I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere

Celebrating 25 Years of Without a Clue

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"my close intimacy with Sherlock Holmes had interested me deeply in crime" [EMPT] </h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCquxVFkec0jwMPORcjAaApioSWHleUX9nTrmwaJ__hikBOPXWdOfClyj_KR449YHEtHNpSbPFlXhHG3YwXDr4D45Q3sMTLPYter7jiOatL-lzJzK0vptKzmieWIkAIFCPMXuNq8tl4z4u/s1600/Without+A+Clue.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCquxVFkec0jwMPORcjAaApioSWHleUX9nTrmwaJ__hikBOPXWdOfClyj_KR449YHEtHNpSbPFlXhHG3YwXDr4D45Q3sMTLPYter7jiOatL-lzJzK0vptKzmieWIkAIFCPMXuNq8tl4z4u/s640/Without+A+Clue.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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It seems nearly impossible to believe, but today marks the 25th anniversary of the opening of the 1988 film <i><a href="http://amzn.to/1gZiB7Z" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Without a Clue</a></i>, starring Michael Caine and Ben Kingsley. While the premise - that Sherlock Holmes was fictional - may seem absurd to us today, the comedic elements of the film made it a lighthearted romp through what might have been.</div>
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Our hero, Sherlock Holmes, is shown to be nothing more than a profligate drunkard of an actor, hired by Dr. Watson (known to himself as "John Watson, the Crime Doctor!") to mask his true identity as a successful detective whilst applying for a position in an exclusive hospital.<br />
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Much to his chagrin, the character actor becomes popular and the public (and later Watson) can't seem to do without him. It was a case of art imitating life, as another doctor - one A. Conan Doyle - was resigned to the same fate as the Crime Doctor.<br />
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It's a fun film, and with a PG rating, it's family-friendly as well. If you haven't had the opportunity to see <i>Without a Clue</i> yet, we'd recommend taking the opportunity to do so 25 years on.<br />
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As we recall, there were a number of Sherlockians who organized special outings to see the screening or premiere of the film. Were you part of such an event? What do you remember? Leave us a comment and let us know.<br />
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<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096454/" target="_blank">Without a Clue</a></h3>
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<span class="csb" style="background-image: url(https://www.google.com/images/nav_logo169_hr.png); background-position: -100px -260px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; background-size: 167px; display: inline-block; height: 13px; overflow: hidden; padding-right: 5px; position: relative; top: 1px; width: 65px;"><span class="csb" style="background-image: url(https://www.google.com/images/nav_logo169_hr.png); background-position: -100px -275px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; background-size: 167px; display: block; height: 13px; overflow: hidden; width: 46px;"></span></span><span style="padding-right: 5px;">6.8/10</span>-<span style="padding-left: 5px;"><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096454/" style="color: #660099; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;" title="IMDb">IMDb</a></span></div>
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<span class="csb" style="background-image: url(https://www.google.com/images/nav_logo169_hr.png); background-position: -100px -260px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; background-size: 167px; display: inline-block; height: 13px; overflow: hidden; padding-right: 5px; position: relative; top: 1px; width: 65px;"><span class="csb" style="background-image: url(https://www.google.com/images/nav_logo169_hr.png); background-position: -100px -275px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; background-size: 167px; display: block; height: 13px; overflow: hidden; width: 39px;"></span></span><span style="padding-right: 5px;">56%</span>-<span style="padding-left: 5px;"><a href="http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/without_a_clue/" style="color: #660099; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;" title="Rotten Tomatoes">Rotten Tomatoes</a></span></div>
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Starring:</div>
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Michael Caine........Sherlock Holmes<br />
Ben Kingsley..........John Watson<br />
Jeffrey Jones..........Inspector Lestrade<br />
Paul Freeman.........Professor Moriarty<br />
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Director: Thom E. Eberhart<br />
Writers: Gary Murphy, Larry Strawther<br />
Music: Henry Mancini</div>
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<a href="https://www.google.com/search?espv=210&es_sm=93&q=without+a+clue+initial+release&stick=H4sIAAAAAAAAAGOovnz8BQMDgyYHnxCnfq6-gVm8ZW65llR2spV-WmZOLpiwKkrNSU0sTlVISSxJ9UvcEPRPajqbuuQV5QXT3vpNXjNVDgAdRUbURgAAAA&sa=X&ei=pr1kUvDkJYeCygGyrIGAAg&ved=0CMwBEOgTKAEwFg">Initial release</a>: October 21, 1988<br />
<a href="https://www.google.com/search?espv=210&es_sm=93&q=without+a+clue+director&stick=H4sIAAAAAAAAAGOovnz8BQMDgyoHnxCnfq6-gVm8ZW65llh2spV-WmZOLpiwSsksSk0uyS967xjN1VL3oUnmT_jP1yrXY32jK3YAAAcqmBxCAAAA&sa=X&ei=pr1kUvDkJYeCygGyrIGAAg&ved=0CM8BEOgTKAEwFg">Director</a>: <a href="https://www.google.com/search?espv=210&es_sm=93&q=thom+eberhardt&stick=H4sIAAAAAAAAAGOovnz8BQMDgyEHnxCnfq6-gVm8ZW65EheIaZyclZKRoiWWnWyln5aZkwsmrFIyi1KTS_KL-n1l07ZaPPO8-89yppDAwvudubOVARcJeYVOAAAA&sa=X&ei=pr1kUvDkJYeCygGyrIGAAg&ved=0CNABEJsTKAIwFg">Thom Eberhardt</a><br />
<a href="https://www.google.com/search?espv=210&es_sm=93&q=without+a+clue+running+time&stick=H4sIAAAAAAAAAGOovnz8BQMDgyYHnxCnfq6-gVm8ZW65llR2spV-WmZOLpiwKirNy8vMS1coycxNXSf089sG6TnLJyvl1KqtZ7B55uf9HgBmGjdPRgAAAA&sa=X&ei=pr1kUvDkJYeCygGyrIGAAg&ved=0CNMBEOgTKAEwFg">Running time</a>: 107 minutes<br />
<a href="https://www.google.com/search?espv=210&es_sm=93&q=without+a+clue+initial+dvd+release&stick=H4sIAAAAAAAAAGOovnz8BQMDgx0HnxCnfq6-gVm8ZW65ln52spV-WmZOLpiwyszLLMlMzFFIKUtRKEpNz8zPA3KKUnNSE4tTFVISS1KVuVmeLdsf-n6dxwW7Q3E37sfV1GQCADzZoq1bAAAA&sa=X&ei=pr1kUvDkJYeCygGyrIGAAg&ved=0CNYBEOgTKAEwFg">Initial DVD release</a>: March 2, 2004<br />
<a href="https://www.google.com/search?espv=210&es_sm=93&q=without+a+clue+mpaa+rating&stick=H4sIAAAAAAAAAGOovnz8BQMDgwYHnxCnfq6-gVm8ZW65lmR2spV-WmZOLpiwyi1ITFQoSizJzEsv2D19u_3_zhlsiuZy76e6l_vf5mMHAF_kRCRFAAAA&sa=X&ei=pr1kUvDkJYeCygGyrIGAAg&ved=0CNkBEOgTKAEwFg">MPAA rating</a>: PG</div>
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Celebrating 25 Years of Without a Clue

"my close intimacy with Sherlock Holmes had interested me deeply in crime" [EMPT] It seems nearly impossible to believe, b...

+ Read more »

by Scott Monty

Are You Following our Wacky Caption Contests?

