Jan 88 #1 Scuttlebutt from the Spermaceti Press The birthday festivities were, as always, both hectic and enjoyable, and this year the celebration began informally on the preceding Saturday, when the first far-flung Sherlockian collector deplaned in New York in a quest for book shops that might have treasures passed over by the locals. On Jan. 8, by way of formal proceedings, the BSI returned to the ballroom at 24 Fifth Avenue, where Maureen Green of Toronto was *The* Woman, toasted by Michael F. Whelan and honored at the BSI pre-dinner cocktail party and by *The* Women at dinner at the National Arts Club. The BSI observed the usual traditions, with agenda items including: Isaac Asimov's tuneful toast ("The Battle Hymn of Mrs. Watson"), Ray Betzner's reading of the Musgrave ritual, Richard Shull's dramatic reading of Christopher Morley's "In Memoriam Sherlock Holmes", a nine-minute tape recording of William Gillette as Sherlock Holmes (discovered last year by Peter E. Blau), W. T. Rabe's report on "The Missing Page, or Whatever Happened to Watson's Billet Doux?" (mentioned in "Houn"), David L. Hammer's suggestive discussion of Violet Hunter, and Robert S. Katz's identification of acute septicemic melioidosis as the disease the dying detective wasn't dying from. Irregular Shillings were awarded to Philip R. Brogdon ("John Sanger"), James C. Cleary, Jr. ("Howard Garrideb"), William R. Cochran ("Murray"), Carey Cummings ("An Irish Secret Society"), Charles A. Meyer ("Adolph Meyer"), Alan C. Olding ("Cooee"), Mel Ruiz ("Jack Douglas"), and Burt Woldur ("The Third Pillar from the Left"). Two-Shilling Awards were given to Jon L. Lellenberg and Robert E. Thomalen. Other Friday gatherings included The Martha Hudson Breakfast at the Hotel Algonquin, The William Gillette Memorial Luncheon at the Old Homestead, Otto Penzler's open house at the Mysterious Bookshop, the Adventuresses of Sherlock Holmes' dinner at Garvin's Restaurant, and impromptu partying in the Hunchback of Notre Dame suite at the Hotel Iroquois. The ASH dinner was devoted to celebrating the twentieth anniversary of the founding of The Adventuresses of Sherlock Holmes by the intrepid group that besieged Cavanaugh's Restaurant (an event that was headlined the next day as "Baker Street Sextet in Picket Line Protest"), and to enthusiastic tributes to Evelyn A. Herzog, who may or may not have provided a detailed explanation of the ASH war-cry ("Snape! Snape!"). Saturday's cocktail party at 24 Fifth Avenue offered a performance by The Friends of Bogie's of Loren D. Estleman's "Dr. and Mrs. Watson at Home" from THE NEW ADVENTURES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES; Jon L. Lellenberg's announce- ment of plans for a round-robin Sherlockian novel (with a basic scenario proposed by a BSI committee, chapters to be written by a succession of mystery authors, and the mystery to be solved in the final chapter by Isaac Asimov); and Ezra Wolff's traditional poetic greetings. And on Sunday south-bound travelers dined in Philadelphia with The Master's Class at the Franklin Inn Club, where members of the Wilmington cast performed excerpts from their production of "The Incredible Murder of Cardinal Tosca". Jan 88 #2 Another plug for the remainder-books catalog from Edward R. Hamilton (Falls Village, CT 06031): his new catalog (Dec. 28) includes Art Buchwald's "YOU *CAN* FOOL ALL OF THE PEOPLE ALL OF THE TIME" (Putnam, 1985, $3.95); reprints his Aug. 30, 1984, Sherlockian column "The Great Media Mystery". Also: John Sladek's BLACK AURA (Walker, 1979 cloth, $2.95; and Walker, 1983 paper, $1.95); a Thackery Phin mystery with many S'ian allusions. Also: Peter Haining's THE SHERLOCK HOLMES SCRAPBOOK (Crescent, 1986, $6.95); new cover and jacket artwork (for completists), and value-for-money (for those who don't already have the book). Forecast for March: all 14 of the Rathbone/Bruce feature films will be released on videocassette by Key Video (a division of CBS/Fox video) at $19.98 each (suggested retail). I've been told that the cassettes will be made from the set of masters assembled by Leo Gutman, which means high quality, and there will be an added feature I've not heard of before on videocassettes: the films will be closed-captioned for hearing-impaired viewers who have the decoders used with television sets. The request (Dec 87 #4) for a name to match the acronym MYCROFT for the Home Office's new computer system has produced a suggestion from Jim Cleary: Major Yard Computer for Recovery, Organization, Filing, and Tabulation. Any other proposals? BSI annual dinner addenda: Bill Rabe also reported on his Oct. 1987 visit to Meiringen, where the natives apparently refuse to admit that there never was a hotel called the Englischerhof (or a Peter Steiler, the elder). At the Rossli, chosen many years ago as the best candidate by The Old Soldiers of Baker Street, who installed a commemorative plaque in the hotel bar in 1952, Bill found that the new proprietors were delighted, after some years, to learn why visitors to the bar had been taking photographs of each other in front of the plaque (and then leaving without buying any beer). Bill was told that the Rossli, now in need of restoration, will be rebuilt and renamed as the Englischerhof, where frameable or hangable mementos donated contributed by Sherlockian societies or individual Sherlockians will be on display. Contributions may be sent to W. T. Rabe, 1204 Davitt Street, Sault Ste. Marie, MI 49783. One of my discoveries during the birthday festivities was Pipeworks & Wilke at 16 West 55th Street, New York, NY 10019 -- pipesmokers tend to be drawn to pipe shops that have "sale" signs prominently displayed -- and their signed photograph of Basil Rathbone led to some discussion, and the news that their Blend 515 (described in their flier as "exotic tobaccos aged in rare Jamaica rum: smooth, mild, with a delightful aroma") was Rathbone's favorite tobacco when he lived in New York and used to walk down from his apartment on Central Park South, accompanied by his Irish wolfhound, to buy the tobacco. Blend 515 costs $6.70 (4 oz.) or $11.90 (8 oz.) or $21.75 (16 oz.); add $3.50 shipping for orders under 2 lbs. The mail-order address is Pipeworks & Wilke, R.R. 1, Box 275, Shaftsbury, VT 05262. The shop also offered two pipes from the Peterson "Sherlock Holmes" series that carries a sterling silver band marked with the well-known profile -- $125.00 for a bent briar and $100.00 for a sand-blasted bent briar (less 25% if their sale is still continuing). Jan 88 #3 There seems to have been no media coverage of Sherlock Holmes' birthday in 1988 (in contrast to the flood of press reports last year to launch the centenary), but there were some nice coincidental items: Jack Ziegler had a Sherlockian cartoon in the Jan. 11 issue of the New Yorker, and cartoonist Tom Batiuk added another series of "Sherlock Holmes' Secret Cases" to his "Funky Winterbean" newspaper comic strip (I have seen the panels for Jan. 4-9, and would appreciate hearing from anyone who has panels from other dates). There is still time to plan for a trip to Tulsa to participate in the "Holmes Peak Volksmarch" on Feb. 27. Sponsored by the Green County Wander- Freunde (an affiliate of the American Volkssporting Association), the Volksmarch will be a ten-kilometer hike around and up Holmes Peak. A special medallion commemorating this "Holmes Peak Expedition" will be awarded to those who complete the hike, and Dick Warner (Head Sherpa of the Holmes Peak Preservation Society) notes that avid collectors of S'iana "will either have to come to Tulsa and make the hike or find a Germanic- looking person who has made the hike and mug him for his medallion." THE ADVENTURE OF THE FAIRFAX UMPIRE, the latest exploit of Turlock Loams, is now being printed at the Pequod Press. "Devotees of the grotesque & absurd are urged to order now," from John Ruyle, 521 Vincente Avenue, Berkeley, CA 94707; $29.50 (cloth) or $14.50 (paper). The United States honored the 200th anniversary of Georgia's statehood with a commemorative issued Jan. 6. The design by Greg Harlin shows Atlanta's distinctive skyline rising behind the lush image of a live oak (according to the USPS press release). Georgia is mentioned in "The Five Orange Pips" and Atlanta in "The Yellow Face". THE SHERLOCK HOLMES COLLECTION: THE GREAT DETECTIVE AND HIS CREATOR, by Charles Hall (Edinburgh: Charles Hall Productions, 1987; 100 pp., L10.95), is a splendid gathering of pictorial material drawn from all areas of Sherlockiana, mostly British but also including unusual items such as stills from Danish, German, and Czech films, and Soviet television. Available from the publisher (12 Paisley Terrace, Edinburgh EH8, Scotland, United Kingdom); add L5.00 for airmail shipping (or L7.00 for two copies); payment requested by international money order. The Saturday Review, in whose pages the world first learned of the BSI, is now defunct. The May-June 1986 issue was the last one published, and the magazine was sold last year to Bob Guccione, who apparently wanted only the mailing list -- not to expand the circulation of Penthouse, however, as former subscribers to SR are now receiving copies of Omni, whose masthead lists Guccione as publisher, editor in chief, and design director. It is perhaps only coincidental that the lead story in the first issue of Omni received was blurbed on the cover as "Sex and Love: How Dinosaurs Did It!" Check your supermarkets and drugstores for LIGHTS CAMERA MICKEY, a box of 200 3-oz. Dixie bathroom cups ($1.89 here); there are ten different designs on the cups, and one design shows "Inspector Mickey" in S'ian costume. Jan 88 #4 The winter 1987 issue of the Sherlock Holmes Journal is at hand, accompanied by a splendid 64-page centenary supplement devoted to A STUDY IN SCARLET. I assume that everyone sufficiently fanatic to subscribe to these information sheets also subscribes to the BSJ, BSM, and SHJ; those who do not will be dismayed at the report that the SHJ's special supplement was published only for SHJ subscribers. Another reason for subscribing to the BSJ, BSM, and SHJ is that I don't use this grapevine for items (such as John Michael Gibson's new facsimile of Beeton's Christmas Annual) announced for the first time in those journals. Plan ahead: this year's "Autumn in Baker Street" is scheduled for Oct. 8-9 at Bear Mountain, N.Y. The mailing list for announcements is maintained by Robert E. Thomalen, 69 Glen Road, Eastchester, NY 10709. Bogie's Murderous Mystery Tours have scheduled a tour to England, June 20 to July 3, 1988, with space for 30 people ("starting off in London, we will travel around the country, spend a day on the Orient Express, and try to survive for three nights at 'Baskerville Hall'"). Details available from Bogie's Restaurant, 249 West 26th Street, New York, NY 10001. The Sherlock Holmes Society of London will visit Switzerland again on Sept. 8-12, 1988, for the unveiling of the Sherlock Holmes statue in Meiringen, and a crossing of the Gemmi Pass. Plan farther ahead: while John Bennett Shaw has no plans for a workshop in 1988, there is a possibility of a sea-going workshop on a cruise liner in 1989. The workshop has two unofficial working titles: "Ship of Fools" and "No Ship, Sherlock". Reported by Andrew Jay Peck: David G. Kirby (Rupert Books, 59 Stonefield, Bar Hill, Cambridge CB3 8TE, England) offers a leather-bound, inscribed, limited (30 copies) variant of A CENTURY OF SCARLET: A CENTENARY CATALOGUE (L25.00). Also: SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE KENT RAILWAYS, by Kelvin Jones (L8.95). Also: the British (O'Mara) imprint of the Steele-illustrated Mysterious Press edition of THE RETURN OF SHERLOCK HOLMES (L12.00). There's a Sherlockian panel in "The Last of the Hollywood 'B' Movies" in Cracked Collectors' Edition (30 Years of Cracked) #74 (Apr 88), reprinted from Giant Cracked #45 (Oct 86). I have updated my listing of Investitured Irregulars, Two-Shilling Awards, and *The* Women. $1.00 postpaid for a print-out. Scarlet in Gaslight #1 (Nov. 1987) is the first in a new comic-book series, from Martin Powell (writer), Seppo Makinen (artist), and Wayne R. Smith (editor), with Sherlock Holmes engaged in a battle against Count Dracula. Published monthly by Eternity Comics (2635 Lavery Court #11, Newbury Park, CA 91320); $1.95. Discovered by Steve Rothman: a S'ian verse in the poem "Cats and Dogs" in Christopher Isherwood's PEOPLE ONE OUGHT TO KNOW (1982), remaindered at $2.98 at Barnes & Noble (but not in their current mail-order catalog). Jan 88 #5 Granada's "The Sign of Four" was broadcast in Britain on Dec. 29, 1987, and was favorably received by the reviewers. One passage from Nancy Banks-Smith's review in the Guardian (Dec. 30) is worth quoting: "The Sign of Four is one of those Conan Doyle stories in which a gentleman returns from India with a terrible secret and a temper to match. In extreme cases he may also have a swamp adder, a gibbon, and a mongoose. He then proceeds to live in unparalleled grandeur in Norwood of all places, surrounded by brass bibelots, gongs, tiger skins, and, of course, rajah's carbuncles. At some point he will open a letter and fall back in his chair with a frightful shriek as if he had just received the phone bill and the gibbon had been ringing home. In fact, he is living in mortal terror of three Sikhs, a peg-legged convict, and a three-foot cannibal with a two- foot blow pipe, and who, to be fair to the man, would not? You think I am making this up. I am not. Conan Doyle made it up. Address all complaints to Dr. Watson at 221b Baker Street." Granada has completed location work for "Silver Blaze" and "The Devil's Foot", and filmed on location in Cheshire and Yorkshire for "Wisteria Lodge" in Nov. and Dec. 1987; "The Bruce-Partington Plans" is next on the scheduled, to be followed by "The Hound of the Baskervilles", and the next series is scheduled for broadcast in Britain in the fall of 1988. GRANADA COMPANION NUMBER ONE: A SHERLOCK HOLMES ALBUM is a well-produced 40-page celebration of both the centenary and the Granada series, with an introduction by Vincent Price, articles by Kenneth Harris, and a splendid assembly of color photographs of the principals, supporting players, sets, and scenery. Recommended, and available for $11.95 (U.S.) postpaid from Sundial International, 16 Queen Elizabeth Boulevard, Etobicoke, Ont. M8Z 1L8, Canada. Reported by Ed Vatza: the "Sherlock Holmes Walking Stick" (D3392b) is still available from Boserup House of Canes and Walkingsticks (1636 Westwood Boulevard, P.O. Box 24156, Los Angeles, CA 90024) with bronze or silver- tone handles on ebony or rosewood at $135.00 and on Dymondwood (composed of various hardwoods, with several finishes) at $95.00; they take plastic. THE FURTHER ADVENTURES OF SOLAR PONS, by Basil Copper (Chicago: Academy Chicago, 1987; 250 pp., $14.95 cloth, $4.95 paper), is a collection of four new stories first published in 1979 as a continuation of the Pontine Canon written by August Derleth. This is the second volume in Academy Chicago's reprint series; Copper has edited the text to remove some of the American usages that crept into the earlier edition, and the stories are pleasant tributes to both Derleth and Pons. SHERLOCK HOLMES MEETS THE SUSSEX VAMPIRE, AND OTHER CASES OF THE WORLD'S MOST FAMOUS DETECTIVE, selected and introduced by Peter Haining (London: Armada/Fontana, 1986; 159 pp., L1.75), is a reprint of the 1981 paperback first edition, with six cases ("Spec", "Gree", "Fina", "Empt", "Suss", and "Fina"), with six illustrations by an unidentified artist. An illustrated flier at hand from Carolyn Senter (Knitting Pretty, Box 19058, Cincinnati, OH 45219) offering handcrafted merino wool scarves in various colors, in four different Sherlockian designs, at $45.00 each. Jan 88 #6 "Holmes Away from Home" was an exhibition, assembled with the energetic help of Derham Groves ("Black Jack of Ballarat") at the State Library of Victoria in Melbourne from Dec. 7 to Jan. 31, honoring both Sherlock Holmes and Conan Doyle. The commemorative 56-page catalog (same title) is a true collectible, with contents including an Introduction by Tom Stix and articles by Richard Hughes, Jr., about his father (who founded The Baritsu Chapter of the BSI), by Derham Groves about early Australian productions of Sherlockian drama, and by Alec H. Chisholm about Conan Doyle's visit to Australia in 1920 and 1921. Copies of the catalog are available (from Sherlock Holmes Exhibition, attn: Jenni Boon, State Library of Victoria, 328 Swanston Street, Melbourne, Vic. 3000, Australia) for AU$14.00 postpaid (or AU$85.00 postpaid for a limited edition of 50 specially-bound copies with an signed original etching of the cover art by Leslie Sprague). Reported by Ron De Waal: COMIC CRIME, ed. by Earl F. Bargainnier (Bowling Green: Bowling Green State Univ. Popular Press, 1987; 195 pp. $28.95 cloth, also available in paper); with many references and a chapter by Barrie Hayne on "The Comic in the Canon: What's Funny About Sherlock Holmes? Joseph J. Eckrich (7793 Keswick Place, St. Louis, MO 63119) is trying to ascertain how many copies there might be of the numbered American variant of the BSI facsimile of BEETON'S CHRISTMAS ANNUAL (which bears a red-ink limitation statement stamped on the title page); my copy is number 118, and Joe would appreciate hearing from anyone whose copy bears a higher number. WHITE CHAPPEL, SCARLET TRACING, by Iain Sinclair (Uppingham: Goldmark, 1987; 210 pp.), is a novel involving antiquarian-book dealers, Jack the Ripper, and a hitherto-unknown first issue of A STUDY IN SCARLET. It's an interesting book, with atmosphere much more important than narrative, and the imagery is powerful and often unpleasant. Available for L12.50 from Rupert Books, 59 Stonefield, Bar Hill, Cambridge CB3 8TE, England. A preview (of sorts): John Thaw, who stars as Inspector Morse on "Mystery!" in February, will be seen (eventually) as Jonathan Small in Granada's "The Sign of Four". "We are not amused" is without doubt the most-often quoted statement by Queen Victoria. What was it that did not amuse Her Majesty? VCR 221 B BAKER STREET is the new VHS video game ($44.00 suggested retail) from VCR Enterprises, and it's nicely done. Based on the 1974 board game (D3957b), the video game follows the same format, with players following the clues in a race to be first with the solutions to ten mysteries. The VCR game includes a two-hour videocassette produced with humor, ingenuity, and broad acting appropriate to a game. Each of the ten games takes about an hour to play (Watson tells you to stop the tape at appropriate points to pursue the clues), and the overall concept is an interesting one. The game is seldom stocked by video stores, and is more likely to be found in toy or discount chains (where it may be in either the consumer electronics or the toy departments). Try: Toys R Us, Kaybee, K-Mart, Target, Waldenbooks, and Macy's. Also catalogs: Sears, Best, J. C. Penney, and Consumers Catalog Center. Feb 88 #1 Scuttlebutt from the Spermaceti Press EXPO '98: SHERLOCK HOLMES IN OMAHA, by Berkley Forsythe (Omaha: Simmons- Boardman Books, 1987; 173 pp., $5.95), brings Holmes and Watson to the great Trans-Mississippi Exposition, engaged to prevent the assassination of President McKinley (in which they are of course successful). The style is American, rather than Canonical, and there is plenty of swash and buckle, and some pawky humor on Watson's part. Available from the publisher (1809 Capitol Avenue, Omaha, NE 68102) (800-228-9670, and they take plastic). "We are not amused" (Jan 88 #6) was Queen Victoria's critical pronouncement on Gilbert and Sullivan's "H.M.S. Pinafore" in 1878, according to Joe Brown in an article in the Washington Post (Jan. 10, 1988). CRIME & MYSTERY: THE 100 BEST BOOKS, by H. R. F. Keating (London: Xanadu, 1987; 219 pp., L9.95) (New York: Carroll & Graf, 1987; 219 pp., $15.95), presents two pages of perceptive commentary on each of his selections, which extend from Edgar Allan Poe's TALES OF MYSTERY AND IMAGINATION (1868) to P. D. James' A TASTE FOR DEATH (1986). ACD is represented twice, by THE ADVENTURES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES and THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES. According to an article in the Hampshire Chronicle (Dec. 18, 1987), the Winchester Preservation Trust is planning to erect a plaque at the Black Swan Buildings in Winchester, the site of the Black Swan Hotel where Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson lunched with Violet Hunter in "The Copper Beeches." Housekeeping: I wound up with an extra of Jan 88 #5-6. This may be my printer's mistake, but if someone didn't receive that sheet, let me know. More housekeeping: according to my records, all my subscribers should have received my 1988 seasonal souvenir ("THE DELIRIOUS DREAM OF A DISORDERED BRAIN..."), either at the birthday festivities or with my Jan 88 mailing. If I missed someone, please let me know. British sculptor John Doubleday, whose life-size bronze statue of Sherlock Holmes will be unveiled at Meiringen on Sept. 10, led the four-man British team competing at the World Snow Festival in Switzerland at the end of January. The competition involved creating a sculpture out of a 16-foot cube of ice and snow, within a two-day period, according to the Jersey Evening Post (Jan. 21, 1988), and this year the British team chose Sherlock Holmes as their theme. The team's main concern, according to the article, was the lack of snow and the unusually high temperatures for this year's season, which may account for the lack of news about who won the contest. "Sherlock Holmes was left without a clue yesterday on his most embarrassing case: his own," according to the Glasgow Daily Record (Feb. 3, 1988). A sneak thief broke into a caravan [that's British for trailer] while Jeremy Brett was filming in Liverpool for the new Granada series, and stole a bag containing Brett's cheque book, silver-gilt watch, Conan Doyle stories, and three address books. One wonders if that book of stories was Brett's own annotated copy of the Canon, and whether the sneak thief realizes what the most valuable item in the bag was. Feb 88 #2 Original issues of Collier's are not easy to find, and a new edition of THE RETURN OF SHERLOCK HOLMES (New York: Mysterious Press, 1987; 304 pp., $25.00) offers a welcome opportunity to see Frederic Dorr Steele's fine illustrations, both color and black-and-white, and to read Andrew Malec's knowledgeable Introduction. The black-and-white art, unfortunately, is frequently overinked, obscuring the careful detail that can be as important in Steele's work as the strength of his portraits of Holmes and others in the Canon, but the volume is a good substitute for the original issues. The fine recording (by That's Entertainment Records) of the music composed by Patrick Gowers for the Granada television series (Dec 87 #6) will be released in the U.S. by Varese Sarabande Records (13006 Saticoy Street, North Hollywood, CA 91605); you can order direct, and the postpaid price is $9.98 for the LP or the cassette, and $15.98 for the compact disk. "Mention the name Sherlock Holmes to half a dozen men of Kent and you will be met with a puzzled stare," Kelvin I. Jones suggests in SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE KENT RAILWAYS (Rainham: Meresborough Books, 1987; 72 pp., L8.95). One might hope that in the centenary year Sherlock Holmes' fame would have spread even to Kent, but Jones, himself a man of Kent, has used his local expertise to investigate and identify the sites and surroundings of the six Canonical cases that are set in the county. The book is available in the U.S. from Magico Magazine (Box 156, New York, NY 10002), as is the third issue (46 pp.) of The Sherlockian, a journal edited by Jones. "It was just as well that his prairie training had given Jefferson Hope the ears of a lynx," according to the Canon. A North American lynx (*Lynx canadensis*), also called the Canadian lynx, is shown on a stamp issued this year by Can- Canada, but this may not be the lynx whose ears were donated to Hope. The lynx found in Utah and Nevada, according to bi- ologists, would be a different North American lynx (*Lynx rufus*), which is the bobcat shown on the U.S. stamp issued last year. A good article on the Canadian lynx will be found in the February issue of Smithsonian Magazine. "Among booksellers whose clients have more clearly defined tastes, the hands-down favorite tapes are old-time radio shows and anything having to do with Sherlock Holmes," according to a report on mystery-tape sales in the Jan. 15 issue of Publishers Weekly. It took a while to confirm, but the bisque porcelain miniature (3 inches high) of Mickey Mouse in Sherlockian costume (Jan 87 #5) is indeed the first in a monthly series from The Disney Miniature Collectors Club (The Disney Collection, Box 1797, Sherman Turnpike, Danbury, CT 06816) when you join the club. The miniatures (including the Sherlockian Mickey Mouse) each cost $11.45 postpaid until you cancel your membership. THE BERENSTAIN BEARS AND THE MISSING HONEY, by Stan and Jan Berenstain (New York: Random House, 1987; 32 pp., $1.95), is a "First Time Reader" with Brother and Sister Bear and their Cousin Fred in deerstalkers ("there's no case too hard, no case too tough, for the Bear Detectives and their hound dog, Snuff!"). Feb 88 #3 GREAT CASES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES (483 pp., bound in full leather) is the first volume in the monthly series of 50 titles in the "Franklin Library of Mystery Masterpieces" (Apr 87 #1 and Sep 87 #6). The book contains 19 of the 26 stories from the Franklin Library's THE BEST OF SHERLOCK HOLMES (D259b), with five new illustrations by Mitchell Hooks and a rear section reprinting many of Julian Wolff's Sherlockian maps. GREAT CASES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES is their free introductory offer, but succeeding volumes will each cost $32.00 postpaid unless you cancel your subscription. The Franklin Library's address is Franklin Center, PA 19091. "FOR SALE: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle built this house and lived there for 10 years, writing his Sherlock Holmes tales. Now in use as small hotel (14 rooms), with his monogram still on the gate and family crest in the foyer, it lies on three acres in beautiful town only 45 minutes from London." Write to Charles Bridger, "Little Witches," Fir Way, Grayshott, Hindhead, Surrey GU26 6JQ, England, if you're interested in purchasing a thoroughly Sherlockian *pied-a-terre* for your visits to Britain (there is still time, presumably, since the advertisement is from the Jan. 27, 1988, issue of the Princeton Alumni Weekly). The house is Undershaw, designed by and built for Conan Doyle, and he lived there from 1897 until he moved to Windlesham in 1907. David L. Hammer gives a fine description of the house in his FOR THE SAKE OF THE GAME (Gasogene Press, 1986). The U.S. has issued a set of four stamps showing domestic cats. And there are four mentions of domestic cats in the Canon. I won't identify them, since they can be found easily in Jack Tracy's THE ENCYCLOPAEDIA SHERLOCKIANA. You might, however, wish to try your hand at identifying a fifth cat mentioned in the Canon, one that is *not* cited by Tracy. Lions, tigers, lynxes, cheetahs, and ladies allusively named Catherine or Kate or Kitty will not be accepted as correct answers. Edward Wellen's pastiche "Voiceover" (which first appeared in 1984 in SHERLOCK HOLMES THROUGH TIME AND SPACE) has been reprinted in TIN STARS: ISAAC ASIMOV'S WONDERFUL WORLDS OF SCIENCE FICTION #5, edited by Isaac Asimov, Martin H. Greenberg, and Charles G. Waugh (New York: New American Library/Signet, 1986; 351 pp., $3.95). Renegade Press is reported to be aiming for wider distribution of its comic book CASES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES, with plans for having issue #12 (Mar 88) available in B. Dalton bookstores. The Disney Channel broadcast the Christopher Plummer version of "Silver Blaze" (D4608b) three times in February, and may have plans for March as well (the authorized videocassette costs a dismaying $99.00 from Learning Corporation of America). The Disney Channel also started weekly Sunday broadcasts of the Granada series on Feb. 21. Feb 88 #4 What sort of anthology would include contributions by Damon Runyon, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and Harlan Ellison? SOLVED! FAMOUS MYSTERY WRITERS ON CLASSIC TRUE-CRIME CASES, edited by Richard Glyn Jones (London: Xanadu, 1987; 317 pp., L11.95), offers a fine selection, ranging from Runyon's splendid newspaper reporting on the Snyder-Judd murder trial to Ellison's speculations on Jack the Ripper, and including Conan Doyle's "The Case of Mr. George Edalji". The book also includes a report by F. Tennyson Jesse on "The Trial of Madeleine Smith" with two uncredited portraits from the Illustrated London News, whose courtroom artist for the trial was Charles Altamont Doyle (see the letter by Herman Herst, Jr., in the BSJ, Mar. 1983, p. 41). Australia celebrated its bicentennial on Jan. 25, according to an article in the N.Y. Times (spotted by Jon L. Lellenberg). The celebration included melon-seed spitting competitions, a coal-shoveling championship, and a contest to see who can shout "cooee" the loudest. This year's British set honoring the 200th anniversary of the Linnean Society includes a stamp portraying a Bewick's swan (*Cygnus columbianus*). There are two mentions of swans in the Canon (in "The Abbey Grange" and "The Copper Beeches"), though stamps from Western Australia and Australia, where the black swan was first discovered, certainly would be a more appropriate match for "The Copper Beeches". "The bicycle craze seems to me to be only in its infancy," Dr. A. Conan Doyle suggested in the May 1895 issue of Demorest's Family Magazine, "for probably in time we shall witness the spectacle of our business men going to their offices mounted on the bicycle, instead of using the tramways." ON YOUR BICYCLE: AN ILLUSTRATED HISTORY OF CYCLING, by James McGurn (New York: Facts on File, 1987; 208 pp.), was written "in the belief that the role of cycling in the social history of the Western World has been sadly underestimated," and the book includes a photograph of Conan Doyle and his wife Louise on their tricycle at their home in South Norwood, and a caption with mention of Sherlock Holmes' expertise with cycle tyres. "Tricycling," McGurn notes, "was taken up by older, less athletic members of the respect- able professions, and was favoured by clergymen and doctors." Reported by Andrew Jay Peck, from the Hollywood trade press: Orion Pictures has acquired the North American distribution rights for "Sherlock and Me" (with Michael Caine and Ben Kingsley), and expects delivery of the print in July, in which case the film could open this fall. Nigel Davenport, who will play the Chancellor of the Exchequer, was seen as Conan Doyle in the 1972 television series "The Edwardians" (D4603b). James A. Linen, former publisher of Time and president of Time Inc., died on Feb 1. On June 20, 1949, Time reported (D1681b) on the decision by the British postal authorities to assign the address 221B Baker Street to the London Mystery Magazine, and to deliver Sherlock Holmes' mail to LMM editor Michael Hall. On Aug. 1, Linen reported proudly in "A Letter from the Publisher" (D1682b) that Hall had received more than 300 airmail letters and was now wondering what would happen when