The Baker Street Blog

"Baffled All Those Who Have Sought a Solution" [FIVE]

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Monty) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 11:06:30 PST

The three-time BAFTA-nominated actor Nicol Williamson has passed away at the age of 75.

To Sherlockians, he'll be most closely identified with the role of Sherlock Holmes in the 1976 film The Seven Per-Cent Solution. The book and the screenplay were both written by Nicholas Meyer, BSI ("A Fine Morocco Case"). Outside of the Holmesian world, he was probably best known for his turn as the wily wizard Merlin in Excalibur (1981).

As Sherlock Holmes, he seemed as if he were cast against type, but he gave a convincing performance as a manic and overwrought consulting detective who was weaned off of his cocaine dependence by a once similarly afflicted Sigmund Freud. With Robert Duvall as his Watson and Alan Arkin as the venerable psychiatrist, the unlikely trio made for a memorable film.

Below, we bring you a slideshow of some of the posters and lobby cards from the film. You can also view them on Flickr.

Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.
Do you you have a memory or impression of how Williamson's performance (Sherlockian or not) struck you? Leave us a comment.

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"Then He Told the Story" [ILLU]

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Monty) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 20:41:29 PST

One of the great benefits of being a member of the Baker Street Irregulars is that we get to meet a lot of interesting and famous people. Chief among them are the literati, such as Michael Dirda, BSI ("Langdale Pike"), the Pulitzer Prize-winning book critic for the Washington Post, who makes his living by writing about the literati.

In this case, Michael himself is the author, having been tapped by the Princeton University Press to contribute to their "Writers on Writers" series with the volume On Conan Doyle: Or, the Whole Art of Storytelling. In it, he takes us through Conan Doyle's life and writings - many of which may not be familiar to the Sherlock Holmes fan - and gives us a perspective on many of them through the Canon.

Burt and Scott had a chance to sit down with Michael at The Players in New York City during the 2012 Baker Street Irregulars Weekend - marking the first time our podcast has been recorded with the two hosts together in the same room.

Rather than give you an Editor's Gas-Lamp in this episode, we asked Michael to read something from his own work.

Links:

Listen now:

Download this episode by right-clicking the icon and selecting "Save As..." or simply click on the file to listen, or on the nice box above. (File size: 34.7 MB, 37:51)

Your thoughts on the show? Leave a comment below, send us an email, call us at (774) 221-READ (7323) or drop by our Facebook page.

And as always, please visit our sponsors Wessex Press.

[This was cross-posted from ihearofsherlock.com - Ed.]

"Elementary" [CROO]

noreply@blogger.com (Anastasia) — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 13:22:04 PST

"Excellent!" I cried.
"Elementary," said he.

Of course, any Sherlockian considering him or herself worthy of the name knows that one particular instance in "The Crooked Man" is the only time Mr. Sherlock Holmes uses the word “elementary” in that context. Never in the canon does he actually say “Elementary, my dear Watson.”

Nevertheless, it appears that CBS has hit upon the entirely original idea of updating the Sherlock Holmes stories for the modern day, and will title this show, ahem, Elementary.

Deadline is reporting that CBS has greenlit a pilot that would air in 2012 and would transport the Victorian detective to 21^st century New York.

This news comes, unsurprisingly, after the success of the second series of BBC’s Sherlock, as well as Guy Ritchie’s recent sequel, Sherlock Holmes: Game of Shadows.

As Holmes would also say, “It is a capital mistake to theorize before one has data” [SCAN] and so far, data is drastically lacking about this upcoming series. Aside from the screenwriter - Robert Doherty - nothing is yet known, making any speculation about the quality of the series difficult. One hopes, however, that the script and acting will transcend the title and be something rather than “elementary.”

Anastasia writes at The Itinerant Bookworm. This is her first contribution to the Baker Street Blog.
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"Then On Saturday" [HOUN]

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Monty) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 22:28:56 PST

The day after the BSI dinner and Gaslight Gala can be a bit of a paradox for some people. For after the dinners, some attendees gather to celebrate well into the night. It's an unwritten tradition to keep the newest investitured members of the Baker Street Irregulars awake until at least 2:21 a.m. That's not too rare when you're in the city that never sleeps, but with the doors of the Vendors Room opening at 9:00 a.m. sharp (and Jerry Margolin always jockeying to be the first in), it can be difficult to rouse yourself from an otherwise groggy state.

This year's Vendors Room was packed with merchandise, from the new to the old and rare. The Baker Street Irregulars had its usual range of books available from the BSI Manuscript and BSI International series, as well as The Grand Game Volume Two, the continuation of the first volume edited by Leslie S. Klinger and Laurie R. King. In addition to the Grand Game compendium being completed, there was a very handsome Grand Game Limited Edition being offered for sale; you can order it online after March 30. There will be 100 box sets created, with gilt-stamped volumes, a companion index with an expansion of the origin of the Game and Ronald Knox, and a gold-stamped slipcase.

The afternoon turned toward West 44th Street as Sherlockians descended on the New York Bar Association for the reception and auction. As usual, Don Novorsky hosted the event and recognized the previous evening's newly-investitured Irregulars. Then, we we all treated to a fun little vaudeville routine by Jim Saunders and Henry Boote, who performed a Sherlock Holmes-inspired version of the old Mr. Gallagher and Mr. Shean bit. While we didn't record Jim & Henry, here you can have a look at what it looked like as performed by Charles Winniger and Al Shean:

The 2012 raffle prize

Directly after the performance, it was time for the drawing of the raffle prize. All weekend, raffle tickets were sold to raise money for the John H. Watson Fund, a self-exhausting fund that is available to all Sherlockians (BSI membership is not required) who wish to travel to New York for the annual Baker Street Irregulars weekend but who may not be able to afford to otherwise attend. This year's raffle prize was donated by Maggie Schpak, BSI ("The Soup Plate Medal"), who works in metallurgical costuming. It was a replica of Lady Frances Carfax's Spanish diamonds, which you can see to the right.

Then it was time for another highlight of the weekend - the Sherlockian Year in Review, as given in verse by father and daughter team Al ("Inspector Gregory") and Betsy ("Lucy Ferrier") Rosenblatt. As usual, their observations and wit skewered events and individuals who made headlines throughout the year, and then turned toward the doings of the weekend. They even stopped mid-poem to break out in song to honor Henry Boote's Two Shilling award (sung to the tune of "Aunt Clara," of course).

The final programmatic event was Peter Blau's professional auctioneering effort to raise money for the Watson Fund. This year, the items included original posters from Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, a hand-turned wooden fountain pen made from wood salvaged from the barque Lone Star, original artwork by Charles Meyer, BSI ("Adloph Meyer") and a handmade wooden collector's cabinet made by Joe Coppola ("The Stranger's Room"). And in a last-minute surprise appearance, a Peter Blau-ish powder blue blazer worn the previous evening in the skit was offered up by Scott Monty. Peter and Scott stood side by side, taking bids for the jacket. The winning bid was a Canonical $221 and the buyer plans to donate it to the BSI Trust.

Afterwards, Sherlockians went their separate ways. Some caught trains, others joined up for an intimate dinner for 10 for Indian food, and many others got Lost in New York with a Bunch of Sherlockians at Pete's Tavern. The wrap-up brunch was hosted the following day by Lyndsay Faye at the Irish Rogue.

We have a few photos from the weekend. If you'd like to see them, there's a slideshow embedded below on the site. If you're viewing this on email or an RSS reader, please click through to the full article, or check out our set on Flickr.

If you weren't able to make it to the weekend this year, there's always next year! Set your calendar for January 10-12, 2013.

Do you have a memory or a first-person account of what happened at one of the events that we didn't cover? We'd love to hear about it in a comment below.

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"Today Is Friday" [CARD]

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Monty) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 13:56:24 PST

Friday is always a hectic day during the BSI Weekend. From impromptu breakfasts to early pilgrimages down to Tribeca to see Otto Penzler's offerings as the Mysterious Bookshop, there are plenty of mind- and waist-expanding opportunities to be had before running off to...lunch.

The William Gillette Lunch
The Gillette Lunch has been in place for many years, having been first established in the early days of the BSI as an opportunity for those traveling from out of town to gather before the BSI dinner. Susan Rice and Mickey Fromkin have been running this event for a couple of decades, after it was handed down to them from Lisa McGaw.

Susan Rice - all smiles

Guests are welcomed to the quickly overflowing bar area of Moran's Chelsea restaurant (an aptly named or aptly selected venue, as the case may be) and conversation quickly rises, along with the temperature of the facility. But all is well as we wind our way into the substantial dining area and prepare for the welcome from Susan. We remember William Gillette of course, but also the founders and previous administrators. After a quick promotion of the Beacon Society - the group that promotes educating the young on Sherlock Holmes via the original stories - we dine.