<h4 style="text-align: center;">
"a stream of remarks" [SILV] </h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyHI1BKv7lN4zr-N-n6Ax5F9QKOUkL6piXX1q1qMm5QTr7Rhq-phCTnMtxZFo9ncNMJtCZnbkyEmXhDyvy9j8bd3mJNkUlFSBwy2cUsLOv9uf4Y0LiEJO-UNnSN0wcBkUlv-SMgkwqTiX8/s1600/IHOSE_caption5+-+GLOR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="434" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyHI1BKv7lN4zr-N-n6Ax5F9QKOUkL6piXX1q1qMm5QTr7Rhq-phCTnMtxZFo9ncNMJtCZnbkyEmXhDyvy9j8bd3mJNkUlFSBwy2cUsLOv9uf4Y0LiEJO-UNnSN0wcBkUlv-SMgkwqTiX8/s640/IHOSE_caption5+-+GLOR.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Each week on <a href="http://facebook.com/ihearofsherlock">our Facebook Page</a>, we hold an informal contest of sorts. We post an original illustration of the Sherlock Holmes stories (all have been by Sidney Paget to date) and we ask our fans to add their own brand of offbeat caption.<br />
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Here's a brief history of the images, with the before and after:<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/AVvXsEiuh19hZRMMRsCgl90XRc2gfUH33DsP2E9-k6j3c05oenjVKFS7dVehf0yjQiP3JhxZ10wKF4aYLlIz6dw9DGFiZlb2fHKZakJBMmnpTyCgDE4jt5vw7YBLYBfpqHI1QEuAJl0LiDGX1Qfi/s1600/Sherlock+Holmes+at+his+chemical+table+-+Naval+Treaty.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuh19hZRMMRsCgl90XRc2gfUH33DsP2E9-k6j3c05oenjVKFS7dVehf0yjQiP3JhxZ10wKF4aYLlIz6dw9DGFiZlb2fHKZakJBMmnpTyCgDE4jt5vw7YBLYBfpqHI1QEuAJl0LiDGX1Qfi/s640/Sherlock+Holmes+at+his+chemical+table+-+Naval+Treaty.jpg" width="561" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10152064166523047&set=a.10152292129633047.1073741826.6723878046&type=3&theater">Click here</a> for original post and suggested captions</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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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/AVvXsEhynbiU8K5ZnlcNQuiTgJziXC6vd3XmcXDjbrhIsrNrCYlZK6ZERgS2PoRoaW5s1Tr2Hg6k3xBtHCx8sdpVeWNWw5JsevYn1akjBX38ANmHKZNtM8kxgvyq0o_5cwVKtPCU8L_mF0hxMie2/s1600/Sherlock+Holmes+-+his+most+dangerous+chemical+experiment.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhynbiU8K5ZnlcNQuiTgJziXC6vd3XmcXDjbrhIsrNrCYlZK6ZERgS2PoRoaW5s1Tr2Hg6k3xBtHCx8sdpVeWNWw5JsevYn1akjBX38ANmHKZNtM8kxgvyq0o_5cwVKtPCU8L_mF0hxMie2/s640/Sherlock+Holmes+-+his+most+dangerous+chemical+experiment.jpg" width="573" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The winning caption</td></tr>
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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/AVvXsEgFF9uIK_UDY1luLHCOb5L_d7JqH8M7ltfQXyX7VM-n9-iAuD3K3XEKfpUwIOs-KT1Env9ewRVm-NsnaEJfzEDcwKuCdaeyXJvyOZwf4mPyQJdwDBtxOqh6x0xMwn-U2WJakmVtIeKnms1h/s1600/Sherlock+Holmes+-+The+Stockbrokers+Clerk+-+Sidney+Paget.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFF9uIK_UDY1luLHCOb5L_d7JqH8M7ltfQXyX7VM-n9-iAuD3K3XEKfpUwIOs-KT1Env9ewRVm-NsnaEJfzEDcwKuCdaeyXJvyOZwf4mPyQJdwDBtxOqh6x0xMwn-U2WJakmVtIeKnms1h/s640/Sherlock+Holmes+-+The+Stockbrokers+Clerk+-+Sidney+Paget.jpg" width="496" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10152131588208047&set=a.10152292129633047.1073741826.6723878046&type=3&theater">Click here</a> for the original post and suggested captions</td></tr>
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Some of our favorites that didn't make the cut:<br />
"I deduce your fly is open."<br />
"Yes, your new antiperspirant does keep you a little dryer."<br />
"And...a perfect dismount." "Watson, did you have to put the pommel horse in the sitting room?"<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/AVvXsEh5UGXI3FJ9Kf9-ryhUn_g4bo-5A2fMHz-mBS6LDad-uU1bCadm8q2v2zmImn6daGTu2NwjynA7Nx9sf11hpEKfxq5drI8qO8lISLR4uDNzwM4-pz5t09fkMgN4493THA9uJR2Zdl-wH7By/s1600/Sherlock+Holmes+meme+X+all+the+Y.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5UGXI3FJ9Kf9-ryhUn_g4bo-5A2fMHz-mBS6LDad-uU1bCadm8q2v2zmImn6daGTu2NwjynA7Nx9sf11hpEKfxq5drI8qO8lISLR4uDNzwM4-pz5t09fkMgN4493THA9uJR2Zdl-wH7By/s640/Sherlock+Holmes+meme+X+all+the+Y.jpg" width="496" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The winner</td></tr>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGyLkHs4k1Wh2GvE7-NXT0xUBRbuBZClyIlK8PK7-nq7oDPnXM9HXVrkl-ZaaG3JIj2kW9bkvRrpF0s8lLUhYO8pIAwHZ-fGJKUFCRzMnUJZNxgbLriH9zvc8hxp_f_VQxb4lFwCmh1VdQ/s1600/Sherlock+Holmes+deduces+a+hangover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGyLkHs4k1Wh2GvE7-NXT0xUBRbuBZClyIlK8PK7-nq7oDPnXM9HXVrkl-ZaaG3JIj2kW9bkvRrpF0s8lLUhYO8pIAwHZ-fGJKUFCRzMnUJZNxgbLriH9zvc8hxp_f_VQxb4lFwCmh1VdQ/s640/Sherlock+Holmes+deduces+a+hangover.jpg" width="401" /></a></div>
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The full collection of images <a href="https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10152292129633047.1073741826.6723878046&type=3">is available in an album</a> for your review.<br />
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As you can see if you click through to the original images on Facebook, there are more captions than we can use, and often they are all quite good, making it difficult for our judging committee to select them. We hope that you'll join us on our Facebook page regularly and submit your own captions - or at least enjoy those of your fellow Sherlockians.<br />
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Oh, and the winning caption from the lead image above:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaAQokJQjt8ZHS3j_HrS3Pt3MjFliypBcLXQproJqssOIE0m_Ws-XisVVY7CqjWiWx9GOPpIkzvZrEIdDvCrkw_0SdYag3UZIZ_6N0ecvWagF2F2xpTA5RiV8bvme24utM0A8zcQPYzg9y/s1600/Sherlock+Holmes+gets+Geico.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="434" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaAQokJQjt8ZHS3j_HrS3Pt3MjFliypBcLXQproJqssOIE0m_Ws-XisVVY7CqjWiWx9GOPpIkzvZrEIdDvCrkw_0SdYag3UZIZ_6N0ecvWagF2F2xpTA5RiV8bvme24utM0A8zcQPYzg9y/s640/Sherlock+Holmes+gets+Geico.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Are You Following our Wacky Caption Contests?

"a stream of remarks" [SILV] Each week on our Facebook Page , we hold an informal contest of sorts. We post an original ill...

+ Read more »

by Scott Monty

Episode 57: A Sherlockian Halloween

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"No ghosts need apply." [SUSS] </h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigu_Kp2UCIma5T32QGAkdk4xKjbPPUfS5BCZ-HSDpH4oY7UdLI2WEq80WgCU63KgvGCe8GdLz9_Y2BJjUiSAMzBIaJNa723hrBoKpPvGaBzNAWzQgehlTBK1mVdbZsMLehqItoBLr3P_8c/s1600/Sherlock+Zombie+square.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigu_Kp2UCIma5T32QGAkdk4xKjbPPUfS5BCZ-HSDpH4oY7UdLI2WEq80WgCU63KgvGCe8GdLz9_Y2BJjUiSAMzBIaJNa723hrBoKpPvGaBzNAWzQgehlTBK1mVdbZsMLehqItoBLr3P_8c/s1600/Sherlock+Zombie+square.png" /></a></div>
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Holmes and the occult is our subject for this Halloween episode of I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere, and we're joined by editor and author Charles Prepolec, BSI ("The Man With the Twisted Lip"), who together with J.R. Campbell edited the four-book series <a href="https://amzn.to/3mGuQwl" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><i>Gaslight Grimoire: Fantastic Tales of Sherlock Holmes</i></a>, <a href="https://amzn.to/3jRtnBK" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><i>Gaslight Grotesque: Nightmare Tales of Sherlock Holmes</i></a>, <a href="https://amzn.to/34Ji9KW" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><i>Gaslight Arcanum: Uncanny Tales of Sherlock Holmes</i></a>, and <i><a href="https://amzn.to/34M854a" target="_blank">Gaslight Gothic: Strange Tales of Sherlock Holmes</a></i>, joins us to talk about the intersection of Sherlock Holmes and the spooky, outre and creepy, setting the tone for the season.  Charles (who goes by <a href="https://twitter.com/sherlockeditor" target="_blank">@sherlockeditor</a> on Twitter), had the great fortune to work with the likes of Barbara Hambly, Martin Powell and Kim Newman, among others, and he talks about the selection process for including authors and their works in the anthologies.<div><br /></div><div><br />
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Of course, Conan Doyle was no stranger to writing <a href="https://amzn.to/34HeKMT" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">ghost and horror stories</a>, and his Professor Challenger series dealt with such fantastical subjects as dinosaurs. We take Charles on a tangent and begin discussing the ideal Hollywood actor to portray the professor.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://www.facebook.com/cprepolec">Charles</a> has contributed to <i>Sherlock Magazine</i>, <i>Scarlet Street</i> and <i>Canadian Holmes</i> and is a longtime Sherlockian, having been a member of the <a href="http://www.bakerstreetdozen.com/">Singular Society of the Baker Street Dozen</a> in Calgary for 20 years, a Master Bootmaker of the <a href="http://www.torontobootmakers.com/">Bootmakers of Toronto</a> in 2006, and an investitured member of the Baker Street Irregulars since 2017.<br /><br /></div><div>In this episode, our gas-lamp is not a Gas-Lamp at all, but rather an introduction by to a collection of Conan Doyle stories, as written by John Dickson Carr.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><h3 style="background-color: white; color: #0e0e0e; font-family: Merriweather; font-size: 21px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 10px; text-align: center;"><a href="https://traffic.libsyn.com/ihearofsherlock/ihearofsherlock057.mp3" style="color: #006f85; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Download</a> [Save As] | File size 41.5 MB, 1:00:12</h3><iframe frameborder="no" height="166" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/134354921&color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false" width="100%"></iframe><br /><br /><br />
<br />
<h2>
Links:</h2>
<ul>
<li><a href="http://edgewebsite.com/">EDGE Science Fiction and Fantasy Publishing</a></li>
<li>Conan Doyle fanstasy and horror short stories "<a href="https://amzn.to/3mCFZhK" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Lot No. 249</a>," "<a href="https://amzn.to/2GiTQu8" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Horror of the Heights</a>," and "<a href="https://amzn.to/3eewuCz" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Terror of Blue John Gap</a>"</li>
<li>The <a href="http://www.bakerstreetjournal.com/articlesandextras/currentcontents.html">Autumn 2013 issue of the <i>Baker Street Journal</i></a></li>
<li><a href="http://sherlockholmesexhibition.com/">International Sherlock Holmes Exhibition</a></li>
<li>Lyndsay Faye, BSI ("Kitty Winter") is on a book tour to promote <i><a href="https://amzn.to/3oMHsnk" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Seven for a Secret</a></i>, her latest Timothy Wilde novel.</li>
<li>Big Chief Studios announced <a href="https://www.bigchiefstudios.co.uk/coming-soon-sherlock-16-scale-collector-figures/">the 1:6 scale models</a> of Cumberbatch's Holmes and Freeman's Watson, and <a href="https://www.bigchiefstudios.co.uk/how-we-made-who-part-1-the-head-sculpt/">they talk about the sculpting process</a>.</li>
<li>There will be no romance between Holmes and Watson in <i>Elementary</i>, <a href="http://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2013/10/06/no-holmes-watson-romance-in-elementary-shows-creator-says/">according to the show's creator</a>.</li>
<li>James O'Leary has contributed a couple of significant pieces here about Elementary that are worth perusing: "<a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2013/10/addiction-elementary-and-doyle.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Addiction, Elementary and Doyle</a>," and "<a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2012/12/six-cases-which-i-have-added-to-my.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Six Cases to Which I Have Added to My Notes</a>."</li>
<li>Our <a href="http://flip.it/oxPOZ">Flipboard magazine</a> aggregates lots of content for your enjoyment.</li></ul>
Please <a href="http://bit.ly/ihearofsherlock">subscribe to us on iTunes</a> and be kind enough to leave a rating or review for the show.<br />
<br />
Your thoughts on the show? Leave a comment below, send us an email, call us at (774) 221-READ (7323) or use the Speakpipe app right here on the site. Connect with us and other interested Sherlockians on <a href="https://plus.google.com/communities/114565123495685504221">The Sherlock Holmes Community</a> on Google+, <a href="http://facebook.com/ihearofsherlock">Facebook</a>, <a href="http://twitter.com/ihearofsherlock">Twitter</a> and <a href="http://ihearofsherlock.tumblr.com/">Tumblr</a>. And of course, our <a href="http://flip.it/oxPOZ">web- and app-based Flipboard magazine</a> is a nice collection of links, articles and images.<br />
<br />
And above all, please let our sponsors know that you heard us rant and rave about their excellence during the programme: <a href="http://www.wessexpress.com/">Wessex Press</a> and <a href="http://www.bakerstreetjournal.com/"><i>The Baker Street Journal</i></a>.<br />
<br />
<br />
Image credit: <a href="http://tonymooreillustration.com/">Tony Moore</a> for the DC/Wildstorm series <i><a href="http://tonymooreillustration.com/gallery/main.php?g2_itemId=1583">The Victorian Undead</a></i><br />
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Episode 57: A Sherlockian Halloween

