The Curse of Sherlock Holmes
Posted: Thursday, March 04, 2010
by Jack H. Schick
Sherlock Holmes is one of the best known characters in all of world literature. He is by far the most familiar character in English fiction. Holmes has been phenomenally popular since he first appeared in the Strand Magazine in 1887, and solved the case of The Scarlet Letter. Sherlock Holmes is a towering, dominating personality. From his 'birth' he has completely overpowered anyone who has come too close to him or become too intimate with him. He has destroyed careers and left lives in ruins in ways no live human being ever could.
Soon, though, Conan Doyle began to feel stifled by his own creation. He was a full time writer by then and wanted to proceed with more "serious works". When he told his mother that he wanted to "slay" Holmes because "He takes my mind from better things," she advised him, "...the crowds will not take this lightheartedly." When Doyle finally did kill off the detective in The Final Problem, in December of 1893, the "crowds" certainly did not take it well. There was a public uproar and little support for Doyle's "serious works." Sherlock Holmes had already become too big to die.
By 1902, Doyle needed money again. The Return of Sherlock Holmes was published. It, and the remainder of the Canon, assured him a comfortable life. Doyle was knighted that year, he claims because of his treatises on the Boer War and his historic novels. Few scholars or readers doubt that his indomitable detective's resurrection played an important role in Doyle receiving the honor. The character had long since overshadowed his creator.
In his later years Doyle was involved in reopening some criminal cases where he used the techniques of Sherlock Holmes and freed several men from unjust imprisonments. Many believed that Doyle actually was Watson and the real Holmes had solved the cases. After the death of several family members during WWI Doyle fell into depression and became an advocate and promoter of Spiritualism. He became the counter of Harry Houdini, who tried to expose fraud and charlatanism in the field. Doyle believed in fairies and tried to prove mediums and seances were real. He is rumored to have perpetrated the Piltdown Man anthropological scam.
Doyle was a prolific writer. He produced some very good historical fiction. He was a Knight of the British Empire. However, he became strangely eccentric in his later years. His place in history is forever assured, but only in a subordinate role. No matter what he did or who he was, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle will first and always be remembered as the creator of Sherlock Holmes.
William Gillette was the foremost American actor, stage director, and playwright of his era. He was hugely popular, and successful in all three professions. His play Held by the Enemy was the first successful American play on British stages in 1887 (the same year Sherlock Holmes was "born"). The pinnacle of his career was the production of Secret Agent, still considered the best play about the Civil War.
At nearly fifty years old, Gillette became interested in playing Sherlock Holmes on stage. With cooperation and support from Conan Doyle he wrote a script and, in 1899, first stared as Holmes on stage in Buffalo, NY. In 1900 he performed in Britain for the first time at Liverpool. Doyle, when he first saw Gillette, proclaimed him the 'definitive Holmes.' He, not Doyle, penned the famous phrase "elementary, my dear Watson." Gillette performed as few other characters for the rest of his career. He appeared as Sherlock Holmes over 1300 times. The productions were almost always performed before a full house.
Gillette became very wealthy from his world wide tours as Sherlock Holmes. On the coast of Connecticut he built an eccentric stone castle that many called 'The Rock Pile.' He could often be seen on the ramparts dressed as Holmes. He is rumored to have stayed in character for days at a time, insisting that his servant staff and guests address him as Sherlock. He became so absorbed in his role that the personality of the character began to edge out that of the man.
One of the greatest American stage personalities of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, William Gillette is now most famously remembered as the first man to truly become Sherlock Holmes.
Basil Rathbone was an accomplished Shakespearean actor who toured Europe and America in the 1920's. He transitioned into films and had a very successful career. He was nominated for an Academy Award twice, in 1936 for Romeo and Juliet, and in 1938 for Louis XI. He was usually cast as a suave villain. He was famous for sword play with Errol Flynn and was a finalist for the role of Rhett Butler in Gone with the Wind.
In 1939, Rathbone began doing radio dramas. He eagerly took on the role of Sherlock Holmes. Over the next decade he did 14 Sherlock Holmes films, scores of radio skits, and performed as Holmes on stage. To several generations Basil Rathbone was the quintessential Holmes. No one had ever been better. Rathbone was the man from the stories in many viewer's minds. He was the Sherlock Holmes everyone knew, alive and real. The movies can still be seen on late night TV or purchased from any film catalogue seventy years later.
But, after Sherlock Holmes, Rathbone's career was at and end. From then on he got only typecast roles. No one could see him with out thinking of Holmes. He was reduced to taking roles in movies like The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini and Hillbillies in a Haunted House. Like Doyle and Gillette before him, he was overpowered and nudged aside by Holmes' dominating personality. With a stellar career forgotten, he is now mostly remembered as the man who was Sherlock Holmes.