After lunch come the skits. In this case were treated to two: a "Tonight Show" (c. 1895) rendition of Carnac the Magnificent; and the Friends of Bogey's of Baker Street giving us their fanciful interpretation of Sherlock Holmes on the Titanic. The iceberg even got a starring role.

Iceberg right ahead!

We all wended our way to our respective hotels, some walking in the bracing cold in a futile attempt to burn some calories before attending another meal in three hours or so.

The BSI Dinner
We attended the BSI dinner (as we have for the last 17 years), so we can only report on that. [Ed. note: if you attended the Gaslight Gala, we'd be delighted to have a writeup of what happened there. Please click on the Tip button at the top of the site.]

Connie Keane

Prior to the dinner, it is always the custom to name "The Woman" of the year - typically the spouse of a BSI who has supported and encouraged her husband's work and in many cases who has been a co-conspirator in support of the BSI. This year it was Connie Keane, wife of Michael Keane who manages the BSI Publications. As it turns out, it was Connie who first encouraged Michael's interest in Sherlock Holmes, so as Leslie Klinger (who introduced Connie at the reception) put it, "Michael Keane would not exist if it weren't for Connie!" She did however put her foot down when Michael wanted to name their son Sherlock.

The dinner kicked off with the normal routine: our annual photograph taken with a 100 year-old camera, as well as welcome remarks from "Wiggins," the head of the BSI. He noted that this year marks a number of anniversaries: the 125th anniversary of the publication of A Study in Scarlet; the 175th anniversary of Dr. Joseph Bell's birth; the 120th anniversary of the birth of Basil Rathbone; and the 75th anniversary of the death of William Gillette. Mike also noted that the BSI Publications have produced an enormous amount of content in the last 11 years; in the last year alone, titles like Italy and Sherlock Holmes, Bohemian Souls, two Baker Street Journal Christmas Annuals, and two volumes and a special edition of The Grand Game. In addition to those remarks, Wiggins also bestowed the Benefactor Award on Glen Miranker, who has very generously given of his time, materials and resources to support the BSI Trust. "For the sake of the trust," [MUSG] indeed.

For this camera, it's always 1895

Tom Francis, on behalf of the Trust, accepted a trove of materials that were donated by the Sherlock Holmes Collections of the University of Minnesota Libraries. Tom cautioned all attendees to save and donate their BSI correspondence, because "we don't know which of these clowns are going to become important" down the road. That got a great laugh from those assembled, but also served as a great reminder - especially in this digital age - that correspondence is to be treasured and preserved for future generations, to help tell our story.

The rest of the program unfolded splendidly, with toasts given by Lyndsay Faye, Andrew Solberg, Jim Saunders and Don Novorsky, and the reading of the BSI's Constitution and Buy-Laws by Costa Rossakis. Papers were read by Barbara Rusch, Burt Wolder and Bob Katz - or more appropriately, talks were given by Burt and Bob, who each performed the amazing feat of speaking without notes. As the theme of the evening was "His Last Bow," Burt covered the Chicago connection, with an interesting conclusion as to who Martha was (we'll won't spoil the surprise, as it's likely to appear in the Baker Street Journal - which you should subscribe to, if you don't already). And Bob shuffled off to Buffalo to look at the connection between England and New York in 1912.

Will the real Peter Blau please stand up?

In a bit of comic relief Paul Singleton and Scott Monty performed an updated "Two Thousand Year-Old Man" routine, modeled after the Carl Reiner / Mel Brooks collaboration. In this case, the Mel Brooks character looked and sounded an awful lot like Peter Blau.

Vinnie Brosnan recited the Musgrave Ritual and the audience replied with the appropriate answers. Otto Penzler took us back in time to the House of El Dieff as we remembered old Irregular Lou David Feldman, who was a bookseller extraordinaire. Otto recalled Lou's so-called "warehouse" where he kept many volumes; to Otto's surprise on his first visit, it was actually an apartment at 63rd Street and Park Avenue in New York.

Henry Boote tickling the ivories

In a surprise move, Wiggins called up Henry Boote and referred to him officially as the Music Director of the BSI before bestowing on Henry a well-deserved Two Shilling Award, given to Irregulars who have gone above and beyond in their service to the organization. Henry then took to the piano, where he performed a series of "His Last Bow"-inspired songs. He cleverly rewrote the lyrics to "Shuffle Off to Buffalo," "Chicago," and "When Irish Eyes are Smiling," followed by the traditional "Aunt Clara."

Then of course, it was time for Francine Kitts to solemnly stand on the terrace for the following six Irregulars: Jason Pierre Rouby ("Vanderbuilt and the Yeggman), Dr. George L. John ("Sir Jasper Meek"), Peter Wood ("The Second Stain"), J. Warren Scheideman ("Count Von und zu Grafenstein"), Dr. Bruce L. Crawford ("The Solitary Cyclist"), James H. Bready ("The Disappearance of James Phillamore"). They will all be sorely missed by friends, family and Sherlockians alike.

Before we moved on to the final portion of the program Wiggins called up Mary Anne Bradley to receive an Editor's Award for her 2011 Baker Street Journal Christmas Annual, The First Lady: Lenore Glen Offord.

And then, the moment we were all waiting for - the reading of the 2012 Honours List.

"Thucidydes" - Mark Schwartz
"Birdy Edwards" - Phil Bergem
"Helen Stoner" - Helen Dorey
"Thorneycroft Huxtable" - Peter Accardo
"Baritsu" - Akane Higashiyama
"Inspector Lestrade" - Don Hobbs
"John Hector McFarlane" - Donny Zaldin
"Mary Morstan" - Mary Anne Bradley

The evening concluded with Marsha Pollak reading Bill Schweikert's poem "A Long Evening with Holmes," and the assembled members and guests then disassembled.

"A Technical Character" [SPEC]

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Monty) — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 03:32:02 PST

The BSI Weekend is under way, and that means that the Thursday evening Distinguished Speaker Lecture officially kicked things off. In this case, we were honored to have Dr. Lisa Sanders join us.

Dr. Sanders has written a column for the New York Times since 2002 called "Diagnosis" and it is this column that was the basis of her becoming the technical adviser for "House, M.D." She is also the author of Every Patient Tells a Story. She joined us at the Manhattan Club on January 12 to give the talk "Is Holmes Crazy as a Fox, or Just Plain Crazy?"

Dr. Sanders opened by saying how thrilled she was to be around people who have the same passion that she does, for she has been a Sherlockian for most of her life In fact, it is her interest in Holmes - having devoured all of the stories and everything related to Sherlock Holmes - that led to her fascination with diagnosis, eventually leading to her becoming a physician after a mid-life crisis. She gave a nod to House, saying that he is not her ideal Holmes, but then "neither is Robert Downey. Jr.," to which the audience responded with a round of applause.

Dr. Sanders noted how important Sherlock Holmes was in her life. Her interest in the character opened her up to a new way of looking at diagnosis. She acknowledged the original inspiration behind Holmes, Dr. Joseph Bell (see "My Great Teacher" [CREE] and "This Insignificant-Looking Man Inspired Me" [GREE]), who himself was a master diagnostician. So she began to try to piece together a differential diagnosis for Holmes's behavior. What is that odd behavior that Holmes displays toward Watson when they first met? In her lecture, Dr. Sanders said would try to diagnose it.

Was Sherlock Holmes Bipolar?
In his introduction to The Complete Sherlock Holmes, Kyle Freeman wrote that Holmes was bipolar. Dr. Sanders understands the basis for this differential diagnosis of bipolar disorder: Holmes not speaking for days on end, contrasted with fits of high energy. "If that ain't bipolar disorder, what is?" she remarked.

She continued, citing the opening of The Sign of Four, with Holmes in a depressed state, using cocaine multiple times a day for many months. To continue, she posited that if one agrees with this diagnosis, one might subscribe to the theory of Moriarty as a figment of Holmes' imagination. After all, he never told Watson about his "Napoleon of crime" prior to "The Final Problem," and even then, Watson never saw Moriarty in the flesh; he took Holmes's word for it. But the mugging, bricks falling, carriage nearly running Holmes over - all could be classified as classic mania, with delusions and paranoia. But Dr. Sanders trusts the intelligence and medical observation of Dr. Watson enough to dissuade her that this was in fact the case.