"No ghosts need apply." [SUSS] Holmes and the occult is our subject for this Halloween episode of I Hear of Sherlock Eve...

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by Scott Monty

Addiction, Elementary and Doyle

<h4 style="text-align: center;">
"I might have suspected him of being addicted to the use of some narcotic..." [STUD] </h4>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
Reading
press releases early in 2012 on the premise of CBS’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Elementary</i> was a cringe inducing affair for many Sherlockians, me
included. A drug-addicted Sherlock Holmes sent from London
to New York
for rehab; a Dr. Watson who’s hired by Holmes’ father to be his sober
companion. Like many, I thought CBS had taken one small aspect of the
characters of Holmes and Watson and based a series upon it, all in a bid to differentiate themselves from other recent Holmes franchises.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Using Sherlockian precepts (<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">"No data yet. It is a capital mistake to theorize before you
have all the evidence. It <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">bias</span>es
the judgment.") I awaited the show with as open a mind as possible. What I
saw was a smart, witty show, two leads with lots of chemistry and an ability to
channel Holmes and Watson into the 21<sup>st</sup> century. Now, I find no
cinematic Sherlockian adaptation perfect. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Elementary</i>
is as very good as some and better than most. If that seems faint praise, I
assure you it is not.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
CBS could have made the drug use a plot devise to get Holmes
to New York
to meet Watson and never bring it up again. Conversely, they could have turned
to show into a polemic on drugs or <a href="http://amzn.to/16JrnVX" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Holmes and Watson Go to White Castle</i></a>. They did none of those things. Instead, they
respected the source material and Arthur Conan Doyle. They tackled a difficult
subject with understanding, compassion and humor. It has not gone unnoticed.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In April, 2013 the <a href="http://www.prismawards.com/">Prism Awards</a>, given “to writers,
producers, actors and actresses for their accurate depictions of mental health
and substance abuse”, how it affects the person involved and those around them,
awarded the <span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><a href="http://prism.eiconline.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/17th-PRISM-Winner-Release.pdf">EIC President’s Award</a> to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Elementary</i> “for
its continuing, in-depth integration of substance use and recovery into its
storyline and characters</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11.0pt;">.” </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">At
the <a href="http://hollywoodhealthandsociety.org/sites/default/files/sentinel-for-health-awards/2013%20Sentinel_%20winners.pdf">Sentinel for Health Awards</a>,</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"> given for exemplary achievement in television
storylines that inform, educate and motivate viewers to make choices for
healthier and safer lives</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"> this September, <i>Elementary</i> came in Second Place in the
category of Primetime Drama (Major Storyline).</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
However, what Sherlockians care about is the dignity of the
character in any depiction of this controversial subject. For some, any filmic
drug use has the potential to come across as <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fprVONwmYnc"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Mystery of the Leaping Fish</i></a>, Douglas Fairbank’s 1916 Holmes
parody where detective Coke Ennyday wears a holster loaded with cocaine-filled
syringes and has a drink served to him by an ancient boy-in-buttons of gin,
laudanum and prussic acid (shades of Robert Downey Jr.). Among Sherlockians there is not universal agreement on the
effect Holmes’ cocaine use had on his person or profession.<br />
<br /></div>
<center>
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="375" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/fprVONwmYnc" width="500"></iframe></center>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A Study in Scarlet </i>(<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Beeton’s Christmas Annual</i> 1887) Doyle
has Watson dismiss any thought of drug use: “<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">I might have suspected him of being addicted to the use of some
narcotic, had not the temperance and cleanliness of his whole life forbidden
such a notion.” But the very next adventure, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Sign of Four</i> (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Lippincott’s
Magazine</i> February 1890), opens with Watson’s famous question to Holmes, "Which
is it today,<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> morphine</span> or
cocaine?"</span><span style="font-family: Helvetica;"> </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
novel is framed by Holmes injecting himself with a seven percent solution of
cocaine. This was keeping in Holmes’ eccentric and bohemian nature and
cutting-edge scientific knowledge. </span><br />
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><br /></span>
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Cocaine was one of the late 19<sup>th</sup>
century’s wonder drugs. Its numbing effects made it useful as a local
anesthetic; its stimulating effect made it helpful in fighting fatigue and
melancholia; it was touted to fight nausea. It was available to anyone in England at the
local chemist (druggist) until 1916 when a doctor’s prescription was needed.
Jack Tracy with Jim Berkey in 1978’s <a href="http://amzn.to/1753kdn" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Subcutaneously, My Dear Watson: Sherlock Holmes and the Cocaine Habit</i></a>, list many of the
products available in Holmes’ day in which it was an additive: “snuff, in
candies, in coca-leaf cigarettes, as ointments, pills, hypodermic solutions,
gargles, ‘chewing paste’, and even suppositories.” Until 1903, cocaine was an
ingredient in Coca-Cola. It was available in wines, including Vin Mariani,
endorsed by Pope Leo XIII for its beneficial effects, and Hall’s Coca Wine “a
marvelous restorative in cases of Influenza, Convalescents, and those suffering
from Mental and Physical Fatigue, General Depression, Sleeplessness, Throat
Complaints.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">The dangers of
cocaine were not generally known to the public or physicians at the time. It is
prescient of Doyle to have Watson rail against Holmes’ “[t]hree times a day for
many months” injections in <i>The Sign of Four</i>: </span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"Count the cost! Your brain may, as you say, be roused and excited, but it is a pathological and morbid process, which involves increased tissue-change, and may at last leave a permanent weakness. You know, too, what a black reaction comes upon you. Surely the game is hardly worth the candle. Why should you, for a mere passing pleasure, risk the loss of those great powers with which you have been endowed? Remember that I speak not only as one comrade to another, but as a medical man to one for whose constitution he is to some extent answerable."</blockquote>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The attitude towards cocaine use in the early stories is one
of gentle disapproval: on his first visit to Baker Street after his marriage
Watson finds Holmes “<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">alternating
from week to week between <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">cocaine</span>
and ambition, the drowsiness of the drug, and the fierce energy of his own keen
nature…He had risen out of his <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">drug</span>-created
dreams, and was hot upon the scent of some new problem” [SCAN]; except “for the
occasional use of <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">cocaine</span> he had
no vices, and he only turned to the drug as a protest against the monotony of
existence when cases were scanty and the papers uninteresting” [YELL]; a “self-poisoner
by <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">cocaine</span> and tobacco” [FIVE].</span><br />
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><br /></span>
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"> At finding
Holmes in disguise and on stake-out, he assures Watson that he has not “added
opium-smoking to <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">cocaine</span> injections
and all the other little weaknesses on which you have favoured me with your
medical views." [TWIS]</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">After Holmes’
return from his presumed death mention of drug use in the Canon becomes more
tangential: “Holmes's iron constitution showed some symptoms of giving way in
the face of constant hard work of a most exacting kind, aggravated, perhaps, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">by occasional indiscretions of his own</i>"<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> </i>[DEVI]; “As an institution I was like the violin, the shag tobacco, the old
black pipe, the index books, and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">others
perhaps less excusable</i>” [CREE]; in our only glimpse of his bedroom we’re shown the
paraphernalia of Holmes’ obsessions: the pictures of celebrated criminals which
adorned every wall, a “litter of pipes, tobacco-pouches, syringes” [DYIN]. </span>(All emphases mine - JCO'L.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
By this time the negative effects of cocaine were more
widely known. It was more difficult to paint drug use as an eccentricity,
especially in the American home of the Canon in the early 20<sup>th</sup>
century, the anti-drug <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Collier’s Weekly</i>.
Doyle could have just left us these faint hints or dropped any mention all
together. Instead <span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Doyle tells us
the full extent drug use had on the great detective:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 27.0pt; margin-right: 27.0pt; margin-top: 0in;">
“Things had indeed been very slow with us, and I had learned to dread such periods of inaction, for I knew by experience that my companion's brain was so abnormally active that it was dangerous to leave it without material upon which to work. For years I had gradually weaned him from that drug mania which had threatened once to check his remarkable career. Now I knew that under ordinary conditions he no longer craved for this artificial stimulus, but I was well aware that the fiend was not dead, but sleeping; and I have known that the sleep was a light one and the waking near when in periods of idleness I have seen the drawn look upon Holmes's ascetic face, and the brooding of his deep-set and inscrutable eyes.”<span style="color: blue;"> </span>[MISS]</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Teller-Tales-Arthur-Conan-Doyle/dp/0805066845/ref=sr_sp-atf_title_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1380818495&sr=1-1&keywords=teller+of+tales">Doyle was no stranger to addiction.</a> His artist father
Charles Altamont Doyle was an alcoholic. As a twenty-two year old assistant
surveyor in Scotland’s
Board of Works, he married seventeen year old Mary Foley. Charles’ alcoholism
kept him from advancing in his job and Arthur and his siblings grew up in
“genteel poverty”. Charles’ addictive illness eventually ended his working
career. Mary Doyle became the de facto head of household. In 1876, he entered a
nursing home for treatment, the first of many such confinements. Later, he
suffered from epileptic seizures. On October 10, 1893 he died at the Crighton
Royal Institution in Scotland.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Addiction and illness are present throughout Doyle’s work.
In the Canon there is Isa Whitney whose opium binge forces Watson to leave his
warm hearth and travel to the Bar of Gold opium den to fetch him (TWIS); Jim
Browner, a blue ribbon (a drinker who has pledged abstinence) who is driven
back to the bottle, and to a murderous rage, by his scheming and jealous
sister-in-law Sarah Cushing (CARD); <span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">Sir
Eustace Brackenstall “was a good-hearted man when he was sober, but a perfect
fiend when he was drunk, or rather when he was half drunk, for he seldom really
went the whole way” (ABBE); even Watson’s brother, Holmes deduced, “was left
with good prospects, but threw away his chances, lived for some time in poverty
with occasional short intervals of prosperity, and, finally, taking to drink”
died (SIGN).</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
While not factually biographical, the 1891 short story <a href="http://amzn.to/1f4oWzj" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">“A Sordid Affair”</a> is most instructive. Two well to-do women are admiring a dress
in a shop window, one of whom would buy it if it wasn't fifteen guineas. Poor
dressmaker Mrs. Raby, who is standing behind them, speaks up. She can make the
exact dress for ten pounds. Mrs. Clive accepts. Mrs. Raby, who stands to make five
pounds profit, goes home to start. At home is husband John, six months sober
and struggling to transition from clerk to artist and also struggling to accept his wife as breadwinner. Mrs. Raby worked tirelessly to finish the dress by
deadline, but on Monday morning she awakes to find both the dress and her
husband gone. A trip to the pawnbroker’s confirms her husband pawned the dress,
but without the ticket Mrs. Raby cannot reclaim it. Desperate to keep her
commission and business reputation, she uses the entirety of her savings to buy
the dress in the window, which fortunately was Mrs. Clive’s size. Mrs. Clive
and her friend try to weasel out of the commission by claiming the dress isn't
as good as the shops’ but eventually pay the ten pounds. On her way home
“tired, footsore, the loser in time and in money, with all her little hopes
shattered to ruins”, Mrs. Raby sees her drunken husband being set upon by a
jeering crowd of boys. With the help of a policeman, she gets John in a cab.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
As the cab drove on, she drew his head down upon her bosom, pushing back his straggling hair, and crooned over him like a mother over a baby.<br />
“Did they make fun of him, them?” she cried. “Did they call him names? He’ll come home with his little wifey, and he’ll never be a naughty boy again.’<br />
Oh, blind, angelic, foolish love of woman! Why should men demand a miracle while you remain upon earth?</blockquote>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Doyle knew full well the effects addiction had on the
addicts and those around them. He knew that the illness was the fiend and the
sufferer the victim. Doyle didn't have to give us a Holmes who suffered “drug
mania”. Yet he did. Perhaps he felt that pretending that a man who injected
thrice daily doses of cocaine or morphine for months on end and not have an
addiction did a disservice to sufferers and their loved ones. By giving us a
brilliant man struggling with inner demons and a caring companion to help in
the fight, however obliquely told, Doyle added depth to their friendship. It is
another in the tantalizing list of “untold tales” that Watson teases us with.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
As I watched <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Elementary</i>,
I realized that this was the story they were telling us. This element of
addiction that was in the background of Doyle’s life and fiction was told by
him with a compassion and understanding that wasn’t always apparent with his
contemporaries. By framing <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Elementary</i>
as a “<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;">I had gradually weaned him
from that <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">drug</span> mania which had
threatened once to check his remarkable career” story, it has taken what could
be seen as a weakness and made it a strength. Rob Doherty did three things: he
differentiated his show while giving it a Canonical focus; gave us a 21<sup>st</sup>
century spin on addiction that is very Doylean in its sympathies; and over the
course of a season he has shown us the development of a friendship between
Holmes and Watson, something no other series or even Doyle, for that matter,
has done. By rejiggering the sequence of events in the Holmes/Watson story—the weaning
of addiction then the development of friendship—<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Elementary</i> strengthened that narrative of friendship which is at
the heart of the Canon. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"><i><b>Editor's note:</b> James is a member of the Speckled Band of Boston, the John H. Watson Society and a huge fan of the I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere podcast. </i></span></div>

