Adaptations of Sherlock Holmes
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Adaptations of Sherlock Holmes See also: Pop culture references to Sherlock Holmes “Thank you, but I'm afraid the pipe is purely for show these days.” The stories of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Holmes was also featured prominently in issue 13 of the Doyle were very popular as adaptations for the stage, DC/WildStorm series Planetary. Holmes is shown to be and later film, and still later television. The Universal in league with Bram Stoker's Dracula in the story. A Sherlock Holmes (1995) by Ronald B. DeWaal lists over Charlton Comics series depicted a Holmes based in New 25,000 Holmes-related productions and products. York City. SelfMadeHero published “Hound of the Baskervilles”, adapted by Ian Edginton and illustrated by Ian Culbard, 1 Board games in May 2009. Holmes is referred to and briefly featured in Alan Moore's • Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective (gamebook) The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. Holmes appears (1981) (Sleuth Publications) (book-based game) in a flashback sequence depicting the climactic scene of • 221B Baker Street (Gibsons Games) The Adventure of the Final Problem and is still believed by the public to be deceased following the events of that • Watson & Holmes. From the Diaries of 221B (2015) story, although it is revealed in the second volume that (Ludonova) Mina later meets with him. Warren Ellis's Aetheric Mechanics is primarily inspired by Sherlock Holreimanmes, while being a mashup of 2 Comic strip Holmesiana with other contemporary works. In the Italian comic book Martin Mystère and spin-off se- Three Sherlock Holmes adaptations have appeared in ries Storie di Altrove/Stories from Elsewhere Holmes is a American newspapers. The first, titled Sherlock Holmes, historical character.[4] In the late 1880s he worked on ran from 1930 to 1931. Sherlock Holmes was drawn by the case of Jack the Ripper and met professor Richard Leo O'Mealia (who later drew covers for Action Comics) Van Helsing, a vampire who destroyed Count Dracula.[5] and distributed by the Bell Syndicate.[1] A short-lived Along with Professor Challenger, Holmes visited a se- half-page Sherlock Holmes comic strip appeared daily cret valley of dinosaurs in South America in 1896. The and Sunday in the 1950s, written by radio scriptwriter same year he worked with the American Secret Ser- Edith Meiser and drawn by Frank Giacoia.[2] The third vice “Elsewhere” to stop paranormal threats from an- adaptation “Mr. Holmes of Baker Street” by Bill Barry other dimension.[6] In 1910 he discovered a life extension appeared in 1976-1977. serum.[7] At the beginning of World War I he had a final The latest arc of the famous webcomic Sweet Bro confrontation with Professor Moriarty.[8] After the war, and Hella Jeff shows the main characters in the roles he moved to Ukraine, giving Arthur Conan Doyle the task of Holmes and Watson and details their detective-hat- to convince everyone that he was just an imaginary char- wearing, pipe-clinking adventures.[3] acter. With the help of his serum, Holmes prolonged his life for several decades. In the 1990s he indirectly helped Martin Mystère to capture a villain who found a formula 3 Comic books of his serum.[8] In the 1990s, Caliber Comics issued a four-part There have been a number of Sherlock Holmes comic Sherlock Holmes Reader which featured quotes from books, notably from Dell and DC. The 50th anniversary Holmes, a map of 221-B Baker Street, and canon story issue of Detective Comics features a cameo from a 135- adaptations[9] as well as individual stories such as Dr. year-old Holmes, who congratulates Batman for defeat- Jekyll and Mr. Holmes[9] and The Sussex Vampire.[10] ing Professor Moriarty's descendants. He explains “A 2009 brought the Black House Comics series The Dark proper diet, a certain distillation of royal jelly developed Detective: Sherlock Holmes.[11] The series is written by in my beekeeping days, and the rarified atmosphere of Ti- Christopher Sequeira with covers by Academy Award bet, where I keep my primary residence,” have kept him winning artist Dave Elsey.[12] alive. When Batman tries to light his pipe, Holmes states 1 2 4 FILM In 2010, Boom! Studios published a four-part series en- By 1916, Harry Arthur Saintsbury, who had played titled Muppet Sherlock Holmes which featured Gonzo as Holmes on stage hundreds of times in Gillette’s play, Holmes,[13] Fozzie Bear as Dr. Watson,[13] and Kermit reprised the role in the 1916 film The Valley of Fear.