HERE have been so many depictions of Sherlock Holmes over the years that, to many people, they all become an amorphous blob of characteristics, such as a long gaunt face, a well-endowed proboscis, and (of course) some smoking implement, usually of a wooden nature — an adjective which seems to apply equally well to many of the lesser-known actors falling flat in their ulsters.

Bob Bryne, in his essay The Definitive Holmes, writes:

The name Sherlock Holmes is uttered, and we all form an image in our minds. It might be a drawing by Sidney Paget or Frederic Dorr Steele, or maybe Basil Rathbone or Peter Cushing. Over a century with the great detective has given us very clear images of how we think he looks.

Since Charles Brookfield did a short skit entitled “Under the Clock” in 1893, Sherlock Holmes has been portrayed on stage, screen and radio far beyond anyone’s ability to count. Each medium (publishing, stage, movies and television) has seriously affected the way Holmes is viewed by current and succeeding generations.

This excellent piece has many graphics included (be sure to click on the links to see them), and serves as a tight little survey of the most popular depictions — to include them all would be next to impossible.

Byrne also has a series of other great Sherlockian content on this site of his, Sherlock Holmes on Oxford Lane (a.k.a., HolmesOnScreen.com), including pieces on various key actors, quizzes, original fiction, an essay on how the Canon’s themes reflect Joseph Campbell’s journey of the hero, and much more. Well worth a visit.

UR dear Mr. Holmes hasn’t fared very well in comic books over the years. True, there was a long-running syndicated comic strip in the papers, and the great detective has appeared as a “guest” in numerous comic books and graphic novels over the years, but every effort to spin Holmes into a successful series seems to have run into problems.

The mid-seventies proved a tough time for the comics industry in general. With the great high camp movement of the sixties –bolstered by the incredible success of Adam West as television’s Batman– having faded away, the major companies DC and Marvel were struggling, often relegated to running mostly cheap reprint stock, while a number of smaller companies (such as Dell and Charleston) were sinking fast. In those days before direct order and specialty comics shops –which later resuscitated the industry– the companies were trying anything and everything to stay afloat, dashing to their presses the whole gamut from superhero to romance, sci-fi to war, horror to comedy, and little seemed to catch the public’s attention. Internal struggles and low payscales within the companies worsened the outlook, as many of the greater talents took off for greener pastures and other industries.

It was about this time that DC tried to break away from its policy of pushing fifties and sixties reprints and make a few bold moves, creating short-run comics with new characters to see if any spark caught flame. Among such other legendary notables as King Arthur and Beowulf, Mr. Sherlock Holmes appeared in his very own comic for September-October 1975, a double-story issue that contained extremely abbreviated versions of “The Final Problem” and “The Empty House.” The subscription information inside that reads “published bi-monthly” indicates that this wasn’t actually meant as a one-shot, but rather a pilot issue for a series. (According to the last page, the next issue was supposed to be on sale in August.) Unfortunately, the lacklustre sales of this book meant that no more issues were published, and Holmes joined the other great worthies in the cancellation bin.

The art on the cover was an early effort by Walt Simonson, who was later to gain fame for Thor and X-Factor. The story inside was written by Dennis O’Neil, a long-time writer of Batman comics, with art by the Philippine illustrator E.R. Cruz, notable for more adult fare such as in Warren’s Eerie. A short essay by Allan Asherman entitled “The Real Sherlock Holmes” rounded out the issue. Click on the graphics above to see close-ups of the cover and part of the famous scene from The Empty House.

In retrospect, it’s not hard to see why this effort failed. The atmospheric and shadow-laden artwork, consisting mainly of hues of green and grey, would certainly fail to attract the attention of a ten-year-old browsing for a colourful Superman or Spiderman (even though Holmes does use fisticuffs a little more than we’re accustomed). The industry at the time aimed mainly for younger readers, so most teenagers generally dismissed all comic books as “kid stuff” and weren’t likely to pluck the issue off the rack. The short treatment of the stories (both of them fit into a mere 18 pages) meant that there was little room for the myriad touches that an adult mystery lover tends to savour. So who were they aiming for? It’s hard to say….

From time to time, I’ll be featuring other comic books on this site, but for those folks aspiring to collect Holmes-related fare, the Sherlock Holmes Illustrated list, although a few years out of date, is an excellent place to start.

UCH of what the general public regards as the archetypal image of Sherlock Holmes is due to William Gillette, who personified Holmes for many years in his stage play (named, appropriately enough, “Sherlock Holmes”):

Possibly best known in his day for embodying the celebrated character of Sherlock Holmes, created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (with whom the actor also became a close personal friend), Gillette imposed his cachet forever on the character’s stereotype: deerstalker cap, cloak, curved pipe and the phrase: “Oh, this is elementary, my dear Watson.” [Wikipedia]

I’ve always loved the posters I’ve seen for the production, but one in particular is a favourite — the one reproduced below.

