb0" target="_blank">Bombshell interview</a> with author Mitch Cullin over the lawsuit</li><li><b>June 26, 2020</b>: Conan Doyle Estate is suing Netflix over <i>Enola Holmes</i> - <a href="https://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2020/06/the-conan-doyle-estate-is-suing-netflix.html#.X0f3gshKjb0" target="_blank">"repeated the same story with an absolute disregard" [VALL]</a></li>
</ul>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEXuBHB1UG0-XeN2MBsUFMuVj9oNzo0okKGhaRZKDNC3YhU38HH4tEQsjWLSifIUNZmAhjgxAeSSFEmjrPDWn5VFah2zHn8SF_l5lWm7jhcZ4p3is1-YJcU1RFYmjyJiygYFnbYsNO9Swx/s1600/dividing+line.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEXuBHB1UG0-XeN2MBsUFMuVj9oNzo0okKGhaRZKDNC3YhU38HH4tEQsjWLSifIUNZmAhjgxAeSSFEmjrPDWn5VFah2zHn8SF_l5lWm7jhcZ4p3is1-YJcU1RFYmjyJiygYFnbYsNO9Swx/s1600/dividing+line.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />
This time, <a href="http://deadline.com/2015/05/mr-holmes-lawsuit-arthur-conan-doyle-estate-sues-bill-condon-1201431854/" target="_blank">the lawsuit was filed</a> in New Mexico (<a href="https://www.scribd.com/doc/266283769/Mr-Holmes" target="_blank">read it here</a>), and it takes great pains to indicate that Cullin grew up in that state and visited John Bennett Shaw, BSI ("The Hans Sloane of My Age"), with access to his library. We also note that the U.S. representatives of the Conan Doyle Estate, Ltd., Hazelbaker and Lellenberg, Inc., reside in New Mexico.<br />
<br />
<div style="display: block; font: 14px helvetica, arial, sans-serif; margin: 12px auto 6px;">
<a href="https://www.scribd.com/document/266283769/Mr-Holmes#from_embed" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View Mr Holmes on Scribd">Mr Holmes</a> on Scribd</div>
<iframe class="scribd_iframe_embed" data-aspect-ratio="null" data-auto-height="true" frameborder="0" height="600" scrolling="no" src="https://www.scribd.com/embeds/266283769/content?start_page=1&view_mode=scroll&show_recommendations=true&access_key=key-xKuOkCTkCvHIqZDbulZk" title="Mr Holmes" width="100%"></iframe><br />
<br />
We're not legal scholars, but there are elements of the legal filing that make more use of specific details about some of the written material and the subject matter than the previous lawsuits did. The CDEL claims that passages from "The Blanched Soldier" and "The Lion's Mane" were copied or assimilated in the new material. Whether or not those facts are relevant and compelling is up for the judicial system to decide.<br />
<br />
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
"The greedy rogue. They are useful, these traitors, </h4>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
but I grudge them their blood-money."</h4>
<div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<b>- 'His Last Bow'</b></div>
</div>
<br />
<br />