Addiction, Elementary and Doyle

"I might have suspected him of being addicted to the use of some narcotic..." [STUD] Reading press releases early in 2012 o...

+ Read more »

by James C. O'Leary

Vincent Starrett's Classic Poem '221B'

<div class="tr_bq">
<h3 style="text-align: center;">
"Cut out the poetry, Watson." [RETI]</h3>
</div>
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October 3rd marks <a href="http://www.poetrysociety.org.uk/content/info/npd/">National Poetry Day</a> in the UK. We couldn't think of a better way to honour the occasion than to share the pinnacle of Sherlockian poetry, "221B" by Vincent Starrett, BSI ("<i>A Study in Scarlet</i>").<br />
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This simple sonnet has captured the collective imagination of Sherlockians since the early 1940s and in 14 short lines seems to capture the essence of why we still enjoy the Sherlock Holmes stories.<br />
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<i>221B</i></h3>
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By Vincent Starrett</h4>
Here dwell together still two men of note<br />
Who never lived and so can never die:<br />
How very near they seem, yet how remote<br />
That age before the world went all awry.<br />
But still the game’s afoot for those with ears<br />
Attuned to catch the distant view-halloo:<br />
England is England yet, for all our fears–<br />
Only those things the heart believes are true.<br />
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A yellow fog swirls past the window-pane<br />
As night descends upon this fabled street:<br />
A lonely hansom splashes through the rain,<br />
The ghostly gas lamps fail at twenty feet.<br />
Here, though the world explode, these two survive,<br />
And it is always eighteen ninety-five.<br />
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Do you have any favorite Sherlockian poems? Let us know with a comment.<br />
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Vincent Starrett's Classic Poem '221B'

"Cut out the poetry, Watson." [RETI] October 3rd marks National Poetry Day in the UK. We couldn't think of a better wa...

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by Scott Monty

New 1:6 Scale Sherlock Action Figures are True Collectibles

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"...a perfect reproduction of Holmes" [EMPT]</h4>
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Coming soon via <a href="https://www.facebook.com/BigChiefStudiosLimited">Big Chief Studios</a> in the UK....a chance for all of us to create new childhood adventures.<br />
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Noted for creating realistic-looking action figures, the company <a href="https://www.bigchiefstudios.co.uk/coming-soon-sherlock-16-scale-collector-figures/">recently announced 1:6 scale versions of Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman as BBC/PBS <b>Sherlock </b>collector figures</a>. Both figures are fully articulated (providing for a variety of poses),  have tailored costuming, appropriate accessories (because what would Holmes be without his violin?), and bases allowing for display.<br />
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These are high-end collectible figures, and make an excellent addition to any Sherlockian collection. If you are interested, <a href="http://sherlockology.tumblr.com/post/62714089759/sherlock-figures-preorder-update">please be sure to review Big Chief's pre-order information</a>. The figures are available in both Limited and Signature Editions, and may be purchased separately or as a pair.<br />
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Whether for yourself of another Sherlockian, this would make an excellent holiday gift.<br />
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New 1:6 Scale Sherlock Action Figures are True Collectibles

"...a perfect reproduction of Holmes" [EMPT] Coming soon via Big Chief Studios in the UK....a chance for all of us to create...

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by Gordon D

Sherlock Holmes Pipe Battle Video is Amusing

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"Everywhere there were signs of the crudest battle." [VALL]</center>
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We discovered this video by YouTube user feelwelcome thanks to <a href="http://www.thepoke.co.uk/2013/09/21/sherlock-holmes-pipe-battle/">The Poke</a>, and recommend watching it. At just 1:21, it's just a little diversion in your otherwise busy day. Holmes takes on Watson in this epic pipe battle - it's the curved churchwarden versus the straight, Jeremy Brett vs. David Burke. Who will win?</center>
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Odd sound effects aside, if you'd like to read a little more on the pipes used in the Granada Sherlock Holmes series with Jeremy Brett, we found <a href="http://www.sherlockian-sherlock.com/sherlock-holmes-pipe.php">this little resource at Sherlockian-Sherlock.com</a></center>
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Sherlock Holmes Pipe Battle Video is Amusing

"Everywhere there were signs of the crudest battle." [VALL] We discovered this video by YouTube user feelwelcome thanks t...

