REDC quote of the day.

"Our official detectives may blunder in the matter of intelligence, but never in that of courage."

It makes you wonder how the official police force took comments (and this wasn't the only time) like that when Doyle wrote the stories.

(And look at that Hansome Cab right behind the officer!)


And this could be fun, Tony Davies.

An interesting note on REDC

A radio adaption starring Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce (titled "Mrs. Warren's Lodger") aired on December 7, 1941, the day of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. The East Coast broadcast was interrupted by a radio announcement that President Franklin D. Roosevelt would be addressing the nation at noon the following day.

Source

Some favorite lines from January's REDC

Although not a great story, there are some good lines in REDC.

- "Dear me!" said he, turning over the pages, "what a chorus of groans, cries, and bleatings! What a rag-bag of singular happenings! But surely the most valuable hunting-ground that ever was given to a student of the unusual!

- So it proved; for in the morning I found my friend standing on the hearthrug with his back to the fire and a smile of complete satisfaction upon his face.


- "What, indeed? It is art for art's sake, Watson. I suppose when you doctored you found yourself studying cases without thought of a fee?"

It is interesting that Holmes used the past tense in the above quote; "I suppose when you doctored. . ."

Not when you doctor, or when you see clients.  Had Watson retired?

- "Education never ends, Watson. It is a series of lessons with the greatest for the last.

- "Education, Gregson, education. Still seeking knowledge at the old university. Well, Watson, you have one more specimen of the tragic and grotesque to add to your collection. By the way, it is not eight o'clock, and a Wagner night at Covent Garden! If we hurry, we might be in time for the second act."

A Wagner Night at Covent Garden

And, because we care. . . .

Ten musical facts (you decide) about Sherlock Holmes.

And, by Ted Friedman

Seven degrees of Sherlock Holmes - #35 - Roger Livesay

I have been remiss and missed a week, . . . and none of you reminded me.
But we are back, bigger and better than ever.
Well, at least we are back.

Watching one of my favorite movies this past week, I decided to use it as the starting place for this weeks SDoSH.

So, hang on and here goes.

Roger Livesay (1906-1976)

 was in the great 1943 movie 'The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp' (which has several great nods to Doyle).

well. . . Roger also starred in the 1965 British comedy 'The Amorous Adventures of Moll Flanders' 

which also featured the incomparable Angela Lansbury (1925)

who also took part in 1956's 'The Court Jester'

which of course had Basil Rathbone (1892-1967) at his swashbuckling best.

And we know who he played. . . right?

So, there you have it, there you are.

'Elementary' Season Two - Episode 13 - 'All in the family'

'Elementary' seems to have fallen into it's usual pattern. That being; Have one fairly bad show (last weeks) and follow it up with a better than normal show.
This weeks 'All in the Family' was a vast improvement over last weeks, but still not a great episode that makes you say, "Hey, I think they finally got it right." However, I think most of that has to do with our expectations.

The episode opens with Holmes and Watson in the interrogation room with I believe Detective Nash and a suspect named Riley. Holmes and Watson are about to prove Riley is behind a rash of thefts from an art auction house.
The main purpose of this scene was to show how Holmes and Watson are not working well with other detectives in the NYPD, and to also throw us a bone (leg bone, sort of) of a Canonical reference.
Once we find out that Holmes and Nash aren't going to get along well the main plot of the story takes over.
And the main plot is the return, thankfully, of Detective Bell.

Bell is sent to investigate a suspicious man observed entering a recycling center after hours, where he finds a headless, hand-less body inside of a barrel. At this point it becomes a homicide investigation and Holmes and Watson are called in.
Watson, because of a childhood fascination with mob crimes, identifies the body of as that of a long missing mob bosses son.
Thus starts the race by Gregson to head off a mob war.

Mostly the episode was about getting Bell back into the NYPD, and this was hidden under a back story of good cob going bad. The interactions between Holmes and Bell and their final confrontation was well done.

The episode was strong in the acting department. But again weak in the deduction/observation department. And, again, a little to over done (for me) in the "Watson being the detective" department.

I love the fact that Paul Sorvino was present as crime boss Robert Pardillo. Any show he takes part in is always upped a notch in my book.

It was good to have Bell back again.

Canonical references I caught were;

- The jewels in the artificial leg is a nod to SIGN.
- Trying to find the effects of an instrument or weapon on an animal carcass is a nod to BLAC.
- Holmes willingness to cut off a conversation because the other participant is lying (the Federal agent/web designer) shows up in several cases.
- Leaving late at night and not intending to return before dawn is a common Holmesian trait.
- Having a female accomplice in a jewel heist happened in BLUE
- Chemical experiments

I hope I missed some others.

Although this episode was a much better on than last weeks, it failed to have much appeal for me. (I never have liked mob connected shows that much anyway.)
Part of the problem lies with us expecting fantastic Holmesian deductions every week. (and we probably should). The mean problem lies in the fact that there is only so much Holmes can show us as Sherlockians that we have not already seen.
If we look back at the Canon, and this is going to be a research project for me soon, would we find that Holmes finds a vast assortment of varied observations or clues by the end of the books, or would we find that Holmes has found the same observations or clues in all the cases, but it is who leaves them or where they are found that really changes? In other words, how many times are foot prints used as clues? Or messages in newspapers? The mysteries change in every case, but does the type of clues or Holmes methods? Knowledge and observations are his greatest skills, and over the past hundred plus years, he has passed that knowledge and methods on to others.