But once again, we must question the motivations - and the common sense - of the Conan Doyle Estate, Ltd. First, we must ask: if the matter was such an egregious copyright infringement when <i>A Slight Trick of the Mind</i> was first published some 10 years ago, why wasn't the CDEL rabidly pursuing the author and his publisher then? You and we both know the answer: because it wasn't a global phenomenon then, as it is now, with Sir Ian McKellen in the starring role of <i>Mr. Holmes</i>.<br />
<br />
While we're at it, Sherlockian Brenda Rossini raised this issue:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The complaint now alleges that Cullin “copied entire passages from Conan Doyle’s copyrighted story ‘The Adventure of the Blanched Soldier.’ Yet, the estate ignored P.D. James’ unattributed gleaning from The Boscombe Valley Mystery in her book<i> Death Comes to Pemberley.</i></blockquote>
Interestingly, the CDEL indicates that it has managed rights with productions such as <i>Sherlock</i>, <i>Young Sherlock Holmes</i> and <i>Elementary</i> - none of which have anything to do with Holmes's retirement.<br />
<br />
In terms of common sense, rather than making a major kerfuffle - on the birthday of their progenitor's birth, no less - the CDEL is now calling for a jury trial and the halting of any production that includes the so-called infringing material. Wouldn't it make more sense to allow the film to become the blockbuster that it is destined to be and then ask for a percentage of the profits?<br />
<br />
Not in the case of the Conan Doyle Estate, Ltd. Remember, their <i>modus operandi</i> is to allow plans of publishers and producers to get to the point of no return and then send a threatening letter or file a claim, so that the recipients pay them hush money to make the issue go away. It's been their unabashed business model for the last few years, and the weak have succumbed to its invidious intentions.<br />
<br />
As to us, we feel that the business entity that represents what is left of Conan Doyle's estate is doing irreparable damage to his reputation. Although we all know that Doyle himself wasn't quite so concerned as he famously told playwright and actor William Gillette that he could "marry him, murder him or do whatever you like with" Sherlock Holmes. But this kind of legal wrangling and greed represents a last gasp for relevance and income for individuals who aren't even direct descendants. Surely they have other financial interests to keep them flush.<br />
<br />
It's just sad to see that because of the overgenerous laws of the United States, the legal profession sees more of a payday than the Conan Doyle family.<br />
<div>
<br />
What do you think of the latest kerfuffle? Perhaps we should change the hashtag to #FreeMrHolmes...<br />
<br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>Image credit: Paxton Whitehead as Dr. Philip Barbay in <b>Back to School</b> (<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPb8ZjebUP8" target="_blank">YouTube</a>)</i><br />
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--<br />
<br /></div>