Was it A.D.D.?
Online article supposes Holmes was suffering from Attention Deficit Disorder. Supported by examples of hyper-focus, the constant self-medicating, either with drugs or activity. But Sanders pointed out that the American Psychological Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM-IV) states that such a diagnosis requires deficit of attention. There was very little evidence to support Holmes lacking attention.

Sherlock Holmes Suffered from Asperger's Syndrome
Finally, Dr. Sanders settled on her diagnosis. "I think he has Asperger's Syndrome," she stated. A murmur went over the crowd. In justifying her diagnosis, she half playfully said "I'm a doctor, not a lawyer. That means I didn't leave anything out," looking toward some lawyers in the room, to a fit of laughter from the audience. The comparison of doctors and lawyers would continue to be a theme throughout the room on this evening.

She continued, saying that Asperger's Syndrome, which has been placed in the Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), has a number of characteristics that were present in Sherlock Holmes's behavior. Here we give you the proposed DSM-V diagnosis of ASD:

A. Persistent deficits in social communication and social interaction across contexts, not accounted for by general developmental delays, and manifest by all 3 of the following:
1. Deficits in social-emotional reciprocity; ranging from abnormal social approach and failure of normal back and forth conversation through reduced sharing of interests, emotions, and affect and response to total lack of initiation of social interaction,
2. Deficits in nonverbal communicative behaviors used for social interaction; ranging from poorly integrated- verbal and nonverbal communication, through abnormalities in eye contact and body-language, or deficits in understanding and use of nonverbal communication, to total lack of facial expression or gestures.
3. Deficits in developing and maintaining relationships, appropriate to developmental level (beyond those with caregivers); ranging from difficulties adjusting behavior to suit different social contexts through difficulties in sharing imaginative play and in making friends to an apparent absence of interest in people
B. Restricted, repetitive patterns of behavior, interests, or activities as manifested by at least two of the following:
1. Stereotyped or repetitive speech, motor movements, or use of objects; (such as simple motor stereotypies, echolalia, repetitive use of objects, or idiosyncratic phrases).
2. Excessive adherence to routines, ritualized patterns of verbal or nonverbal behavior, or excessive resistance to change; (such as motoric rituals, insistence on same route or food, repetitive questioning or extreme distress at small changes).
3. Highly restricted, fixated interests that are abnormal in intensity or focus; (such as strong attachment to or preoccupation with unusual objects, excessively circumscribed or perseverative interests).
4. Hyper-or hypo-reactivity to sensory input or unusual interest in sensory aspects of environment; (such as apparent indifference to pain/heat/cold, adverse response to specific sounds or textures, excessive smelling or touching of objects, fascination with lights or spinning objects).

Dr. Sanders ticked off her list:

Deficits of social-emotional reciprocity. Think of the scene when Watson first met Holmes: Holmes was more interested showing off his test than interacting with Watson.
Difficulty in developing and maintaining relationships. Holmes had only one friend.
Lack of picking up on social or emotional cues. Holmes reaction to Watson's write-up of A Study in Scarlet was not very empathetic. Similarly, he thinks of Watson's brother as a case study rather than as a relation of Watson in The Sign of Four.
Restricted repetitive patterns of behavior. Holmes only knows what he knows, as evidenced from Watson's list "Sherlock Holmes: His Limits." [STUD] In addition, the strange interest that manifested through monographs - footprints, tobacco ash, etc.

She didn't go through the entire list, but made a strong enough case with her facts. In addition, she took an Asperger's test that was developed by Simon Baron Cohen (you can take it too by clicking the link), answering as if she were Holmes. She scored 38 out of 50; anything over 30 is considered Asperger's.

In terms of evolution and why this disorder still exists today, Dr. Sanders cited advantages of being solitary, thinking on your own, seeing things differently, particularly in hunter/gatherer times. The notion of being a loner (fox) versus part of a pack (dog) could sometimes benefit individuals in the tribe who simply didn't go along with the group-think.

That concluded the lecture, which led to a few questions from the audience.
One attendee mentioned the book The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time and said that he himself concluded Holmes did not suffer from Asperger's because of some emotional expressions Holmes made toward Watson. He wondered if we need to look at the survey again. Dr. Sanders remarked that one of the things working against this diagnosis is that Holmes could understand the motivation behind people's behavior; whether or not he had empathy, he understood how emotions influenced actions.

Another audience member asked, "What's the difference between a psychopath and a sociopath?" Your editor retorted, "The difference between a doctor and a lawyer," which brought down the house. Dr. Sanders, with help from the audience concluded that one is crazy and can't see reality; the other doesn't care about others or doesn't have guilt.

A final question was regarding "House" - the attendee asking which came first, the creation of Gregory House or the influence of Holmes on the character/series? Dr. Sanders said that David Shore wanted to do a medical show, while Paul Attanasio wanted something related to Sherlock Holmes.

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"Would You Be Afraid to Sleep in the Same Room with a Lunatic..." [VALL]

noreply@blogger.com (Lyndsay Faye) — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 13:22:04 PST

Viewers in the UK were treated last night to the latest episode of BBC Sherlock's second season, arguably the most anticipated Sherlockian adaptation in years and certainly one of television's most popular dramas. The well-received "Hounds of Baskerville," with a clever--occasionally frenetically clever--script by Mark Gatiss, followed in "A Scandal in Belgravia's" footsteps with cunning modern twists to the traditional canon.

Henry Knight, as played by Russell Tovey, is one of the series' most affecting clients to date, playing a young man whose father was murdered before his eyes upon the moors--slain by, he believes, a gigantic hound. Is the monster, now a thriving local tourist attraction, the mutant product of a nearby secret military lab by the name of Baskerville? Or is Knight the victim of a series of hallucinogenic delusions? Sherlock and John travel to Dartmoor to discover the truth, and experience a number of terrifying impediments in their quest.

Benedict Cumberbatch, who was just named by the Telegraph as the greatest Sherlock Holmes of all time, begins the episode manic and off-balanced--wielding a harpoon and covered in blood, having just taken the tube home, in a satisfying nod to BLAC and the benefits of exercise before breakfast. He is desperate for brainwork and for cigarettes, chewing the wallpaper in ways that called to my mind Brett's animated interpretation rather than the very still, contained Sherlock of season one. But he soon settles into the case, with John--whose opportunity to pull rank at a military base is gut-deep satisfying--at his side, pursuing an elusive horror that in every way tests each man's mettle.

Gatiss's sly references to canon are interwoven effortlessly; a village scene in which Sherlock attempts to draw out the local hound expert by telling John he's lost a bet is a perfect replica of the exchange with the goose vendor in BLUE, right down to the "pink 'un" in his back pocket. Sherlock's reference to John as a "conductor of light" will not go unnoticed by a single enthusiast, to my mind, and the arc of the story as regards Sherlock adapting to the unnatural (for him) sensations of both fear and friendship is deftly executed.

Martin Freeman's John Watson strikes a phenomenal balance between loyalty and an unwillingness to deal with weapons-grade Sherlock snark. "Oh, please," he sighs after a Holmesian deduction, "can we not do this, this time? You being all mysterious with your...cheekbones, and turning your coat collar up so you look cool?" His grounded, wry John is a phenomenal counterpart to our hero, and in some ways this episode is laying the groundwork for the next installment; with a title like "The Reichenbach Fall," Sherlockian hearts will doubtless crack worldwide come this time next Sunday.

There is a transcript of the thoughtful Q&A on the episode with Gatiss, Cumberbatch, and Sue Vertue, though spoiler warnings do apply here.

For Europeans, pre-ordering season two is as simple as the click of a button. As for season one, if you haven't yet obtained it, then what are you doing here?

Image credit: andiezoe (Flickr)

When you make purchases from the links we share, it provides us with a stream of revenue to help keep this site running. Thank you for your generosity.
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"We Are, As Usual, The Irregulars" [LADY]

noreply@blogger.com (Gordon Dymowski) — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 23:21:00 PST

On January 2nd, 2012, The Times of London featured a very special comic insert....one which is of particular interest to Sherlockians and graphic literature fans alike, and helped set a proper tone for 2012

As you can see by the embedded graphic below (click to make larger), the Times featured a junior insert featuring The Baker Street Irregulars - characters who are the centerpiece of a graphic novel series by Tony Lee (who also finished a terrific run on IDW's Doctor Who series) and Dan Boultwood for Franklin Watts/EDGE Books. There are currently four stories available in graphic novel form, and this series has been featured in this very blog (see "With Full Approval" [CREE]")

The Times story - named "The Adventure of the New Year's Necklace" is a great, New Years Day-themed tale, taking place in 1892 between "The Final Problem [FINA]" and "The Empty House [EMPT]". All of Mr. Lee's stories are "in canon", and some well-known Sherlockians provide guidance and input. This is a great all-ages series to engage the next generation of Sherlockians (including my 9 year-old godson, who received a copy of The Complete Sherlock Holmes from his godfather), and is well worth checking out.

