"The Disposition of the Child" [COPP]

On New Year's Eve, it's my pleasure to bring you somewhat of a unique greeting. My own little Sherlockian (and evidently video) protege joins me for this. I hope you'll indulge me.

I'll have more to share with you tomorrow concerning a look back at the past year and a look forward to 2008. Until then, may your journeys be safe and your celebrations be warm.

"See How It Glints and Sparkles" [BLUE]

This was too good to pass up. Over at the discussion forum Holmesian.net, I came across some wonderful stick artwork by a member named whorl. When I saw the following posted there, I asked permission to repost it here.

So, in honor of the anniversary of "The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle," I give you animated piece "The Adventure of the Bloo Sparkly" (if you're reading this in a feedreader and can't see the image, please click through to the blog).

Please click through to see the full size animation.

If you like this, please let me know and I'll be glad to arrange to have other works displayed here from time to time as well.

"A Certain Annual" [SPEC]

For anyone reading this blog, there has never been a time when the world as you know it has been without Sherlock Holmes. As a matter of fact, it's been exactly 120 years since Sherlock Holmes made his first appearance in the Beeton's Christmas Annual. For a short summary of Holmes's humble beginnings, you can listen to a segment on All Things Considered that NPR ran on December 23.

And in our own humble way, we honor his memory over at the Baker Street Journal. Each year for the last 10 years, we've been offering an additional companion piece to our quarterly journal - something we call the Baker Street Journal Christmas Annual.

The Christmas Annual for 2007 is about to hit the streets, and we've already got a record number of subscribers signed up to receive it. If you are renewing your BSJ subscription or if you're taking a subscription out for the first time, you can automatically include the Annual as part of your package, and receive a discount in the process. So, sign up now for the 2008 Journal & Annual.

In the meantime, let's focus on what we've got in 2007. The title of this year's entry is:

Rathbone Returns: A Misadventure Called Sherlock Holmes by S.E. Dahlinger, ASH and Glen Miranker, BSI ("The Origin of Tree Worship")

Basil Rathbone is still a perennial favorite of many Holmes enthusiasts. As a matter of fact, I recently met a 9 year-old who came to a dinner of the Friends of Irene Adler in Cambridge, MA dressed as the great detective - and he himself told me that Basil Rathbone was the best Sherlock Holmes ever. We could argue that here or in a variety of forums forever, but let's say that by the end of his 14 film stretch and radio play, Rathbone was inexorably typecast.

Indeed, he was just as eager to push Sherlock Holmes over the precipice at Reichenbach Falls as Arthur Conan Doyle had been. As he wrote in his autobiography, In and Out of Character:

I was . . . deeply concerned with the problem of being "typed," more completely "typed" than any other classic actor has ever been or ever will be again. . . . There was nothing I could do about it, except to stop playing Mr. Holmes. . . .

That June, Rathbone and his wife Ouida left Hollywood for the New York stage in search of better things. At least, that was the plan. They quickly found that Broadway wouldn't touch Basil as anything other than Holmes, either. Rathbone began casting about for the play in which to rekindle his rapidly fading star—and fell back on his wife to write it.

Thereby hangs our tale of Sherlock Holmes by Ouida Rathbone. It may have been a comedy, or it may have been a tragedy. It cost one man his dream of conquering Broadway in his most notable role. It cost another man his career as a Broadway producer. It gave yet a third man a heart attack at the dress rehearsal. It even caused the Conan Doyle Estate to forget that the script had ever been produced in the first place. Yet there was certainly an element of comedy.

The play opened here in Boston (as did many plays of the day before hitting the Great White Way). Peter Blau even mentioned planning on seeing it in New York after its Boston run. If you pick up a copy of the Annual, you'll see what happened in the process.

So, as a birthday present to Holmes and as a happy Blue Carbuncle Day ("the second morning after Christmas"), order your copy - and sign up for a subscription and next year's Annual while you're at it, over at bakerstreetjournal.com.

"In His Yorkshire Days" [HOUN]

For the good people in the northern portion of England, there's about to be a special museum feature afoot. The Yorkshire Museum in (where else?) York is going to be opening a new exhibit on January 1, called "Mystery Files," which encourages visitors to put on their own symbolic deerstalkers and search for clues amid the current exhibits.

At the end of 2008, the search will culminate in the opening of the museum's vault. There are a number of rarely seen exhibits and artifacts that are being displayed as part of this year-long hunt. The full story is available at the York Express.

If you live in or take a visit to the north of England, please do drop us a line and let us know about your experience with this feature at the museum.