Conan Doyle Estate Sues Mr. Holmes

"the relentless threat" [VALL] Well, they're at it again. The Conan Doyle Estate, Ltd. - that business entity that take...

+ Read more »

by Scott Monty

Born on This Day: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

<h4 style="text-align: center;">
"he had created a local hero" [VALL]</h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLkmSQd1oNYUD9cyabBcagCac8wl_X9Vn3R-kyn43sRwOkSL2vcifnCUWQmLvCCzzaCXOACjdnNrFg4pgEyqBAkBGwYBT88o6GJUSHKdY14ws6fwztjndl_R6qYyi8e1ghfadGEbM2MxSv/s1600/Sir+Arthur+Conan+Doyle+plaque.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Edinburgh plaque in memory of Arthur Conan Doyle" border="0" height="422" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLkmSQd1oNYUD9cyabBcagCac8wl_X9Vn3R-kyn43sRwOkSL2vcifnCUWQmLvCCzzaCXOACjdnNrFg4pgEyqBAkBGwYBT88o6GJUSHKdY14ws6fwztjndl_R6qYyi8e1ghfadGEbM2MxSv/s640/Sir+Arthur+Conan+Doyle+plaque.jpg" title="Sir Arthur Conan Doyle plaque" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
On May 22, 1859, Arthur Igantius Conan Doyle was born to Charles and Mary (Foley) Doyle in Edinburgh, Scotland.<br />
<br />
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was many things - a man of action who counted boxing, cricket, rugby and golf among his interests and one who pioneered the sport of downhill skiing. He was an explorer who sailed on <a href="http://ihose.co/ihose48" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">an Arctic whaling ship</a> and later on a cargo ship along the west coast of Africa. He was a war correspondent in Sudan, an army doctor in the Boer war and a front-line observer of World War I. And for 40 years, he was an ardent believer in spiritualism.<br />
<br />
But it is as a writer that Conan Doyle is best known. While he desperately wanted to be known for his historical novels such as <i>Sir Nigel</i> and <i>The White Company</i>, or even his Brigadier Gerard and Professor Challenger stories, his name is more closely connected with his most famous creation, Sherlock Holmes.<br />
<br />
In <a href="https://youtu.be/4eq18U5btcg" target="_blank">this historic video</a> - and to our knowledge, the only existing footage of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle speaking - was shot three years before his death in 1930. Listen to what he has to say about the origins of Sherlock Holmes and more.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="480" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/4eq18U5btcg" width="640"></iframe><br /></div>
<br />
<br />
In honor of his birthday today (Sir Arthur would have been 156 years old), here are some useful links (but by no means comprehensive) to help you find out more about Sir Arthur Conan Doyle:<br />
<ul>
<li>A listing of every entry on I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/search/label/Conan%20Doyle#.VV870vlViko" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">labeled "Conan Doyle"</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/sir-arthur-conan-doyle-is-born" target="_blank">May 22</a> from On This Day in History</li>
<li>A treasure trove of <a href="http://sherlockian.net/acd/index.html" target="_blank">Arthur Conan Doyle links on Sherlockian.net</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.acdfriends.org/" target="_blank">Friends of the Arthur Conan Doyle Collection</a>, Toronto Public Library</li>
<li><a href="http://www.the-conan-doyle-crowborough-establishment.com/" target="_blank">The Conan Doyle Crowborough Establishment</a></li>
</ul>
<br />
In terms of biographies, there are many, but more recent ones that we can highly recommend include:<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><i><a href="http://amzn.to/1LkDurq" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Man Who Created Sherlock Holmes: The Life and Times of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle</a></i> by Andrew Lycett</li>
<li><i><a href="http://amzn.to/1HzkjfN" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Teller of Tales: The Life of Arthur Conan Doyle</a></i> by Daniel Stashower</li>
<li><i><a href="http://amzn.to/1AjEGuR" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Arthur Conan Doyle: A Life in Letters</a></i> edited by Jon Lellenberg, Daniel Stashower and Charles Foley</li>
</ul>
<br />
<br />
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Bonus:</h4>
You can listen to our interview with Jon and Dan from <a href="http://ihose.co/ihose13" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Episode 13</a> when we discussed <i>Arthur Conan Doyle: A Life in Letters</i>.<br />
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<i>Image credit: <a href="https://flic.kr/p/paVG9B" target="_blank">Freddie Phillips (Flickr)</a></i><br />
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Born on This Day: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