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by Scott Monty

Weekly Sherlock Links Compendium (September 14 - September 20, 2013)

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"I am ready to give you any information which may assist you in forming an opinion." [NOBL]</h4>
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Another Sherlock Holmes trademark fight is brewing, the opening of the International Exhibition of Sherlock Holmes, Holmes' clients analyzed by type, gender and status, a one of a kind Sherlock + Batman piece is acquired, Lyndsay Faye celebrates the release of her latest novel, the Baker Street Babes enter NC-17 territory, the Conan Doyle Estate, Ltd replies in court to Klinger's lawsuit, the newest scion society of the Baker Street Irregulars can be found in a surprising place, and more in the <b>Weekly Sherlock Links Compendium</b> by <a href="http://always1895.net/">Matt Laffey</a>.<br />
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<a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2426171/RICHARD-KAY-U-S-threat-kill-BBCs-Sherlock.html" target="_blank">The Daily Mail</a> led off with a headline that has probably caused the total mental collapse of hundreds of BBC Sherlock fans, leaving thousands more contemplating what it would take to hire an airgun toting hitman: “<a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2426171/RICHARD-KAY-U-S-threat-kill-BBCs-Sherlock.html">U.S. threat to kill off BBC’s Sherlock: Hungarian-born socialite threatens legal action claiming she owns Arthur Conan Doyle character</a>" - say what?! As apocalyptically insane this headline sounds, there’s probably really nothing to worry about. Longtime Sherlockians are probably familiar with the Andrea Plunket saga and her various claims to copyright of the Sherlock Holmes characters/stories based on having once been married to TV producer <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sheldon_Reynolds_(producer)">Sheldon Reynolds</a> - who created the Ronald Howard <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0046642/">Sherlock Holmes (1954-1955)</a> series as well as a quasi-remake <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0298697/">Sherlock Holmes & Doctor Watson (1979-1980)</a> with Geoffrey Whitehead as Holmes - from which she supposedly acquired the copyright in a 1990’s divorce settlement. See one of those episodes <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2uKHaCBsqKE&feature=youtu.be">here</a>
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If this is your first time hearing about Plunket’s claims on the Sherlock Holmes properties (in one form or another) and want to learn more, you are in for a transcontinental soap operatic treat that involves attempted murder, squandered fortunes, a Swiss tax haven, a Georgian ‘princess’ and a bed & breakfast in upstate NY. A 2010 article in the NYT “<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/19/books/19sherlock.html?pagewanted=all">For the Heirs to Holmes, a Tangled Web</a>" did a good job summarizing the history of ACD’s literary properties, mentioning all the major players since 1930. Next check out "<a href="http://bbcsherlockftw.tumblr.com/post/20652956659/the-case-of-andrea-plunket-and-the-sherlock-holmes">The Case of Andrea Plunket and the Sherlock Holmes Copyrights</a>" for a closer look at Ms Plunket and then see Chris Redmond's “<a href="http://www.sherlockian.net/acd/copyright.html">Notes on the Ownership of the Sherlock Holmes Stories</a>" for a variety of relevant links. Note of clarification: Andrea Plunket’s company <a href="http://www.sherlockholmesonline.org/Theestate/index.htm">The Arthur Conan Doyle Literary Estate</a> is not the same entity as the <a href="http://www.conandoyleestate.co.uk/">Conan Doyle Estate Ltd</a>., the company currently involved in Klinger v Conan Doyle Estate (cf. <a href="http://free-sherlock.com/">Free Sherlock!</a>). Read the Conan Doyle Estate’s view on Plunket <a href="http://www.conandoyleestate.co.uk/index.php/copyright/">here</a>. On a final note, you can find <a href="https://www.facebook.com/andrea.plunket">Ms Plunket on Facebook</a>.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: x-small; text-align: start;">[Ronald Howard as Sherlock Holmes reads the latest Sherlock copyright news to a bemused and angry Howard Marion-Crawford as Dr Watson.]</span></td></tr>
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<a href="http://www.sherlockholmesexhibition.com/">The International Exhibition of Sherlock Holmes</a> is a “unique and interactive experience showcases areas of forensic science that enabled Sherlock Holmes to solve crimes, as well as the historic underpinnings of author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s rich and vibrant stories” opens at the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (<a href="https://www.facebook.com/OMSI.Museum">OMSI</a>) this October 2013. Exhibits include Dr. Conan Doyle’s Study, the Science & History behind Sherlock Holmes’s methods, a recreation of Sherlock Holmes’ sitting room at 221B Baker Street and an exhibit dedicated to Sherlockiana and Culture in all it’s manifestations. For the latest news and updates regarding what is sure to be one of the greatest popular Sherlock Holmes events in decades make sure to follow <a href="https://twitter.com/SherlockExhibit">@SherlockExhibit</a> on Twitter and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/SherlockHolmesExhibition">The International Exhibition of Sherlock Holmes</a> on Facebook. Speaking of news, on September 18th their <a href="https://www.facebook.com/SherlockHolmesExhibition/posts/587059304665666">Facebook</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/SherlockExhibit/status/381220174281445376">Twitter</a> excitedly announced “The first artifact crate from the UK arrived at the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (<a href="https://www.facebook.com/OMSI.Museum">OMSI</a>) today!”<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="text-align: start;">[Click for a PDF of the International Exhibition of Sherlock Holmes </span><a href="http://www.sherlockholmesexhibition.com/sherlock-holmes-press-release-and-images.pdf" style="text-align: start;">Press Release</a><span style="text-align: start;">.]</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The opening scene of "The Priory School"</td></tr>
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<a href="http://thenorwoodbuilder.tumblr.com/post/61689010032/sherlock-holmes-clients-or-the-demography-of">The Norwood Builder</a> put together a post that is a stunning example of why being a Sherlockian is one off greatest intellectual ‘lifestyle choices’ one can make. In “Sherlock Holmes’ clients - Or: The demography of Canon" readers are treated to an amazing undertaking where we find the Norwood Builder "trying to get a bird’s eye view of Sherlock Holmes’ canonical clients, with a particular regard to their demographic representativeness - or lack of it." When a prospective client marches down Baker Street, zeros in on ‘221B’, gains admittance from Mrs Hudson (or a boy in buttons) and ascends the seventeen steps leading to the sitting room of Mr Sherlock Holmes, it’s important to remember that said client does not simply materialize out of thin-air but possesses a rich biography. As (fanatical) readers of the Canon, we have a strong sense that these biographies are varied and drawn from all strata of society: for every Wilhelm Gottsreich Sigismond von Ormstein there is a Shinwell ‘Porky’ Johnson; with every missing Lady Frances Carfax there is a Mrs Amberley whose fate for better or worse must be discovered; for each wrongly accused Thaddeus Sholto there is a John Horner or even a Flora Millar whose name must be cleared. But does the assumption that Holmes’ clients came from all walks of life hold true? To answer this question, Holmes’ Canonical clients are broken down by Type, Gender and Status and the results will surprise you! The Norwood Builder’s blog is no stranger to the application of statistical analysis to elements in the Canon: click <a href="http://thenorwoodbuilder.tumblr.com/tagged/statistics">here</a> to see all his posts tagged with “<a href="http://thenorwoodbuilder.tumblr.com/tagged/statistics">statistics</a>.”<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="text-align: start;">[“</span><a href="http://holysmokesbatman.com/tracks/holy-sherlock-holmes.html" style="text-align: start;">Holy Sherlock Holmes!</a><span style="text-align: start;">" Congratulations Jerry.]</span></span></td></tr>
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<a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2013/09/sherlock-joker-is-crown-prince-of-crime.html">I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere</a> reports on Mr Jerry Margolin’s, BSI (“Hilton Cubitt”) latest Sherlockian objets d’art acquisition, the original artwork for a piece titled Sherlock Joker, the Crown Prince of Crime Detection (insert combination of the Joker’s infamous “Hahahah…” maniacal laughter with Holmes’ measured comments on Early English Charters) which was the original art used for one of two cards depicting Batman’s arch nemesis the Joker in the guise of the Great Detective for <a href="http://about-faces.livejournal.com/75236.html">Batman Master Series</a>, a 1996 card set released by Fleer. Where as Margolin’s piece depicts a somewhat calm Joker hamming it up in deerstalker and calabash but revealing a glimpse of his true insanity via the magnifying glass, <a href="http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y241/Hefmeister/Batman%20Villains/130.jpg">the second Sherlock Joker image</a> shows <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arkham_Asylum">Arkham Asylum</a>'s number one resident patient at the apex of total madness revealed by the now shattered magnifying glass. There is a <a href="https://www.google.com/#psj=1&q=batman+%22sherlock+holmes%22+comics">long history</a> of Sherlock Holmes appearing alongside Gotham’s Caped Crusader, but the most recognizable is from the cover of the 50th anniversary of <a href="http://www.comicvine.com/detective-comics-fifty-years-anniversary/4000-113034/">Detective Comics, Issue #572</a> (March 1987), where we see Batman and Holmes paging through the 1937 Detective Comics issue where ‘The Batman’ first appeared. One of the stories contains an amusing <a href="http://crossover.bureau42.com/zbatmanholmes.html">panel sequence where we see Batman and Sherlock Holmes</a> (at 135!) discussing his secret to good health: ”A proper diet, a certain distillation of royal jelly developed in my beekeeping days, and the rarified atmosphere of Tibet, where I keep my primary residence…” Batman then attempts to light Holmes’ pipe only to be told “Thank you, for I’m afraid the pipe is purely for show these days.”<br />
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<a href="http://lyndsayfaye.com/">Lyndsay Faye</a>, as announced last week, appeared at <a href="https://www.facebook.com/MysteriousBookshop">The Mysterious Bookshop</a> in NYC for the launch of her latest novel, the sequel to the excellent The Gods of Gotham, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0399158383/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0399158383&linkCode=as2&tag=always1895-20" rel="nofollow"><i>Seven For a Secret</i></a> - and it was a ‘Wilde time.’ Not surprisingly there was a strong Sherlockian presence on hand to support Ms Faye as she discussed the world of Timothy and Val Wilde as well as the time period in which they lived. Most interestingly was her discussion of the various reactions she’s received regarding the moral outlook and attitudes of the characters, in particular the criticism (by some) that Timothy Wilde’s views on blacks, gays and religion are overly ‘modern’. For further proof that Ms Faye’s literary star is rising, read her interview in last Sunday’s LA Review of Books “<a href="http://lareviewofbooks.org/interview/sherlockian-girl-goes-wilde/">Sherlockian Girl Goes Wilde</a>" (Ha! Get it?)<br />
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<a href="http://bakerstreetbabes.com/">The Baker Street Babes</a>, in their first NC-17-rated podcast, released <a href="http://bakerstreetbabes.com/podcast/episode-44-sherlock-holmes-after-dark-pt-i/">Episode 44: “Sherlock Holmes After Dark Pt I”</a> wherein “Babes Curly, Liz, & Lyndsay talk dirty with Les Klinger, Sketchlock, reapersun, and Madlori in this first of two episodes about doing the dirty in Sherlockiana. This is the first of a two parter episode. In the first part we cover Victorian Pornography, how Les started collecting Sherlockian porn, his recommendations, and then why women like slash.” My guess is that Part II will be an hour long analysis/discussion of the Granada scene from “The Master Blackmailer” wherein Jeremy Brett is filmed canoodling with Agatha, Milverton’s housemaid, in what has to be the single most awkward (sexual) moment in the history of Sherlockian anything in any medium ever.<br />
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The Babes of course aren’t the first Sherlockians to delve into the sexual underpinnings of the Canon. Mr Chris Redmond wrote a book titled <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/258564.In_Bed_with_Sherlock_Holmes">In Bed With Sherlock Holmes: Sexual Elements in Arthur Conan Doyle’s Stories of the Great Detective</a> which not only analyses sexual elements in the Canon, but also looks at the non-Sherlockian fiction, letters, essays and speeches of ACD as well as aspects from his personal life. Finally, for a good time, check out <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2013/09/the-top-10-most-suggestive-lines-from.html">I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere</a>'s “Top 10 Most Suggestive Lines from the Sherlock Holmes Stories.” For example, #8: “I remember nothing until I found myself lying on my bed trembling all over. Then I thought of you, Mr. Holmes.” [COPP]<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="text-align: start;">[Everyone’s favorite ‘suggestive’ Canonical illustration, though it actually depicts Holmes and Watson relaxing at the Turkish baths, but I’m never quite sure if that makes the picture more or less suggestive: “ I had asked him whether anything was stirring, and for answer he had shot his long, thin, nervous arm out of the sheets which enveloped him and had drawn an envelope from the inside pocket of the coat which hung beside him.” [</span><a href="http://ignisart.com/camdenhouse/canon/illu.htm" style="text-align: start;">ILLU</a><span style="text-align: start;">)] ]</span></span></td></tr>
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<a href="http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/conan-doyle-estate-denying-sherlock-629078"><i>The Hollywood Reporter</i></a> in “Conan Doyle Estate: Denying Sherlock Holmes Copyright Gives Him ‘Multiple Personalities’” reports on the latest development in the Klinger vs Conan Doyle Estate lawsuit. In response to Klinger’s lawsuit arguing that the major story elements of the Sherlock Holmes stories are fair game, ie. the free use of Canonical characters such as Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson, irregardless of the fact that a few of the final stories have yet to enter the public domain. “The Doyle estate makes the case for a special breed of “complex literary characters” (unlike alleged “flat” television ones like Amos ‘n’ Andy) who develop their personalities, not always as expected, presumably making them more real. The defendant says, “Sherlock Holmes is such character, having all of the complex background and maturing emotions, thoughts, relationships and actions that characterize human development over time.”” Put simply, the Estate makes the claim that Sherlock Holmes is the sum of all sixty stories and since not all sixty stories are in the public domain, Sherlock Holmes can’t be freely used since ‘part of him’ is still protected. An interesting argument for sure, but will it stand up in a court of law? On a related note, read Alistair Duncan's views on the Free Sherlock case <a href="http://alistaird221b.blogspot.com/2013/09/the-free-sherlock-campaign.html">here</a>.<br />
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<a href="http://www.chattanoogan.com/2013/1/29/243263/Chattanooga-Sherlock-Holmes-Society.aspx">Friends of the Soldier Named Murray</a> a Sherlock Holmes Society based out of The Terrance on Mountain Creek, an assisted living facility in Chattanooga, TN., was recently made an Official Scion of the Baker Street Irregulars. Consisting of about 16-18 “active members attending each meeting…the study group meets monthly and discusses a different Sherlock Holmes short story….Any person who is a resident in an Assisted Living Facility and would like to form a Sherlock Holmes Society may contact the “Friends of the Soldier Named Murray” by email request to <a href="http://josiahbaker@bkhcw.com/">Jody Baker</a> for tips, forms and other organizational assistance.” Sherlockians truly are everywhere!<br />
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<a href="http://sidgwicks.tumblr.com/post/61505518550/he-began-to-play-some-low-dreamy-melodious">Sidgwicks</a> uncovered another wonderful illustration from a non-English source, this time in an Italian translation of <i>The Sign of Four</i> by Ugo Mataniafor “Il segno dei quattro”, <i>Il Romanzo Per Tutti</i> (Vol. 4, No. 5), 1948. Earlier this month, Sidgwicks posted a scan from a German edition of The Hound of the Baskervilles: Richard Gutschmidt for <a href="http://sidgwicks.tumblr.com/post/60529138933/illustration-by-richard-gutschmidt-for-der-hund"><i>Der Hund von Baskerville</i></a>, Stuttgart: Robert Lutz, 1907. I’ve seen a few illustrations from German and Italian translations over the years and they’ve all been rather stunning. Perhaps one day someone will publish a collection of non-English edition illustrations of the Canon.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: start;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">[“He began to play some low, dreamy, melodious air,”]</span></span></td></tr>
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Weekly Sherlock Links Compendium (September 14 - September 20, 2013)