"Recent Services to One of the Royal Houses" [SCAN]

I think the 21st century is finally starting to catch up with us. As a reader of this blog, you no doubt have seen some wonderful things, thanks to the advancing technology. It would seem now that the monarchy of Great Britain is joining in the fun.

If you haven't heard, on the heels of her 81st birthday, making her the oldest monarch in England's history (long may she reign!), Queen Elizabeth II will be broadcasting her annual Christmas message on YouTube. And in advance of that news, the Royal Family has established its own channel on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/theroyalchannel

We American Sherlockians have always bowed to the east, in honor of the queen of Sherlock Holmes's time, as well as our present-day queen. While it's not terribly Sherlockian, allow me to share with you the first televised Christmas Greeting, from Elizabeth II in 1957. And may you and yours have a very Happy Christmas.

"I Shall Get the Tickets" [BOSC]

[Notice: this is one of a number of contests that I'll be running on the blog here over the next few weeks. I've been lucky enough to have been contacted by some individuals who were interested in getting some publicity for their efforts. I hope you'll have fun with these, participate, and encourage others to do the same.]

You may have heard that in conjunction with the BSI Weekend, the one-man play Sherlock Solo will be performed by Victor L. Cahn at the Kirk Theatre.

The play runs from January 10 through February 3 in New York, so there are other times to see it if you don't make it to during the Weekend festivities (there are so many other things to do!). You can buy tickets at (212) 279-4200.

Or - here's a thought - you can participate in a contest right here on the blog. The producer has given me 5 pairs of tickets that I'll be giving away to my readers. Here's how the giveaway will work:

In the comments section of this post (if you're reading this as an email or through a feedreader, please go to the web site), or on the Baker Street Blog Facebook Group, leave a comment that explains how you've personally been affected by Sherlock Holmes this year. It could be a book, a movie, another Sherlockian, an online discussion - whatever. But tell me some way that the character has enriched your life for 2007.

Entries are due on or before 11:59 PM on December 31, 2007. After that, I'll be choosing winners at random. I'm also promoting this through the Baker Street Blog Facebook Group. I may post additional information to the group only; please join the group now so you don't miss out on any details.

Good luck! I look forward to reading about your experiences!

"The Giant Rat of Sumatra" [SUSS]

Sometimes you come across a news item that's just too good to be true. Or in this case, too Canonically accurate. It's almost frightening.

In The Sussex Vampire, Holmes mentions that the Matilda Briggs "was a ship which is associated with the giant rat of Sumatra, a story for which the world is not yet prepared." And so it went, that the Giant Rat of Sumatra became one of the most highly recognized of the apocryphal tales - the unrecorded cases of Sherlock Holmes.

So imagine my surprise when I saw a headline on CNN.com today that not only included the Rattus horribilis, but also a mention of one of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's other enduring tales: Giant rat found in 'lost world'.

In this case, the Lost World in question is not some South American plateau, but none other than Indonesia - which coincidentally includes Sumatra. In this case, the rodent was found in the Foja mountains in the eastern Papua province, which is not all that far away from Sumatra. Two new species were discovered in an area that is rarely visited by humans - and one of them happened to be a "giant rat" that is about 5 times the size of a normal city rat. I don't know you, but I think city rats are fairly large to begin with. This is approaching being a R.O.U.S. (Rodent Of Unusual Size).

I love it when our little hobby becomes fodder for the headlines and something that was written about nearly 100 years ago becomes fact. I know Conan Doyle was into the psychic phenomena, including spiritualism, but this is just plain uncanny. As Sherlock Holmes himself said, "life is infinitely stranger than anything which the mind of man could invent." ['A Case of Identity']

"Wiggins Has Just Been Up to Report" [SIGN]

Are you at all curious about the Baker Street Irregulars? Have you perhaps heard of the organization but don't really know what it does? Or maybe you're an old regular (or Irregular) at the BSI Weekend festivities every January in New York.

In any case, you'll be interested to know that the latest episode of I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere, the audio program for Sherlock Holmes devotees is now available. On Episode 14, you'll hear Burt Wolder and me interview Michael Whelan, the current Wiggins of the BSI.

In this first part of a truly excellent two-part series, you'll hear Mike tell about his origins with Sherlock Holmes, how he got involved in Sherlock Holmes societies and the BSI, his ascent to head the organization, and how he has steered it in his decade at the helm.

Stay tuned for Part 2 in another week or so - including a contest that will require reader/listener particiaption - plus another key episode toward the end of December, as the countdown to January 10, 2008 continues...