(Some information for this post taken from the Geeky Girls blog).

Editor's note: Gordon regularly covers the intersection of Sherlock Holmes and the entertainment industry. You can also find him at Blog THIS, Pal! and Comic Related.
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"A Very Pretty Hash You Have Made" [LADY]

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Monty) — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 23:21:00 PST

At this time next week, we'll be in at the Baker Street Irregulars Weekend in New York City, preparing for a few days of interaction with fellow Sherlockians and Holmesians from around the country and a few from around the world.

There are a variety of events (see the embedded guide below - or click through to the post if you're reading this on email or RSS) that will keep us busy throughout the weekend, but if you're not there, we'd like to keep you updated on what we Irregulars experience. After all, we're supposed to be able to "go everywhere, see everything and overhear everyone."

Throughout the weekend, we'll be making updates via the @BakerStreetBlog Twitter handle and we'll be using the what's called a hashtag on Twitter. A hashtag (or #) is placed in front of a word to make it a topic of conversation that anyone can see, regardless of who they're following on Twitter.

Our hashtag is #bsiweekend. If you're attending and would like to tweet, please use #bsiweekend in all of your tweets. We'll pick it up and make it available to everyone on the BSI WEEKEND NEWS sidebar over at http://bsiweekend.com and in "Every Nerve in a Twitter" [TWIS] in the sidebar here on this site.

We'll also try to bring you photos as quickly as possible as the weekend unfolds. Stay tuned here and on our Facebook page for more information.

And if you're at the event and can provide additional coverage, we'd love to hear from you. In the meantime, if you're planning to attend, download and print this handy one-page reference to keep you on track during the weekend:
The 2012 BSI Weekend

To see previous BSI Weekend coverage on this site, please click here.

When you make purchases from the links we share, it provides us with a stream of revenue to help keep this site running. Thank you for your generosity.
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"He Has a European Fame" [REDC]

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Monty) — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 13:22:04 PST

If you reside in the U.K., then you undoubtedly tuned in on January 1 for the BBC's airing of the long-anticipated second season of the popular and acclaimed series "Sherlock," which is now available for pre-ordering on Amazon.co.uk (for European-compatible DVD players only).

By all accounts, we're off to another solid start with the first episode, "A Scandal in Belgravia," in which Irene Adler is portrayed as a dominatrix to royalty. It had to be a little saucier than simply a photograph in this day and age, and some sexual peccadilloes would seem to fit the bill this time around.

We've been fortunate enough to see the episode and we're satisfied that the series will again be a success. It opens where last season left off, with Jim Moriarty taunting Holmes and Watson poolside until he's distracted by a more important issue. Back in Baker Street again, we see a parade of clients coming through the sitting room and Watson dutifully chronicling the interesting cases on his blog, with titles such as "The Geek Interpreter," which involves a trio of misfits whose comic book tales are coming to life and "The Speckled Blonde," in which a female corpse showed no cause of death other than some spots all over her body.

The two get into a spat about whose web site is more popular - Watson's, that attracts new clients, or Holmes's, that enumerates 240 (note the increase by 100) varieties of tobacco ash. Lestrade calls them "an internet phenomenon," after which the press are seen snapping photos and noting the attraction of "Hat-Man and Robin." In a funny aside, a number of times, Holmes gets flustered about Watson's blog counter being stuck at 1895...

The two are summoned to none other than Buckingham Palace for a client (rather than royalty coming to Baker Street) and find that Irene Adler has some compromising photographs of one of the members of the royal family. As a dominatrix, she routinely blackmails her clients, but in this case, she has the photos for "insurance." Holmes and Watson make a raid on her flat in Belgravia in a scene reminiscent of the kind old clergyman finding his way into Briony Lodge.

We'll leave the synopsis at that for now, as the full 90-minute episode held many twists and turns, with appearances by Mrs. Hudson and quite a bit of Mycroft again. The ending was...well, we won't spoil it. :-)

This first episode was quite well done and really ties to the overall arc of the series, as we can see it developing.

If you're in Europe, you may pre-order season 2 of the BBC series "Sherlock" here. No word on U.S.-compatible availability at this time. We'll be ready and waiting when the U.S. premiere happens. And if you haven't yet purchased season 1, what are you waiting for?

When you make purchases from the links we share, it provides us with a stream of revenue to help keep this site running. Thank you for your generosity.
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"Where All Gossip Is Welcome" [VALL] - December 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Monty) — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 21:40:00 PST

This is the latest issue of Scuttlebutt from the Spermaceti Press, Peter Blau's ("Black Peter") monthly newsletter of Sherlockian or Doylean gossip, published in print form since 1971, as a text-only digital archive on Sherlocktron since 1985, and a visual archive on Scribd since 2011. In agreement with Peter Blau, we've arranged to publish facsimiles of the print newsletter here, so online readers can see what the newsletter looks like. Below the scan you can find links to the sites mentioned in the text - in most cases, directly to the article, video or publication, to save you from having to search for the terms.

The following is the December 2011 issue; please feel free to share it via email, social network, or embed it on your own site.

Scuttlebutt from the Spermaceti Press December 2011

Links from this issue:

Brookings Library - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle "A Life Explored"
Frogwares' The Testament of Sherlock Holmes game
"Sherlock" violin from Burnett Violins
Custom Zombie artwork, including Sherlock Bones
Sherlockian content on Criminal Element
Kim Newman's Professor Moriarty: The Hound of the D'Urbervilles (Professor Moriarty Novels) on Amazon or Amazon UK
Kim Newman's Anno Dracula (Amazon) or Anno Dracula (Amazon UK)
Kim Newman's web site
"Everything You Need to Know About Professor Moriarty"
The Pawky Humorists (Facebook)
Ash-Tree Press eBooks, including The Thames Horror and Other Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
Alfred Swain Taylor in Google Books
Wick Theatre Company ("The Hound of the Baskervilles" Jan. 11-14, 2012)
Shane Peacock
Bob Schochet's art
Deerstalker hat from J. Peterman
Deb Weissler's miniatures
Arthur Twidle artwork auction (January 4, 2012)
Long Beach Playhouse ("Sherlock Holmes: The Final Adventure, Feb. 25 - Mar. 24, 2012)
Sherlocktron's new home
Sherlockian E-Times
Box Office Mojo
"Sherlock Holmes and the Adventure in Good Music" (NPR Deceptive Decadence blog)
Search results for "Sherlock" on npr.org
Anthony Horowitz's web site
Anthony Horowitz's The House of Silk on Amazon and Amazon UK
Long Beach Shakespeare Company's reading of "The Blue Carbuncle"
Sherlockology
BBC's "Sherlock" in a variety of languages
Text archive of Scuttlebutt from the Spermaceti Press (on Sherlocktron)
Visual archive of Scuttlebutt from the Spermaceti Press (on Scribd)

When you make purchases from the links we share, it provides us with a stream of revenue to help keep this site running. Thank you for your generosity.
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"I Am Now About to Summarize" [ENGR]

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Monty) — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 13:13:04 PST

As we bid farewell to 2011, we thought it was only appropriate to take a look back at how our little site progressed throughout the year. We offer you, dear reader, this snapshot of activity on the Baker Street Blog and hope that you find it useful. This was a year of growth and change, and our aim is to continue to bring you the best of the news of Sherlock Holmes and popular culture.

A note about the image to the left: for those of you not familiar, that is the state of the art photographic technology that's traditionally used at the BSI Dinner.

Now then. Let's look at a few areas of interest and see if we can make anything of it all. We're looking forward to receiving your feedback in the form of emails and comments.

"There Are the Numbers" [SILV]

See this in the sidebar on the site.

By the numbers, this was a particularly successful year. In the seven years that the Baker Street Blog has been in existence, 2011 marks our third most productive year in terms of the number of posts. As you can see if you're viewing this on bakerstreetblog.com, the section in the far right sidebar titled "File It In Our Archives" [RETI] contains a count of how many posts we've made each year. The total for this year stands at 109 posts, following 2006 and 2007 at 144 and 152, respectively. And early in the year we reached our 500th post - a testament to our commitment and the longevity of this subject. We encourage you to browse through the archives by title, date or by label - each post we make is labeled with an appropriate category so you can find all of the same types of articles grouped together by using the label function under "Some Other Topic" [BERY] just above the archives function.