the boat mail began to arrive. Feb 88 #5 The videocassette of "The Masks of Death" (1984, with Peter Cushing) now costs only $19.95 (marked down from $79.95) from Lorimar Home Video, 5959 Triumph Street, Commerce, CA 90040 (800-323-5275). And the videocassette of "It's a Mystery, Charlie Brown" (D4614b) costs $11.95 from Kartes Video Communications, Box 68881, Indianapolis, IN 46268 (800-331-1387). Both firms take plastic. The success of the Granada series in Britain has launched a new series of tie-in paperbacks in 1987 from Grafton Books, each with a different color cover photograph. Available so far: A STUDY IN SCARLET (L2.50), THE SIGN OF FOUR (L2.50), and THE ADVENTURES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES (L2.95). German translations of the Canon continue to appear in attractive editions, including the series from Haffmans Verlag (Hubenstrasse 19, CH-8057 Zurich, Switzerland). Their latest is SHERLOCK HOLMES' BUCH DER FALLE (DM 34.00), with a cover illustration from "Der Mann mit dem geduckten Gang". Hugh Leonard's play "The Mask of Moriarty" was first produced during the Dublin Theatre Festival in 1985, with Tom Baker as Sherlock Holmes, and again in Leicester in 1987, with Geoffrey Palmer in the lead role. Ake Runnquist, who saw the play in Dublin, reported (in BSM, spring 1986) that it was "a clever mixture of genuine, faithfully absorbed Sherlockian atmo- sphere and cultural satire shading into outright burlesque, rocking the pedestal of the Master's bust back and forth in a rhythm that grew wilder and wilder." The script, accompanied by "A Playwright's Diary" in which Leonard gives an entertaining account of the birth and development of the play, is now available from Brophy Books (108 Sundrive Road, Dublin 12, Ireland) at L5.95 plus postage. My computer managed to garble part of the carefully stored copy for this issue of the information sheets (I'd admit that I managed to do that, if I had even the slightest idea of how it happened). Making a back-up copy of a garbled file gives you two copies of the garbled file. I refuse to admit there's anything important reported here, let alone missing, but tell me if there's something I was supposed to report, and haven't. Feb 88 #6 COMIC CRIME, edited by Earl F. Bargainnier (Bowling Green: Bowling Green State University Popular Press, 1987; 195 pp.), examines the use of comedy in crime fiction. That use has a long history: according to H.R.F. Keating, Wilkie Collins once gave as his formula for success the simple advice, "Make 'em laugh, make 'em weep, make 'em wait." Barry Hayne's essay on "The Comic in the Canon: What's Funny About Sherlock Holmes?" examines the comedic aspects of the stories, suggesting that "the Holmes Saga is fundamentally comic rather than tragic." British sculptor Malcolm Cooper has created a miniature series of "Great British Pubs" (about six inches high), including an attractive reproduction of "The Sherlock Holmes". The series is distributed in the U.S. by John Hine North American Limited (Box 8048, Blaine, WA 98230); they do not sell at retail, but you can call (800-663-8855) and ask who your local retailer is. The pub should cost from $100 to $110. THE CROWN VS. DR. WATSON, by Gerald Lientz, and THE DYNAMI- TERS, by Milt Creighton, are the 4th and 5th in the series of "Sherlock Holmes Solo Mysteries" devised by Iron Crown Enterpri- ses (New York: Berkley Books, 1988; $2.95 each). In THE CROWN VS. DR. WATSON the reader is a former member of the BSI, trying in early 1894 (without the assistance of Sherlock Holmes) to solve a murder in which the principal suspect is Dr. Watson. The authors now provide dead-end trails to trap the unwary, and there are at least two more titles planned for the series. Great Britain has issued the fourth and last in its series of booklets with covers commemorating the centenary of Sherlock Holmes' first appearance in print. It is interesting to note that the Royal Mail offers a discount for volume: the L1.00 booklet contains stamps worth L1.03. Mar 88 #1 Scuttlebutt from the Spermaceti Press John Thaw, who starred in "Inspector Morse" on "Mystery!" and who plays Jonathan Small in Granada's "The Sign of Four" (no word yet on the PBS-TV broadcast schedule) also appeared as Lieutenant Holst in "The Sensible Action of Lieutenant Holst" in the 1971 television series "The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes" -- and it would be nice indeed to see that series again, on the air or on videocassette. John Neville as Dr. John Thorndyke, Robert Stephens as Max Carados, Roy Dotrice as Simon Carne, Donald Pleasance as Carnacki, Douglas Wilmer as Prof. Augustus S. F. X. Van Dusen, Charles Gray as Eugene Valmont, Robin Ellis as Charlie Dallas, Derek Jacobi as William Drew, and many more fine actors, including Peter Barkworth as Martin Hewitt (you'll see Barkworth again, as Colonel Ross in Granada's "Silver Blaze"). The six stories issued in Britain by World International Publishing (BSJ Mar 87) have now been published here in one volume (SHERLOCK HOLMES), with the same interior illos (New York: Exeter Books, 1987; 285 pp., $3.98). Forecast: SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE CASE OF SABINA HALL, the second pastiche by L. B. Greenwood (author of SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE CASE OF THE RALEIGH LEGACY), from Simon and Schuster in June ($16.95). THE LITERATURE OF CRIME AND DETECTION: AN ILLUSTRATED HISTORY, by Waltraud Woeller and Bruce Cassi- day, from Crossroads/Continuum in March (220 pp., $24.50). THE NEW ADVEN- TURES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES, an audio cassette reissue of the double LP album (May 87 #2) with two 1945 Rathbone/Bruce radio broadcasts, from 221A Baker Street Associates (via Simon & Schuster) in June ($9.95). SKULLDUGGERY, by Peter Marks (Aug 87 #2), a paperback reprint from Carroll & Graf in August ($4.50). Ian Charnock's article on "The Elements of Holmes" in Police Review (Dec. 18, 1987) celebrated the centenary with a discussion of the police methods in the Canon, suggesting that the last word must be left with Inspector Lestrade: "He appears with Holmes in 13 cases and is wrong every time, but on one memorable occasion he leaves Holmes speechless." The occasion, of course, is the conclusion to "The Six Napoleons" which was handled nicely, you will recall, by Jeremy Brett and Colin Jeavons in the Granada series. The magazine's address is 14 St. Cross Street, London EC1N 8FE, England (L0.50). "The African Horror Stories of Conan Doyle", in the June 1987 issue of Westindian Digest, is an interesting discussion, not of Conan Doyle's fiction but rather of the impact of THE CRIME OF THE CONGO, both in 1909 and more recently: the article notes that excerpts from THE CRIME OF THE CONGO were published in Russian in Pravda in Dec. 1964 and in Inostrannaya Literatura in Feb. 1965, after the assassination of Patrice Lumumba. In a second article, on "Holmes at a Hundred", Nicholas Cole reports on the celebration of the centenary. The magazine is published from Tower House, 139-149 Fonthill Road, London N4 3HF, England (L0.50). I saw but I did not observe: THE FURTHER ADVENTURES OF SOLAR PONS, by Basil Copper (Chicago: Academy Chicago, 1987) (Jan 88 #5), is a collection of four stories, but the four stories in the reprint are not the same stories contained in the 1979 Pinnacle Books edition with the same title. Mar 88 #2 The winter 1988 issue of The Armchair Detective includes a two-page "Report from 221B Baker Street", by Sherry Rose-Bond and Scott Bond, with a lively report on their "Adventure of the Final Problem" tour through Europe in 1987. Their Sherlockian column will appear regularly in TAD, which is published quarterly at $20.00 a year (129 West 56th Street, New York, NY 10019). The same issue has Marvin Lachman's review of ROSS MACDONALD'S INWARD JOURNEY, edited by Ralph B. Sipper (New York: Mysterious Library, 1987; $8.95); the book includes "The Scene of the Crime" (a paper Macdonald delivered at the University of Michigan in 1954), in which (in an almost obscene reference, according to Lachman) Macdonald compares Sherlock Holmes to Himmler and Beria (part of Macdonald's idea that detection is an ignoble profession). Bjarne Nielsen (Antikvariat Pinkerton, Nansensgade 66, 1366 Kobenhavn K, Denmark) is continues to extend his interesting series of Sherlockiana. The latest is PINKERTON 22 (in Danish), with 40 pages of Sherlockian essays by Danish and Swedish writers (25 kroner). Earlier items still available include Henry Lauritzen's MY DEAR WATSON, translated into English (33 pp., 100 KR); Bjarne's EN STUDIE I RODT, in Danish (12 pp., 40KR); and Bjarne's SHERLOCK HOLMES IN DENMARK, a checklist of Danish editions of the Canon and Danish writings about the writings (66 pp., 80KR). Charles Edward Pogue's connections with Sherlock Holmes began in 1980, when he played Mordecai Smith in the Charlton Heston/Jeremy Brett production of "The Crucifer of Blood" in Los Angeles. He also wrote the screenplays for the 1983 Ian Richardson films "The Hound of the Baskervilles" and "The Sign of Four", and his new play "The Ebony Ape" was produced in Lexington, Ky., in Sept. 1987. If you'd like to see the show ("a Sherlock Holmes play of Victorian horror and bizarre mystery"), you might suggest that your local theater company contact Pogue (c/o Hotspur, Inc. (2729 Westshire Drive, Hollywood, CA 90068). The 37th running of The Silver Blaze at Belmont will be held on Saturday, Sept. 24. If you would like to be on the mailing list, write to Richard A. Wein, 65 Briarwood Lane, Plainview, NY 11803. Richard also reports that a black-and-white poster (16x24 in.) is available from the 1987 production of "The Ebony Ape" (Mar 88 #2). $6.00 postpaid from the Actors' Guild of Lexington, Box 22517, Lexington, KY 40522. The Fourth International Crime Writers Congress will be held in New York, May 9-13, 1988, with events running from an opening reception hosted by the Mysterious Press at the N.Y. Public Library on May 9 to a cocktail party hosted by the Mystery Guild at Gracie Mansion on May 13 (and including the Edgar Awards Banquet on May 12). Detailed information available from the Mystery Writers of America (attn: Congress), 236 West 27th Street #600, New York, NY 10001). I know of few Sherlockian societies that have handy-dandy fliers intended to offer neophytes an explanation of how our strange world works. One of the best I've seen is the Informational Issue of Plugs & Dottles, published by The Hansoms of John Clayton. If you would like a copy, send a #10 SASE to Robert C. Burr, 4010 Devon Lane, Peoria, IL 61614. Mar 88 #3 Formal announcement at hand from the Swiss National Tourist Office (Swiss Centre, New Coventry Street, London W1V 8EE, England) of the next tour to Switzerland, on Sept. 8-12, to celebrate the unveiling of the life-size statue of Sherlock Holmes in the main square of Meiringen. Victorian costume required, as now seems to be traditional for Sherlockian group-visits to Switzerland. Reported by Brian R. MacDonald: a one-page article on Sherlock Holmes in the Dec 87/Jan 88 issue of Heritage ($4.50). SCARLET IN GASLIGHT #2 (Eternity Comics, $1.95). SHERLOCK HOLMES (Firebird, $7.99); a computer game (at Waldenbooks). MYSTERY OF THE MAGICIAN, by Elizabeth Howard (Random House, $3.95); a 16-year-old girl with a passion for Holmes is involved in a mystery about Houdini. RETURN OF MORIARTY, by John Gardner (Berkley, $3.50); a reprint with a new cover. B MOVIES, by Don Miller (Ballantine, $4.95); with some text and one photo of Holmes. The Metropolitan Toronto Reference Library celebrated the centenary with an exhibition that opened on Dec. 4 and closed on Feb. 15. There are extra copies of the 18-page catalog (CRIME AFTER CRIME: SHERLOCK HOLMES TO BENNY COOPERMAN), and you can send your request to Cameron Hollyer, Metropolitan Toronto Reference Library, 789 Yonge Street, Toronto, Ont. M4W 2G8, Canada. Reported by Don Pollock: "The Measurement of Meaning: Sherlock Holmes in Pursuit of the Marlboro Man", by Eduardo G. Camargo, in MARKETING AND SEMIOTICS, edited by Jean Umiker-Sebeok (Mouton, 1987). It is unlikely, though not impossible, that as many books about Jack the Ripper will be published in 1988 as there were about Sherlock Holmes in 1987, but the best book about Jack the Ripper is already in print: THE COMPLETE JACK THE RIPPER, by Donald Rumbelow (London: W. H. Allen, 1987; 305 pp., L14.95). First published in 1975 (D2255b), the book has now been revised and expanded for a second edition. Why is it the best book about Jack the Ripper? Donald Rumbelow is a City of London police officer who has had access to all the official files on the case. And he is a fine writer. And, perhaps most important, he does not attempt to identify Jack the Ripper. What he does, and does well, is present all of the facts and discuss all of the theories, pointing out how each of the theorists has suffered from ignorance or neglect of those facts. Rumbelow also offers brief coverage of suggestions by Conan Doyle and Dr. Joseph Bell, and of relevant Sherlockian pastiches, but the real value of the book lies in his careful analysis of the facts and fantasies about Jack the Ripper. Jack the Ripper will also be on American television this year, according to a newspaper report forwarded by Ted Schulz. The four-part mini-series from Thames Television (which Michael Caine will make after he finishes work on the film "Sherlock and Me") has been purchased by CBS for $6.1 million. THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA is in print as well as on Broadway, in a paperback reprint of Gaston Leroux's novel (London: W. H. Allen/Star Book, 1986; 265 pp., L2.95), with a Foreword by Peter Haining and reprints of two articles about the Phantom's Sherlockian connections: David M. Rush's "Holmes and the Opera Ghost" (D4170a) and Barbara Goldfield's "Sherlock Holmes Meets the Living Corpse" (D4158a). Mar 88 #4 Billy Wilder's "The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes" (1970) is one of the more interesting Sherlockian films, because of the imagination of the man who conceived and directed it, and because the uncut and unreleased version of the film continues to be the focus of a search by those who want to see the realization of a work that is now available only in copies of the production script. BILLY WILDER IN HOLLYWOOD, by Maurice Zolotow (New York: Limelight Editions, 1987; 396 pp., $12.95), was first published in 1977 (D4227b) and has been revised and expanded for a second edition; the book presents an appreciative examination of Wilder's life and career, as well as a valuable account of the history of his contribution to Sherlockian cinema. Paxton Whitehead, who played Holmes in "The Crucifer of Blood" (D4430b), can be seen as Albert, the butler, in the syndicated television series "Marblehead Manor". Another new syndicated series called "T and T" stars Mr. T (formerly of the A-Team) as a lawyer-detective, wearing (in the print advertisements, anyway) a deerstalker. LOST WORLDS IN TIME, SPACE AND MEDICINE: THE SCIENCE FICTION OF ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE, by Alvin E. Rodin and Jack D. Key (Beavercreek: KeyRod Literary Enterprises, 1988; 102 pp., $15.95 postpaid), is an examination of five novels and ten short stories in the genre, including two Canonical tales, with illustrations reprinted from the first magazine appearances (and a fine contemporary portrait of Prof. William Rutherford, who was acknowledged by Conan Doyle as a source for Prof. Challenger). Two earlier titles are still available: ADVENTURING IN ENGLAND WITH DOCTOR ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE, by Rodin and Key (BSJ Mar 87), $13.00 postpaid; and APHORISMS OF SHERLOCK HOLMES, by Key