Ineffable Twaddle “It is my business to know what other people don’t know.” The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle A monthly publication of The Sound of the Baskervilles A Scion Society of the Baker Street Irregulars since Mary 31, 1980 Serving the Greater Puget Sound Region of Western Washington

Volume 30, Issue 7 th July 2011 15 Annual Watson Picnic is July 23!! OUR 30TH YEAR In our more than 31 years, we’ve had share!! And, if you’re bringing a loads more than fifteen picnics, but this is dish that needs special utensils, th our 15 consecutive one—aided without fail please bring those as well!! Inside this issue: by Committee Chair Paul Williams. He is PFL David and Terri will again th taking us back to the south shelter at beau- bring plates, napkins, cutlery 15 Annual Watson 1 tiful Seahurst Park in Burien on Saturday, and drinking glasses! Picnic is July 23!! July 23!! The formal running time of our Dr. Burien is easy to get to from all points Sing-Along with 1 John H. Watson Picnic is 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 north, south, east and west! And Seahurst “Dr. Watson and p.m., but parking is always at a premium Park is a gorgeous site, right on the Sound! Mr. Holmes” and construction may force you to park fur- PFL David says there will be a game, but ther away from our shelter—so get there there’s no need to brush up on your athletic “But It’s the Solar 2 early!! skills, because you won’t need any of those! System!” This is a pot-luck, so please bring enough And, watch out because 3-time trophy win- food—salads, main dishes, side dishes, ner John Nelson plans to participate!!! First to Crack the 2 chips, snacks, sweets—and beverages to Don’t miss the fun...it’s always a great day! Case Contributed by Treasurer Al Nelson Sing-Along with “Dr. Watson and Mr. Holmes” Things to See, Buy, 3 From SOB Bill Seil: “A friend’s Mom won an That he’s got to have me.” Do & Know old, used CD called “52nd Street Swing New York “Quick, quick, Sherlock, the lowdown.” th Member News & 4 in the '30s”. The 4 track is from 1934 with lyrics “Cops can’t even solve a crime. Updates by Johnny Mercer (!!) and is called “Dr. Watson Bound to miss it every time. and Mr. Holmes”. The music’s been put to clips Ain’t it awful, Doctor Watson?” of old Sherlock Holmes films, so it’s cool to watch “Simply lousy, Mister Holmes.” at: www.youtube.com/watch?v=hX1CJAeyupQ. GETTING TO Hear the song and see a photo of the band at: “Now when policemen have a case SEAHURST PARK www.youtube.com/watch?v=2u04g7RuMz4. In the Where they raid some gambling place, for the Dr. John H. Watson Picnic meantime, here are the lyrics: How they muff it, Doctor Watson!” Saturday, July 23 “What’s the reason, Mister Holmes?” 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. “Dr. Watson and Mr. Holmes” (1934) From I-5, take Highway 518 west- “By the time the cops catch on, Music: Bernie Hanighen / bound (Exit 154, near South Lyrics: Johnny Mercer All the evidence is gone. Center Mall, where I-5 meets Must be dummies, Doctor Watson.” Gangway for that famous sleuth! I-405). When you get into Burien, “They’re morons, Mister Holmes.” Must be Sherlock—that’s the truth. Highway 518 turns into S. W. 148th “Elementary, Doctor Watson.” While they’re looking around, Street. As you continue west- “You are amazing, Mister Holmes.” Not a thing to be found. bound, look for and turn And the gambling rooms are lobbies right onto Ambaum No detective stands a chance. And the rattle of dice Blvd. S.W. Proceed to Well, how about this Philo Vance? Is the tinkle of ice. S. W. 144th Street (the “He’s a good man, Doctor Watson.” 2nd light) and turn left. “Look Sherlock—the bobbies!” “As a jurist, Mister Holmes.” Go 3 short blocks to 13th Avenue “Why, Inspector, how d’ye do?” S.W. and turn right. This will take “When they have a crime wave “Sherlock, I’ll be seeing you.” you right into the park—if you hit the And the papers all rave “Now where are you going, Doctor Watson?” water, you’ve gone too far!. We will And they’re hollering for a showdown “To China, Mister Holmes!” be in the south picnic shelter! The inspector can see

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T.S. McHugh’s “But It’s the Solar System!” Public House is at The July 11, 2011 Business Meeting of The Sound of the Baskervilles will begin at 21 Mercer Street, 6:30 p.m. at T.S. McHugh’s Public House. The social hour starts at 5:30 p.m.! Seattle, (206) 282- As promised (see Ineffable Twaddle, Vol. 29, October/November 2010, Issue 10/11, Page 1910. Come at 4, “Changes on the Horizon for 2011”), we will make our 3rd quarterly digression from 5:30, order dinner our current study of the Canon (in order by publication date) and devote the Meeting and catch up with to an informative presentation of an aspect of life in Victorian England. other SOBs! Ms. Ariana Scott-Zechlin, a student of SOB David Smith’s—who’s a professor at the University of Puget Sound specializing