What 'Elementary' is failing at, in my opinion, is making the finding of these clues and observations and deductions unique in a modern era of detective work. The Holmes of our beloved Victorian period has already taught our modern police forces his forensic methods, so now, the modern Holmes has to step up his game. Or should I say, the writers need to be more creative. All modern police forces now know to measure someones stride, or examine crime scenes for chemical clues. And, so far, 'Elementary' has not found a good way to do that. 'Sherlock' has managed to find away of presenting Holmes' methods as unique and different from his official contemporaries. Brett and Granada also found away to make each show unique, (and they did have the Victorian era).
'Elementary' has yet to find a way to do that.
I applaud the fact that 'Elementary' is exploring more of the man (even if we don't like the man they are exploring) and what makes him tick than some other adaptions. But they have yet to find the common ground between man and method and how to deliver what we have come to love about Holmes.
The show needs to move away from Holmes' personality and find a way to highlight his methods that are beyond those he works with.

And as far as Lucy Liu's Watson goes ( and I love Lucy), Holmes needs a sidekick, not a partner.

It is time, at least for a little while, to leave the back stories alone and get on with some really good 'Holmesian' stuff.

Although this show was a step up, I can only fairly give it 3 pipes out of 5. (Blogger is not uploading pictures for me right now, so I will add the graphic later.)

January reading - The Red Circle

Let's examine the Red Circle in parts this month.

It is just. depending on where we think Great Orme Street is, near three miles from Tottenham Court road to Hampstead Heath.

Any thoughts on the location of Great Orme Street?

Reading list for January

REDC  1885
VALL  1888
CHAR  1891
BLAN  1903

Trivia question of the dayweekmonthyear for today.

With most of the north covered in freezing temps, and us buried under nine inches of snow, and the rest of the Sherlock Holmes world trapped in that no-mans-land of half the bloggers having seen 'Sherlock' Season Three and the rest of us still waiting (and avoiding spoilers).. .. . .  I though I would through out a little fun to get us over the wait, at least till 'Elementary' comes back on Thursday.

So here is the question; How many Sherlock Holmes stories in the books take place in snow?

Let me know.

"Elementary Season 2, episode 12 - "The Diabolical Kind"

Looking forward to the return of "Elementary", I must say I was a little disappointed in the fare provided.
The episode opens with Watson heading for a date, while Holmes heads for letters he has been receiving from Moriarty, which he keeps in his bee hives.

Soon a murder/kidnapping takes place involving a wealthy Englishman and his daughter.
The kidnapping is perpetrated by one of Moriarty's henchmen whom Sherlock realizes was the 'voice' of Moriarty when communicating over the phone.

Everyone believes Moriarty is involved in the kidnapping, but that turns out not to be the case.

Although Millers acting was very strong as was several of the other players, I overall found the episode a let down from where the show seemed to be going.

I was looking forward to the return of Moriarty as Holmes' nemesis, but instead the episode returned to the over used co-dependent theme.
I like Natalie Dormer as Moriarty, and was hoping her return meant she was back to take revenge on Holmes and/or Watson. This was not the case. While her character often stated how intelligent she is and how capable she could be at controlling any situation she found her self in, there was very little substantiated proof of that being true. Really more 'all talk and no show'. Several times it is stated how she was at the controls of a vast criminal empire, and she argued continually how she was smarter than Joan (although allowing Joan her due) and Holmes for that matter, but that intelligence never bore fruit. We see that she is obsessed with Joan (the rather large painting), but the obsession is never dealt with.

It would have made an interesting episode if Moriarty had in some way been shown trying to manipulate, from behind locked doors, Holmes into helping her, put that did not prove to be the case. After all, she seemed at some points in the episode of having outside influence, but not at others.

Andrew Howard played a good Devin Casper, his coolness and perceived kindness well masked his darker side. Towards the end, when we found out the kidnapped girl was Moriarty's daughter, his 'wanting to get to know her' may have suggested that he was the father. (and it was not done in a way that made you think his intentions were perverted.)

Lucy Liu's Watson was more sidekick this time than partner, which I think was better, but the case really wasn't strong enough to show off Holmes' skills.

I completely missed why Casper was framing Moriarty. She seemingly was not completely out of the picture of controlling her empire. His role seemed to be that of Sebastian Moran, who probably would not have turned on Moriarty if he had survived his fall.

Although the episode was played for less quarks than usual it did not move far enough away from, once again, Holmes' personal issues for me to enjoy it very much.

Canonical references I (think) caught.

Bees, once again.
Holmes having other 'hides' around New York.
Moriarty at the center of a large criminal association.
Codes and symbols used for messaging.
Reference to Norway.
Use of newspaper classifieds to pass on information.
Holmes asking for all the recent editions of certain newspapers.
Moriarty's reference to 17 ways she had devised to escape may be a reference to 17 steps.
At the end of the case, Holmes setting around his fireplace.

Because of the return to the co-dependent theme once again, and lack of deduction and observation, I can only fairly give this episode;

I was hoping for more.

And least we forget. . .

The real Holmes and Watson return (in the USA) tonight!

OK, I'm kidding about the "real" part.

But "Elementary" is back tonight.

You know you are looking forward to it.