and Rodin (BSJ Sep 87), $7.95 postpaid. The pub- lisher's address is 3041 Maginn Drive, Beavercreek, OH 45385. The Valley Railroad (Railroad Avenue, Essex, CT 06426) has two mystery excursions planned this year: "Murder on the 20th Century Limited" on May 14, featuring Pam and Jerry North (New York, 1946); and "Adventure Aboard the Aberdonian Arrow" on Sept. 10, featuring Sherlock Holmes (England and Scotland, 1889). The Valley Railroad is a nicely restored steam line in the Connecticut Valley, where some years ago The Cornish Horrors chartered the train for a meeting that included Chris Steinbrunner's thoroughly appropriate on-board screening of "Terror by Night". A British report from Roger Johnson: PAST FORGETTING, by Peter Cushing (Weidenfeld & Nicolson, L9.95); the second volume of his autobiography, with much about his S'ian films. THE REVENGE OF THE HOUND, by Michael Hardwick (Weidenfeld & Nicolson, L10.95); the British edition. SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE EMINENT THESPIAN, by Val Andrews (Ian Henry, L8.25, due in March). THE KENTISH MANOR MURDERS, by Julian Symons (Macmillan, L9.95, due in April); a sequel to A THREE-PIPE PROBLEM. MY DEAREST HOLMES, by Rohase Piercy (Gay Men's Press, L3.95, due in April). THE NEW ADVENTURES OF SHER- LOCK HOLMES, edited by Martin Harry Greenberg (Arlington, L11.95, due in April); the British edition. Dawn Williams (Schweinfurt American Elementary School, APO New York, 09033) is offering to sell her Sherlock Holmes and Conan Doyle collection: about 70 books, plus Strand and Windsor magazines. Write for her list. Mar 88 #5 WRITERS FOR CHILDREN: CRITICAL STUDIES OF THE MAJOR AUTHORS SINCE THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY, edited by Jane M. Bingham (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1988; 661 pp., $90.00), is a massive work, with critical essays and bibliographies on 84 important authors in the genre. Mary Weichsel Ake's seven-page discussion of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle concentrates on the Canon, with mention of some of the better imitators, including Walter Brooks, Robert Quackenbush, Eve Titus, and Robert Newman. Available from the publisher (800-257-5755); shipping $3.00 extra. Reported by Ron De Waal: SILENT MAGIC: REDISCOVERING THE SILENT FILM ERA, by Ivan Butler (New York: Ungar, 1988; 208 pp., $24.95); attractively printed and illustrated, with comments on some of the Sherlockian silents. BAKER STREET PORTRAITS has emerged from the Pequod Press bindery, with 36 pages and 25 Sherlockian "four-second snapshot" quatrains, some new and some selected from earlier alphabet books, all reset in 24-point Type Roman ("although it is only a naive domestic type without any breeding, we are sure you will be amused by its presumption"). Order from John Ruyle, 521 Vincente Avenue, Berkeley, CA 94707; $28.00 cloth or $14.00 paper. THE HOLIDAY ADVENTURES OF ACHBAR, by Barbara Sofer, illustrated by Nina Gaelen (Rockville: Kar-Ben Copies, 1983; 63 pp., $4.95 postpaid), is a children's book in which Achbar the mouse (in deerstalker) helps solve "The Rosh Hashannah Riddle" and other mysteries involving Jewish holidays. The publisher is at 6800 Tildenwood Lane, Rockville, MD 20852 (800-452-7236), and they take plastic. Charlotte Erickson's 14-page checklist of SHERLOCK HOLMES IN THE COMIC BOOKS (1985) is still available ($3.00 postpaid), as is the 12-page illustrated INVENTORY OF 221B BAKER STREET, LOCATED AT S. HOLMES, ESQUIRE (Oct 87 #5) ($6.00 postpaid). Order from Charlotte Erickson, 726 Sutter Street, Palo Alto, CA 94303. Our S'ian grapevine is truly world-wide: the miniature of "The Sherlock Holmes" (Feb 88 #6) was first reported from Germany, by Richard R. Rutter, who provided the photograph. A new three-page flier at hand from Ilene Fauer (US2, 563 Clinton Road, Paramus, NJ 07652), with an ever-expanding list of "Sherlockian Shopping" that includes many intriguing items (such as a yellow-diamond "Sherlockian on Board" sign for the rear window of your car). THE NEW ADVENTURES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES: ORIGINAL STORIES BY EMINENT MYSTERY WRITERS, edited by Martin Harry Greenberg and Carol-Lynn Rossel Waugh, was well-received when it was published here last year, and it is now available in a British edition (London: Arlington Books, 1988; 345 pp., L11.95), with a new dust jacket with a Sherlockian portrait by Slatter-Anderson. Videocassettes reported from Coronet/MTI Film & Video, 108 Wilmot Road, Deerfield, IL 60015-9925 (800-621-2132): "My Dear Uncle Sherlock" (D4619b) at $79.00; "Mr. Magoo: Man of Mystery" (includes D6098b) at $24.95; and "Sherlock Holmes Series" (the four Australian animations with Peter O'Toole) at $19.95 each. Mar 88 #6 "Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, who invented Sherlock Holmes, believed so firmly in the power of thought that he always said that if he walked down the road saying: 'I am the Prime Minister! I am the Prime Minister!' people would look at him and say: 'There is the Prime Minister!' I asked his son Dennis, who was a friend of mine, if this was true and he said: 'I once asked my father if I said I was invisible whether I would be.' 'What did your father reply?' I enquired. 'He said: "No one would notice you!"'" From GROWING OLDER, GROWING YOUNGER, by Barbara Cartland (New York: Dodd, Mead & Co., 1984). Marvin P. Epstein ("Count Negretto Sylvius") died on Mar. 22. He was an enthusiastic collector, first of detective fiction in general, and then concentrating on Sherlockiana, seeking out the rare and unusual: first editions in dust jackets, original artwork, the manuscript of "The Priory School", and kinescope film of the 1957 "Odyssey" television program about the BSI. He sold much of his collection in 1985, but continued to collect (it was Marv who purchased the splendid copy of Beeton's that came onto the market last year), demonstrating that a true collector can never retire. The Cleveland Convention Center will be the site of the International Superman Exposition on June 16-19, and on June 18 there will be a parade with the theme of "Legends" -- and Mrs. Hudson's Lodgers of Cleveland will join the parade with a float honoring the legendary detective Sherlock Holmes. Additional information available from The Stetaks, 15529 Diagonal Road, Nickle Plate, La Grange, OH 44050. The cover story on Superman in Time (Mar. 14) quotes Harlan Ellison's estimate that there are only five fictional creations known in practically every part of the earth: Tarzan, Sherlock Holmes, Mickey Mouse, Robin Hood, and Superman. Reported: CARTOON MOVIE STARS: DAFFY (a videocassette in a yellow box with Daffy Duck in sunglasses on the cover, from Warner Brothers at $14.95); the cartoons include "The Great Piggy Bank Robbery" (1945), with Daffy as "Duck Twacy" and with a brief caricature of Basil Rathbone as Sherlock Holmes. Advertised at $14.95 (#786885 VHS and #786887 Beta) by Publishers Central Bureau (catalog 338), One Champion Avenue, Avenel, NJ 07001. Britain's intelligence agencies do not trust each other, according to a report from Reuter in the Washington Post (Mar. 18). Lord Carver, who commanded the armed services in the 1970s, said during a debate in the House of Lords on secret-service recruitment and enforcement of the lifetime vow of secrecy made by intelligence agents that in his dealings with intelligence agencies he found an "obsession with secrecy" that resulted in a lack of cooperation. And, he added, he had come across many amateurish intelligence officers: "Their work sometimes savored of Sherlock Holmes, Richard Hannay, Bulldog Drummond, or even James Bond." The spring 1986 issue of the Rex Stout Journal at hand, with Marvin Kaye's "From Zeck to Moriarty to Wild" (based on a lecture at the Third Nero Wolfe Assembly in New York on Dec. 5, 1981); the RSJ is edited and published by John McAleer (Mount Independence, 121 Follen Road, Lexington, MA 02173) and costs $7.50 a year (two issues). Apr 88 #1 SHERLOCK HOLMES MEETS ANNIE OAKLEY, by Stanley Shaw (London: W. H. Allen, 1986; 158 pp., L9.95), involves Holmes and Watson with Annie Oakley, Frank Butler, Arizona John Burke, some Royal Russians, and Princess Victoria in 1887, during the London appearance of Buffalo Bill Cody's Wild West Show. It's a pleasant pastiche, by the author of SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE 1902 FIFTH TEST MATCH (BSJ Mar 86), and probably still in print; British books tend to stay in print far longer than American books (which sometimes seem to be remaindered a week after publication), and that's why I occasionally report on older British items. Silent screen star Colleen Moore died on Jan. 25. She starred with John Barrymore in "The Lotus Eaters" and with Wallace Beery in "So Big", and owned one of the world's grandest doll houses, with a library that includes on its shelves a miniature book signed by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Cases of Sherlock Holmes #12 ("The Adventure of Silver Blaze") is now out from Renegade Press (2705 East 7th Street, Long Beach, CA 90804). Almost all back issues are available ($2.00 each), and you can subscribe to the comic book ($13.00 a year for 6 issues, or $25.00 for 12 issues). I can't remember (or find) a report on a Sherlock Holmes plate from The Bradford Exchange, but they have announced that the plate "has now been discontinued because of production difficulties." "Hey Kids! Be a Winner! Help Fight M.S.!" The Multiple Sclerosis Readathon campaign is still using the dog in Sherlockian costume, seen most recently on Flav-o-Rich milk cartons. MIHU THE DETECTIVE AND THE MYSTERY OF THE BLUE BUDGIE, by Chaiky Halpern (Jerusalem: Feldheim Publishers, 1987), is the second title in a series of children's books featuring Mihu in Sherlockian costume (the first was MIHU THE DETECTIVE AND THE MYSTERY OF THE MISSING CHAMATZ in 1979). Both titles are available from Philipp Feldheim Publishers, 200 Airport Executive Park, Spring Valley, NY 10977; $2.50 each, postpaid. MY DEAREST HOLMES, by Rohase Piercy (London: Gay Men's Press, 1988; 142 pp., L3.95), is an intriguing book: it is homosexual in its intellectual and emotional approach, but it is neither erotic nor pornographic. It is a two-part pastiche, with the first half presenting Watson's account of a new case in 1887, and the second offering a thoroughly revised report on the events that preceded and followed the fateful journey to the Reichenbach. The new 25-cent envelopes, with printed return address, are available for $136.90 per box of 500 #10 envelopes (which is value for money, considering the cost of envelopes and the nuisance of sticking on your own postage and return labels). You can get an order form at your local post office, or by writing to the Stamped Envelope Agency, Williamsburg, VA 16693-0500. People writing to Canada should keep in mind that the U.S. postal service has retaliated against the Canadian postal service's decision to charge more for letters to the U.S. than for letters within Canada. Letters from the U.S. to Canada now cost 30 cents for the first ounce, plus 22 cents for each additional ounce (compared to 25 cents and 20 cents within the U.S.). Apr 88 #2 The current catalog from Audio Editions (Box 998, Burlingame, CA 94011) has six two-cassette sets at $16.95 each: THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES (read by Hugh Burden) (D4671b), A STUDY IN SCARLET (Tony Britton), THE SIGN OF FOUR (Tony Britton), FOUR SHERLOCK HOLMES STORIES (Robert Hardy), MEMOIRS OF SHERLOCK HOLMES (four stories, Robert Hardy), and THE RETURN OF SHERLOCK HOLMES (four stories, Robert Hardy). Shipping extra, and they take plastic (800-231-4261). Other audio cassettes are listed in the current catalog from Books on Tape, Box 7900, Newport Beach, CA 92658 (800-626-3333); they take plastic. Read by Richard Green: THE ADVENTURES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES, on ten 90-minute cassettes ($15.50 rental/$56.00 purchase); and THE MEMOIRS OF SHERLOCK HOLMES, on eight 60-minute cassettes ($14.50/$64.00). Jimcin recordings read by Walter Covell: A STUDY IN SCARLET, on five 60-minute cassettes ($11.50/$40.00); THE SIGN OF THE FOUR, on five 60-minute cassettes ($11.50/ $40.00); THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES, on six 60-minute cassettes ($12.50/ $48.00); THE RETURN OF SHERLOCK HOLMES, on eight 90-minute cassettes ($15.50/$64.00). Jimcin recording of short stories read by Walter Covell, Walter Zimmerman, Jack Benson, and Cindy Hardin on sixteen single cassettes ($9.95 each, purchase only). Read by Basil Rathbone: SHERLOCK HOLMES SOUNDBOOK [presumably the Caedmon set], on four cassettes ($29.95 purchase only). Read by Hugh Burden: THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES [presumably D4671b], on two cassettes ($13.95 purchase only). More audio cassettes: FAMOUS CASES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES (D4689b) on six cassettes, read by John Brewster ($39.95) from Listening Library, One Park Avenue, Old Greenwich, CT 06870. Catalog at hand from Opportunities for Learning (20417 Nordhoff Street, Chatsworth, CA 91311) with an assortment of school materials, including a filmstrip-on-videocassette ($96.00) of ADVENTURES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES (four cases adapted by David Eastman and illustrated by Allan Eitzen, published as booklets by Troll Associates in 1982), a computer game for Commodore or Apple ($49.95) called SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE MASTERS OF MYSTERY, and book- and-audiocassette sets of Canonical titles and association items such as Marjorie Weinman Sharmat's NATE THE GREAT (D5335b) and NATE THE GREAT AND THE MISSING KEY, and Stan and Jan Berenstain's THE BEAR DETECTIVES. Other filmstrip-audiocassette packages in current catalogs: THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES ($55.00), THE RED-HEADED LEAGUE ($32.00), and THE SPECKLED BAND ($32.00) from Listening Library, 1 Park Avenue, Old Greenwich, CT 06870. SHERLOCK HOLMES CLIFFHANGERS ($139.95), SHERLOCK HOLMES' GREATEST CASES ($139.95) and THE SHERLOCK HOLMES SPELLBINDERS ($139.95) from Spoken Arts, Box 289, New Rochelle, NY 10802. SHERLOCK HOLMES' GREATEST CASES ($139.95), UNSOLVED MYSTERIES ($179.00), and READING COMPREHENSION SKILLS (using S'ian artwork, $159.00) from Society for Visual Education, 1345 Diversey Parkway, Chicago, IL 60614 (800-621-1900). Two more filmstrips-on-cassette: CLASSIC CHARACTERS (includes "RedH", $99.00) from Society for Visual Education, 1345 Diversey Parkway, Chicago, IL 60614 (800-621-1900); and ADVENTURES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES (four stories, $96.00) from Charles Clark Co., 170 Keyland Court, Bohemia, NY 11716 (800-247-7009). Apr 88 #3 Reported from Encyclopaedia Britannica Educational Corp., 425 North Michigan Avenue, Chicago, IL 60611 (800-554-9862): sound filmstrips of "The Hound of the Baskervilles" ($39.00) and "Scenes from The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes" ($39.00); these appear to be adaptations of the Classic Comics versions. And a sound filmstrip or videocassette of "The Adventure of the Speckled Band" ($39.00). Reported by Tyke Niver: a special limited edition (only 15,000 copies) of a minia- ture group from "The Great Mouse Detect- ive" (showing Basil, Dawson, and Olivia), from The Disney Collection, Sherman Turn- pike, Danbury, CT 06816; $57.50 postpaid. Further to the report (Feb 88 #1) on the World Snow Festival in Switzerland: the S'ian entry (a 20-foot-high seated statue of Holmes) came in second in the popular judging (the German team won, with a huge ski boot), and placed fifth in the offi- cial judging (the Swiss team won, with an abstract of ten arches representing each