"he had created a local hero" [VALL] On May 22, 1859, Arthur Igantius Conan Doyle was born to Charles and Mary (Foley) Doyle ...

+ Read more »

by Scott Monty

The Tangled Skeins of Sherlock Holmes: An Interview with David Marcum

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"another thread which I have extricated out of the tangled skein" [HOUN]</h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioAry4DOSUYjmcjscMDvr8xH_PXh2oysv5kMbxZRpO8aHGBw8B1aEohe1MGva-H0wp2VHN2NnD9FOtQ_S6MSPEXvvwDK8Q3NUm8U3xkKe6d96SMBXJuHvTyVQ6vGd6GJjwtmCGBxcA_EHa/s1600/Tangled+Skeins+-+David+Marcum.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Tangled Skeins - David Marcum" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioAry4DOSUYjmcjscMDvr8xH_PXh2oysv5kMbxZRpO8aHGBw8B1aEohe1MGva-H0wp2VHN2NnD9FOtQ_S6MSPEXvvwDK8Q3NUm8U3xkKe6d96SMBXJuHvTyVQ6vGd6GJjwtmCGBxcA_EHa/s1600/Tangled+Skeins+-+David+Marcum.jpg" title="Tangled Skeins" /></a></div>
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There are good pastiche writers, there are great ones, and then there is David Marcum who ranks among the very best. His short story collections, <i><a href="http://amzn.to/1cPm6j4" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Papers of Sherlock Holmes</a></i> are some of the top selling Sherlock Holmes books, with good reason. His mysteries are complex, and his Holmes and Watson come straight out of the canon. Doyle would be proud to see his characters continuing on in Mr. Marcum's writing.  I couldn't pass up the opportunity to interview Mr. Marcum on his latest Holmes short story collection entitled <i><a href="http://amzn.to/1IQANil" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Sherlock Holmes:  Tangled Skeins</a></i>.  I contacted him via e-mail and asked about the book, his upcoming projects, and his view on nontraditional versions of Sherlock Holmes.</div>
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<b>IHOSE:  <o:p></o:p><i>Tangled Skeins</i> is an unusual title for a Sherlock Holmes book.  Where did it come from and what does it mean?</b></h4>
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<b>David Marcum:</b> The title for the new book, <i>Sherlock Holmes – Tangled Skeins</i>, is taken from the original title of <i>A Study in Scarlet, </i>which was first called <i>A Tangled Skein. </i>It also comes from a couple of quotes in that book, where Holmes states: <i>“</i><i><span lang="EN">There's the scarlet thread of murder running through the colourless skein of life, and our duty is to unravel it . . . ”</span></i><span lang="EN"> and also <i>“I have now in my hands . . . all the threads which have formed such a tangle.”</i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN">The phrase “tangled skein” is never used in <i>A Study in Scarlet</i>, but it has come to be somewhat associated with Holmes, much like the more well-known but never-actually-uttered-in-The-Canon phrase <i>“Elementary, my dear Watson.” </i>There have been a couple of other Sherlockian books with this phrase in their title, including <i><a href="http://amzn.to/1HiQhr3" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Tangled Skein</a>, </i>David Stuart Davies’ Holmes-versus-Dracula pastiche. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN">My use of the phrase in the title comes from my long-held belief that Holmes was much busier than it has always appeared, and that many of his cases overlapped one another. For many years, I’ve kept a chronology of Holmes and Watson’s lives, based on both the Canon and the thousands of pastiches I’ve collected and read since I was a kid in the mid-1970’s. (For an extensive explanation of this chronology, see <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author_blog_posts/7555285-a-view-into-the-great-watsonian-oversoul-part-two-of-the-interview-with" target="_blank">one of my previous interviews by Derrick here</a>.)</span></div>
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<span lang="EN">By breaking down all of these thousands of pastiches into a day-by-day chronology, one can see that Holmes’s cases often overlapped each other. In this new book, Watson explains that when he assembled different stories for publication over the years, he had to pull out individual threads from the tangled skein of these intertwined cases, so that each story would appear to stand alone, rather than confuse the issue by referring to so many other simultaneous adventures.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN">In my first book, <i>The Papers of Sherlock Holmes,</i> there is a story called “The Haunting of Sutton House,” which tells of two nearly-simultaneous but unconnected cases. As I was “editing” Watson’s notes for this new volume, it occurred to me that every one of these tales was in some way related to another adventure, either because they were happening at the same time, or they were related to a past case. My initial title for the book was the prosaic <i>Sherlock Holmes: The Gower Street Murder and Other Stories. </i>Almost at the last minute, just before time to submit the whole thing to the publisher, I was walking in a local park, and the current title popped into my head. It seemed to encompass the idea of all of these interrelated cases. When I got back home, I ran it by my wife and son, and they liked it much better, and so it became <i>Sherlock Holmes: Tangled Skeins.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<b>IHOSE:  Your book has a great three part introduction about your time in England before writing, or perhaps I should say editing, this book.  My favorite part of the introduction was about your persuasion towards wearing deerstalker hats. What made you decide to write a personal and witty introduction about yourself?  Why didn't you just dive in with your stories?</b></h4>