In addition to what we created, it's also helpful to note your contributions as well. You left some 200 comments throughout the course of the year. Every post here contains a comment section. We absolutely love hearing from you, whether it's a debate, an affirmation, additional information or anything else. It adds to our dialog.

Off the site, we also saw some growth as well. Both the Sherlock Holmes Social Network and the Baker Street Blog Facebook page experienced a boost in participants, with over 770 members at the SHSN and over 700 on Facebook. We also established a Google+ page as that nascent social network is taking off. And our Twitter account (@BakerStreetBlog) continues its upward trajectory with some 2,300 followers. All of these sites, as well as our RSS and email service, are designed to alert you of updates to the site and other interesting content. If you haven't connected with us on any of those platforms yet, we recommend you choose one that appeals to you and do so.

"The Constable's Features Broadened" [STUD]
We're very proud to have been able to expand some of the features we offer here on the site in 2011. If you're reading this in email or an RSS reader, we recommend clicking through to the site to see these features in context.

We began the year with live tweeting of the BSI weekend using the Twitter hashtag #bsiweekend and including a constantly updating widget in the sidebar of the site that would pull in all mentions of that hashtag.
Also in January, we began to feature all of the URLs and visual scans from Peter Blau's monthly newsletter Scuttlebutt From the Spermaceti Press.
In February, we initiated a column by Steve Doyle, author of Sherlock Holmes For Dummies, in which he could expand on topics that he didn't have room to cover in his book, or offer updates based on new information. We called it "From the Dummy's Chair." While we haven't had a submission in a while, perhaps a few comments or emails could convince Steve to contribute again.
We expanded the way you can subscribe to our updates. Now, in addition to our RSS feed and email updates (which mails as often as we update the site), we now offer weekly summary emails to catch you up on everything we've posted throughout the week.

In the spirit of Holmes's own strategy of using the Irregulars to "go everywhere, see everything, overhear everyone," we instituted the Tip button ("Let Me Have the Straight Tip" [SILV]) that sends us an email if you know of something that we should cover.
As you can imagine, our site does have operating costs, and we included a Support Us button ("Something to Support It" [HOUN]) that allows you to make a donation of any amount via PayPal. We thank you for the support in 2011 and hope you can help us continue to offset these costs.
Since about midway through the year, we've been using a system called Paper.li that auto-aggregates content about Sherlock Holmes as mentioned on Twitter. It gets tweeted out automatically from our Twitter account and is embedded as The Sherlock Holmes Daily over on the left in the widget titled "Every Nerve in a Twitter" [TWIS].
In the last few months, we also discovered a service called Scoop.it that allows us to control the content we share. Many times, there are articles or newsy items that don't give us much to write about (or we don't have the time), so we quickly share it via our Sherlock Holmes Scoop. As with the Paper.li content, we share that over on the left under the heading "A Bit of News" [REDH].

"It Was Up at the Top" [SIGN]
If you direct your attention to the top of the page, you'll find that we added some navigation regarding the basics of the site. These are items that either previously did not exist or that were jumbled in the sidebar areas.

The About tab explains why the site exists and gives anyone an opportunity to become a correspondent.
For those who are New Here, we provided an introduction to the site, calling out some of the features.
The myriad and messy content of the sidebar was aggregated into a Resources section - everything from references, BSI content, links to other Sherlockian blogs, other people, international societies and publications.
We began tracking Sherlock Holmes entities on Facebook. If you know of a Sherlockian society, group or other body that has a presence on Facebook, please use the form to keep the database up to date. We're only as good as you make us!
As you know, the title of every post is taken from the Canon. We abbreviate the story title with Jay Finlay Christ's four-letter codes, which we have made clear in the Titles section.

"Contributed to the Literature of the Subject" [REDH]
The expansion of the site has been much more than the features. In 2011, we also expanded our writing staff. Traditionally, this effort was the work of a single person. In March, we announced that we were expanding the authorship of the site, opening it up to contributors who had an interest in a variety of topics related to Sherlock Holmes. Approximately 1/3 of our posts this year were from contributors - people like Gordon (entertainment - movies, comics, theatre, television), Jill (imbibables, gaming), Francine (terrace), Steve ("Dummies"), Athenae (historical), Kate (general), Jennifer (historical), Marc (general), Ann (books) and Jacquelynn (Undershaw). We're always looking for more; if you have an idea or would like to contribute, please click here.

A few highlights from our contributors:

Jill Brumer shared some drink recipes with us as part of the Sherlock Holmes drinking game and also penned one of the reviews for Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows.
Kate provided another review as well as a look at a Sherlock Holmes video game.
Gordon Dymowski was our most prolific contributor, with no fewer than 14 articles. From covering movies that might not have caught the average Sherlockian's attention to some of the lost classics and from comedic theater to radio recreations, he is able to discover and interpret some of the most interesting bits of minutiae about our hobby that others might miss.

So that wraps up 2011 for the Baker Street Blog. It was a great year for us; what did you think? We're looking forward to continuing to provide this service to the Sherlockian world in 2012 and look forward to your suggestions, feedback and tips.

When you make purchases from the links we share, it provides us with a stream of revenue to help keep this site running. Thank you for your generosity.
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"The Two Gentlemen Passed Us" [HOUN]

noreply@blogger.com (Francine Kitts) — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 20:22:35 PST

It's the end of the year and we're catching up on some of the passings that have occurred over the past couple of months. The following are a pair of BSI obituaries of some longstanding members of the Baker Street Irregulars.

J. Warren Scheideman
J. Warren Scheideman, BSI ("Count Von und Zu Grafenstein") died in a suburb of Chicago on August 25, 2011 at the age of 69. He received his degrees from De Paul University and went on to become a member of the faculty in 1984, moderating poetry readings and teaching things as diverse as Film Noir and Science Fiction. A new course in Film Noir, being taught now, stated on its syllabus,

"This course is dedicated to Warren Scheideman who hatched its plot, investigated its subject, and taught its lessons to many students across many years."

One of his colleagues wrote that Warren’s dissertation on the analysis of curriculum was remarkable, and added that the faculty and students had been inspired and enlightened by his brilliance and thoughtfulness. He wrote a 452-page book on adult learning, which was published by the University and has become an important volume in the world of adult education.

Warren was a member of The Hounds of the Baskerville [sic] and Hugo's Companions. He was widely published in many Sherlockian journals, including the Baker Street Journal and Canadian Holmes, with titles such as "Hugh Boone's Twists on Victorian Society." He was invested into The Baker Street Irregulars in 1982 as "Count Von und Zu Grafenstein."

James H. Bready

James H. Bready, BSI ("The Disappearance of James Phillamore") died in Baltimore on October 29, 2011 at the age of 92. He graduated from Haverford College in 1939 and earned his Master's degree from Harvard University.
During World War II, Mr. Bready served almost five years in the Army's Counterintelligence Corps in the European Theater. Discharged at 4 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 4, 1945, at Fort George G. Meade, Mr. Bready, still dressed in his uniform, began working as a Baltimore Evening Sun copy editor at 8:30 the next morning. During his long career, Mr. Bready was a general assignment reporter and later feature writer, editorial writer and columnist. He was remembered by his former paper here.

In 1949, Mr. Bready had interviewed Evelyn Waugh, the English novelist who was visiting Baltimore. His counterpart at The Baltimore Sun, who was also assigned to do an article on the writer, was Russell Baker. Mr. Baker recalled meeting Mr. Bready in his 1989 memoir, saying that "The imagination, wit, and graceful lilt of his writing made him one of the glories of the Evening Sun."

In 1954, Bready's first "Books and Authors" column appeared in the Sunday Sun. He became the paper's arbiter of the Baltimore literary scene, vetting books and assigning them for review. At a time when bylines were rationed conservatively and not necessarily a reporter's birthright, Bready was in the position to offer both a book's author, and its reviewer, some ink. This power, coupled with his fair treatment of the region's writers, made Bready a popular name in Baltimore. The column ran biweekly and then monthly through 2005.

For 30 years until 1984, Mr. Bready was the Baltimore correspondent for Time, Life and Fortune magazines, and had been Encyclopaedia Britannica's designated writer for its entry on Maryland.
Mr. Bready was also the author of several books, The Home Team, an illustrated history of Baltimore baseball, and Baseball in Baltimore published in 1998, which is still sold on Amazon.

Mr. Bready was a longtime member of the Baltimore Antique Bottle Club and had amassed through the years an extensive collection of material related to Maryland rye whiskey. In his retirement he wrote the first detailed study of pre-Prohibition Maryland rye, which was published by the Maryland Historical Society.