decade of winter sports). And the Japan Times reported (Feb. 6) that a massive sculpture of Sherlock Holmes was one of 285 statues displayed at the Snow Festival in Sapporo. The blurb reads: "Story of the Crime Which Was Carried Out With the Hope of an Honest Achievement--The Book That Described the Wolf and the Lamb, and Its Sequel--Pursuit of the Gang That Was Set to Work to Protect the Future Happiness of a Woman--Famous Detective Confesses to an Inclination to Compound a Felony." Which Sherlock Holmes story does this describe? DAS ZEICHEN DER VIER is the latest in the series of new German translations of the Canon from Haffmans Verlag (Feb 88 #5). The new volume costs DM 26.00 and is available from the publisher (Hubenstrasse 19, CH-8057 Zurich, Switzerland). New paperback reprints: THE GIANT RAT OF SUMATRA (D4847b), by Richard L. Boyer (London: Grafton Books, 1987; 256 pp., L2.95). SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE CASE OF THE RALEIGH LEGACY, by L. B. Greenwood (New York: St. Martin's Press, 1987; 184 pp. $2.95). THE RETURN OF MORIARTY (D4931b with new cover art), by John Gardner (New York: Berkley Books, 1988; 290 pp., $3.50). Check your local supermarket bookshelves for a new Little Golden Book: DETECTIVE MICKEY MOUSE (Racine: Western Publishing Co., 1985); Mickey in S'ian costume. Reported by Ron De Waal: "Sherlock Holmes Centenary" in TWENTIETH-CENTURY LITERARY CRITICISM: ARCHIVE VOLUME (VOL. 26), edited by Dennis Poupard (Gale Research Co., 1988; $92.00), with 63 pp. of excerpts from criticism by Baring-Gould, Hardwick, Roberts, Eyles, Nordon, Starrett, and others (available from the publisher at Book Tower, Detroit, MI 48226). Apr 88 #4 The spring 1988 issue of the I/R Newsletter offers a new group of four unpainted 54-mm figures (Holmes, Watson, Mrs. Hudson, and Wiggins) at $5.95 each. I/R is Imrie/Risley Miniatures (Box 89, Burnt Hills, NY 12027); their earlier (summer 1983) offering of four different figures (Holmes, Watson, Moriarty, and Lestrade, at $5.95 each) and a three-figure grouping of Holmes, Watson, and the Hound of the Baskervilles ($14.95) are still available. Helen Imrie also was the artist for the fine Holmes and Watson figurines in pewter (D4883a). An unofficial report from PBS-TV: "The Sign of Four" is not included in their spring schedule (through July 7), nor in their schedule of summer repeats (through Aug. 25), but they expect to repeat the six programs in "The Return of Sherlock Holmes". Reported by Jerry Margolin: a Sherlockian-films theme issue of Files Magazine, published by Pop Cult Inc./New Media Inc., 11586 Vimyrd, Granada Hills, CA 91344; $6.95. The spring 1988 catalog at hand from The Mysterious Bookshop, with a section of in-print S'iana. 129 West 56th Street, New York, NY 10019. The Longman Classics series (Harlow: Longman, 1987) now includes two volumes of stories, adapted for younger readers, each with 58 pp., three stories, study questions, and color photographs from the Granada series. THREE ADVENTURES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES (Spec, Five, and Bery) is a new edition of D322b and costs L1.30. THE RETURN OF SHERLOCK HOLMES (SixN, Norw, and Gold) costs L1.20. Mel Ruiz reports that The House of Canes and Walking Sticks (Jan 88 #5) has moved to 5628 Vineland Avenue, North Hollywood, CA 91601 (818-769-4007); they have no bronze heads left, and only one aluminum one, and it will take at least six months to get new stock. GOOD OLD INDEX, by William D. Goodrich (Dubuque: Gasogene Press, 1988; 247 pp., $29.95 postpaid from the publisher, Box 1041, Dubuque, IA 52004-1041), is an expanded version of the "Sherlock Holmes Reference Guide" published from 1975 through 1980 in the first 24 issues of Baker Street Miscellanea, and it is welcome indeed. Keyed to the 1960 (and still current) edition of THE COMPLETE SHERLOCK HOLMES, the new index covers far more ground than Jay Finley Christ's AN IRREGULAR GUIDE TO SHERLOCK HOLMES OF BAKER STREET (which was keyed to Doubleday's 1936 edition of the Canon), offering not only an exhaustive listing of the people, places, and objects to be found in the Sacred Writings, but also a wide-ranging selection of categories that will be as indispensable to serious scholars as to people desperately trying to recall the Canonical reference to the cock pheasant that appears on the new 25-cent postage stamp that was issued on Apr. 29. "The newest attraction in the Walt Disney World Village will always remain a mystery," according to an advertisement in the Wall Street Journal (Apr. 4) for the Grosvenor Resort, which is featuring its Sherlock Holmes Museum in its Baskerville's Restaurant. Call 800-624-4109 for a hotel brochure. The Grosvenor Resort is a 630-room hotel purchased last year by Don Werby (proprietor of S. Holmes Esq. in San Francisco). Apr 88 #5 The Apr. 15 discount-books catalog from Edward R. Hamilton (Falls Village, CT 06031) has some new bargains: THE DANCING MEN, by Duncan Kyle (non-S'ian except for the title) at $2.95; YOU CAN FOOL ALL OF THE PEOPLE ALL THE TIME, by Art Buchwald (with one of his S'ian columns) at $3.95; THE CLERIHEWS OF PAUL HORGAN (with a S'ian clerihew) at $3.95); A CHILD OF THE CENTURY, by Ben Hecht (his autobiography, with men- tion of his admiration for SH) at $9.95; THE ENCYCLOPAEDIA SHERLOCKIANA, by Jack Tracy (a new reprint from Avenel) at $7.95; SHERLOCK HOLMES: THE LONG STORIES (a Galley Press reprint of the John Murray edition) at $7.95. Milton Caniff died on Apr. 3. He created the comic strips "Terry and the Pirates" and "Steve Canyon" (and included a S'ian dream sequence in the "Steve Canyon" strip from July 21 through Oct. 8, 1985). When William Gillette's first "farewell tour" in "Sherlock Holmes" played at the Hartman Theater in Columbus, Ohio, Caniff was studying for a fine arts degree at Ohio State University and working for the Columbus Dispatch, where his portrait of Gillette as Holmes was published on Apr. 4, 1930. Our circulation department reports that the in- crease in postage costs has been offset by a slightly lower rate from our printer, and that our annual subscription price will remain at $8.00 for six or more pages a month of whatever gossip I find appropriate. However: the print- out (now 44 pages) of the file of Sherlockian societies will now cost $2.75 postpaid. Super-VHS (the high-fidelity and high-priced new VCR generation) will soon have some pre-recorded videocassettes available, with ten tapes to be produced by Super Source Video in San Francisco. Two of the tapes will be "Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon" and "Dressed to Kill" (be- cause those films, like the other eight, are in the public domain). I.A.L. Diamond, who won an Oscar for his screen- play for "The Apartment", died on Apr. 21. He worked with Billy Wilder on many of his films, including "The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes" (1970), on which Diamond shared the screenplay credit with Wilder. There's a good article about the "Take a Bite out of Crime" public-service campaign in the April issue of Smithsonian. The name of the dog was chosen in a contest in which the most fre- quent suggestion was "Shure-lock Bones" -- but the winner was "McGruff". Apr 88 #6 SILENT MAGIC: REDISCOVERING THE SILENT FILM ERA, by Ivan Butler (New York: Ungar, 1988; 208 pp., $24.00), is an entertaining commentary, with splendid photographs, by an enthusiast who saw his first film in 1915. His discussion includes "A Study in Scarlet" (1914), "The Hound of the Baskervilles" (1921), "Sherlock Holmes" (1922), "The Fires of Fate" (1923), "Sherlock Jr." (1924), and "The Lost World" (1925). "Sherlock Holmes Inspects the Hamlet Spectre", by Archibald W. Harris III [Robert F. Fleissner], combines a Sherlockian pastiche with Shakespearean scholarship, in the premier issue of the Shakespeare Inc. Quarterly ($25.00 a year from Shakespeare Inc., Box 3955, Rockefeller Center Station, New York, NY 10185. I receive occasional requests for a source for in-print British books: try Blackwell's (Broad Street, Oxford OX1 3BQ, England); they provide good service, and you can open an account, or they'll take plastic (Mastercard or Visa). The Sherlock Holmes Society of Australia has issued a handsome lapel pin, with a silhouette of Holmes superimposed on an outline map of Australia. $10.00 (US) postpaid from Alan C. Olding, P.O. Box 13, Stirling, S.A. 5152, Australia. Brad Keefauver reports a delightful discovery at Toys R Us: a Glow-in-the- Dark Slithering Snake for use in show-and-tell discussions of "The Speckled Band". Four inches of plastic snake on a three-foot rod, price $1.38, and "the best part is, if you wonder how the snake got back up, all you have to do is turn the stick over." The spring 1988 issue of Three Rivers News (published by the Carnegie Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, 4724 Baum Boulevard, Pittsburgh, PA 15213) reports on the availability of the Canon on recorded cassettes and disks and in large-print and Braille books. Also available on recorded disks are Conan Doyle's BEYOND THE CITY, THE DOINGS OF RAFFLES HAW, TALES OF TERROR AND MYSTERY, and UNCOLLECTED STORIES: THE UNKNOWN CONAN DOYLE. The National Library Service (run by the Library of Congress) now includes more than 160 regional and subregional libraries. There were two brief clips from "The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes" in the Billy Wilder retrospective that preceded his receiving the Irving G. Thalberg award during the Oscar ceremonies on Apr. 12. British comedian Kenneth Williams died on Apr. 15. He played Sir Henry Baskerville in the film of "The Hound of the Baskervilles" (1978), with Peter Cook and Dudley Moore. The blurb (Apr 88 #3) was for "The Three Gables" (in the Washington Sunday Star on Feb. 13, 1927). Granada's "The Devil's Foot" was broadcast in Britain on Apr. 6, 1988, with Jeremy Brett's "new" Holmes. Three more one-hour shows ("Silver Blaze", "Wisteria Lodge", and "The Bruce-Partington Plans") followed, with "The Hound of the Baskervilles" due in two parts this fall. May 88 #1 Scuttlebutt from the Spermaceti Press ON THE SCENT WITH SHERLOCK HOLMES, by Walter Shepherd (Bloomington: Gas- light Publications, 1987; 85 pp., $15.95 postpaid from the publisher, 112 East Second, Bloomington, IN 47401), is an imaginative description of the London of Sherlock Holmes, and Holmes himself, as evoked by the scents and sounds of his era. The book is an expansion of the first two chapters of a volume by Shepherd published in 1978, with the same title. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's enthusiasm for sport extended to cricket, and his "The Story of Spedegue's Dropper" has been included in THE BOUNDARY BOOK: SECOND INNINGS, edited by Leslie Frewin (London: Pelham Books, 1986; 384 pp., L14.95). The story is to some extent autobiographical: in MEMORIES AND ADVENTURES he tells how he was once bowled by A. P. Lucas with just such a "dropper" and concludes, "I spent the rest of the day wondering gloomily what I ought to have done--and I am wondering yet." More Sherlockian philately: the new 25-cent stamps were designed by Chuck Ripper and feature a cock pheasant on the stamp and the booklet cover (which was also designed by Ripper). Further to the report (Mar 88 #2) on handy-dandy fliers intended to offer neophytes an explanation of how our strange world works, The Bootmakers of Toronto also offer a well-produced brochure. If you want a copy, send a #10 SASE (US postage is OK) to Chris Redmond, 125 Lincoln Road #1101, Waterloo, Ont. N2J 2N9, Canada. "Sherlock Holmes & the Law" is the theme of an exhibition at the Harvard Law School Library from Apr. 21 through June 30, 1988, and there are some nice items on display, including Beeton's Christmas Annual for 1887 and the manuscript of "The Three Students" (both on loan from the Houghton Library). Justice Albert M. Rosenblatt was on hand for the opening festivities, which included his lecture on "A Study in Crimson". A preliminary (but thoroughly detailed) program at hand for the "Homage to Sherlock Holmes" pilgrimage to Switzerland on Sept. 8-12. The party will cross the Gemmi Pass, visiting the melancholy Daubensee (an inexplicable incident may or may not occur), and Meiringen (where a bronze life-sized statue of Sherlock Holmes will be unveiled, and Hans Kuenzler's "Sherlock Holmes March" will receive its world premiere), and other S'ian locales. The tour is being organized by the Swiss National Tourist Office, and you can obtain more information about the tour from the SNTO, Swiss Center, New Coventry Street, London W1V 8EE, England. Check your neighborhood pet shop for a soft vinyl-nontoxic Dogtoy made by Petland (Chillicothe, OH 45601): THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES, by A Collie Dog, in the shape of an octavo book, for about $6.00. May 88 #2 Granada seems a bit more determined to abandon Sherlock Holmes when they finish "The Hound of the Baskervilles" (which will make a total of 28 hours of tape and film), but Jeremy Brett intends to continue in the role on stage in the play he has commissioned. According to press reports, he hopes to persuade Edward Hardwicke to play Watson in the play, "and there is talk of a big screen movie." Granada's "The Musgrave Ritual" was one of five nominees for an Edgar from the Mystery Writers of America for "best mystery television series segment" in 1987, with the winner to be announced at the MWA annual dinner on May 12. No word yet on who won. And Granada has completed location work on "The Hound of the Baskervilles". The Hound will be played by an 18-month-old fawn-colored Great Dane named "Khan". And how will Granada provide a "ghastly, glowing green" Hound? With a custom-made black-nylon body stocking. Still more news from the British press: Jeremy Paul (who dramatized some of the Granada series, and who is writing the play in which Jeremy Brett hopes to tour) and John Hawkesworth have a new project in mind. "One thing we'd love to do is make a series about Conan Doyle himself," Jeremy Paul told a reporter, "I think he would make a fascinating series." Paul wrote the "Conan Doyle" program in the TV series "The Edwardians" that was broadcast in Britain in 1972 and in the U.S. in 1974 (D4603b), "but I couldn't really do him justice in so little time." Hawkesworth also considers Conan Doyle a fascinating man: "He was the sort of chap who would play cricket in the morning, ski during the afternoon, and write a Sherlock Holmes story in the evening." UNSOLVED! CLASSIC TRUE MURDER CASES, edited by Richard Glyn Jones (New York: Peter Bedrick, 1988; 286 pp., $7.95), ranges from Dorothy Sayers on "The Murder of Julia Wallace" to James Thurber on "The Hall-Mills Affair ", and includes Alexander Woollcott's "The Elwell Case" (first published in Look in 1940 and reprinted in LONG, LONG AGO in 1943), in which Woollcott begins by paying tribute to Sherlock Holmes and ends by suggesting that the unidentified murderer of Elwell "also has it upon his conscience that he brought into this world one of the most irritating detectives in the whole library of criminous fiction." (No, it isn't Sherlock Holmes.) Gallery Lainzberg (200 Guaranty Building, 3rd Avenue and 3rd Street SE, Cedar Rapids, IA 52401) (800-553-9995) are still offering production cels from "The Great Mouse Detective" ($385.00 each for the good ones). Reported by Emory M. Lee: a set of four "funny cars" made in Italy by ESCI with four characters (Holmes, Watson, Mrs. Hudson, and Moriarty) from the Japanese/Italian "Sherlock Hound" cartoons. "Sherlock Holmes" (#0046) can be ordered from Franklin's Diecast Miniatures, 1008 Doon Village Road, Kitchener, Ont. N2P 1A5, Canada; $34.00 postpaid for the set (or $8.50 each), and they take plastic. The 37th running of