"I am ready to give you any information which may assist you in forming an opinion." [NOBL] Another Sherlock Holmes tradem...

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by campunity

The Old Court Radio Theatre Company and @SHSLBakerStweet Bring You...

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"I heard the sound of voices from above." [REDH] </h4>
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<span class="post-author"><a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2012/10/receiving-station-as-well-as_2.html">Gordon Dymowski wrote</a> about Big Finish and their adaptation of "The Final Problem" and "The Empty House." I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2012/03/episode-40-one-voice-of-sherlock-holmes.html">interviewed </a></span><a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2012/03/episode-40-one-voice-of-sherlock-holmes.html">David Ian Davies</a> and his recording of the entire Canon for One Voice Recordings. I would like to give a shout out to the program I listen to while waiting for the newest episode of IHOSE: <b><span style="font-weight: normal;"><a href="http://www.sherlock-holmes.org.uk/world/radio.php">The Old Court Radio Theatre Company</a> and their dramatizations of the famous Baker Street duo.</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-weight: normal;">There are currently fifteen shows: ten of the Canon, two of the Apocryphal stories, “The Lost Special” and “The Man with the Watches” rewritten to feature Holmes and Watson, Gillette’s “Sherlock Holmes or the Strange Case of Alice Faulkner”, and two good pastiches,"T</span></b><span style="font-weight: normal;">he Lon</span><span style="font-weight: normal;">g</span><span style="font-weight: normal;"> Man</span><span style="font-weight: normal;">" by Rafe McGregor and "The Long Man" by Roger Johnson</span><b><span style="font-weight: normal;"><b></b>.</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-weight: normal;">Directed by the <a href="http://www.sherlock-holmes.org.uk/">Sherlock Holmes Society of London</a>’s Roger Johnson, produced by Denis Rookard for Hosiprog Productions until his death in March 2010 (when Johnson took over those duties), with scripts by M.J. Elliott, the shows capture the feel of old time radio. Jim Crozier and Dave Hawkes are excellent as Holmes and Watson. Crozier is the cold, precise reasoner of Baker Street, sometimes imperious but always humane (as with his interaction with Helen Stoner in “The Speckled Band”). Hawkes’ Watson is intelligent, loyal and, yes, put-upon. However, his exasperation with Holmes is never over the top; the actors convey the real friendship of the pair.</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-weight: normal;">The scripts are adaptations of the stories; radio plays not </span></b><span style="font-weight: normal;">transcriptions</span>. They show a deep knowledge of the Canon and Canonical problems. In “The <i style="font-weight: normal;">Gloria Scott</i>” as Holmes begins his narration of the case, Watson interrupts twice to ask which his college was, and Holmes pointedly ignores him. In “Wisteria Lodge”, Watson begins, “I find it recorded in my notebooks that it was a bleak and windy day towards the end of March in the year 1892…1892? That can’t be right surely. Hmm. (Sigh) Ah, well…” That very briefest of sighs of a man who knows something is wrong somewhere, but doesn't know what it is, and regardless is not going to let it break the flow of his narrative, is pure Watson. The shows are full of these touches that play the game and enhance the enjoyment of the stories. never slow their pace.</div>
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<b><span style="font-weight: normal;">We have many choices in the 21<sup>st</sup> century to sate our need for Sherlock Holmes: newly created radio programs and classics from the 1930’s and ‘40’s; podcasts and webcasts; TV shows and movies available for electronic devices we can carry anywhere. The Digital Age has brought us closer to that age “where it is always 1895”. Enjoy.</span></b><br />
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<b><span style="font-weight: normal;"><i>Editor's note: James O'Leary is a </i></span></b><span style="font-weight: normal;"><i>member of the Speckled Band of Boston, the John H. Watson Society</i></span><b><i><span style="font-weight: normal;"> and a huge fan of the I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere podcast.</span></i></b><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: x-small; font-weight: normal;"><i>Image credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/blahflowers/978130586">Loz Flowers (Flickr)</a></i></span></b><br />
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The Old Court Radio Theatre Company and @SHSLBakerStweet Bring You...