Mr. Bready was a member of The Six Napoleons of Baltimore and served as their Gasogene in 1954-55. He was invested in The Baker Street Irregulars in 1955 as "The Disappearance of James Phillimore."

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Please remember these fine men and all previous Irregulars whom we have remembered in these pages. May they rest in eternal peace on the other side of the Reichenbach Falls.

"The Second Morning After Christmas" [BLUE]

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Monty) — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 23:21:00 PST

It's that time of the year when we reach into the archives and pull out one of the old favorites that seems to survive the test of time.

Not only do we recycle the content, but we ignore our editorial mandate to avoid reusing a quote for the post title. However, in the case of "The Second Morning After Christmas" [BLUE] which has been used in 2006, 2008, 2009 and 2010, we find that we have a post that continues to please, so we'll continue the tradition. Just as the Wall Street Journal annually reproduces a 1949 editorial written by Vermont Royster called "In Hoc Anno Domini," we saw no reason to avoid replication here.

If this is new to you, please feel free to share and use this at your own Sherlockian society holiday meetings. The only thing we ask is that you attribute the poem to its rightful author.

So, we bring you "Two Days After Christmas," a tribute to "The Blue Carbuncle" in the style of Clement Moore's A Visit from St. Nick.

Two Days After Christmas

For those of you inclined more to listening rather than reading, here's the audio version, courtesy of I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere.

A note about the lead image for this post:
This is the dust jacket from the first book to be published by the Baker Street Irregulars. The deluxe edition included "The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle" with blue-tinged plates of two of the Sidney Paget illustrations from the original Strand Magazine. It also included an essay by Edgar W. Smith, BSI titled "The Story of the Blue Carbuncle," as well as "A Note on the Baker Street Irregulars." We have included a link below to purchase this through Amazon.

We have the pleasure and honor of wishing you "the compliments of the season."

Please consider visiting our sponsors (in the right column and footer of the site) from time to time. It helps defray the costs associated with running this site. Thank you for your generosity.
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"It Arrived Upon Christmas Morning" [BLUE]

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Monty) — Sun, 25 Dec 2011 12:13:00 PST

Usually we save our Christmas greetings on this site for "the second morning after Christmas." But in this case, we found a relic from our digital version of Holmes's own "large tin box" [MUSG] containing notes of his early cases.

In our own instance, the artifact is an animated gif that we found and sought permission (some four years ago) from a member of Holmesian.net named "whorl". We had misplaced the image, and then did not have an appropriate hosting service to be able to share it with you.

Now, on Christmas morning, that has all been solved. We're proud and honored to bring you The Bloo Sparkly (click for the fullsize image), a retelling of "The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle" with stick figures, which you can see below. If you're reading this on a feed reader or via email, please click on "The Baker Street Blog" in the header of the email to advance to the website to see the animation. The slides advance automatically, so if you need to start over, just hit F5 or refresh your browser to start over.

For a larger version of the image, please click through to this link.

We hope that your holiday is an enjoyable one. Expect to see us back here again in two days (i.e. "the second morning after Christmas" [BLUE]).

When you make purchases from the links we share, it provides us with a stream of revenue to help keep this site running. Thank you for your generosity.
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“Those Shots Must Have Told Him that the Game was Up.” [HOUN]

noreply@blogger.com (Jill at Craft Happy) — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 23:21:00 PST

Editor's note: this is another review in our continuing series from our contributors. If you would like to contribute to the site, please click here.

It has been three years since the original Guy Ritchie reboot of the Sherlock Holmes film franchise. At the time, Holmes hadn't been seen on the big screen in years, and excitement for this new take on the classic character was huge. We were promised a faster, rougher Holmes from the director of “Snatch” and “Lock Stock & Two Smoking Barrels,” and that’s exactly what we got. The best part? It was fun, if not exactly true to the original characters and tales as told by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

“Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows” opened this weekend to a substantially different reception. While the original film brought in over $60 million it’s first weekend, GAME barely topped out at $40 million. Were we all just tired of waiting three years to see more of Robert Downey Jr. as Holmes? Or have we seen all that Ritchie had to offer and just don’t feel the need to pay to see any more?

Part of this reviewer’s personal apathy towards seeing the film was the fact that, yes, I enjoyed seeing the original “SherlockHolmes” for Christmas in 2009, but that’s before the BBC television series,“Sherlock,” had aired. Seeing Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman embody the fully-modernized Holmes and Watson in Mark Gatiss and Stephen Moffat’s three episode series is everything you hoped the big-budget Ritchie film would be: clever, exciting, and extremely well done. If “Sherlock” didn’t exist as a series, then maybe, just maybe, GAME wouldn’t have disappointed quite as much as it did.

“Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows” finds Watson (the handsomely-mustachioed Jude Law) about to marry, and Holmes teetering on the edge of psychosis. Is Holmes manic, has he lost his edge? the film seems to ask. The film never misses a moment of making Holmes seem, well, incredibly ridiculous—whether he is downing a glass of formaldehyde rather than brandy, or trotting along on a tiny pony while everyone else rushes by on their full-sized horses. If the filmmaker’s objective was to make Holmes look downright silly, rather than classically brilliant, or even heroic, then consider this movie a success.

The film is much more an action film than a well-written mystery, centering around the machinations of Holmes’ latest obsession, Professor James Moriarty (Jared Harris, whom Americans will recognize from the AMC series “Mad Men”). Perhaps unsurprisingly, the climax happens at Reichenbach Falls in Switzerland, which is not an incredibly exciting plot point to anyone who knows anything about the canon of Holmes stories.

That being said, there were some very beautiful shots in the film. The scene with Holmes, Watson, and their gypsy companion, played by Noomi Rapace, running through the woods while under heavy artillery fire leaps to mind. My viewing companion (not a Holmes aficionado) enjoyed the film very much, so I believe it stands on its own as an enjoyable time at the movies. I can’t help my reservations at recommending the film, though. Any movie that sets out to make the Great Detective seem silly overall is doing the legacy quite an injustice.

Word is that the green light has been given to a third film as well, so we’ll just have to endure more action-packed ridiculousness from the Ritchie group. All of this Hollywood Holmes stuff just leaves me wondering, ‘When does the BBC “Sherlock” air in the US?’ This reviewer is ready to see some really taut storytelling and acting as befits the great Sherlock Holmes.

Jill Brumer is a small business owner, college drama professor, and all around creative type who has lived all over the States. She has her father to thank for purchasing her first Sherlock Holmes story when she was twelve years old- the fascination has never stopped!

"You Will Find That the Clips Are Too" [GOLD]

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Monty) — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 13:22:04 PST

The BBC series "Sherlock" is making is second series run on BBC One this holiday season.

If you missed the first one (viewed in the United States on Masterpiece Mystery), you're in for a real treat. The series takes the original stories and characters and updates them for the 21st century. Watson is returning from Afghanistan (strange how some conflicts never end) and Holmes is an oddity of a consulting/science machine that lives alone in Baker Street. The two share rooms and Watson is there to chronicle Holmes's cases (albeit with Dr. Watson's Blog rather than the Strand Magazine). And instead of chemical retorts and tobacco ash research, Holmes relies on GPS and his iPhone, among other devices.

Lest you thumb your nose at such a modernization of the character, o traditional Sherlock Holmes fan, let us remind you that the Basil Rathbone series was almost, in its entirety, set in modern-day England. This new series manages to update the stories while paying proper respect to the stories from which inspired it. The co-creators Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss are each students of the Canon.

Here we have a two-video playlist of clips from the upcoming season.

The episodes should be truly excellent, with titles like "A Scandal in Belgravia," "The Hounds of Baskerville," and "The Reichenbach Fall," all clearly taken from "A Scandal in Bohemia," The Hound of the Baskervilles and "The Final Problem."

Have you seen the first series? What are your expectations from the second? Let us know in a comment here on the site.

When you make purchases from the links we share, it provides us with a stream of revenue to help keep this site running. Thank you for your generosity.
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"The Curious Sequel of our Investigation" [SOLI]

noreply@blogger.com (KateM) — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 23:21:00 PST

Editor's note: the following is the first is a series of reviews by contributors to The Baker Street Blog.

I should start by mentioning that I enjoyed Guy Ritchie’s first “Sherlock Holmes.” There were elements that grated, but I thought it was an overall fun action film. To quote Roger Ebert, “The less I thought about Sherlock Holmes, the more I enjoyed Sherlock Holmes.” For the sequel, “Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows,” I was already familiar with Guy Ritchie’s version of Holmes’ world and was able to become a little more immersed in the story, having established the rules of the game in the first film. Though there were certainly still points that could have been improved upon, I left the theater with a grin on my face.

