Category: News

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3rd Annual JHWS Treasure Hunt Results Are In!

Hello!  As you all know, the 3rd Annual JHWS Treasure Hunt ended on September 1.  This third year saw a great increase in the number of submitted entries resulting in good competition in both the Team and Individual Categories.  We hope you enjoyed the competition; every effort was made to continue the proud tradition started by our Buttons. Thank you to everyone who participated.

This year is the first time the Treasure Hunt submissions were scored on a point system with a total of 156 points available.  Results are——-

TEAM CATEGORY:

High Honors:  High Honors for this year goes to Uno Studio in Holmes, our returning team from Italy. The outstanding work by this team captured 153 of the 156 points.  Congratulations to team members Michele Lopez, Stefano Guerra, Enrico Solito, Vera Mazzotta, and Roberto Vianello.

Honors: Honors for this year are shared between The Sound of the Baskervilles, returning champions from Seattle, and The Bootmakers of Toronto, with each team earning 143 points. Sheila Holtgrieve and Lauren Messenger represented The SOBs (as they are affectionately known); The Bootmakers are represented by Peter Calamai, Cliff Goldfarb, Peggy Perdue, and Chris Redmond.

O.V.E. Awards: Our Order of Valiant Effort awards go to second-year competitor  La Fayette of La Societe Sherlock Holmes de France with 129 points, and Two Guys Down in Illinois with 124 points. SSHF Lafayette team members are Alexis Barquin, Benoit Guilielmo, and Thierry Saint-Joanis.  The Two Guys are Rob Nunn and Brad Keefauver.

Honorable Mention:  Honorable Mention this year goes to first time competitors, The Retired Beekeepers of Sussex with 70 points; team members are Elinor Gray, Basil Chap, Crystal Noll, and Rowan MacBean.

INDIVIDUAL CATEGORY:

High Honors:  First time competitor Greg Darak earns the High Honors in this category this year with his excellent work nabbing  145 of the available points.

Honors:  Honors this year go to our returning champion from 2013 and 2014 Denny Dobry with 130 points.  Denny was the first-in this year, submitting more than a week before any others.

O.V.E. Award:  Our Valiant Effort Award winner for this category is Gerry Turnbull with 89 points.

In keeping with the general fellowship of the JHWS, there is another tie in one category this year:

The Best Pull-The-Treasure-Hunt-Master’s-Leg Award

–Two Guys in Illinois for their answer to #47: “He let out a yell, and away he went as hard as he could lick it in the darkness”—SHOS; A year later, Holmes discovers how many licks it takes to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop;

–Greg Darak for his answer to #89 (about the Fog): Mel Torme and Professor Moriarty.

Thank you for the comic relief!  🙂

The  JHWS will be sending the keepsake awards out soon, and may need to contact some of you for mailing information.  The answers to this year’s competition will be posted tomorrow on the Quiz page.  We will then return our quiz page to our wonderful Quiz Master Denny.  Please direct any questions about the 3rd Annual Treasure Hunt to treasurehunt@johnhwatsonsociety.com.

  Thanks for playing the game with us this year,

Ma

JHWS Treasure Hunt Master for 2015

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The Case of the Six Watsons by Robert Ryan “Caesar”

Case of the Six Watsons ebook cover(1)

Today, I’m happy to feature a review from one of the newest members of the John H Watson Society. Please welcome, “Dot,” who has written an early review of The Case of the Six Watsons by Robert Ryan, JHWS “Caesar” which will be available on September 3rd:

Robert Ryan, the John H. Watson Society’s own “Caesar,” has a new collection of short stories forthcoming, which I was fortunate enough to be able to preview. The Case of the Six Watsons presents stories that I am certain will delight members of the JHWS as much as they did me. Dr. John H. Watson is the focus of this collection, and each of the stories showcase his character and qualities in interesting ways.

The short story collection is dedicated in memory of Don Libey, the John H. Watson Society’s founder, known affectionately as “Buttons,” who passed away earlier this year, and is deeply missed. The short stories, themselves, contain a couple of lovely in-text references to Buttons, which I shall leave the reader to discover. I wouldn’t want to spoil the surprise!