"I heard the sound of voices from above." [REDH] Gordon Dymowski wrote about Big Finish and their adaptation of "Th...

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by James C. O'Leary

What Could Sherlock Holmes Tell About You Today?

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"...might give a clue to a person's identity." [REDH]  </h4>
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Sherlock Holmes knew how to tell a weaver by his tooth and a compositor by his left thumb. But what clues do we leave behind in today's connected society and what can the experts make of them?</h4>
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Sherlock Holmes was a master of inferring professions, national origins, recent undertakings and more from a quick glance at those he observed. Given some of the archaic professions and possessions that were represented in some of the stories and in Holmes's own words, it would be surprising to see anything like that happening today.<br />
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Recall that Watson said to Holmes: "I have heard you say that it is difficult for a man to have any object in daily use without leaving the impress of his individuality upon it in such a way that a trained observer might read it." [SIGN]<br />
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<a href="http://farm5.staticflickr.com/4037/4182503968_81f46890fb_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://farm5.staticflickr.com/4037/4182503968_81f46890fb_o.jpg" width="175" /></a>Holmes let Watson in on some of his techniques in "A Case of Identity," upon observing Miss Mary Sutherland: "I can never bring you to realize the importance of sleeves, the suggestiveness of thumbnails, or the great issues that may hang from a bootlace." He went on to describe the elements of Miss Sutherland's attire and appearance that helped him deduce her profession as a typist.<br />
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<a href="" name="more"></a>However, Holmes was also able to discern between a typist and a pianist in "The Copper Beeches":<br />
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"I nearly fell into the error of supposing that you were typewriting. Of course, it is obvious that it is music. You observe the spatulate finger-end, Watson, which is common to both professions? There is a spirituality about the face, however" - he gently turned it towards the light - "which the typewriter does not generate. This lady is a musician."</blockquote>
However, it was clear in that very same story that Holmes was already bemoaning the lack of appreciation for his talent and general ignorance of the people in such matters:<br />
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"What do the public, the great unobservant public, who could hardly tell a weaver by his tooth or a compositor by his left thumb, care about the finer shades of analysis and deduction!" </blockquote>
We know that Conan Doyle was first struck by the importance of observation and deduction by his medical school professor, <b><a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2011/05/great-teacher-cree_30.html" target="_blank">Dr. Joseph Bell</a></b>. The physician not only gave demonstrations to his students, but also waxed poetic on the importance of visual cues, particularly physical ones:<br />
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"Nearly every handicraft writes its sign-manual on the hands. The scars of the miner differ from those of the quarryman. The carpenter’s callosities are not those of the mason. The soldier and sailor are different in gait."</blockquote>
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Given than so many of us are "knowledge workers" who sit in front of a variety of keyboards and screens today, one has to wonder about the importance of observation and how it plays into crime today. For example, are spatulate fingers even discernible for the astute observer in the present day?<br />
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"Something More Modern" [HOUN]</h3>
So imagine our surprise when we saw an article about Facebook - Facebook, no less! - regarding <b><a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-05-30/facebook-posts-help-credit-bureaus-sniff-out-fraudsters.html" target="_blank">how the social network is using its cache of data to help ferret out fraud</a></b>. Credit bureaus and payment companies are looking for evidence that customers are lying about their finances, and through the observation and collation of their public updates (will criminals ever learn?) - from photos of vacations and cars, to check-ins at exotic locations, to information they share about online purchases - they're able to discern who is being less than honest about his situation.<br />
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The paragraph that caught our attention from a Sherlockian perspective was this one:<br />
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Even grammar can indicate something about users, he said, recalling a friend request he received on Facebook from someone who tried to pass himself off as a young American, yet used language that suggested “it’s someone who’s definitely around eastern Europe or Russia,” he said. “There are certainly algorithms you can build around that.”</blockquote>
Does this remind you of anything remotely Canonical? It should.<br />
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Think back to Holmes and Watson reading over the letter from the mysterious and pseudonymous Count von Kramm in "A Scandal in Bohemia":<br />
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"The man who wrote the note is a German. Do you note the peculiar construction of the sentence - 'This account of you we have from all quarters received.' A Frenchman or Russian could not have written that. It is the German who is so uncourteous to his verbs. It only remains, therefore, to discover what is wanted by this German who writes upon Bohemian paper, and prefers wearing a mask to showing his face.</blockquote>
While the observations of Holmes and Bell were centered around attributes of the physical - scars, tattoos, stains, mud splashes, sleeves, accents and the like - a variety of deductions of the present day are tied to data that are able to be attained through both simple and complex algorithmic searches. But as Holmes himself said, "Data! data! data! I can't make bricks without clay."<br />
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What Could Sherlock Holmes Tell About You Today?

"...might give a clue to a person's identity." [REDH] Sherlock Holmes knew how to tell a weaver by his tooth and a compo...

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by Scott Monty

Book Review: The London of Sherlock Holmes

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"He had spread out his big map of London..." [BRUC] </h4>
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In the canon, Conan Doyle's stories give London a very tangible sense of <i>place</i>. As Holmes and Watson have their adventures, readers are provided details which make the geography of 1895 London come alive, providing a unique opportunity to engage in "the Great Game".<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoQgxYTGDga3mN7XDloNgljcZpNFI_TH3-MHHM6EqbFejSbIdyITtjUAVwIVmcC2kP4By7-OdKS0DeHZv1qcV1uVMzhYPn3AvrLG6OFUZoW8Xlq5JkncH9d6BC8NSzVRxBzt-aoHFTCQUx/s1600/London+of+Sherlock+Holmes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="The London of Sherlock Holmes by Thomas Bruce Wheeler" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoQgxYTGDga3mN7XDloNgljcZpNFI_TH3-MHHM6EqbFejSbIdyITtjUAVwIVmcC2kP4By7-OdKS0DeHZv1qcV1uVMzhYPn3AvrLG6OFUZoW8Xlq5JkncH9d6BC8NSzVRxBzt-aoHFTCQUx/s1600/London+of+Sherlock+Holmes.jpg" title="" /></a>Available through MX Publishing, <b><i><a href="http://www.mxpublishing.com/product/9781780922096/The+London+of+Sherlock+Holmes" target="_blank">The London of Sherlock Holmes</a></i></b> by Thomas Bruce Wheeler is a great resource, combining 21st century technology with the canon to provide a thorough piece of Sherlockian scholarship that <a href="http://www.sherlockian-sherlock.com/the-london-of-sherlock-holmes.php">you can sample via this online chapter.</a><br />
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On a superficial level, <b><i>The London of Sherlock Holmes</i></b> is an extremely fascinating book, providing a point-by-point analysis of locations disclosed within each story of the canon. (The online sample chapter focuses on "The Adventure of the Bruce-Partington Plans" [BRUC]"). For anyone considering a walking tour of Holmes' London, this would be more than adequate. However, reading the electronic version of the book via e-reader provides an additional level of engagement. Clicking on specific links automatically calls up <a href="http://maps.google.com/">Google Maps</a> of each location. Combined with GPS maps, <b><i>The London of Sherlock Holmes</i></b> provides a much more immersive experience, bringing Holmes' London a little closer for readers. <br />
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Herewith a few examples of the interactive maps that Wheeler has created.<br />
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<a href="https://mapsengine.google.com/map/u/0/viewer?gmp=msp&mid=zz7OCIy2oDA4.klI46NrhEbLE" target="_blank">Famous Londoners' Blue Plaques</a>:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu8ibL_qoflKazgAsF3KP8Dphono0y4FJP1FTspGfXg5qds92ftcGI3j3uFEY2QlBtQNP8J_00zvDTlg7rQ80gy_ahOupC3sYXcWenpFAZi4ib9lEEud2dRNwLZi5XO7Bbvm9l55YM7xJX/s1600/Famous+Londoners'+Blue+Plaques.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="336" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu8ibL_qoflKazgAsF3KP8Dphono0y4FJP1FTspGfXg5qds92ftcGI3j3uFEY2QlBtQNP8J_00zvDTlg7rQ80gy_ahOupC3sYXcWenpFAZi4ib9lEEud2dRNwLZi5XO7Bbvm9l55YM7xJX/s640/Famous+Londoners'+Blue+Plaques.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://mapsengine.google.com/map/u/0/viewer?gmp=msp&mid=zz7OCIy2oDA4.khkYBa_8ZPHg" target="_blank">Central London Pubs</a>:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUrNvuRNeIRHRlLR_xaStxK3uM8eSMXjyGiUkP6e_Av1OXMExLqkrpFMvWup0zohd3MOxeYfHXWhT4OzCg90OFUyo5YGsyqCSWtNelbl9L9QWBv1_1asmVPVEEipq8a0PVCnpk18pYPqjl/s1600/Central+London+Pubs.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="336" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUrNvuRNeIRHRlLR_xaStxK3uM8eSMXjyGiUkP6e_Av1OXMExLqkrpFMvWup0zohd3MOxeYfHXWhT4OzCg90OFUyo5YGsyqCSWtNelbl9L9QWBv1_1asmVPVEEipq8a0PVCnpk18pYPqjl/s640/Central+London+Pubs.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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<b><i>The London of Sherlock Holmes</i></b> is a fascinating book that combines 19th century atmosphere with 21st Century technology to create a unique experience. This looks like a reference book well worth owning for any Sherlockian<br />
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<i>--</i><br />
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Book Review: The London of Sherlock Holmes

"He had spread out his big map of London..." [BRUC] In the canon, Conan Doyle's stories give London a very tangible s...