in Victoriana—will look at the use of as- tronomy in both the original Holmesian Canon and the BBC/PBS production of “Sherlock”. Her talk is entitled “But It’s the Solar System!: Reconciling Science and Correction, please... Faith in BBC’s Sherlock”. from our friend MC Black in It should be a very informative and entertaining presentation! Come, participate in London the discussion, or just listen and learn!! An error occurred on Page 3 of our June, 2011 Ineffable Twaddle (Vol. 30, Issue 6) First to Crack the Case • Firstly, my company is “Detective Walks”, rather than Excerpted from the London Times, April 24 cal drama, where the investigation is “London Walks”. “The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher” shows how played out in front of the characters, all • Secondly, the best address to a real Victorian sleuth became the mould for of whom have something to hide...It contact me at is: modern Sherlocks, says Benji Wilson. has proved endlessly enduring as a [email protected]. Kate Summerscale’s bestselling Victo- blueprint for everything from Agatha rian whodunit—“The Suspicions of Mr. Christie to themed weekend breaks Whicher”—is an immersive investiga- and the film “Gosford Park”. tion of a real-life murder, adapted this “Because the mystery was unsolved Help, Doctor! week by ITV (April 25, 9 p.m.). Summer- for so long, it allowed the press and Next time your Doc scale’s contention is that detective fe- novelists to elaborate a whole struc- writes in your chart, you ver, Inspector Jonathan Whicher and the ture,” author Summerscale says. “It might want to see what’s murder at Road Hill House in Wilt- being scrawled. starts with a mystery and then goes shire—the case about which Whicher Do you have GLL (great backwards into the family’s past, the looking legs)? Are you a candidate had his suspicions—are all part of a events that preceded the murder, for the Departure Lounge (geriatric nexus of cause and effect that created weeks, years. It created its own model ward)? During an exam were you detective fiction itself. for how a gripping story might unfold, a TBP (total bloody pain)? The first detectives were appointed by in real time, as it were. It was a detec- It turns out these are codes used by the London Metropolitan Police in 1842. tive novel in the making.” some Docs in Great Britain to de- Whicher was one of the original eight. A fortnight after the murder, Whicher scribe their patients. One Doc at a Says Summerscale, “In effect, they by this time the most celebrated sleuth London hospital says the longtime made up detection themselves as a pro- of his time, took the train to Road Hill to practice amounts to using humour fession. And, those eight men were the begin his investigation. In the report- as a way to cope with stress, loss, object of great fascination to many, in- ing of the case, Whicher was portrayed grief, disease and death. cluding Charles Dickens” (whose first as a character, named and discussed. Source: AARP Bulletin fictional English detective Inspector This hadn’t happened before. In terms Bucket in “Bleak House” appeared in of his methodology, Whicher gives 1853). every appearance of being by the The case: On July 1, 1860, the Kent Librarian’s Corner book: When he got to Road Hill, he family, inhabitants of the elegant, 3- gathered his evidence, drew floor Treasurer Al and I are working story Georgian Road Hill House, awoke plans, plotted timelines. Yet Summer- together, researching buying 4 to 5 to find that their 3-year-old son was not scale says he then went with his gut new Sherlockian books to add to in his cot. He was found later that morn- instinct anyway. our Lending Library. ing dumped in the outdoor privy with “When I tried to piece together The books all come with high his throat slit. The body was removed recommendations. Whicher’s work, I realized he decided through the drawing room. As the house We will be expending a small almost as soon as he got there who’d amount of the Club’s funds—about was bolted from the inside, the guilty done it. Having been a bit thrown by $120—in this effort. party had to be one of the family or a how much he just guessed, I then servant. Road Hill defined the country- thought that was the key to him. That Sheila Holtgrieve, SOB Librarian [email protected] house murder as a self-contained mur- he did have ...” der coupled with an intense psychologi- Continued on Page 3 Volume 30, June 2011, Issue 6— OUR 30TH YEAR!!! Page 3