Most of the stories in the collection of six have, as their inspiration, a piece of writing by Arthur Conan Doyle. These are the “apocrypha,” including stories such as “The Man with the Watches” and “The Lost Special.” Ryan builds upon the apocryphal stories, imagining Watson, and sometimes Holmes, within the events. What I found thrilling was the sheer range of the six stories Ryan tells. They are all set at different periods in Watson’s life, giving us an interesting view of the ways in which his character changes over time, and the ways in which he remains constant. It also gives us a view of how his friendship with Holmes changes over this time. In some instances, Watson easily predicts Holmes’ behavior, and is able to react accordingly. In “The Broken Crocodile”, they are estranged. Not only do the stories give us an interesting sampling of different periods in Watson’s life, they also allow Ryan to tell stories that are flavored with a variety of different tones and genres. “The Brazilian Wife” transitions from a more standard mystery setup to become a tense adventure story. “The Wrong Detective” is a locked room mystery that takes place in a train, with a compelling drama at its heart. “The Beetle Lover” and “The Prisoner in B.24” have some intriguing gothic horror elements.

“The Prisoner of B.24” is also notable because it allows Watson to act in the role of judging a man’s innocence, and then acting upon that judgement in order to prevent a miscarriage of justice by the law. This is a role similar to those we have often seen Holmes play in the canon, so it is exciting to see Watson have his turn, and then to be able to relay what occurred to Holmes, when his friend returns to Baker Street.

I especially enjoyed two of the stories, “The Brazilian Wife,” and “The Broken Crocodile.” “The Brazilian Wife,” which I mentioned earlier, takes place during the Great Hiatus. Watson takes up the case of a client who appears at Baker Street during the time when Holmes is believed dead, despite receiving a mysterious message warning him to stay out of the matter. He finds himself embroiled in a situation that is not what it initially seems. The story has the feel of an excellent, suspenseful adventure story, and it is wonderful to see Watson show his qualities of adaptability, resourcefulness, and courage in a dire situation.

“The Broken Crocodile” is set within the “Watson at War” series, though it stands very well as an independent story. It is set in the Cairo of World War I, where Watson is working in his capacity as a military doctor, overseeing the implementation of a new blood transfusion technique. When a bowl purchased by Mrs. Emily Marchand at the market is accidentally shattered, Watson is introduced to T. E. Lawrence, who helps him find a local craftsman who is able to repair the bowl. From there, Watson is drawn into detective work and espionage, working to try to catch a spy copying maps produced in the map room where Lawrence works. This story is rich with intriguing details that evoke a strong sense of the setting, the period, and the characters. Also, I admit, I’m a mark for historical archaeologists (my undergraduate degree is in Classical and Near Eastern Archaeology), so it was a thrill to read about Watson meeting, and having an adventure with, T. E. Lawrence. The references to the events within the “Watson at War” series were enough to give me a fuller sense of Watson’s character, and the context of his life at the time. They provided me with enough information to make me curious about the rest of the series, which I hope to be able to read in the future. On the whole, the story acts as a nice finale to “The Case of the Six Watsons,” providing a fun conclusion, as well as the possibility of being a jumping on point for future reading!

Happy Reading,

Lauren Messenger, JHWS “Dot”

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Weekly Forum #35: The Definition of Canon

There are no On This Day events recorded today or tomorrow, but on the Hounds website, messages are flying back and forth about the definition of the term “Canon.” What follows is a definition that I agree with totally. The message is from Esmeralda, a fellow member of our group:

One definition of Canon among many similar ones is: a collection or list of sacred books accepted as genuine. “The formation of the biblical canon”

The books published under the name of Arthur Conan Doyle, good and bad, are Canonical. Any Holmes works put out under other names, however good, cannot by that definition be Canonical.

The word was originally used to describe those early religious works gathered together under the name “The Bible” — other books, even if written at the same time on the same subjects, are apocrypha, not Canon.

The best fanfic, films, TV shows, and pastiches can never be Canonical, whatever else they may be. The worst story about Holmes published by ACD (and we can argue forever about which that is) is, like it or not, Canonical.