[18] [13] the Frog as Inspector Lestrade. The next significant cycle of Holmes films were produced In the Victorian Undead comic series (2010 and 2011 by the Stoll Pictures company in Britain. Between 1921 by Wildstorm and DC) Sherlock Holmes, Doctor Wat- and 1923 they produced a total of 47 two-reelers,[19] all son and others must deal with a zombie outbreak, Count featuring noted West End actor Eille Norwood in the lead Dracula, and Doctor Jekyll and Mister Hyde. with Hubert Willis as Watson. In 2013, New Paradigm Studios began publishing a John Barrymore played the role in a 1922 movie en- monthly, ongoing series entitled Watson and Holmes. The titled Sherlock Holmes, with Roland Young as Watson series re-imagines Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson as and William Powell in his first screen appearance. This living in the 21st Century and living in Harlem.[14] Goldwyn film is the first Holmes movie made with high production values and a major star. Clive Brook played Sherlock Holmes three times: The 4 Film Return of Sherlock Holmes (1929), as part of an anthology film, Paramount on Parade (1930), and Sherlock Holmes (1932). In 1931 Raymond Massey played Sherlock Holmes in his screen debut, The Speckled Band,[20] while Arthur Wont- ner played Holmes in five British films from 1931 to 1937. Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce played Holmes and Wat- son in The Hound of the Baskervilles which launched a 14 film series. Rathbone is regarded as the Holmes of his generation. Many other films have been comedies and parodies which poke fun at Holmes, Watson, their relationship and other characters. These have included Billy Wilder’s The Pri- vate Life of Sherlock Holmes with Robert Stephens and Colin Blakely as Holmes and Watson. Sherlock Holmes Baffled, the first screen portrayal of Holmes More serious, non-canonical films were A Study in Ter- from 1900. ror (with John Neville and Donald Houston) and Murder by Decree (with Christopher Plummer and James Mason) It has been estimated that Sherlock Holmes is the most both of which involved Holmes and Watson investigating prolific screen character in the history of cinema.[15] The the murders by the Whitechapel serial killer Jack the Rip- first known film featuring Holmes is Sherlock Holmes Baf- per. And Young Sherlock Holmes with Nicholas Rowe fled, a one-reel film running less than a minute, made as Holmes and Alan Cox as Watson playing the duo as by the American Mutoscope and Biograph Company schoolboys (in this film one of Holmes’ early mentors be- in 1900. This was followed by a 1905 Vitagraph film comes an enemy who, in the final credits, hides out in the Adventures of Sherlock Holmes; or, Held for Ransom, fea- Swiss Alps and signs his name as Moriarty). [16] turing Maurice Costello as Holmes. Sherlock Holmes The 1974 novel The Seven-Per-Cent Solution, a “lost has also been a prolific screen character in foreign lan- manuscript” of a Holmes adventure, was also made into guage films, such as the Russian 2013 mini-series version a film in 1976 starring Nicol Williamson as Holmes and [17] broadcast in November 2013. Robert Duvall as Watson. Many similar films were made in the early years of the The 1988 film Without a Clue was a comedic twist on the twentieth century, most notably the 13 one- and two-reel familiar Holmes legend. Dr. John Watson (Ben Kingsley) silent films produced by the Danish Nordisk Film Com- is a genius crime fighter and successful author. Fans of his pany between 1908 and 1911. The only non-lost film is novels clamor to see the real Sherlock Holmes and Wat- Sherlock Holmes i Bondefangerkløer, produced in 1910. son realizes that his audience simply would not accept the Holmes was originally played by Viggo Larsen. Other ac- fact that Holmes was a fabrication and to reveal himself tors who played Holmes in those films were Otto Lagoni, as the creator and brains behind him would be tantamount Einar Zangenberg, Lauritz Olsen and Alwin Neuss. In to literary suicide. To solve his dilemmas, Watson hires 1911 the American Biograph company produced a series Reginald Kincaid (Michael Caine), an alcoholic, woman- of 11 short comedies based on the Holmes character with izing, ne'er-do-well actor to impersonate Holmes. Mack Sennett (later of Keystone Kops fame) in the title role. The twenty-eighth film in the VeggieTales series is en- 3 titled Sheerluck Holmes and the Golden Ruler, and fea- them are posted online, and can be found on Tumblr. tures Larry the Cucumber as Holmes and Bob the Tomato "Scarlet Story", the opening theme of the NHK puppetry as Watson. Sherlock Holmes is titled after "A Study in Scarlet". And Robert Downey, Jr. appears as the detective in the Guy a song titled “Agra Treasure” that is made for the show is Ritchie–directed Sherlock Holmes (2009) and its sequel sung in “The Adventure of the Cheerful Four”, one of the Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (2011), with Jude episodes of the series based on "The Sign of the Four".