Passings Things to See, Buy, Do & Know Bill Kasper: Who put up with the • From SOB Terry Burns: I got a catalog from won best drama series and Martin Freeman SOBs during the many years that Alberene Royal Mail. In it you can find Sher- won for Best Supporting Actor. Gerrie Kasper hosted The Master’s lockian pub glasses, 12” diameter clocks, metal The Langham Hotel celebrated its 146th Dinner in their home; he passed on posters, and even a pocket watch with a hunting anniversary on 10 June with a Wonderland Tea May 29. Thanks, Bill Seil. for just 7p—the equivalent to 1/6d, which is what case cover of Sherlock ($59.95). You can even Jeremy Paul: Who was the princi- order an 1810 London map (size 31”x17”) for it would have cost for afternoon tea when the pal writer for the Jeremy Brett/ $19.95. Call them at 1-800-843-9078, or go to their hotel opened in 1865. Granada TV series; he passed on website: www.alberene.com • From Peter Blau: May 3. Thanks, Roger Johnson. • From SOB Bill Seil: The last of the stories for the book “A Study Edward Hardwicke: In 1986, he There were no Sherlockian winners in the in Sherlock” has come in to editors Laurie King 2011 Edgar Awards…“Sherlock Holmes for Dum- and Les Klinger. There will be 18 contributors in replaced David Burke as Brett’s Watson. He finally established Dr. mies” lost out to a book on Charlie Chan. all, including King and Klinger. Laurie says that Watson in the public imagination as BFS Entertainment announced their release of they are all “fabulous”. One of them will be Les’ an intelligent gentleman… coura- “The Dark Beginnings of Sherlock Holmes”, the twitterview (that’s an interview in 140 characters) geous, astute, honest and admirable; pilot which introduced 2000's U.K. thriller program, with Mary Russell. he passed on May 16. Thanks, “William Gillette, America’s Sherlock “Murder Rooms: Mysteries of the Real Sherlock Roger Johnson. Holmes”. The show only lasted for 4 regular install- Holmes” by Henry Zecher (Xlibris, 733pp; ments (total of five episodes, including the pilot), $23.95) is now out. There was much more to but BFS is concentrating just on the original story Gillette’s life and career than Sherlock Holmes, for now. Cost is $19.98 SRP, which includes the and the author has told the story well. DVD special feature “The Adventures of Sherlock Expect a season 2 for BBC’s “Sherlock” Add A Vet Holmes” by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, “Sir Arthur this fall. Steven Moffat said “You can have three to Our Conan Doyle Biography/Selected Bibliography”, words to work from: Adler, Hound, Reichenbach. Membership cast profiles, and production notes. Those are your clues.” At the “Kapow! 11” con- We still have a free • From SOB Margie Deck: While I have declared vention, Mark Gatiss confirmed that the three membership avail- myself allergic to all social media, save my on-line episodes would be based on the stories “A Scan- able for a veteran SH discussion group, this one might be tempt- dal in Bohemia”, “The Hound of the Baskervilles” who joins The SOBs as a new Mem- ing....http://sherlockholmes.ning.com/ and “The Final Problem” and that the writers for ber—funded by an anonymous do- • From Editor Terri: Get audio books for free the episodes would be Moffat, Gatiss and Thomp- nor! Please recruit a veteran to take from LibriVox.org, a worldwide digital library with son respectively. advantage of this offer! more than 4,000 unabridged classics in the public • From PFL David: Don’t forget our friends As a former member of Her domain, plus drama and poetry. Read by volun- Carolyn & Joel Senter at Classic Specialties. Majesty’s Army, Watson would be teers (you can become one too), they can be They have a great variety of Sherlockian items proud to know we are making such a played on your computer, MP3 player, cell phone available. Find them at www.sherlock- gesture. It could be your “Just One or your car stereo (burned to a CD). Free audio holmes.com. Or, phone in your order, by calling Thing” for the Club this year. books are also available through literalsys- (513) 281-4757. In their March newsletter they tems.org and audiobooksforfree.com. even quoted from page 3 of our April Ineffable • From District Messenger Editor Roger Johnson: Twaddle, regarding Editor Terri’s list of “Just One On May 22 the British Academy of Film & Tele- Thing” you might do to benefit the Club. vision (BAFTA) announced its awards. “Sherlock” From SOB Barbara Nelson Taproot Theatre is showing First to Crack the Case Continued from Page 2 “Something’s Afoot” from July 13 through August 13. ...an impulsive but brilliant streak.” passion for detection becoming a It’s dubbed a “murder mystery With guesswork, however, comes par- monomania’ was growing. After the musical...filled with booby-traps anoia. For Whicher, the investigation Road Hill House murder, detectives and belted songs…(T)his hilarious started to unravel, and at that point he, became much darker, brooding, psy- spoof hums along as you play once so self-assured, also began to un- chological figures.” armchair detective to a zany ravel. Summerscale says one of the rea- cast of characters.” If you have—or plan to ac- sons she landed on Whicher was be- quire—a copy of “The Sus- Prices range from $27 to $35, with a cause he fits our modern conception of a picions of Mr. Whicher” by $3 discount per ticket for seniors. detective as obsessive. “He became so Kate Summerscale, may we frustrated at