Of course we can use words to mean what we want them to mean, but in that case, don’t they become meaningless?

Comments, fellow Watsonians?

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Weekly Forum #34

Mr.-HolmesMr. Holmes, starring Ian McKellen and based of the book A Slight Trick of the Mind by Mitch Cullin, has arrived at many theaters around the world at this point, so if you have seen the movie, I would love to discuss it with you. (Yes, there will likely be spoilers in the comments, so fair warning if you haven’t seen the film.)

Did you like it? What did you think of Ian McKellen’s portrayal?

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Now Available: Coin of the Canonical Realm

We are very pleased to announce that the electronic (PDF) edition of the Society’s first monograph, “Coin of the Canonical Realm”, by Nicholas Utechin (JHWS “Rex”), is now available in the Shop. Simply select “PDF Download” in the “Format and Postage” options. You will receive the download link as soon as payment is completed.

If you encounter any problems with the shop (or anywhere else on the site), please let Selena know!

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3rd Annual JHWS Treasure Hunt: Strategies for the final stretch

Hello– I’m jumping in here on the news page to send some info (and encouragement) to our 3rd Annual Treasure Hunt participants.  As a participant in TH1 and TH2, I know that the third week can feel a bit discouraging and frustrating.  More than likely at this point, those working on the hunt are now down to their final 1/3 of the questions–the 1/3 that seem too ambiguous or mostly hopeless.  I know time is short, and frustration leads to thoughts of abandoning the thing entirely.  I hope you will not!  I also know at this point it is easy to forget that you’ve had some fun working on thing– the joy of getting lost in Holmes’s and Watson’s world, and from playing the game with your team members.  I offer a reminder of a few strategies–we saw some of this in the warm-up questions– for working the questions this year:

1) Almost every question has a searchable phrase or word to help you find the answer.  Some are really evident (‘alive and well’); others require a bit more thought, ie: another word for ‘single man’ is ‘bachelor’; ‘three’ could be third or thrice, etc.;

2) Punctuation matters: a lower-case ‘j’ in the word jack; an upper-case ‘Y’ in the word yellow;

3) Be sure to consider the section headings–“The problem has always been not to find but to choose” will mean you are looking for answers concerning the untold tales, as Watson is referencing some of them when he made that statement.

A full 15 days remain to work on the hunt.  Should you find yourself a few answers short on September 1, please submit your answers anyway.  The hunt will be scored on a point system; each question has a point value (i.e.: ‘who’ = 1 pt; ‘who’ and ‘where’ = 2 pts., etc.).  With the exclusion of question #27, there are 156 available points. [ If your answer gets ‘who’ correct but misses ‘where’, you still earn 1 of 2 points.]  Even if you are a few answers short, your total points could still equal High Honors!

Ok, I will stop going on and on.  Thanks for your time and interest.

Your 2015 Treasure Hunt master who fully expects to be cursed profoundly over the next 15 days…

Margie

 

 

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Weekly Forum #33

In a recent interview, Martin Freeman spoke of his role in BBC Sherlock and while answering a question about portraying characters who are “ordinary people dragged into the extraordinary,” he had a fascinating thing to say about Dr Watson (emphasis mine):

“Sometimes it’s forgotten… you know, I know what you’re saying about John and Bilbo both being ordinary people dragged into the extraordinary but sometimes it’s forgotten that before John Watson meets Sherlock he’s already an extraordinary man. He is a soldier, he is an army surgeon who saves lives, who can take lives. He is certainly a lot more capable than I am in real life. It’s just that he meets someone who’s even more extraordinary – you know, in a normal room of people John Watson would be the guy, ‘cause he can do stuff that hardly anybody else can do. But he just happens to meet his flatmate – he’s a genius. So a really impressive bloke meets a fantastically impressive bloke and together they make magic.”

That is certainly how Freeman presents him in the BBC adaption. Through the Canon, we can give examples of how Dr Watson saw himself and we know how Mr Holmes viewed his friend, but how did other people view Dr Watson? Was he “the guy”? What moments from the Canon can you find to support or refute that?

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Weekly Forum: #32

Today’s topic is from our fellow JHWS member “Dash.” Thank you!

