I’m realizing that a good bit of my attention and efforts have been focused on Sherlock Holmes over the past week. No complaints there, not at all!
This past Saturday, I attended “Silent Sherlock: Three Classic Cases” at the AFI Silver Theater and Cultural Center in Silver Spring, Maryland. The theater was premiering three films featuring Eille Norwood as Sherlock Holmes and recently restored as part of a long-running project by the British Film Institute. The films are “A Scandal in Bohemia,” “The Golden Pince-Nez,” and “The Final Problem” with live music accompaniment by Ben Model—and it was a fascinating program on all counts, including seeing the changes that the filmmakers made to the original stories! (If only Arthur Conan Doyle himself had thought of Cheddar Gorge instead of Reichenbach Falls for the setting of Holmes’ fateful encounter with Moriarty—much more scenic, of course, in addition to being a tastier name.) The screening was part of the 75th anniversary celebration of the Red Circle of Washington DC, and I was thrilled to get together with other members of the Red Circle, including Peter Blau, Carla Coupe, Debbie Clark, Michael Dirda, Matt Hall, Dana Richards, Dan Stashower, and many others.
Also this week, on Monday, November 17, I’m attending the monthly meeting of Watson’s Tin Box, a Maryland-based scion—and not only attending but also stepping up as the featured speaker, talking about my Sherlock Holmes course at George Mason University and about this month’s story: “The Adventure of the Solitary Cyclist.” Thanks to Matt Hall for inviting me to be part of the program!
And further ahead: I’m looking forward to the BSI Weekend in New York in early January—on my mind this week because I just made my plans and my reservations for the trip.