The film starts with Watson at his typewriter, establishing right away that this is all one long flashback - we are viewing his account of the adventure. The year is 1891, and a series of bombings throughout Europe have led to the straining of already tense relations of the continent’s nations, particularly those between France and Germany.

To assure the viewer of exactly what we are in for, as if we didn’t know, things start with a very loud bang - literally. Along with an explosion, we see Holmes in disguise, Holmes fighting multiple opponents in the same slow-motion style as was utilized in the first film, our first glimpse of Moriarty being delightfully creepy without becoming melodramatic, and a character ends a brief cameo by being murdered. All of this happens before the opening credits.

I should take a moment to point out that it is not all one massive adrenaline rush. I thought the movie was well paced for an action film, and there are a few quieter moments that are taken advantage of, particularly the wedding of Dr. John Watson and Miss Mary Morstan. It is a brief scene, but in it we see Holmes’ reaction to his best and only friend getting married, and it is appropriately bittersweet. On the other end of the emotional spectrum are moments of suspense given weight by Jared Harris’ shiver-inducing performance as Moriarty. When Holmes and his archenemy meet face to face for the first time, it is all restrained gentility and diabolical undertones. They even manage to work in a nod to the original Canon.

As I said before, this is a sequel and works within the already established changes of the first film. Differences from what fans of the Great Detective might expect are to be, well, expected. This time there were two elements that sort of threw me off, though as more of a mild annoyance than anything else. Holmes is seen in disguise many times in this film, and while that is excellent in concept, the disguises themselves were obviously designed to get a chuckle from the audience, rather than show Holmes’ skill in the art. Then there’s Mycroft Holmes. Stephen Fry gives an excellent performance, he rejoices in the character’s stuffy aristocratic omniscience, is given a fun tweak in calling Holmes “Shirley” just to annoy his brother... and then we see him in his office, nude. Not doing anything in particular, apparently just preferring not to wear clothes while he goes over correspondence and tells an understandably flustered Mrs. Watson (who is nicely utilized - take that Doyle) that he is starting to understand why a man might possibly want to associate with “a person of your, ah... gender.” The scene is funny, no denying it, but very superfluous.

The only issue I had with the film itself, outside of Canonical derivations, was one sequence in which the heroes and company are running through a forest and the slow-motion I had grown accustomed to seeing for the majority of Holmes’ fight scenes becomes so excessive it killed the momentum of the film at that point. Lots of explosions? Fine, it’s a Guy Ritchie film with anarchist bombers and steampunk weapon manufacturers (automatic pistol, anyone?), there will be lots of explosions. An over-the-top moment for the villain to torture his nemesis while singing along to opera? The cliche actually works well, which was somewhat surprising, thanks largely to the torture itself being relatively mild and Jared Harris obviously enjoying being evil so much. The slow-motion, however, works when Holmes is narrating his thought process for each fight, but to have an entire scene of running with explosions and trees shattering from artillery fire all done in jerky stop and go slow-motion is too much. They’re trying to escape - just let them run!

One thing I think many people had problems with in the first film was Robert Downey Jr’s performance. I have to admit, it grows on me. His Holmes is manically obsessed with Moriarty, to the point where the start of the film made me wince a little. “Please don’t let him be this crazy the entire film”, I thought to myself.

Fortunately, while maintaining his own brand of a quirkier, scruffier Holmes, the craziness gives way to a comparatively much more Holmes-ish intensity. His fights are all well choreographed, more like dances with weaponry than fights, and Downey gets to display some of his martial arts knowledge by working it into Holmes’ demonstrations of bartitsu. He also gives something of a justification for his character’s strange behavior. While dancing around a room in which he knows an assassin is hiding, his partner (a rather two-dimensional gypsy played by the lovely Noomi Rapace) asks, “What do you see?” His response? “Everything. That is my curse.” As was hinted in the first film, this is a Holmes who literally observes everything, and can’t turn it off. No wonder he’s a little crazy.

Fortunately for him, and us, he has Watson. I loved Jude Law’s portrayal of the Good Doctor in the first film, and he does not disappoint this time either. Watson primarily provides backup with his trusty revolver, but he is still granted some clever moments of ingenuity. Law’s portrayal of Watson, in addition to maintaining a slight limp through the whole film, is every bit the soldier, a soldier who simply wants to have his honeymoon in peace and quiet but who will also follow his friend no matter what because he knows he is needed.

[POSSIBLE SPOILER ALERT]
They maintain the “Odd-Couple” bickering that was seen in the first film, but there are some small touches this time around that add shades of a deeper bond to their friendship, making them a little more believably best friends rather than just action hero partners. For example, during Watson’s very impromptu bachelor’s party (Holmes is not the best best-man in the world) the doctor declares that he is going to gamble. Holmes’ response is that Watson should give him the wedding ring, a request which Watson scoffs at and derides as Holmes has never professed any interest in performing his ‘best man’ duties. Holmes, mildly abashed, very quietly protests that he doesn’t want Watson losing the ring on a bet. This reference to Watson’s “gambling problem” (the fact that Holmes keeps his cheque book locked up and that Watson is ‘familiar with the turf’ at the very least) also illustrates how much Holmes really does watch out for his friend. Similarly, Watson gets to display how much he cares about Holmes a couple of times, once when he thinks Holmes has died, and once when he... well. Thinks Holmes has died. The first happens on a train. The second happens at a peace conference by a waterfall in Switzerland.

It is a great scene. I knew what was coming and I still gasped.

The Russian playwright Anton Chekov once said, "If in Act I you have a pistol hanging on the wall, then it must fire in the last act." Apparently, the writers behind “Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows” must have studied, or at least Googled, Anton Chekov. Every reference made to everything throughout, no matter how ridiculous it may have seemed initially, gets used and/or referenced and/or wrapped up at a later time... except, of course, for the fate of Holmes and Moriarty. We know Holmes lives - so does anyone in the audience who hasn’t read the books by the very end - but it is still a classic (campy?) question mark ending, with just enough being left open for the next film in the franchise to expand upon. And, to be honest, this time I’m rather looking forward to it.

Kate writes at The Diary of Dr. Watts.
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"Still, Elementary As It Was" [BLAN]

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Monty) — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 23:21:00 PST

The latest stills and posters are out for Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows. It's a reminder that production has ceased and we're in the home stretch for the screening, which will be on December 16. If you happen to live in the UK, you can see the film (alternatively known in some circles as "Sherlock Holmes 2") at your local ODEON cinema - click through to find the one nearest you.

And while we have a good sense as to what to expect from the last film, there is no doubt that the sequel brings to us a certain level of intrigue, as it features not only Holmes's archenemy Professor Moriarty, but also his brother Mycroft Holmes. Both characters seem to have more hair than their original illustrations in "The Final Problem" and "The Greek Interpreter," respectively.

You can have a look for yourself at the 60 images (stills, posters, etc.) on the Yahoo! Movies site.

We've included some of the stylized posters here for your enjoyment. If you're reading this on email or an RSS reader, please click through to see the slideshow.

Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.

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"Cat-Like Love of Personal Cleanliness" [HOUN]

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Monty) — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 23:21:00 PST

It's amazing to think, but it looks like the end is near for the famed lobby cat of the Algonquin Hotel.

The Algonquin Hotel, which until recently was the unofficial headquarters of the Baker Street Irregulars weekend, has had a tradition in place since the 1930s, when Frank Case owned and ran the hotel that was the favorite of the literati in New York. There was always a cat in residence, which had the run of the hotel (except the cooking and dining areas). While the original cat was named Rusty, because of the theatrical connections, he was known as Hamlet. In the course of the hotel's history, there have been 10 cats, males always being referred to as Hamlet and females as Matilda.

Now it seems that New York City is cracking down on this health hazard (as the city's Department of Health would have us believe). Last week came the news that the city is banishing Matilda from interacting with the guests in the hotel lobby, forcing the hotel staff to keep her behind the front desk. So technically, she's no longer the "lobby cat," she's just the hotel cat.

It's almost a relief that the BSI has relocated to the Yale Club just down the street. We find it hard to believe the tried-and-true Sherlockians descending on New York in chilly January, searching fruitlessly for little Matilda as they wait in the lobby.

If you'd care to express your opinion directly to Matilda or the Algonquin, there are ways to do so.

Matilda has her own Facebook page - perhaps you can "like" her and show your support
You may email her directly
You can tweet the hotel staff at @AlgonquinNYC or visit their Facebook page.