The Silver Blaze at Belmont will be on Saturday, Sept. 24 (cost $45.00). If you would like to be on the mailing list, contact Stephen L. Stix, R.R. 1, Box 452, Markleville, IN 46056 (317-533-4443). May 88 #3 Robert A. Heinlein, who died on May 7, was a truly splendid science-fiction writer ("*the* great grandmaster of the field," according to Isaac Asimov). "The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress" (D5930a), which won a Hugo award at the World Science Fiction Convention in 1966, features a computer named Mycroft and has many S'ian references, and Holmes, Watson, Challenger, and Conan Doyle are among the many incidental characters in his 1980 novel THE NUMBER OF THE BEAST. Sheridan Haynes, the hero of Julian Symons' A THREE PIPE PROBLEM (D5202b), now has a second mystery to solve, in THE KENTISH MANOR MURDERS (London: Macmillan, 1988; 191 pp., L9.95). This time the famous Sherlockian actor is involved with international criminals, a reclusive millionaire hidden from the world in his own "Castle Baskerville" on Dartmoor, and the long- lost manuscript of an unpublished Sherlock Holmes novel. An entertaining book, written with style and humor. Reported by Tyke Niver: The Collectors Guild (1625 Bathgate Avenue, Bronx, NY 10457) is offering a lithograph by Carle Vernet (1758-1836) entitled "Hunting Scene in Fontainebleu" (#84-DC532) for $286.00 (or $35.75 a month for eight months), plus $19.95 shipping. Carle Vernet was Sherlock Holmes' great-grandfather. English Faire (701 East Bay Street, Charleston, SC 29403) offers a colorful full-size (24x32") reproduction of a "Sherlock Holmes" pub sign (not the design used by The Sherlock Holmes in London) for $240.00. A sales list is available (they have many pub and shop signs), and you can request a color photograph of the "Sherlock Holmes" pub sign. Reported by Bob Katz: "The Double Lives of Ellery Queen" is the title of an exhibit at the Rare Book and Manuscript Library at Columbia University, to which the Ellery Queen papers were recently donated. The exhibit is open from 9 to 5 weekdays, in the Kempner Exhibition Room on the sixth floor of Butler Library, until July 6. No word yet on whether there's anything Sherlockian in the exhibit. Videotaper alert: "Time After Time" (1979) will be shown by The Movie Channel on June 14. Nicholas Meyer directed the film, which has Jack the Ripper using H. G. Wells' time machine to flee to modern San Francisco, followed by H. G. Wells, who poses as a detective, choosing a pseudonym that modern police will hardly recognize: Sherlock Holmes. Keep a sharp eye on the girl's apartment toward the end of the film: I *think* that the out-of-focus yellow poster is the "Frog of the Baskervilles" poster. Randall Garrett died on Dec. 31. His TOO MANY MAGICIANS (D4934b) is a fine alternate-universe novel with many pleasant Sherlockian allusions. A BAKER STREET GALLERY follows in the footsteps of BAKER STREET PORTRAITS from the Pequod Press, with 27 new quatrains by John Ruyle celebrating characters that range from Black Peter to Sir Cathcart Soames, set in an unusual type called Freak (when it was introduced in 1889) but now called Bamboo in an as-yet-unsuccessful effort to increase its popularity. The book is available from the author, 521 Vincente Avenue, Berkeley, CA 94707; $29.00 cloth, or $14.00 paper. May 88 #4 SKETCHES OF YOUNG COUPLES, WITH AN URGENT REMONSTRANCE TO THE GENTLEMEN OF ENGLAND (BEING BACHELORS OR WIDOWERS), ON THE PRESENT ALARMING CRISIS was published in 1840 and is in no way Sherlockian. However: the "present alarming crisis" was the possibility that in 1840, encouraged by Queen Victoria's recent announcement of her engagement (with the rather forceful expression, "It is my intention to ally myself with Prince Albert of Saxe Coburg and Gotha") and by the fact that 1840 was a leap year, the young ladies of England, would rise up and demand matrimony of all eligible young men. "Unless the excited female populace be speedily checked and restrained in their lawless proceedings," the alarmed author warned, "most deplorable results must ensue therefrom, among which may be anticipated a most alarming increase in the population of the country." Offered at $950 in a recent dealer's catalog, and the price reflects the identify of the anonymous author: Charles Dickens. On May 23 the postal service issued a stamp commemorating the 200th anniversary of statehood of one of the Carolinas ("The Ku Klux Klan . . . rapidly formed local branches in different parts of the country, notably in Tennessee, Louisiana, the Carolinas, Georgia, and Florida.") Daws Butler died on May 18. He was the voice of Yogi Bear, Huckleberry Hound, Quick Draw McGraw, and many other Hanna- Barbara characters, and he also worked with Stan Freberg. According to Ron Haydock's DEERSTALKER!, Butler provided the voice for the Watson character in the Canadian television series "Professor Lightfoot and Dr. Twiddle" (1953), which featured Jerry Courneya's trained chimpanzees (Courneya was going to call his series "Sherlock Holmes" or "Chimplock Holmes", but when the Conan Doyle estate threatened to make trouble, he changed the title and the names of the lead characters). "It was absolutely weird, but funny, seeing a chimp walking around his apartment with a deerstalker on his head and playing a violin, while another chimp sat in an armchair reading a newspaper and in voice- over narration started telling you about one of their adventures." The Quality Paperback Book Club (Camp Hill, PA 17012) continues to find new uses for the Gerry Gersten caricature of Holmes, the latest being on the face of their Sherlock Holmes watch, offered to members at $14.95 in their June 1988 flier. NATE THE GREAT AND THE FISHY PRIZE, written by Marjorie Weinman Sharmat and illustrated by Marc Simont (New York: Dell Books, 1988; 48 pp., $2.50), is the latest (and eighth) in the series of pleasant children's books about the deerstalkered young detective available from Dell in paperback. Sharida Rizzuto (Baker Street Gazette, Box 994, Metairie, LA 70004) reports that they're ready to publish the second issue, and that they are paying a modest fee for submissions: one cent a word for 1,500-word articles, and up to $5.00 for artwork. People have been asking for an address for the Gay Men's Press, publishers of Rohase Piercy's MY DEAREST HOLMES (Apr 88 #1). You can reach them at P.O. Box 247, 15 Overbury Road, London N15 6RW, England). May 88 #5 FILES MAGAZINE: FOCUS ON SHERLOCK HOLMES, by John Peel (Granada Hills: Pop Cult, 1987; 54 pp., $6.95), is a heavily illustrated discussion of Holmes on stage, screen, and TV, with chapters about topics such as Basil Rathbone, the musical "Baker Street", and the film "The Great Mouse Detective". The illustrations, unfortunately, are only decorative, since none of them have captions and many are unrelated to the accompanying text (I have no idea why a photograph of Frank Lloyd Wright is included in the chapter on "The Great Mouse Detective") (or, for that matter, why it is included in a discussion of Sherlock Holmes). Order from the publisher, 11586 Vimy Road, Granada Hills, CA 91344. Bliss Austin ("The Engineer's Thumb") died on May 25. He was one of the first generation of The Baker Street Irregulars, attending the 1944 annual dinner and receiving his Investiture (then called an "Adventure in Member- ship") at the 1945 annual dinner. He was an enthusiastic collector, and a fine scholar and speaker, and a good friend to many of us. Reported: a facsimile reprint (from the 1922 edition) of Conan Doyle's THE WHITE COMPANY, with 16 color illustrations by N. C. Wyeth, $20.00 postpaid from Books of Wonder, 132 Seventh Avenue, New York, NY 10011. Eternity Comics (2635 Lavery Court #11, Newbury Park, CA 91320) reports that their "Scarlet in Gaslight" series will end with #4 (due in June); #2 and #3 are out of stock, but #1 and #4 each cost $2.50 postpaid. All four issues will be repackaged as a Graphic Novel, available in August at $9.00 postpaid. And their new "Sherlock Holmes" monthly series will debut in June, reprinting the 1954-56 Meiser/Giacoia comic strips, at $2.50 each postpaid (unfortunately, no subscriptions available). DER MANN DES SCHRECKENS, by Nicholas Meyer (D5079b), has been reprinted in paperback (Munchen: Wilhelm Heyne Verlag, 1985; 219 pp., DM 6.80). And about that cock pheasant (May 88 #1). How many of you quickly guessed "The Gloria Scott"? Sorry, that's a hen pheasant. "I would never have overlooked such a cock pheasant as that," Holmes told Watson in "The Three Garridebs". Chris Redmond also offers the new edition of his "Handy Sherlock Holmes Reference Guide" listing the cases, title abbreviations, publication dates, and beginning page numbers in the THE ANNOTATED SHERLOCK HOLMES. Send a #10 SASE (US postage OK) to Chris at 125 Lincoln Road #1101, Waterloo, Ont. N2J 2N9, Canada. Scheduled at the Kennedy Center in Washington from Sept. 7 to Oct. 9: Fritz Weaver and Noel Harrison in Ken Ludwig's "Sullivan & Gilbert" (according to the promotion, "this charming, humorous, and often moving stage portrait of the rocky relationship between the gentle composer Sir Arthur Sullivan and the short-tempered wordsmith William Gilbert is peppered with rousing songs from the duo's most famous works"). Fritz Weaver played Sherlock Holmes in the 1964 musical "Baker Street" (D5166a). And Ken Ludwig is a Washington playwright whose "Dramatic License" (a mystery drama in which William Gill- ette solves a murder at his castle in Connecticut) was produced in 1983 in Milford, N.H., and in 1985 in Cleveland. May 88 #6 "There'll always be a Musgrave . . ." Sir Richard Musgrave, a 66-year-old Irish baronet, is facing criminal charges in Char- lottesville, Va., accused of supervising the killing hundreds of federally- protected hawks and owls on the estate of billionaire John W. Kluge. Kluge brought Musgrave to the U.S. to establish an English-style hunting preserve on Kluge's 5,000-acre estate. The hawks and owls, and (it would appear) some neighbors' dogs, were killed to protect the pheasants raised for use in the weekend "shoots" at Albemarle Farms. Discovered by Richard R. Rutter: Gli Albi Orient Express (a series of high- quality Italian comic books) has two Sherlockian issues (Le Avventure di Sherlock Holmes): #27 (July 1987) with "Scan" and "Iden", and #30 (Jan. 1988) with "RedH" and "Bosc", well-drawn by Giancarlo Berardi and Giorgio Trevisan. Published by Edizioni L'Isola Trovata, via Ferruccio 15, 20145 Milano, Italy; L6,500 (#27) and L7,000 (#30). The 15-cent postal card, based on an original painting by Bart Forbes, is the first in an "America the Beautiful" series. Bison are mentioned in the Canon, as are buffalo, but those buffalo, presumably, were Cape buffalo rather than Buffalo Bill's buffalo. If you missed the Easton Press three-volume deluxe THE COMPLETE SHERLOCK HOLMES 100TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION (July 87 #1), you can try again: the set was advertised in Smithsonian (May 1988), and I doubt that they would advertise if they hadn't gone to a second printing. It's a reissue of the Heritage Press edition, with color frontispieces, and handsomely produced; $37.50 postpaid per volume, and they take plastic (Easton Press is at 47 Richards Avenue, Norwalk, CT 06857. There is no shortage of cabs in Boston, at least for The Speckled Band, which has now published THE FIFTH CAB, a new collection of articles and pastiches by members of the Band, with appropriate illustrations by Judith deFour Love. THE FIFTH CAB is available for $40.00 (cloth) or $15.00 (paper) postpaid, from J. Devereux deGozzaldi, Graystone Farm, 79 Frankland Road, Hopkinton, MA 01748. Copies of THE FOURTH CAB (1976) and THE BEST OF THE CABS (1980) are also available for $7.50 (paper) each, postpaid. L. B. Greenwood's SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE CASE OF THE RALEIGH LEGACY (1986) was one of the better recent novel-length pastiches, and her new SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE CASE OF SABINA HALL (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1988; 192 pp., $16.95) is a fine sequel. Once again, the mystery is both appropriate and interesting, and the style and characterizations are consistent. The Southern Illinois University Press (Box 3697, Carbondale, IL 62902) is offering a 20% discount on THE QUEST FOR SIR ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE: THIRTEEN BIOGRAPHERS IN SEARCH OF A LIFE, edited by Jon L. Lellenberg ($15.96) and THE BEST SCIENCE FICTION OF ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE, edited by Charles G. Waugh and Martin H. Greenberg ($13.56). The deadline is June 15, and you must order two or more books to get the discount; $2.00 shipping per order, and they take plastic. Jun 88 #1 Scuttlebutt from the Spermaceti Press ADVENTURES BY GASLIGHT is the latest supplement to the Sleuth Publications game SHERLOCK HOLMES CONSULTING DETECTIVE. You will need some items from the original game (or the earlier free-standing supplements THE MANSION MURDERS and THE QUEEN'S PARK AFFAIR) in order to play the new supplement, which was written by Jacques and Nadine Thiriat and originally published by Jeux Descartes in 1986 in Paris as L'AFFAIRE DE L'OISEAU DE PAPIER. Trans- lated by Catherine Theilen, ADVENTURES BY GASLIGHT involves travel to Paris to solve an international mystery set in May 1889. The game is available for $14.95 (plus $2.00 shipping) from Sleuth Publications, 689 Florida Street, San Francisco, CA 94110 (they take plastic). SHERLOCK HOLMES CONSULTING DETECTIVE is indeed international now: the game (and some supplements) have been translated into German (SHERLOCK HOLMES CRIMINAL-CABINET), French (SHERLOCK HOLMES DETECTIVE CONSEIL), Japanese, Swedish, and Italian. The addresses (for fanatics) are: Franckh Kosmos, Pfizerstrasse 5-7, D-7000 Stuttgart 1, Germany; Jeux Descartes, 5 rue de la Baume, 75008 Paris, France; Futami Shobo, 1-21-11 Otawa, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 112, Japan; and Avehtyrsstel, Frihamnen, S-10056 Stockholm, Sweden. No address yet for the Italian version. Roy K. Preece, Jr. (The Village Bookshelf, 746 Amherst Road NE, Box 708, Massillon, OH 44648) is offering some material from the early days of the BSI: the menu of the 1934 annual dinner ($150), and three letters to a Dr. Creighton Barker, from Gray Chandler Briggs ($100), from Vincent Starrett ($200), and from Frederic Dorr Steele ($200). "Mr. Vincent Starrett and I had a conversation a few weeks ago, standing at the bar of The Players," Steele wrote to Barker in 1935. "I find in my wallet your address in Mr. Starrett's handwriting, but for reasons which you are at liberty to guess, I am not quite certain of the import of the conversation." Write to Roy for details. John E. Stephenson, in The Call of the Hunt, mentions Howard Einbinder's mention of Baker Street Tea, available from the Baker Street Tea Co., Box 62, Little Silber, NJ 07739. And Ida Tucker's report that at the end of the film "Oxford Blues" (now on HBO), Rob Lowe tries on a deerstalker and cape. And a wire-service report that Granada's "The Musgrave Ritual" won an Edgar from the Mystery Writers of America for "best mystery television series segment", and that Vincent Price won an Edgar for "contributions to the world of mystery". Sir Richard Musgrave (May 88 #6) was found guilty of conspiring to kill hawks and owls to protect the English-style game-shooting on an estate in Virginia. "I guess I'll be the first criminal in the family since Charles I," said Sir Richard, who also explained that his title results from the "political shenanigans" of a Tory forefather. He was fined $9,500 and given a suspended two-year prison sentence. Those who ordered the Franklin Library edition