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<b>DM:</b> The introduction worked backwards from the introductions to the three <i><a href="http://amzn.to/1eh3UQu" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Sherlock Holmes in Montague Street</a> </i>books, published in 2014. In those books, I explained how I was approached in London by someone who saw me wearing a deerstalker, during my Holmes Pilgrimage in September 2013, and given the Watsonian manuscripts that eventually led to those books. I’ve always loved reading those introductions in different pastiches that relate how Watson’s various “lost” stories have been discovered, right back to when I first read Nicholas Meyer’s <i><a href="http://amzn.to/1cPmoq8" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Seven-Per-Cent Solution</a></i> and <i><a href="http://amzn.to/1eh4ldF" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The West End Horror</a> </i>in the 1970’s.</div>
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By elaborating on the introduction from the <i>Montague Street </i>books, and explaining in greater depth how I came across this additional batch of Watson’s notebooks, I was able to work in more details about my trip to England, where I traveled in order to walk in Holmes and Watson’s footsteps. It was a nearly religious experience for me. One important aspect of that trip was that my only companion was my deerstalker, as my wife and son stayed at home in Tennessee. As I explain in the book, I’ve been wearing deerstalkers as my only hat, from fall to spring every year, since I was nineteen years old. <o:p></o:p></div>
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When I went to England and Scotland in 2013, I wore it literally everywhere to every one of the countless Holmes sites that I was able to track down, based on hundreds of hours of research using over a dozen Holmes travel books in my collection. (As I relate in the book’s introduction, if it wasn’t Holmes-related, I pretty-much didn’t do it. For example, I didn’t go on the London Eye, as it has nothing to do with Holmes, but I did visit The Tower – not because of its historic or tourist importance, but because it’s been so important in a great number of really good pastiches.) I wouldn’t have considered a trip to the Holmesland without taking and wearing my deerstalker to every single place.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I’d considered writing an essay about wearing the deerstalker for a long time, and also composing one about my Holmes journey. This introduction seemed like a good way to lead from my long-standing deerstalker use to my trip, and from that to how I obtained the stories.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>IHOSE:  One of your stories, "The Matter of Boz's Last Letter," is a complex mystery involving the possible ending to Dickens's <i>The Mystery of Edwin Drood</i>.  Was this story inspired by Dickens who is known for his intricate plots?</b></h4>
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<b>DM: </b>Actually, I’m a casual fan of Dickens, although it would seem as if I have a greater-than-casual interest in his works, based on the fact that my novel <i><a href="http://amzn.to/1eh4ptQ" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Sherlock Holmes and A Quantity of Debt</a></i> (2013) has such a Dickensian influence, and now he’s mentioned in this story too. When I sit down, I write very organically, without a solid plot in mind. I just listen to Holmes and Watson and transcribe what happens – it allows for things to occur that I couldn’t plan. All I knew when this story started was that Holmes and Watson were visited by an auctioneer who needed help recovering a stolen item. I found out as Holmes and Watson did what the item was. Later, when Holmes was facing the tedious business of interviewing numerous auction house employees, he and I were both very relieved when a note arrived from Mycroft, short-circuiting the process, and necessitating a visit to the Diogenes Club, where the whole matter turned out to be something of a Victorian wiki-leak. In the end, the Dickens letter was simply a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MacGuffin" target="_blank">MacGuffin</a>.</div>
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<b>IHOSE:  Two of your stories involve the extended family of Holmes characters.  We meet the sister of Mrs. Hudson and the mother of Wiggins, the Baker Street Irregular.  How did you come about creating these new Holmes characters?  </b></h4>