Since the hotel simply has to comply with DOH wishes, perhaps you can direct any negative opinions or feedback to the NYC Department of Health:

Give them a 140-character piece of your mind on Twitter: @NYCHealthy
Drop by their Tumblr blog and leave a comment
Sorry, no Facebook page for them. Although they do have pages for condoms, HIV status, healthy eating, poison prevention and smoking cessation.

We wonder what Holmes would have made of all of this...

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"Yes It Is, Ted" [VALL]

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Monty) — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 23:21:00 PST

The TED Talks have become a global stage for the world's innovators in the arts and sciences, all in 18 minutes. In this presentation, Stanford's Dr. Abraham Verghese reminds us of the importance of physical observation of and contact with the patient - essential, Vergheses says, in this computer-coordinated and genomic-centered age.

Verghese is a writer as well as a physician, and the role models he presents in this talk from TEDGlobal 2011 recorded in Edinburgh, Scotland include, not surprisingly, Arthur Conan Doyle and a certain Dr. Joseph Bell...

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"Many Thanks to You" [NAVA]

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Monty) — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 13:47:13 PST

Enjoy this BSI-themed turkey for Thanksgiving [hint: check the feather colors].

You can customize and share your own on the Google homepage.

If you're celebrating the American holiday of Thanksgiving this week, we wish you the best. If not, we hope you have some turkey and enjoy that just the same.

For our part, we'd like to express our sincere thanks for having you with us here on the Baker Street Blog. If you look at the "File It In Our Archives" [RETI] header over in the right column of our site, you'll see that we've created 99 posts this year. That's more than in any of the last three years. And it's because we have your readership.

We're thankful for having such a unique and unending source of material for you and we're grateful that we have a such a unique audience as yourselves. We hope to be able to continue these efforts indefinitely. If you'd like to help in any way, please see the "About" tab on our site for how you can do so.

And until next time, thank you.

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"Two Knight-Errants To the Rescue" [SIGN]

noreply@blogger.com (Gordon Dymowski) — Sun, 20 Nov 2011 23:21:00 PST

(NOTE: Promotional art was provided for purposes of review only, and are kindly used with permission. Special thanks to Ken Janssens and Matthew Martin for their time and insights, and to Brant Fowler at Comic Related for bringing this to our attention)

Holmes and Watson seem to be making a "comeback" of sorts in comics and graphic literature, appearing in a wide range of stories such as Victorian Undead and Sherlock Holmes: Year One. This December, Bluewater Productions will be publishing the first issue of the Sherlock Holmes: Victorian Knights four-issue miniseries, just in time for the release of Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows.

Writer Ken Janssens and artist Matthew Martin were gracious enough to offer some of their insights around the upcoming series. For many Sherlockians who read this blog, this is a great opportunity to learn how writers and artists approach the canon when reinterpreting the character for a modern audience.

According to Ken Janssens, the four-issue Sherlock Holmes: Victorian Knights is actually "...two interconnected stories. The first two issues deal with the murder of a prostitute and a haunting by a black spectre. The second two issues deal with the murder of one of the suspects from the first story." As a lifelong Sherlockian who was introduced to the canon via the Brett series (and who counts The Hound of the Baskervilles as his favorite Holmes novel), Janssens saw a unique challenge in writing the characters:

Writing them together in a scene is easier than writing them alone. There is a give and take, a yin and yang, that you get to play off of that is extremely fun. They love each other like brothers, but just like vastly-different brothers, they are constantly annoyed and rag on each other.

Artist Matthew Martin, who resides in England with his wife and daughter, grew up with Holmes as part of his culture (and he, too, considers The Hound of the Baskervilles his favorite novel). For him, capturing not only the characters of Holmes and Watson - but the era in which they live - presented unique challenges:

... I used the Robert Downey Jr version of Holmes more as inspiration than the classic look, which will probably be a contentious choice for some fans....With Watson I went the opposite way, going a bit more classical with choices like the facial hair...I loved creating the buildings and setting the scenes, I always find the more challenging aspect character related in terms of being consistent and really bringing them to life.

Thankfully, both Janssens and Martin are not only fans of the character, but have some very unique tastes when it comes to adaptations of the canon. For Janssens, his personal favorite is "...the 1985 Barry Levinson-directed Young Sherlock Holmes. Not only is it a fun ride, the story and atmosphere just pulls me right in". Although Martin enjoys the Downey film, he admits, "Harking back to my youth though I still have a real soft spot for Disney’s Basil the Great Mouse detective"

It's good to know that Holmes and Watson are in good hands. Sherlock Holmes: Victorian Knights comes out in December - please visit your local comics shop to pre-order your copy.

Editor's note: Gordon regularly covers the intersection of Sherlock Holmes and the entertainment industry. You can also find him at Blog THIS, Pal! and Comic Related.

"Infinitely More Mysterious" [DEVI]

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Monty) — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 23:21:00 PDT

Those familiar with Otto Penzler, BSI ("The King of Bohemia") are acutely aware of his impact in the mystery publishing world, including that of Sherlock Holmes.

Most widely known for his Mysterious Bookshop in New York, he has a keen eye for rare and valuable books, as well as an uncanny sense of the up and coming talented mystery authors. Otto himself is no stranger to writing, as he had an early career in journalism that we heard about firsthand from Otto in a very informative interview on Episode 17 of I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere (as a complete aside, our favorite two minutes of the interview are from the 26- to 28-minute mark - see if you agree).

He is also no stranger to publishing and editing, as he founded the Mysterious Press in 1975 and ran it until 1989 when he sold it to Warner Books. Otto has also been editing under the Otto Penzler Books imprint for Harcourt for the last seven years or so, and last year he reacquired Mysterious Press from Warner.

Today, the Mysterious Press has added a modern twist to its business model: MysteriousPress.com.

As Otto describes in his blog post, the original Mysterious Press was unique in that it offered dust jacketed and limited editions in the mystery genre. Acknowledging the difference in the publishing industry in the 21st century, the new Mysterious Press will be entirely electronic/digital. In conjunction with Open Road Media, the e-books will feature some of the most acclaimed authors in the mystery, suspense and espionage world.

We won't delve into each of them here (Otto does that on his site), but will note that the selections are fairly robust now, with sections such as short stories, Edgar Award-winners, hard-boiled, noir and more. No Sherlock Holmes titles - yet - but we heard from Otto and expect to see some soon.

Also, it's helpful to note that the Mysterious Press has a Facebook page and Twitter account, in a nod to how communicating in the digital medium is important, especially when your customers are consuming your products digitally. They can be found at http://facebook.com/MysteriousPressCom and @eMysteries.

We here at the Baker Street Blog wish Otto and the staff of MysteriousPress.com every success. We're certain they'll do well.

When you make purchases from the links we share, it provides us with a stream of revenue to help keep this site running. Thank you for your generosity.
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"Out of The Black Shadows" [TWIS]

noreply@blogger.com (Gordon Dymowski) — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 12:47:40 PDT

It's a story worthy of Conan Doyle himself - a "lost" early Holmes film that loosely adapts two key stories in the canon, and that is now freely available for viewing.

The Sleeping Cardinal (better known in the USA as Sherlock Holmes' Fatal Hour) is a 1931 film with Arthur Wontner as Holmes and Ian Fleming as Watson, serves as a loose adaptation of "The Adventure of the Final Problem [FINA]" and "The Adventure of the Empty House [EMPT]". Like many early sound movies, the direction is still rather theatrical, focusing mainly on discussions in rooms rather than a more dynamic presentation.

Details about how the film became "lost" can be found its entry on the Internet Archive, which also allows for embedding and (like Public Domain Torrents) downloading the film in various formats.

But judge for yourself - is this a hidden gem ripe for rediscovery? A film that should have remained lost? Or is it just another one of many Holmesian adaptations that just simply needs to be enjoyed on its own merits?

This mystery, dear reader, is entirely yours to solve....

If you're not able to view the Hulu video, it's also available on YouTube.

If you would care to purchase the DVD from Amazon.com, it's available by clicking here or via the image below. In addition, the other three titles from the Wontner series are available on DVD: The Sign of Four, The Triumph of Sherlock Holmes and Murder at the Baskervilles. All are worth watching, if only to appreciate the transition of Sherlock Holmes from silent to "talkies" prior to the arrival of Basil Rathbone.

Editor's note: This is a guest post by Gordon Dymowski. Gordon regularly covers the intersection of Sherlock Holmes and the entertainment industry for The Baker Street Blog. You can also find him at Blog THIS, Pal! and Comic Related.

When you make purchases from the links we share, it provides us with a stream of revenue to help keep this site running. Thank you for your generosity.
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