Each of us has been given a JHWS moniker through mysterious means. Some, like Asta, are well-known; most are not as obvious. What do you feel is the background story or hidden meaning behind your moniker?

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JHWS Shop

I’m happy to announce that we now have a Shop available for anyone to purchase new membership, renewals, publications, and other items from the John H Watson Society. Simply click the “Shop” text on the upper right of the web page and feel free to browse through for anything you wish to purchase.

I wish to thank Selena for all of her hard work in putting this new feature on the website together.

For those of you who make a purchase on Paypal, please do not be alarmed by the Merchant account being under Don Libey’s name. The account is now handled by his partner and our treasurer, Asta, so we are safely handling your orders. The reason it is still in his name is simply because it is very difficult to have that information changed. If you have any further questions or suggestions about the new Shop site, please direct them to both me and Beth Gallego (JHWS Selena). We will help in any way possible.

I hope you will enjoy the new Shop! This is a wonderful time to renew membership (if it is time for you to renew) or to simply pick up previous publications that you don’t have in your library yet.

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Out of the Abyss

(The Society presents reviews and recommendations on books by its members on these pages. We hope you will enjoy hearing of new books furthering our Sherlockian, Holmesian and Watsonian interests. On this occasion, Harrison Hunt, JHWS “Dash,” would like to share his thoughts on a recent publication by the Baker Street Irregulars:)

239_out-abyss-coverOut of the Abyss
Edited by Andrew Solberg, BSI, Steven Rothman, BSI and Robert Katz, BSI.
Baker Street Irregulars Press, 2014.

Out of the Abyss, the latest entry in the Baker Street Irregulars Manuscript Series, gives a multi-faceted look at one of the most significant stories in the Canon, “The Empty House.” As with the previous volumes in the series, Abyss features a facsimile of Arthur Conan Doyle’s manuscript of the story presented with a page-by-page transcription. It also offers extensive notes about textual variations in the early printings of the tale, annotations based on up-to-the-minute scholarship and a bibliography for further study. The manuscript itself is a telling insight into ACD’s abilities as a writer: there are almost no corrections to his neatly written text. It reminded me of an exhibit I saw at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London in 1970 that contrasted two of Charles Dickens’s manuscripts; that for one of his early books had extensive crossings-out and re-writes, while the one for a later book had almost none. Both Dickens and Doyle had become masters of their craft.

In addition to the manuscript, Abyss includes a fascinating series of essays examining “The Empty House” that reflect the full spectrum of the writings about the writings. These chapters range from an overview of the history of the manuscript and its conservation to a short biography of the book collector and dealer Dr. ASW Rosenbach to a short pastiche by Lyndsay Faye. Other essays examine the location of the empty house, period methods of cheating at cards, the roles of Mycroft and Colonel Moran, SH as international spy and the story’s religious symbolism. Of particular significance to members of The John H. Watson Society is Ray Betzner’s contribution, which muses about Watson and the Great Hiatus. It offers an interesting contrast to Betzner’s highly regarded talk on the subject at the 2015 BSI Annual Dinner; both items are well worth reading, and among other things uphold Emerson’s views about hobgoblins.

This is an excellent volume that should be in every serious Sherlockian’s library. The John H. Watson Society can be proud that all three editors – “Herbie”, “Duke” and “Willow” – are Charter Members.

— Harrison Hunt “Dash”

Note from Carla: You can find out more about Out of the Abyss on it’s web page HERE.

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3rd Annual Treasure Hunt Change & Reminder

Hi All:  Taking up a bit of space here on the news page today to remind our Treasure Hunters about the forum that is open on the Quiz page.  Since we have some new teams competing this year, I’m worried not everyone knows to check the comments on the Quiz page forum from time to time for changes/clarifications to the Treasure Hunt.  Today, for example, Question #27 was removed from the hunt tally due to a question construction issue.  I hope everyone working on the Treasure Hunt receives the message–I would hate for anyone to spend time searching for an answer that is not going to be included in the scoring.  Thanks for your time and interest.