+ Read more »

by Gordon D

The Top 10 Most Suggestive Lines from the Sherlock Holmes Stories

<h4 style="text-align: center;">
"Ah! That is suggestive." [SPEC] </h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK-CbdMCNJ2ak8jUe2ElWpcbB-off4Tw-RnhGt5jg0FeyLoLvHcup6aw3eTyHwuihdNaAGjICxac1b0K8TCcZRFtQaYNomyBtdzNiH4qeFuwRHTjrJ-DmU55wiwaIE3PfyxEby9gPL24nw/s1600/Sherlock+Holmes+and+Dr.+Watson+in+bed.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK-CbdMCNJ2ak8jUe2ElWpcbB-off4Tw-RnhGt5jg0FeyLoLvHcup6aw3eTyHwuihdNaAGjICxac1b0K8TCcZRFtQaYNomyBtdzNiH4qeFuwRHTjrJ-DmU55wiwaIE3PfyxEby9gPL24nw/s1600/Sherlock+Holmes+and+Dr.+Watson+in+bed.jpg" /></a></div>
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A number of years ago, we published a small pamphlet called "<b>Sherlockian Sillies</b>." We recently unearthed it and had a good chuckle. And the recent airing of The Baker Street Babes' <a href="http://bakerstreetbabes.com/podcast/episode-44-sherlock-holmes-after-dark-pt-i/">Sherlock After Dark Part I</a> podcast episode, as well as <a href="http://sherlockpeoria.blogspot.com/2013/09/one-mans-point-of-view-on-sexy.html">Sherlock Peoria's assessment of the same</a> got us to thinking.<br />
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So we decided to resurrect this favorite. Each and every one of these quotes is pulled directly from the original text of the Canon.<br />
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<h3>
The Top 10 Most Suggestive Lines from the Sherlock Holmes Stories</h3>
<ol>
<li>"Mrs. Hudson has been knocked up." [SPEC] </li>
<li>"I went to it on my knees." [EMPT] </li>
<li>"A sudden ejaculation caused me to wake up." [TWIS] </li>
<li>"It’s lucky for you…or you would find yourself in Queer Street." [SECO] </li>
<li>"He seemed to take a fancy to me from the first…one thing led to another." [WIST] </li>
<li>"In the bathroom…I have just been there, and I have taken it out." [TWIS] </li>
<li>"Still, I confess that I miss my rubber. It is the first Saturday night in seven-and-twenty years that I have not had my rubber." [REDH] </li>
<li>"I remember nothing until I found myself lying on my bed trembling all over. Then I thought of you, Mr. Holmes." [COPP] </li>
<li>"I heard a little sigh of satisfaction as he cuddled the butt into his shoulder, and saw that amazing target." [EMPT] </li>
<li>"A week later I found myself in Florence." [EMPT] </li>
</ol>
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Which is (or are) your favorite? And perhaps you have some additional suggestive lines from the stories that we missed. Drop us a note and let us know so we can expand our little list.</div>
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<div>The game continues to be afoot with this entry: "<a href="https://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2017/02/more-suggestive-phrases-from-sherlock.html#.Ybwd6GhKjb0" target="_blank">More Suggestive Phrases from the Sherlock Holmes Stories</a>."</div><div><br /></div>
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*<i>If you're wondering about the four-letter abbreviations after each quote, <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/p/title-abbreviations.html">the key is here</a>.</i></div>
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The Top 10 Most Suggestive Lines from the Sherlock Holmes Stories

"Ah! That is suggestive." [SPEC] A number of years ago, we published a small pamphlet called " Sherlockian Sillies ....

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by Scott Monty

Sherlock Joker is the Crown Prince of Crime Detection

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<h4>
"See here, my joker." [VALL]</h4>
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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/AVvXsEg2kJSsf0-hR5WTVvfZOCaZYjdRkd7XzeVn9rVOLpVz_1JWxR7LKmkhHl1Fsi2WSq012O5YZA5qM3REcfMNZ5vjdPG0Ah6ssYAmk51SFv0yJi52chhIT0ponZBfzBaJVM0MZHOIudy8pyIT/s1600/Jerry+Margolin's+Collection.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2kJSsf0-hR5WTVvfZOCaZYjdRkd7XzeVn9rVOLpVz_1JWxR7LKmkhHl1Fsi2WSq012O5YZA5qM3REcfMNZ5vjdPG0Ah6ssYAmk51SFv0yJi52chhIT0ponZBfzBaJVM0MZHOIudy8pyIT/s640/Jerry+Margolin's+Collection.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jerry Margolin's library</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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We can always count on Jerry Margolin, BSI ("Hilton Cubitt") to find something unique in the world of Sherlock Holmes artwork. As readers of this site know, Jerry joined us for <b><a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2007/12/episode-16-collectors-corner-jerry.html">Episode 16 of I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere</a></b>, taking us on a fantastic journey of his Sherlock Holmes collecting interests.</div>
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<iframe allow="autoplay" frameborder="no" height="166" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/134346227&color=%232a77af&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=false" width="100%"></iframe><br />
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While Jerry sold a good part of his book collection to <a href="http://www.ihearofsherlock.com/2008/01/episode-17-collectors-corner-otto.html">Otto Penzler</a>, he retained his Sherlockian artwork and has continued to add to it. Which is why we were curious when we saw Jerry change his Facebook profile photo to this:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoG6XukMDNP58g9uE-bxjnkzXPQ0Jc099lWt3TJBPrujaNqv0khKPDmmjrdAPBc5ERuVdeaExDU7F_czsaG6Bie-RNArN0MTp4xf85dEtH03eF1abOQqQ0tmnsQuVmV5b9uf6_7XtTD3-j/s1600/Carl+Critchlow's+Sherlock+Joker+-+profile.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoG6XukMDNP58g9uE-bxjnkzXPQ0Jc099lWt3TJBPrujaNqv0khKPDmmjrdAPBc5ERuVdeaExDU7F_czsaG6Bie-RNArN0MTp4xf85dEtH03eF1abOQqQ0tmnsQuVmV5b9uf6_7XtTD3-j/s640/Carl+Critchlow's+Sherlock+Joker+-+profile.jpg" width="465" /></a></div>
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We wrote to Jerry and asked him about it, because it's quite different from the usual Joker artwork we've seen when Sherlock Holmes makes an appearance in DC Comics. Jerry told his story:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
A friend was using the other card image for his Facebook profile picture and when I saw it, I wrote to him to see if he was the artist and if he had the original. He said he was not, but told me the artist's name. I looked him up and contacted him via email. He said that he had just the one piece left, but was keeping it for himself. I told him about my collection and sent photos of some of the art I owned. After he saw that he said he would not mind parting with it, but that it would be expensive. I said quote me a price and we agreed. I had it framed with Joker colors of purple and green.</blockquote>
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<div>
We were curious about "the other card" that Jerry referenced. Not quite sure what kind of card it was, nor of the other image, we did a little research of our own and came up with the only story about this on the Internet, as shared on <a href="http://about-faces.livejournal.com/75236.html">Livejournal</a> regarding an all-villain series with a mystery attached:</div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
In 1996, trading card company Fleer decided that they wanted to release a different kind of card set for Batman. Inspired by the loose narrative of Topps' classic Mars Attacks! cards, the Batman Master Series set was the first series of cards to comprise a complete, original Batman storyline. The more cards you collect, the more parts of the story you'd have to piece together. And it was all written by none other than our old favorite, Doug Moench.</blockquote>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj_YBQnoDYXYKirsiwJW1nLu0pmLBhzmN31QLzk9vNO4NuyREwgR_80wQ3g9z5V560Ard5igpevZRstvBCasbrP3zfnbHTLIg3UVdx_6Dev3N5DkiFfQ49lOgu9ML74SEU1cFVB2_vKEv6/s1600/Carl+Critchlow's+Sherlock+Joker+-+head-on.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj_YBQnoDYXYKirsiwJW1nLu0pmLBhzmN31QLzk9vNO4NuyREwgR_80wQ3g9z5V560Ard5igpevZRstvBCasbrP3zfnbHTLIg3UVdx_6Dev3N5DkiFfQ49lOgu9ML74SEU1cFVB2_vKEv6/s640/Carl+Critchlow's+Sherlock+Joker+-+head-on.jpg" width="456" /></a></div>
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<div>
British fantasy and science fiction artist <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_Critchlow">Carl Critchlow</a> created <b><i>Sherlock Joker Strikes Out</i></b>, consisting of these two images in 1996 for the Fleer set. <i>Washington Times</i> critic James Szadkowski mentioned Critchlow's "commitment to presenting the Joker in an expressionist style," which is quite apparent in these paintings.</div>
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<div>
In Critchlow's own words, this is how he approached the concept of "Sherlock Jokes":</div>
<div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
One this one I did exactly what was asked of me. I just put the extra image in there to make it look like a magnifying glass, just to try and show that it was working, and then make it a bit more interesting. Get a bit of something going on.</blockquote>
In our opinion, it worked. And here's how Jerry's framed version looks:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzRDPZYF7-XWeQWD5QlIxipoCtuUq8NIk1cw3PZoqmCk1etG2mQRnoOet3BIp-s9iNNjc3x-XniN2bZpb4PO5R0RGru4G7I54Cveh9-SLh2CLNap9gyYf8xIlr0-OrMcgYz30rrdZDM7Dl/s1600/Carl+Critchlow's+Sherlock+Joker+-+framed.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzRDPZYF7-XWeQWD5QlIxipoCtuUq8NIk1cw3PZoqmCk1etG2mQRnoOet3BIp-s9iNNjc3x-XniN2bZpb4PO5R0RGru4G7I54Cveh9-SLh2CLNap9gyYf8xIlr0-OrMcgYz30rrdZDM7Dl/s640/Carl+Critchlow's+Sherlock+Joker+-+framed.jpeg" width="611" /></a></div>
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Do you have any Sherlockian artwork that is a favorite of yours? Perhaps you'd like to share it with the world. Why not share it to the <a href="http://bit.ly/SHCommunity">Sherlock Holmes Community</a>?<br />
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