The most tragic example of this curse is Jeremy Brett. After a successful stage and TV career, Brett decided to play Holmes for a PBS series in 1984. He wanted to be the best Holmes ever, and most Baker Street Irregulars believe he was. The episodes are true to the original stories. Brett always carried with him a 77 page "Baker Street File" to which he could refer for all of Holmes' mannerisms and habits. In preparations for the role Brett read and reread as much as he could find about Holmes, and there is a plethora of biographical literature on this fictional 'man.'
He found in his research that "some actors fear if they play Sherlock Holmes for too long a run the character will steal their soul and leave no corner for the original inhabitant." He became fascinated and frightened by Holmes' obsessive and depressive personality. He knew that to remain sane he had to leave Holmes 'at work', but he could not. He thought about his role constantly. In his mind he created a personal life for Holmes that did not exist in the literature. He wanted to 'flesh out' the character.
He knew the dangers, but he pressed on with a diligence no actor before him had dared. Brett said, "Some actors are becomers. They try to become characters. When it works, the actor is like a sponge squeezing himself dry to remove his personality then absorbing the character like a liquid." That is exactly what Brett did. He began dreaming about Sherlock Holmes. The dreams became nightmares. He started to refer to Holmes as "You Know Who," and "Him" as though the character was some dangerous demon. He ultimately was hospitalized and diagnosed manic-depressive.
Jeremy Brett disappeared like liquid squeezed from a sponge. He became Sherlock Holmes more completely than any man had before. As we watch the films we see Holmes the way we've always known him, the way we wanted him to be. Brett died in 1995, of heart failure, though he was also mentally ill. No one will ever have the courage to try to surpass his performance. He truly is the man who became Sherlock Holmes.
There are thousands of Sherlock Holmes fan clubs around the world. Mail is delivered weekly to 221B Baker Street, London. The address did not exist. It was created for enthusiasts to visit. For many, Holmes is real, not a character of fiction. You can find him in encyclopedias. There are 'biographies' of him more detailed than those of his creator. Almost every book store and library in the world carries the Canon, the four novels and the 56 stories. The best known character in English literature remains a dominating force. Most actors want to try to play him, but they recognize the danger. They keep their involvement brief, lest they too fall under the curse of Sherlock Holmes.
Jeremy Brett, Basil Rathbone and William Gillette as Sherlock Holmes
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More commentsI've been to Baker Street a couple of times since I live in london. It's well worth a visit. There you can buy all kinds of Shelock Holmes things.Lucky, you! Thanks for reading
What a great history lesson on Holmes. I'm a huge fan and think Rathbone was the best Holmes--him and Watson (Bruce) were outstanding together. I have all the Rathbone/Holmes movies and watch them often. I learned tons in this article--thanks for the lesson and the enjoying read.I thought Rathbone was the best until I saw Brett. I have the Rathbone movies too. Brett's, Edward Hardwick is my favorite Watson. The adherence to the storys and the intensity of Brett is what I like. Rathbone is great too, though. I see few Holmes's I dont like. You have to admit "Without a Clue" is a great film. Cushing is good...it goes on and on.
Hey, Jack, love your diversified writing interests! Hope you are having a good Saturday! I have laryngitis...Thanks, hope you get well soon
I enjoyed reading about Sherlock Holmes. I didn't know much of what was written and it was fun (though people who played Holmes might not feel so) to read about him.There were a couple of typos - one was mater - should be matter, it was on the second page. Another was 'beca became' - at the end of the third page. At the very end of the article is a bit of code which needs removed 'div>'. It was something I noticed, but did not take away from the information.Thanks for reading- I corrected Matter, but the other two errors I noticed, too- they do not appear on my edit page and I cannot correct them
Well done.Thanks for reading
It will be interesting to see if Robert Downing Jr. will take on the curse since I think in all probability he has this obsessive personality due to his past behavior.He'll probably just do one film. If not, watch out.I've wondered that, too. His newer movie "A Game of Shadows" was a hit, and I think it was better and a little more accurate to his character than the first. I'm curious what will become of him.
-Nicholasthanks for reading and commenting
Good informative article. The movie SherLock Holmes was in theaters just recently so there is active interest in the subject.thanks for reading
Great job! More power to you!thanks for the 2
From the article:
Holmes has been phenomenally popular since he first appeared in the Strand Magazine in 1887, and solved the case of The Scarlet Letter.
Hawthorne would be relieved.thanks for reading and commenting
That was an interesting article. It seems that actors who try to take on their roles excessively become mentally unstable. Heath Ledger's Joker persona and his excessive preparation for the role likely contributed to his untimely death. Hopefully Robert Downey Jr. doesn't go too far with the preparation for his role.Thanks for reading and commenting.
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