not being able to prove suggest you provide the what he felt was true that he had a kind Club with a short review for of breakdown. Reading novels of the publication in a future is- period, I noticed that the idea of ‘the sue of Ineffable Twaddle?? The Sound By appointment The Sound of the Baskervilles is a scion of the of Her Majesty, society of the Baker Street Irregulars, serving the greater Puget Sound Region of Baskervilles Queen Victoria Western Washington, U.S.A., and has met monthly since March 31, 1980. $20 per year brings Members the monthly Ineffable Twaddle newsletter “Ineffable Twaddle”, a copy of Beaten’s Christmas Annual, and the incalcu- A monthly publication of lable benefits of association with a group of The Sound of the Baskervilles certifiable Holmes aficionados. A Scion Society of the Baker Street Irregulars since Mary 31, 1980 Meetings are held the 2nd Monday of each Serving the Greater Puget Sound Region of Western Washington month. Location of the meetings may vary. Regularly scheduled additional events President: David Haugen, PFL, SOB, PSC throughout the year include: “The Mas- Treasurer: Allen Nelson ([email protected]) ter’s Dinner” celebrating Holmes’ birthday Secretary/Editor: Terri Haugen ([email protected]) (January), “The Annual Wreath Throw” Historian: Lloyd Hedberg ([email protected] commemorating Holmes’ loss at Reichen- Lending Librarian: Sheila Holtgrieve ([email protected]) bach Falls (May), “The Dr. John H. Watson Webmaster: Stuart Nelan ([email protected]) Picnic” (July), and “The Will Crakes Me- Website: www.soundofthebaskervilles.com morial Jollification” (December). Other activities—book crawls, teas, plays and Direct correspondence to: gaming events—are as announced. 3606 Harborcrest Court N.W. To join, send your check for dues—$20 for Gig Harbor, WA 98332-8981 USA individuals, $30 for families (U.S. funds Phone: 253-853-5187 only)—to the address shown at left. Fax: 253-853-5187 Email: [email protected]

heading to the Bay area and wanting some leads Member News & Updates to used bookstores! SOBs attending the June Meeting, presided over • Geoff Jeffery & Cara Cross had a conflict by PFL David Haugen, were: with our Wreath Throw this year because they Dates of Stephen Adkins Al Nelson Terri Haugen were in Corvallis at a University of Oregon De- partment of Intercollegiate Athletics’ “Women in Interest Ed Funk Joyce Funk Pat McIntosh Manson Polley D.C. Smith John Nelson Athletics” celebration, honoring female student ● July 11 Barbara Nelson Jon Strandberg Lauran Stevens athletes from 1940 to 1981 who participated on Regular Monthly John Longenbaugh sports teams. These female athletes never Meeting, earned a letter, didn't have any training facili- Social = 5:30 p.m.; News & Notes: ties, and had to fund-raise to get supplies and Business = 6:30 at • Barbara says she recently attended a land- equipment—because they pre-dated the 1982 mark high school reunion The quiz on GREE T.S. McHugh’s entry of U of O into the Pac-10 conference. Cara was won handily by Jon and D.C. Manson ● July 23 was honoured at the event...finally receiving her brought some of his cast-off Sherlockiana, as he letter for tennis—only 30 years late! Kudos, Annual Watson and Nancy plan another move. He donated one Cara!!! Picnic at Seahurst item as the quiz prize and gave our newest Park in Burien member 15-years worth of Beaten’s Christmas Our newest Member is Michelle Poite- NEW TIME Annuals! Treasurer Al reported that he and vin, who attended our April Meeting 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Librarian Sheila are researching buying with and then joined in June! She works in ● August 8 Club funds 4 to 5 new Sherlockian books to add marketing in the real estate industry in Regular Monthly to our Lending Library; all come with high rec- Belltown and lives in Seattle. She also looks forward to lending Stu Nelan a hand with Meeting, ommendations John L. reported that his play, our website! Welcome, Michelle! Social = 5:30 p.m.; “Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Christ- mas Carol” will be produced this winter by the Business = 6:30 at • Becky Geis wrote with great news!! Hubby Artists Repertory in Portland...on to Portland! T.S. McHugh’s Bob is now home from his year-long tour in Af- ● September 12 • Congratulations!! SOB Bryan Romnes re- ghanistan! Son John has finished his Chinese Regular Monthly ceived his high school diploma on June 13 with course and Becky & Bob were able to attend his Meeting, a Phi Theta Kappa; Pat’s daughter Kathleen graduation; our Marine is now in Texas until Oc- Social = 5:30 p.m.; McIntosh got her diploma the following week! tober, when he’ll be shipped to a duty station in Business = 6:30 at • We heard from Ray DeGroat in Palo Alto. California or Hawaii!! And, daughter Katherine T.S. McHugh’s He’s recovering from a fall last autumn and was & hubby Daniel are thriving in Portland. of great help to Webmaster Stu Nelan who was