of GREAT CASES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES (Feb 88 #2) are by now aware of how persistent the Franklin Center marketing operation is: I have been receiving an average of one new offer a week from the Franklin Mint for their various collectibles. Jun 88 #2 Recommended by Richard Wein: John English Gifts, 6 Princes Arcade, Piccadilly, London SW1Y 6DS, England, is a reliable source for "The Sherlock Holmes" in Malcolm Cooper's miniature series of "Great British Pubs" (Feb 88 #6); price L45.95 less 15% VAT plus postage and insurance at cost. Also for three Bosson wall plaques (Moriarty is new); price L15.75 each, less 15% VAT plus postage and insurance at cost. Richard reports that the postage and insurance are about equal to the VAT; and the firm takes plastic. Also discovered by Richard Wein: WHEN PEOPLE PUBLISH: ESSAYS ON WRITERS AND WRITING, by Frederick Busch (Iowa City: Iowa University Press, 1986); the contents include "Holmes's Occupation" (somewhat revised from Busch's "Introduction" to the 1985 Signet Classic paperback THE SHERLOCK HOLMES MYSTERIES). Roger Johnson reports from England that Michael Cox reports that Granada's "The Hound of the Baskervilles" will probably be broadcast there on Aug. 31. "Granada would willing make some more two-hour-long films if I could find the stories," Cox told Roger. "There is 'The Valley of Fear', of course, although it's not easy to adapt. Any ideas among the pastiches?" Cox will welcome suggestions at The Coach House, One Oak Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 2BL, England. Julian Symons' THE KENTISH MANOR MURDERS (May 88 #3) now has an American edition (New York: Viking, 1988; 191 pp., $15.95). Sheridan Haynes, the hero of Symons' A THREE PIPE PROBLEM (D5202b), has a new mystery to solve; this time the famous Sherlockian actor is involved with international criminals, a reclusive millionaire hidden from the world in his own "Castle Baskerville" on Dartmoor, and the long-lost manuscript of an unpublished Sherlock Holmes novel. An entertaining book, written with style and humor. W. Kenneth Lane ("Wilson Hargreave, of the New York Police") died in Feb. 1988. The third issue of The Plum in the Pudding at hand from The Six Napoleons, dedicated to the late James F. Brewer (and with an article by Fitz, who was one of the best Sherlockian lecturers as well as one of the least-published Sherlockian authors, this article being, as far as I know, his first time in print in the Sherlockian press). The journal is well produced, with 52 pages, and costs $4.00 from John Nichols, Box 6324, Annapolis, MD 21401. Jun 88 #3 The Antiquarian Booksellers International has opened in gallery 48 at the Place des Antiquaires at 125 East 57th Street, New York, NY 10022. Paulette Greene will be maintaining a special Sherlock Holmes section for visiting book-hunters, and you can call (212-751-5450) to see what the opening hours are. Reported by Charles A. Meyer: Beeman Precision Arms (3440 Airway Drive, Santa Rosa, CA 95401) is offering the Beeman/Harper Air Cane, manufactured by Harper Classic Guns Ltd. Overall length is 34 inches, with a 22-inch barrel; weight is 1 pound; power source is a Saxby-Palmer pneumatic pump; calibre is .22 or .25; and price is $495. According to an article in Guns & Ammo (July 1988), this air-gun is extremely accurate, and as powerful as many cartridge firearms. In a larger calibre (19th century versions fired bullets approximately double the diameter of these pellets, at about the same velocity), this weapon would inspire a justified fear of air-guns. Flier at hand from the Bloomsbury Square Collection (7474 Creedmoor Road #221B, Raleigh, NC 27612) offering a new S'ian pin and a new S'ian mug. An auction at Sotheby's (34-35 New Bond Street, London W1A 2AA, England) on July 20-21 has some interesting Conan Doyle items, including a fragment of an autograph letter signed "Ever your boy, Arthur" to his mother in 1894, refusing to sign himself "Sherlock Holmes", with an autograph letter signed from Mary J. E. Doyle (the author's mother) to Mrs. Croft explaining that "My son will not sign 'Sherlock Holmes'--he is really too particular!" In his letter to his mother, Conan Doyle wrote: "What would I think if I saw that Scott (to compare great with small) had signed a letter 'Brian de Bois Guillbert'. He would sink points in my estimation." Another auction lot contains two pipes (GBD "New Era") owned by Conan Doyle, from the estate of the late Princess Mdivani. Reported by Jack Kerr: a reprint of MRS. BEETON'S VICTORIAN COOKBOOK, by Isabella Beeton (Topsfield, Mass.: Salem House), at $24.95. Catalog #23 from West's Booking Agency (Box 406, Elm Grove, WI 53122) has a large section of S'iana, including a copy of Edgar W. Smith's APPOINTMENT IN BAKER STREET, inscribed "To Alexander Woolcott--In appreciation of work as a Baker Street Irregular," signed by Smith, and dated Jan. 3, 1939 [not the date of the annual dinner]. If you would like to know the facts about Alexander Woollcott and the BSI and the Dec. 1934 dinner, see Robert Keith Leavitt's article on "The Origin of 221B Worship" (BSJ, Dec. 1961). Edgar W. Smith "was too high-minded to believe ill of anybody," Leavitt suggests, noting that Smith did not join the BSI until 1938. I have added some additional muscle to my computer, so that I can work with large documents more quickly, and do some other things more efficiently. For those who "talk techie" (and I know there are a few of you out there), my Leading Edge model M (vintage 1985) now has a 30-MB hard disk, with a RAMpage! 2-MB expansion board, configured with AST software to provide a 2-MB RAM disk, and everything seems to be working well. Volkswriter 3 is my word-processor, and I use PC-File+ for my mailing lists and the BSI file of Sherlockian societies, and I also have Norton Utilities Advanced Edition and Norton Commander, all of which I recommend enthusiastically. Jun 88 #4 SOLVED! FAMOUS MYSTERY WRITERS ON CLASSIC TRUE-CRIME CASES, edited by Richard Glyn Jones (Feb 88 #4) now has an American edition (New York: Peter Bedrick Books, 1987; 317 pp., $15.95). The book offers a fine selection, ranging from Runyon's splendid newspaper reporting on the Snyder-Judd murder trial to Ellison's speculations on Jack the Ripper, and including Conan Doyle's "The Case of Mr. George Edalji". The book also includes a report by F. Tennyson Jesse on "The Trial of Madeleine Smith" with two uncredited portraits from the Illustrated London News, whose courtroom artist for the trial was Charles Altamont Doyle (see the letter by Herman Herst, Jr., in the BSJ, Mar. 1983, p. 41). The U.S. Postal Service is planning to issue a stamp honoring Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy, designed by caricaturist Al Hirshfeld, probably in the continuing "performing arts" series. The USPS is negotiating for use of the comedians' names (yes, that sort of thing is protected under the laws governing trade marks), but we may get an Elvis Presley stamp first. Stan Laurel appeared in Sherlockian costume in "The Sleuth" (1925), and Laurel and Hardy wore deerstalkers in "Do Detectives Think?" (1927), "The Big Noise" (1944), and (possibly) "The Dancing Masters" (1943). Marjorie Weinman Sharmat's Nate the Great is enjoying summer on the beach and detecting again, with his faithful dog Sludge, in NATE THE GREAT AND THE BORING BEACH BAG (New York: Coward-McCann, 1987; 48 pp., $10.95). Discovered by Brad Keefauver: a handsome promotional flier, with S'ian theme and design, produced by Blackpool Design, 102 Suffolk Street #2-B, New York, NY 10002. Copies available on request from the firm (attn: A. R. Miller). L. B. Greenwood's SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE CASE OF SABINA HALL (May 88 #6) will be the June selection from the Detective Book Club. It's still possible to make discoveries in out-of-the-way places: a copy of TAMERLANE & OTHER POEMS, written "By a Bostonian" and published in 1827, was found not too long ago by an amateur book-collector in a bin of old pamphlets on fertilizers and farm machinery in an antiques barn in New Hampshire, and purchased for $15. The book went to auction this month at Sotheby's in New York, and a Manhattan book dealer paid $198,000 for it. "A Bostonian" was Edgar Allan Poe, and it was his first book, and there are reported to be only twelve known copies. Sherlockian book-collectors, one assumes, dream of finding *two* copies of Beeton's Christmas Annual, so the copy in better condition can be kept, and the other sent to auction. "Sherlock Holmes in the Antarctic" is not the title of the series now being repeated on "Masterpiece Theatre" on PBS-TV (the series is actually "The Last Place on Earth"), but . . . Sverre Anker Ousdal (Roald Amundsen) did play Sherlock Holmes in Nils Nordberg's translation of Gillette's "Sherlock Holmes" at the Nationaltheatret in Oslo in 1980. Jeremy Brett's Sherlock Holmes *will* return to "Mystery!" on PBS-TV on July 14, when "The Return of Sherlock Holmes" begins repeats, starting with "The Empty House". But no word yet on a schedule for "The Sign of Four" or the next four stories that have already been broadcast in Britain. Jun 88 #5 "Once the Soviet Union erased our nuclear advantage, it was free to exploit its own massive superiority in conventional forces. Like Sherlock Holmes's dog that did not bark, the critical clue to understanding the importance of nuclear superiority in the case of Afghani- stan was the threat the United States could not make." Found by Samuel E. Fry on page 76 of 1999: VICTORY WITHOUT WAR, by Richard M. Nixon (1988). As far as I know, this is his only published reference to the Canon. But in an article in New York Magazine (June 9, 1980), Julie Baumgold quoted Nixon as saying, "I don't care for novels, and mysteries bore me except on TV, and since Holmes is off, what is there?" Gerald Shannon (Box 14474, West Allis, WI 53214) is preparing a first day cover for the 25c "Love" stamp to be issued on July 4. The new stamp will feature a rose, and the cachet will show an appropriate Paget illustration. The covers cost $1.00 each, plus a #10 SASE, and you are advised to order quickly because the number of covers will be limited. You can expect delivery in three to four weeks (because the USPS takes a while to return the serviced first day covers). Euston Films continues location work on "Jack the Ripper" (a four-hour L4-million television film) in which Michael Caine stars as Insp. Frank Abberline, "the real-life detective who led the investigation and on whom, supposedly, Conan Doyle based Sherlock Holmes" (according to a report in the Surrey Comet). A pleasant discovery by Don Pollock: L.R.G. Crandon's "Obituary Note" for Conan Doyle in the Aug. 1930 issue of Psychic Research (the journal of the American Society for Psychical Research). The six-page article is more than a mere "note" (Crandon's wife was the medium Margery), and one of Crandon's stories involves the private seance that Margery held at ACD's home in Buckingham Palace Mansions in Dec. 1923: "Later that evening, Sir Arthur with his large good-humored smile, pointed to an 'original' picture of Sherlock Holmes and Moriarty falling off the precipice and said, 'The world used to think that I had a keen enough brain!'" The picture is surely the original of Paget's frontispiece for "The Final Problem" (which I wistfully inspected at the House of Ed Dieff many years ago). Does anyone know where the picture is now? THE BEST CRIME STORIES OF THE 19TH CENTURY, edited by Isaac Asimov, Charles G. Waugh, and Martin H. Greenberg (New York: Dembner Books, 1988; 325 pp., $16.95), offers "The Red-Headed League" as part of an interesting display of what Asimov calls "the slow turn from the clever and daring criminal to the clever and daring detective." But the "notes about the authors" at the back of the book should be read only for amusement: "In 1891, the editors of *The Strand Magazine*, impressed by Doyle's first Sherlock Holmes novel, *A Study in Scarlet* (1882), commissioned him to write a series featuring the same character." Jun 88 #6 Reported: BAKER STREET DETECTIVE, an all-text solitaire computer game for Macintosh computers, from Artworx, 1844 Penfield Road, Penfield, NY 14526; $17.95. And one more Granada item: Jeremy Brett has indeed made many changes in his portrayal of Holmes in the yet-to-be-seen-here programs, including a new hair style. But here's what Brett and Hardwicke look like in "The Hound of the Baskervilles", in a photograph taken by Kathryn White of The Northern Musgraves during location work in Liverpool in April. Jul 88 #1 Scuttlebutt from the Spermaceti Press WHEN PEOPLE PUBLISH: ESSAYS ON WRITERS AND WRITING, by Frederick Busch (Iowa City: University of Iowa Press, 1986; 163 pp., $19.95), presents a collection of thoughtful essays on Dickens, Melville, Joyce, Hemingway, and Conan Doyle. "Holmes's Occupation" is revised from its first appearance as an Afterword in THE SHERLOCK HOLMES MYSTERIES (New American Library/Signet, 1985 and 1987). Announcement at hand for the 37th running of The Silver Blaze at Belmont Park in New York on Sept. 24: $45.00 including luncheon at the track and transportation from and to The Players. The reservation deadline is Sept. 10. Contact: Stephen L. Stix, Route 1, Box 4352, Markleville, IN 46056. This year Australia and Great Britain celebrated the bicentennial of Australia by issuing a joint set of commemoratives, and one of the stamps shows W. G. Grace, the great British cricketer. ACD wrote an appreciation of Grace for The Times (Oct. 17, 1915), later revised and expanded for the Strand (July 1927), and discussed Grace in "Some Recollections of Sport" in the Strand (Sept. 1909 and June 1924) and MEMORIES AND ADVENTURES. "Enter the hushed and mysterious world of Sherlock Holmes as you step onto the set of 221b Baker Street," promises the flier for the Granada Studios Tour, forwarded by Scott and Sherry Rose Bond. The Tour is "located at the heart of Granadaland in City Centre Manchester" and will open on July 20, 1988 ("subject to completion of building programme"). Monday to Sunday until Oct. 2, and then Wednesday to Sunday until Mar. 27, 1989, and the cost is L5.50. Baker Street is not the only item included (you can also sit on the Back Benches of the life-size Houses of Parliament set from the "First Among Equals" series, ride an Edwardian tram from the "Lost Empires" series, stroll along Downing Street, and enjoy a relaxing drink at The Rover's Return on "Coronation Street"). It is not absolutely clear from the flier that this is a made-to-order-for-tourists attraction similar to the Universal Studios tour, but there's no suggestion in the flier that any part of the tour might be closed while Granada does production work. The flier is available from Granada Studios Tour, Manchester M60 9EA, England. Tekna Productions (2 & 3 Moores Place, Brentwood, Essex CM14 4AG, England), the firm that produced the eight color prints and four greeting cards for the City of Westminster Libraries, has launched "The 221B Collection" (and is planning to offer all of Sidney Paget's illustrations as color prints). And the prints are handsome indeed, on heavy stock and quite suitable for framing. Six stories from THE RETURN OF SHERLOCK HOLMES are now available: "Empt", "Norw", "Danc", "Soli", and "Blac" (each with seven prints) cost L13.50 each, and "Prio" (with nine prints) costs L16.00, all postpaid. Jerry Margolin reports that there are Sherlockians reasons to see "The Dead Pool" (the new "Dirty Harry" film): there is a framed portrait of Sherlock Holmes on the wall in the office of Capt. Donnelly (Harry Callahan's boss), and the villain is killed with a weapon reminiscent of "The Adventure of Black Peter". Jul 88 #2 If you haven't been able