Now…back to your regular programming…

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Weekly Forum: #31

JHWS “Gwen” read a review of Mr. Holmes in The New Yorker (July 20 issue). The film is reviewed by Richard Brody. The writer made two statements that Gwen wishes to discuss – the first one we discussed last week and the second one is this week.

Since this discusses the movie Mr. Holmes, I’ll but this under a Continue Reading link for those of you who do not wish stumble upon any spoilers.

Continue reading “Weekly Forum: #31”

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A (Belated but Joyous) International Friendship Day

(I was absent yesterday and thus failed to share this lovely sentiment from our dear friend “Bobbie.” I apologize that this is a day late. However I feel it is better late than never at all, so now I am honored to present this message from him to all of you. – Carla Buttons)

Dear Friends and Fellow Watsonians,
Today is International Friendship Day
And so, to our dear Dr Watson and Mr Holmes, the very epitome of friendship.
Let us raise a toast to them.

“May I offer you a glass of Chianti, Miss Morstan? Or of Tokay? I keep no other wines.”
– Sherlock Holmes asks Mary Morstan in The Sign of Four

Kumar Bhatia
John H Watson Society “Bobbie”
Sherlock Holmes Society of India
Sherlock Holmes Society of London
Sherlock Holmes Fan Club of Hungary

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3rd Annual Treasure Hunt Is Posted

Hello 2015 Treasure Hunters!  You will find this year’s hunt attached below.  It is attached as a Word document (.docx) and, again, as a PDF for those without software to open a Word document.  As noted earlier today, a forum for discussing the treasure hunt is now open on the Quiz page.  Any questions / requests for clarification can also be sent to treasurehunt@johnhwatsonsociety.com.   The competition will be open through September 1, 2015; no submissions will be accepted after that date.

Good luck!

2015 JHWS TH WordDoc

2015 JHWS TH PDF

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Weekly Forum: #30

JHWS “Gwen” read a review of Mr. Holmes in The New Yorker (July 20 issue). The film is reviewed by Richard Brody. The writer made two statements that Gwen wishes to discuss – the first one will be this week’s discussion and the second one will be next week’s.

Since this discusses the movie Mr. Holmes, I’ll but this under a Read More link for those of you who do not wish stumble upon any spoilers.

Continue reading “Weekly Forum: #30”

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3rd Annual JHWS Treasure Hunt Final Warm Up Question

Hello Watsonians!  This time next week, the 3rd Annual JHWS Treasure Hunt will be posted and hopefully our hunters will be busy seeking answers.  We’ve had two previous warm up questions:  an easier question with just a bit of pawky-ness, and  a harder question requiring some associative thinking and rereading of several stories. The final warm up question is a medium-level straight forward one.  On we go:

Two men died in July: one in 1944, and the other in 1967. Their visionary work greatly influenced the world’s perception of Sherlock Holmes in their respective generations—in deed, their influence continues to resonate today. Who and who?

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3rd Annual JHWS Treasure Hunt Warm Up Question 2

Hello! It is now a mere ten days until the 3rd Annual John H Watson Treasure Hunt posts, and I’m thinking it is time for another warm up question.   And here we go:

Without becoming too terribly preoccupied, determine the missing name to complete the series:

Helen::Grimesby

Victor::Elise

Percy:: ___________

John::Sherlock

Sherlock::Adelbert

Sherlock::Jacky

Sherlock::Josiah

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Weekly Forum: #29

This weekend, the local group I belong to will hold an annual John H Watson Picnic. Do you or your own local society have any traditions involving our dear Doctor? Please share them with us!

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A Special Message

A special message from Megan, the daughter of Donald “Buttons” Libey, to everyone:

I just wanted to thank all who have written good words about my daddy, the comments are treasured to me. I express my gratitude to all, and I’m fine with him living in all of your hearts. Andrea will have great memories, and those will be treasured.
Thank you and best regards,

Megan Libey

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3rd Annual Treasure Hunt Warm Up Question

Hello!  It is now only 17 days until the 3rd Annual JHWS Treasure Hunt posts.  I thought a warm up question might be in order:  In the course of their adventures together, when and where did Holmes introduce the good Dr Watson by the doctor’s full first and last name?