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<b>DM: </b>Again, this all came about from simply dictating the conversations that I overhear when I let the characters talk. In the case of meeting Mrs. Hudson’s sister, Holmes and Watson encounter her on a train, and Holmes deduces that she is on her way to visit him, and not her sister, in Baker Street. I was as surprised as Watson when Holmes pointed out all of the clues that indicated that she was our favorite landlady’s sister. In the tale about Wiggins’s mother, I knew that I wanted to tell a story about why there are so many different Wiggins boys (and sometimes girls) in all the different pastiches that occur over several decades, and these children/teens never seem to age. I knew why I thought this was the case – there was obviously a whole family of them who had sworn service to Holmes for some reason. What could make them do that? When the story begins, Watson meets a grown Wiggins while both are sheltering in a doorway from a sudden rainstorm. (Coincidentally, it is the very same door where I hid from the rain one day during some of my London explorations.) As the story progresses, we learn what happened to Mrs. Wiggins over twenty years before, how a much-younger Holmes saved her, and why the family is so grateful.</div>
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<b>IHOSE:  You have stated repeatedly that you prefer traditional Sherlock Holmes stories and don't like modernizations or Holmes in alternative histories.  Are there any non-traditional Sherlock Holmes stories that you enjoy, or do you feel Holmes stories only work when they are traditional?  </b></h4>
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<b>DM:</b> My preference for traditional Classic Holmes goes back to the fact that he is the person that I encountered when I first started reading the Canon in 1975, when I was ten years old. Not long after, my parents gave me Baring-Gould’s Holmes biography, <i><a href="http://amzn.to/1HvMpbA" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Sherlock Holmes of Baker Street</a>. </i>I don’t agree with everything in that book, but it’s a great jumping-off place. One aspect of the book was that it taught me about "playing The Game<i>,</i>" where Holmes and Watson are treated as actual people who historically lived during the Victorian and Edwardian ages. It was Dorothy L. Sayers who rightly said that The Game “<span lang="EN">must be played as solemnly as a county cricket match at Lord's.”</span></div>
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<span lang="EN">When I read a few years ago that BBC Wales was going to produce a new series of Holmes stories for television, with the actors younger and more age-appropriate than what has sometimes been portrayed in films, I was very excited. But then I was saddened to hear that the stories were going to be updated to the modern world. At that point, to me, they were no longer about Holmes and Watson, the historical figures. Rather they were stories about similar-behaving – but very different nonetheless – characters who just happened to have the same names.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN">There have been other modernized Holmes tales, where the character has the same name and skills and actions, but he isn’t Holmes in those cases either. There were a couple of television films in the 1980’s where a cryogenically frozen Holmes was thawed out in modern times with a modern-day Watson. Then there was the cartoon series <i>Sherlock Holmes in the 22<sup>nd</sup> Century. </i>A series of Star Trek fan-fictions, published as <i>Holmes of the Federation</i>, relates investigations by Holmes and Watson clones in the days of Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock. Even <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2012/09/in-animated-conversation-redh_11.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Daffy Duck makes a pretty good Holmes</a> in “Deduce, You Say,” facing The Shropshire Slasher. All of them try to accurately portray a Holmes-like character, but none of them <i>is</i> Holmes.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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To me, removing Holmes and Watson from the Victorian and Edwardian eras means that they’re not Holmes and Watson anymore. As I’ve said to a few folks, it’s like if <span class="il"><i>Star</i></span><i> <span class="il">Wars</span></i> were reimagined and set in the Old West. Consider: Luke Skywalker, living in a dusty desert town, meets a crazy old prospector/ex-soldier named Ben Kenobi. They find out about a girl that needs to be rescued, and they hire a roguish wagon driver, Hans, and his big hairy unintelligible tobacco-chewing side-kick (named Chew ‘Bac’er) to take them somewhere. Then there is some big-shot with a pun-like name similar to Darth Vader who has built a Death Wagon, and so on. The character names are the same or similar, and there are all sorts of winks and nods to the original fans, showing that the creators are very familiar with the original material, but it’s just not <span class="il"><i>Star</i></span><i> <span class="il">Wars</span> </i>anymore.<span lang="EN"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN">Some might remind me that Basil Rathbone portrayed Holmes in a modern setting in twelve of his fourteen films – all of the ones that he made for Universal. It’s my belief that the first three Universal films are actually <a href="http://www.solarpons.com/" target="_blank">Solar Pons</a> cases. (As I’ve said elsewhere, if you don’t know who Solar Pons is, find him and read about him. I expounded on this idea in a <i><a href="http://bakerstreetjournal.com/" target="_blank">Baker Street Journal</a></i> essay, “Basil Rathbone’s Solar Pons Films.”) The other nine universal stories, also set in contemporary 1940s times, could have all been cases taken from Watson’s notes, originally set around the time of World War I, and simply updated by filmmakers during World War II. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN">Mr. Benedict Cumberbatch is excellent to watch as someone portraying Sherlockian traits. (So was Hugh Laurie as Dr. House, for that matter.) Cumberbatch was excellent when he portrayed the true Victorian Holmes in a series of four audio readings on CD, <i><a href="http://amzn.to/1LdRHq8" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Rediscovered Railway Mysteries</a>. </i>(This set is about to be reissued.) I’ve always wished to see him play the true Holmes on film, and it looks like – if all reports are accurate – that we’ll finally have a chance later this year when a stand-alone episode will show Cumberbatch and Freeman’s Holmes and Watson in the correct time period, where it’s always 1895, or at least a decade or so on either side of that.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN">Don’t get me wrong – I do enjoy watching the Cumberbatch <i><a href="http://amzn.to/1Gr6mPe" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Sherlock</a></i> episodes that have come out so far. In fact, I’ve watched them multiple times. My 23-year-old son really enjoys them. They are extremely well done, and I’m glad that they’ve helped to open up and fuel the fires of the latest Holmes Golden Age. But to me, they’re just not about the <i>true</i> Holmes. Luckily, new pastiches and films about the Great Detective that was born in 1854 are always appearing for Holmes addicts like me.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>IHOSE:  What are your current projects?</b></h4>
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<b>DM:</b> The big thing on my plate right now is assembling and editing a massive anthology of new traditional Holmes stories, to be published in the fall of 2015 by <a href="http://www.mxpublishing.com/category/Sherlock+Holmes+Books" target="_blank">MX Publishing</a>. It’s going to be a two-volume hardcover set, containing approximately 60 new full-length adventures. All royalties will go to benefit the <a href="http://www.saveundershaw.com/" target="_blank">Undershaw Preservation Trust</a>, which, as many people know, was set up to protect one of Doyle’s homes, where he was living when he wrote <i>The Hound</i> and <i>The Return.</i></div>
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In late January, I literally woke up early one morning dreaming about this book. If I’d rolled over and gone back to bed, I would have forgotten about it. But I went ahead and got up, started making a wish list of authors that I wanted to participate, and emailed Steve Emecz to see what he thought. He was very positive, so I started sending invitations to authors. Initially it was going to be a paperback book, with one or two dozen stories. As it escalated, and the scope of the project grew, so did the book’s size. When it became too big, and seemed as if it were getting so fat that it might split in half, Steve upgraded it to two volumes. About 25% of the authors are from MX, and the others are a mixture who are with other publishers, along with a few first-timers as well. We currently have authors, many well-known, from the U.S., Canada, all over Great Britain, New Zealand, and India. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I think that this will possibly be the biggest collection of new Holmes stories that has been published as part of one collection. I’m so fortunate to be able to work on this. I’ve become acquainted with some really great people along the way, and the stories that I’ve received so far are all outstanding additions to the overall Holmes Tapestry.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>IHOSE:  Any last thoughts?</b></h4>
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<b>DM:</b> I want to thank Derrick for arranging this interview. I always appreciate the opportunity to ramble on about Mr. Holmes. As I mentioned, we’re living in the latest Holmes Golden Age, and this means that there are so many ways to appreciate The Master, whether it’s the traditional way that I favor, or approaching it from a more modern direction. I can’t wait to see what happens next!</div>
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More interviews with David Marcum can be found <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author_blog_posts/7432054-author-interview-with-david-marcum-author-of-the-papers-of-sherlock-hol" target="_blank">here</a> and <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author_blog_posts/7555285-a-view-into-the-great-watsonian-oversoul-part-two-of-the-interview-with" target="_blank">here</a>.<o:p></o:p></div>
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David welcomes comments or questions, and can be reached at:<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="mailto:thepapersofsherlockholmes@gmail.com">thepapersofsherlockholmes@gmail.com</a><o:p></o:p></div>
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The Tangled Skeins of Sherlock Holmes: An Interview with David Marcum