"Holmes Gave Me a Brief Review" [THOR]

You may recall my announcement of the opening of two one-act plays by Andrew Joffe, BSI ("Sir Charles Halle"), starring Paul Singleton, BSI ("Covent Garden"). In it, I mentioned that if you're in New York in December, you should make it a point to see The Blue Carbuncle & the Gift of the Magi - a nice mashup of Conan Doyle and O. Henry. The details are:

The Blue Carbuncle with Sherlock Holmes & The Gift of the Magi
Adapted from stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle & O. Henry
By Andrew Joffe
Directed by Kathleen Brant
Musical Direction: Jeffrey Buchsbaum
With Paul Singleton as Sherlock Holmes
Dec. 6 - Dec. 22, Tues thru Sat.
At: The WorkShop Theater Company
312 West 36th Street, 4th Floor
New York, NY
(212) 695-4173

Reservations through Theatermania:
http://www.theatermania.com/ticketing/index.cfm/int_showid/138403

Well, it turns out that even though I'm a big Joffe/Singleton fan, you shouldn't take my word for it, oh no. Please, see what the inestimable Susan Rice, ASH, BSI, 2s. ("Beeswing") had to say.

I know you're all aware of the current production of Blue Carbuncle and Gift of the Magi, adapted for the stage by Andrew Joffe and starring Paul Singleton. I saw it tonight, and I'm doing you a favor by telling you to take out your calendars and reserve a ticket for yourself NOW. Andrew's adaptation of BLUE manages to demonstrate all the warmth every Sherlockian perceives in the friendship of Holmes and Watson without ever needing to put it into words. You think you have seen Paul play Holmes, but until you see this production, you have not seen him be Holmes, and I'm glad to report his Watson is above reproach. The Gift of the Magi is a lovely piece of lagniappe, as is an opening chorus of contemporary holiday music, some of which is extremely funny.

And just so you don't think that Susan and I are simply Kool-Aid drinking Sherlockians and FOPS (Friends of Paul Singleton), take a look at what Backstage added:

Amidst all the big-budget holiday theatrical fare, I sincerely hope theatregoers will find time to enjoy this delightful offering at a tiny Midtown black-box theatre. It overflows with the true spirit of the season.

Both tales have been cleverly adapted by Andrew Joffe and imaginatively staged by Kathleen Brant to include the hustle and bustle of a metropolitan Christmas, complete with jubilant carolers and a street-corner violinist (Ken Linsk). Touches like an invisible O. Henry (played with buoyant good humor by Richard Kent Green) helping his character Della on with her coat are wonderful. Jodie Bentley and Tyler Hollinger manage to avoid easy sentimentality and find the camaraderie and love, with an undercurrent of erotic passion, that bind O. Henry's famous romantic pair. Paul Singleton gives us brief glimpses of the emotional loneliness behind the pipe-chomping Holmes' piercing intellect and deftly illuminates the famous sleuth's unswerving moral passion, while Todd Butera creates an earthy, good-natured Watson who has great admiration and compassion for his longtime friend.

Please click through to the Backstage site for the full review.

Have you seen the plays? Let me - and the rest of the readership know what you thought of it by leaving a comment below.

"The Chaplain, No Less!" [GLOR]

Once again, it is with a heavy heart that I take up my pen to write of the passing of another member of the Baker Street Irregulars. Benton Wood, BSI ("A Scandal in Bohemia") passed away in Florida on Saturday, December 8. Ben had been in failing health for years and passed way very peacefully, according to his wife Joan.

For many years, Ben was the official chaplain of the Baker Street Irregulars, presiding over the dinner's blessing. By trade, he was a headmaster of an Episcopal school, which made his local investiture in the Pleasant Places of Florida - Dr. Thorneycroft Huxtable - all the more appropriate. His accomplishments include the publication of The Philatelic and Numismatic Holmes (that's stamp & coin collecting). Ben received his investiture in the BSI in 1979; his wife Joan was honored as 'The Woman' at the 1991 dinner.

While I didn't know Ben personally (I only met him a couple of times), fellow Floridian David McCallister, over at the Sherlock Holmes Social Network, writes:

Ben was the second invested "Scandal in Bohemia" of the BSI, and its chaplain. He followed Leslie Marshall in this investiture and role, and also as the long-time head of the Pleasant Places of Florida scion. He was given the Two Shilling award by Tom Stix, and will be remembered by his many proteges and friends as an indefatigable apostle for Sherlockiana. His wife Joan, is one of The Women, to whom our condolences are expressed.

There are no funeral services planned. If you would care to do so, you may write to Joan at:

9840 Sucia Circle
Parrish, FL 34219-9080

I join other Sherlockians around the world in remembering Ben and wishing Joan and their family my heartfelt condolences.

If you have any other information about Ben, or memories that you'd like to share, please use the comment link below. I'm sure other Sherlockians would like to know.