to get the fine recording (by That's Entertainment Records) of the music composed by Patrick Gowers for the Granada television series (Dec 87 #6 and Feb 88 #2) the LP record is listed in the July catalog (item 155) from Sound Track Album Retailers (Box 487, New Holland, PA 17557; the price is $12.95 plus $2.00 shipping, and they take plastic. A spokesman for WGBH-TV has announced that "The Sign of Four" (and the remaining shows in the Granada series) *will* be broadcast, in the 1988-89 season of "Mystery!", according to a report in the first (summer 1988) issue of Anglofile, a new eight-page journal devoted to British film and television. Anglofile costs $10.00 a year for six issues, from the Goody Press, Box 33515-S, Decatur, GA 30033. The Canon contains mentions of a moss-rose and a sulphur rose, as well as rosebushes and rose-water. The rose on the new "Love" stamp has not been identified by the postal service (but we may yet hear from the botanical experts). DRUID'S BLOOD, by Esther M. Freisner (New York: New American Library/Signet, 1988; 279 pp., $3.50), is an amusing and entertaining alternate-universe fantasy novel in which sleuth Brihtric Donne and his chronicler John H. Weston battle evil magicians in a Britain ruled by a Druid monarchy. The book echoes the Canon thoroughly, and carries one of the more imaginative back-cover blurbs: "Victoria, queen of the realm, the mightiest mage in the British Isles, and one of the lustiest women Dr. John H. Weston had ever had the pleasure to companion beneath the covers, was in desperate trouble." Barbara Woodhouse, who believed that no dog was untrainable, and who made "Walkies!" a watchword among dog-owners, died on July 9. Cartoonists in Britain (especially on the pages of Punch) did not overlook the possibility of a Woodhouse-Baskerville association, and her 1981 ITV television program "Barbara Woodhouse Goes to Beverly Hills" included a four-minute segment on John Keane (the lost-pet detective Sherlock Bones). Plan ahead: "The Death and Life of Sherlock Holmes" (a two-act play written by Suzan L. Zeder) was first performed in Louisville in Feb. 1987. There have been productions in Lancaster, Pa. (with Orson Bean as the villains) (yes, plural) and in Seattle, and the play has now been scheduled by the National Technical Institute for the Deaf In Rochester, N.Y., on Oct. 27-30 ($4.00 a ticket). The box office opens on Oct. 17 (716-475-6254), and the address is Box 9887, Rochester, NY 14623. Ben Wood, who has long described himself as an amiable and simple-minded nonconformist clergyman, has announced that he retiring, and moving from parish to Parrish -- he and Joan will arrive in Parrish, Fla., on Aug. 10, and their new address will be: Box 740, Ellenton, FL 34222 (813-776-2078). Reported by four faithful reporters: an article by Ed Hulse on "Sherlock Holmes" in the July 1988 issue of Video Review, with a list of his ten "greatest cases" on video (Rathbone scores four out of the ten). The magazine address is 902 Broadway, New York, NY 10010; $1.95. Jul 88 #3 ZPPR Productions (34 Gansevoort Street, New York, NY 10014) has issued its first catalog, which includes four different S'ian audio cassettes by The Friends of Bogie's ($8.95 each plus $2.00 per order for shipping). The group has performed for enthusiastic audiences both in New York and as far afield as Washington and Williamsburg, and the audio cassettes are the next best thing to being there. Sherlock Holmes has traveled widely, with occasional visits to the Land of Oz, as recorded by Vincent Ward and Jay Delkin in "The Adventure of the Missing Belt" (D5225b). Delkin's next story, "The Adventure of the Missing Ozma", appeared in the 1984 issue of Oziana, published by The International Wizard of Oz Club and still available ($1.00 postpaid) from Fred M. Meyer, 220 North Eleventh Street, Escanaba, MI 49829. David Fogel's BAKER STREET DETECTIVE is a text-only computer game (Artworx, 1985), now available for Macintosh (as well as for Apple), with two cases ("A Wasted Witness" and "The Scourge of the Executioner"); you choose your clue-locations, collect clues, and decide when to take a quiz on each case, and the computer compares your score to Sherlock Holmes' and gives you the solution. Available at your local computer shop, or from Artworx, 1844 Penfield Road, Penfield, NY 14526; $17.95. Joshua Logan, one of Broadway's greatest directors, died on July 12. His biggest hits included "South Pacific", "Annie Get Your Gun", and "Mister Roberts", and it is interesting to consider what the musical "Baker Street" would have been like if he had directed it. And he might have: Alexander Cohen signed Joshua Logan as director in Aug. 1963, but Harold Prince took over the job in Jan. 1964. The first issue (June) of the new "Sherlock Holmes" comic book at hand from Eternity Comics, with a reprint of the first half of "The Problem of Thor Bridge" from the fine 1954 comic strip written by Edith Meiser and drawn by Frank Giacoia. This is a monthly series, with no subscriptions available, but if your local comic shop doesn't stock the title, you can order from Eternity Comics, 1355 Lawrence Drive #212, Newbury Park, CA 91320; $1.95. The joint set of commemoratives (Jul 88 #1) with the portrait of W. G. Grace includes another stamp, with portraits of William Shakespeare and John Lennon, both of whom have Sherlockian connections, but the portrait of Lennon is too small to show with any clarity here. There is, however, a respectable substitute: the stamp issued in 1988 by West Germany. John Lennon wrote the parody (later adapted for the stage) "The Singularge Experience of Miss Anne Duffield" (D6007a and D4479b), which features Shamrock Womlbs and Doctored Whopper. If you would like to have four of the hideous Steinbach Sherlock Holmes nutcrackers (Mar 87 #5), they are imported from G. A. Westphal by Zeiger Enterprises (621-625 Prospect Street, Trenton, NJ 08618) and is in their current catalog (item 2349) at $50 (their minimum order is $200). If you would like to have just one, contact Chris Caswell (Sherlock's Home, 4137 East Anaheim Street, Long Beach, CA 90804). Jul 88 #4 Reported by Jim Zunic: "Dinosaurs Alive!" is a new exhibit at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh (through Sept. 25), with six "moving and roaring" dinosaurs (computer-controlled and created by the Dinamation International Corp.). "Dinosaur Times" (a free four-page hand-out at the exhibit) has a small deerstalkered dinosaur with an article on "What We Know and Don't Know About Dinosaurs". As well as a question: when does a paleontologist need a tow truck? The address for the Carnegie is 4400 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15213. The latest news from Hollywood is that we will not be able to see Michael Caine and Ben Kingsley in "Sherlock and Me". According to a report in the Washington Post (July 15), the film's title has been changed to "Without a Clue". "The Mysterious Affair at Great Orme Street" is an entertaining essay in which Chris Redmond examines the affair of Mr. Fairdale Hobbs. Copies available on request (with a #10 SASE) (U.S. postage OK) from Chris at 125 Lincoln Road #1101, Waterloo, Ont. N2J 2N9, Canada. A new sales list at hand from Images of Sherlock Holmes (5005 Bryant Avenue South #117, Minneapolis, MN 55419), with an extensive run of single issues of the BSJ, plus posters and buttons. H. M. Levy, founder of The Consulting Detectives of Long Island, is also president of the Gamers Alliance (an international network of gamers), and it is understandable that the spring 1988 issue of Gamers Alliance Report includes reviews of three Sherlockian items: SHERLOCK: THE RIDDLE OF THE CROWN JEWELS (the Infocom computer game), SHERLOCK HOLMES SOLO MYSTERIES (the Iron Crown book series), and VCR 221B BAKER STREET (the video game). Send $5.00 to H. M. Levy (Box 197, East Meadow, NY 11554) for a copy of the magazine and membership information. There is Sherlockian flavor in William C. Thomas' new poem ("Detectiverse: Case Clothed") in the Sept. 1988 issue of EQMM. DOCTORS: TALES FROM MEDICAL LIFE (London: Greenhill Books, 1988; 172 pp., L9.50) is the latest in a series of reprints of Conan Doyle's older works. This volume contains the nine medical stories from ROUND THE RED LAMP and his Preface, in which he suggests that these tales "may startle the reader out of his usual grooves of thought, and shock him into seriousness." When does a paleontologist need a tow truck? When he sees a *Tyrannosaurus rex*. The summer 1988 issue of The Book Collector at hand from England, with Nicolas Barker's report on the Copenhagen Book Fair (which he describes as "one of the more pleasant and civilised backwaters on the increasingly frenetic international Book Fair circuit"). "The prize for originality and single-minded enthusiasm must go to Messrs 'Pinkerton', a Danish firm specialising exclusively in Sherlock Holmes and detective fiction," Barker suggests. "Their display case had everything except the 'worm unknown to science' which as all Sherlockians know, was found in a matchbox by the side of a corpse whose face was marked by a rictus of ineffable terror." Jul 88 #5 Thanks to Ev Herzog for a different (and more authoritative) explanation of what it was that did not amuse Queen Victoria (Feb 88 #1). According to Alan Hardy (QUEEN VICTORIA WAS AMUSED, 1976, pp. 5-12), Her Majesty was first quoted in print as saying "We are not amused!" in Arthur Beavan's POPULAR ROYALTY, published at the time of the Diamond Jubilee. The target of her comment was the Hon. Alexander Yorke, groom-in- waiting during the last sixteen years of her reign, and his version of the incident, told to his niece, was published in 1968: "During a dinner party at Windsor, Alick was sitting next to a German to whom he told a slightly risque story. The German guffawed so loudly that the Queen asked Alick to tell her what had caused such mirth. Alick thereupon repeated the story and received the classic snub." Grafton Books is continuing its series of tie-in paperbacks with color cover photographs from the Granada series (Feb 88 #5), the latest at hand being THE VALLEY OF FEAR (L2.50). DETECTIVE FICTION: A COLLECTION OF CRITICAL ESSAYS, edited by Robin W. Winks (Woodstock: Foul Play Press, 1988; 301 pp., $11.95), was first published in 1980 and is now available in a revised and expanded edition. The book is a fine collection of commentary by experts (including Auden, Barzun, Knox, Sayers, Symons, and Wilson), and although the emphasis of the collection is on "twentieth-century views," intended for readers who are "exploring for the first time the body of critical literature," Sherlock Holmes is not neglected. A new flier at hand for Stefanie K. Hawks' fine artwork on stationery, greeting cards, postcards, and prints. Write to S. K. Hawks, Box 9486, Knoxville, TN 37940. Our circulation department extends a warm welcome to the deluge of new subscribers (eleven so far) who responded to Philip Shreffler's gracious recommendation in the June issue of the BSJ. For the benefit of those new readers, we have a few standing offers (all prices postpaid): the 12-page list of Investitured Irregulars, Two-Shilling Awards, and *The* Women costs $1.00; and the 45-page list of the Sherlockian societies (with names and addresses for contacts for the active societies) costs $2.75; and the run of mailing labels for the active societies costs $10.00. And Al and Julie Rosenblatt's splendid 20-page souvenir menu for "An Evening in Scarlet" at the Culinary Institute of America on May 16, 1987, handsomely devised, designed, and produced, with illustrations, annotations and explanations, is also available for $15.00. Lenny Picker (119 81st Avenue, Kew Gardens, NY 11415) would like to hear from anyone interested in participating in a mock inquest on the Jack the Ripper case, to be held in November in New York City by way of celebrating the centenary of Saucy Jack's outrages. Tourists in Britain have long been able to use a fine series of guidebooks produced jointly by the Automobile Association and the Ordnance Survey, and the 16th in the series, covering Devon and Exmoor, is of special interest: the section on Dartmoor includes appropriate discussion of Holmes and the Hound of the Baskervilles. Jul 88 #6 Thanks to Bob Katz for news of the arrest on Mar. 2 of six people who are now facing federal conspiracy charges in Balti- more in connection with an estimate $10 million cocaine ring that was based in Perry Hall, Md. One of the six people was David Deigert, the owner of Sherlock's Pub, which police said was the drug ring's major distribution center (the pub was seized, along with Deigert's home, by federal agents). A police spokesman explained that seizure of the property was intended to prevent selling the property to raise money that might be used for bail, or for seed money to finance a continuation of the drug operation. A visit to Sherlock's Pub some years ago revealed that it was more of a tavern than a pub, with an appropriate sign outside and a display shelf of S'iana behind glass inside. No one, at the time, suggested that controlled substances might be available. Douglas West, an American artist who lives in Walkhampton on the edge of Dartmoor, is concerned that there is no memorial to Sherlock Holmes on the moors. "He's as much of an asset to this area as Sir Francis Drake, and yet we do nothing about it," he told a reporter recently. Noting that members of the SHSOL will be travelling to Switzerland later this year to erect a memorial to Holmes at the Reichenbach, he suggested that "it would be better to have a memorial down here," and asked "why put something up at the Falls, which is where Conan Doyle wanted to kill off the character?" Prints of Douglas West's S'ian watercolors, sold at The Sherlock Holmes in London, are also available from John B. Taylor (Box 804, Midlothian, TX 76065); send a #10 SASE for his sales list. BBC Radio 4 broadcast a new version of "The Hound of the Baskervilles" in two 60-minute episodes, on May 27 and June 3, with Roger Rees and Holmes and Crawford Logan as Watson. One reviewer (Nigel Andrew in The Listener on June 2) noted that Sherlockian actors now face a problem: "It is one thing to labour in the shadow of the definitive radio Holmes--Carleton Hobbs--but we are now in the age of Jeremy Brett, and all Sherlocks are inevitably going to be judged against his impossible standard," he wrote, suggesting that "doing Holmes today is about on a par with opening as Henry V while Olivier's film was still on general release." "Holmes and the Ripper" is a new play by Brian Clemens, based on Stephen Knight's JACK THE RIPPER: THE FINAL SOLUTION, now touring Britain with Francis Matthews as Holmes and Frank Windsor as Watson, with the producers hoping to bring the play to London. Since the film "Murder by Decree" was also based on Knight's book, the play holds few surprises for Sherlockians. Aug 88 #1 Scuttlebutt from the Spermaceti Press The latest issue (spring 1988) of The Pipe Smokers' Ephemeris is unique in containing 58 pages and only a few quite minor mentions of Sherlock Holmes, a situation that arises because all of the Sherlockian material is being held for the next issue. The Ephemeris is an irregular publication for pipe smokers, available without charge (though contributions are gratefully accepted) from Tom Dunn (20-37 120th Street, College Point, NY 11356. One of those minor mentions is a handsome poster (21 x 32 inches) promoting National Pipe Smoker's Week (Mar. 13-20), available from the Retail Tobacco Dealers of America (attn: Malcolm Fleischer), The Atrium, 55 Maple Avenue, Rockville Centre, NY 11570. Reported from England: THE SUPERNATURAL TALES OF SIR ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE, edited by Pet