"another thread which I have extricated out of the tangled skein" [HOUN] There are good pastiche writers, there are great...

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by Belanger Books

Victoria Day

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"What a queen she...made!" [SCAN]</h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8zRd_Ifv2OOUdDlV8fJzdxGvUs0t0_3TCASSPd0nmvSJ-t9sqs1ELyQ8eSMRwYIPY0raDjCb10HyUrjPInkYLkjG6HlONbH2LJ3xbhwoMne1OJUVMnCIA0VOzwRwBV_C6H-hglQoIEvcL/s1600/Happy+Victoria+Day+-+a+day+of+loafing.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Victoria Day - a day of loafing for Canadians" border="0" height="528" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8zRd_Ifv2OOUdDlV8fJzdxGvUs0t0_3TCASSPd0nmvSJ-t9sqs1ELyQ8eSMRwYIPY0raDjCb10HyUrjPInkYLkjG6HlONbH2LJ3xbhwoMne1OJUVMnCIA0VOzwRwBV_C6H-hglQoIEvcL/s640/Happy+Victoria+Day+-+a+day+of+loafing.jpg" title="Happy Victoria Day" width="640" /></a></div>
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Today -- Monday, May 18 -- is Victoria Day in most of Canada, an occasion that patriotic citizens celebrate by shooting the initials "VR" into the sitting-room wall.<br />
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Well, maybe not quite that. In my experience, people who own cottages mark the Victoria Day long weekend by "opening up" the cottage for the summer season, and those who don't have cottages mark the day by cleaning the spiders out of the barbecue and stocking up on beer. In fact the event is often informally called "the May two-four weekend", referring both to its traditional date, May 24, and the standard size of a carton of beer, 24 bottles and known as a two-four.<br />
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The holiday honors Queen Victoria, who was born May 24, 1819, and reigned from 1837 to her death in 1901. The queen was clearly important to Sherlock Holmes, and not only because of the famous "VR" which Watson mentions with disapproval in "The Musgrave Ritual". (And wouldn't we like to know what Mrs. Hudson thought about that exercise in marksmanship!) <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh31H-eqOF2VRymJsC_XxWF8SnoaVRylcKovyfZMGf0piJgdsJFRKfW3Ttlow7exIqYUquKMtPQNnSPCwGzHqiUP7pNQnjjZewAupDJfaeKjWLbOBLYmfqZYw88llxzKAPszBZqdEceinzu/s1600/VR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh31H-eqOF2VRymJsC_XxWF8SnoaVRylcKovyfZMGf0piJgdsJFRKfW3Ttlow7exIqYUquKMtPQNnSPCwGzHqiUP7pNQnjjZewAupDJfaeKjWLbOBLYmfqZYw88llxzKAPszBZqdEceinzu/s400/VR.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Holmes had a closer brush with the queen at the end of "The Bruce-Partington Plans": we are told that he "spent a day at Windsor, whence he returned with a remarkably fine emerald tie-pin. When I asked him if he had bought it, he answered that it was a present from a certain gracious lady." Windsor Castle, west of London, was Victoria's favorite residence in her later years, and politicians as well as consulting detectives were obliged to go there if the Queen had business with them.<br />
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As happens so often in the stories, Holmes foreshadows that ending by something he says earlier in the same tale: "All the queen's horses and all the queen's men cannot avail in this matter." References to the queen (and the Court of Queen's Bench, and arrest "in the queen's name") are a canonical commonplace.<br />
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But Victoria was, if anything, more important to Canada than to Britain, for in the mother country she counts as merely one in a thousand-year sequence of monarchs. Canada, on the other hand, was essentially built during Victoria's reign, and is the only country where her birthday has become a public holiday. In the very year she came to the throne, the Rebellion of 1837 in what is now Ontario led to concessions in the direction of democratic government. (Quebec had a similar rebellion the following year.) A national government for Canada was organized thirty years later, as Victoria signed the British North America Act and personally selected a tiny remote lumber town to be the capital city, now called Ottawa. The country has not one but two major cities named for the queen, Victoria (in British Columbia) and Regina (in Saskatchewan). VR, remember!<br />
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As a result, Victoria's birthday was a holiday from the country's earliest years. My mother can remember a rhyme that children still chanted in the 1920s:<br />
     Twenty-fourth of May,<br />
     The queen's birthday!<br />
     If you don't give us a holiday<br />
     We'll all run away!<br />
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The "Queen's Birthday" was renamed Empire Day after Victoria's death, and more recently it became Victoria Day. It's now celebrated on May 24 only if that day falls on a Monday; otherwise it falls on the Monday just prior.<br />
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Until about twenty years ago, it was traditional to set off fireworks on Victoria Day, but that part of the celebration has now, under the influence of Independence Day south of the international border, been shifted to Canada Day on July 1. There are, really, no civic events associated with Victoria Day, just the cottage-opening and beer-drinking . . . and, perhaps, here and there, a little reading of Sherlock Holmes.<br />
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Happy loafing!<br />
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<i>Image credit: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen's_Official_Birthday#/media/File:Bread_ticket_for_royal_birthday_1859_Toronto_Canada.jpg" target="_blank">Wikipedia</a></i><br />
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