I’ve never really found a good reproduction of this poster. The closest I’ve found, I’ve scanned from the wonderful book The Life & Times of Sherlock Holmes by Philip Weller with Christopher Rodin, and then cleaned it up quite a bit in Photoshop.

As a little thank-you to all the readers who have visited my modest site, and the dozens who are sending me so many fascinating materials and links, I thought I’d offer it as a small printable poster. Note that the graphic is not perfect, due mostly to the original source, but it’s significantly better than any other version I’ve seen yet. It should blow up to 8×10 inches without any significant deterioration in quality, and if you bring it to your local Kodak kiosk, you should be able to have it print off a beautiful glossy version worthy of framing. You may have to adjust the brightness and contrast at the machine, so be sure to preview it. (Note that this is intended for personal use only, not for commercial purposes.)

Download: Frohman_Gillette_Lyceum.jpg [1.1 Mb] — Right-click in your browser on the link, and click “Save file (or target) as…”.

If anyone is interested, I can provide a similar download for the other popular Gillette poster later.

ELOW is one of the most oft-used depictions of Holmes and Watson. This beautiful illustration by Sidney Paget adorned the original Strand publication of Silver Blaze, and is captioned “Holmes gave me a sketch of the events.”

This is the signature image of Sherlock Holmes burnt indelibly into our minds by popular culture. Anyone wearing a deerstalker is therefore automatically assumed to be playing the role of the great detective, applying logic and observation to the unravelling of some crime.

The problem –and this is one of the most basic “secrets” that an initiate into the world of Holmes must learn– is that the Master rarely wore such a hat, if ever. Why? Well, simply put, a deerstalker (or “fore-and-aft cap”) is something used for country excursions. In Silver Blaze, Holmes and Watson went into the countryside where horses were being bred and trained, and hence it’s appropriate in this illustration. The text actually reads:

And so it happened that an hour or so later I found myself in the corner of a first-class carriage flying along en route for Exeter, while Sherlock Holmes, with his sharp, eager face framed in his ear-flapped travelling-cap, dipped rapidly into the bundle of fresh papers which he had procured at Paddington.

Paget interpretted this cap as a deerstalker. The image of Holmes in deerstalker was further spread through the famous play by –and the popular depictions of– the reknowned Holmes actor William Gillette. Eventually, it became synonomous with the character.

But, since it’s meant for country outings, you’d no more wear such a cap in the middle of London than you would wear a top hat climbing a mountain, or a jester’s cap while on safari. Sorry if this leads to any degree of disallusionment, but look at the bright side: you can now impress your friends with your vast knowledge of Victorian headwear. You’ll be the hit of the party, to be sure.

(And don’t forget that you can read Silver Blaze (SILV), replete with the original illustrations, at the incomparable Camden House.)

iven the fact that Sherlock Holmes was one of the “great” smokers of all time –witness his Persian slipper, his three-pipe problems, the William Gillette posters with cigarettes, the famous profile with the calabash pipe, and so on– and the fact that tobacco companies have always been some of the major sponsors of almost every media form, it’s no surprise to find a proliferation of advertisements featuring the Great Detective. Indeed, many of these ads are now collectors’ items. Below are two of the better known. The first poster, with a Gillette-esque character in dressing gown, hails from 1907. The second is, of course, Basil Rathbone, then appearing in Dressed to Kill (1946), another of the “modern-day” Holmes series from Universal. I don’t know about you, but Rathbone here resembles the creepy guy that once hung out beneath the streetlamp down my block, who giggled uncontrollably whenever women walked past. It doesn’t exactly sell me on the idea of lighting up.

Note: Of course, I would be remiss in my civic duty not to remind you that cigarettes cause cancer, mouth sores, fetus problems, bad teeth, and a million other nasty things that prevent tobacco companies from getting rich. None of which hinders my secret desire to walk around with a calabash pipe, even if it does blow soap bubbles.

hen Arthur Conan Doyle’s first Holmes short stories, beginning with A Scandal in Bohemia, were accepted for publication in the fledgeling Strand Magazine, a commission for the illustrations was not sent to Walter Paget (below, left), as was intended, but rather to his older brother Sidney (at right).

Requiring a model who approximated ACD’s description of Sherlock Holmes, Sidney asked Walter to sit for him. This all turned out to be a happy accident indeed, for these illustrations were so linked to the successful series, at least in Britain, that the artwork of one brother and the physical likeness of the other became synonomous with Sherlock Holmes. After Sidney died in 1908, it was only apropos that Walter picked up the pen: he illustrated one Holmes story, The Adventure of the Dying Detective, in 1913.

Many of the illustrations peppered throughout this site are those of Sidney Paget, and are taken from facsimiles of the original Strand stories. To view more illustrations, please wander on over to the excellent Sidney Paget and Walter Paget galleries gracing the walls at Camden House.

Images are from The Life & Times of Sherlock Holmes by Peter Weller.