I think we know by now that I am obsessive about Sherlock Holmes and the classic versions of them on the radio.Well, since I have been in Israel, I have found a really great podcast on iTunes that offers a huge selection of the best detective stories from old radio online. Great Detectives of Old Time Radio has a knowledgeable host and extensive archives. I have listened to most of his Holmes podcasts and have started enjoying others, like Let George Do It and The Thin Man. I definitely recommend checking it out on iTunes or his blog. He even has an iPhone app.One of my favorite parts of the old shows is the old commercials. Petri wine, Clipper Craft Clothes, Kreml Hair Tonic for Men, Bromo Quinine, Washington Coffee... It is so cool and to hear their calls for war bonds and victory gardens... it transports you to the past. Very cool.
Sherlock Holmes Trailer (w/ Robert Downey Jr?!?!)
Okay folks... watch this before you read my blog (but keep reading... please!)
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tOr4i-wbH-M&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0]
Okay...
So if you have ever read any of my blogs, you know I am a huge Sherlock Holmes fan. I like him because he is flawed. He isn't all brawn and no brains. He loves to engage is mental gymnastics and can spend hours sitting in a chair thinking with his eyes closed before taking action. And yes, I know what you are going to say ... he's a boxer, he's hyper, he has ADD sometimes and yes, he does... but never once did Doyle write a scene where he was boxing or engaging in that type of physical behavior (I believe, I haven't researched this). He eluded to it... but never was Holmes interrupted in the middle of a boxing session. Knowing about that time period, I am inclined to say that Doyle wrote the boxing in to "place" Holmes in society. That was something that gentlemen did. They went to Gentleman Jacks to box. Nothing that I have ever read (and I have read most everything on Holmes) has given me the impression that he was an "action hero."
This new film (and only judging based on the trailer) seems to be an Americanized action flick with a predictable format that they decided to name Sherlock Holmes. I had my doubts from the start. The best Holmes-ian productions have been British. And hey, not discriminating here... I'm American but Doyle was British, Holmes & Watson were... Americans may have a hard time enjoying the subtly of the British humor and what not but an Americanized, cowboy-esq, action hero Holmes doesn't sit right with me.
Needless to say, I will see the film and let you know what I think but ... ... ... ... right now, I'm not sold...
Basil Rathbone… my hero
Okay, so I posted in February how I am in love with Sherlock Holmes and recently ordered some old DVDs (Rathbone and Bruce from the 40's and Jeremy Brett from the 80's).
Well, I got them... finally! :-)
As luck would have it, my schedule didn't allow a Sherlock Holmes weekend and there were technical difficulties... (I need another surge protector for my living room tv. The Comcast guy didn't tell me he unplugged my dvd player to plug in the cable box, grrrr.) BUT I have snuck a few episodes in here and there this weekend.
Wow.
First of all, the UCLA Film & Television Archive did an AMAZING job at restoring these films. AND they put a note in the box explaining it. I actually learned a lot! Here is a blurb from their website -
Until 1950, films were produced using nitrate cellulose film stock, a chemically unstable and highly flammable material that inevitably deteriorates and turns to dust. Film preservation historically referred to the transfer of nitrate films to more stable acetate (or safety) film stock. However, acetate film stock also deteriorates, giving rise to a condition called "the vinegar syndrome"; and many of the color films made since 1950 are also subject to irreversible color fading. Many of the Archive's preservation and restoration projects deal with these post-1950 titles. The Archive is relying increasingly on a new polyester film stock, which appears to be much more stable if kept in optimal storage conditions.
They really did a nice job. They found the original front end titles and back end credits that were thrown away and restored the film to it's former glory. There were only a few they couldn't get all the pieces for or were irrevocably damaged.
So the first few episodes, well really, movies (they are over an hour long and were shown in theatres) are totally time warp Sherlock Holmes. They brought Holmes and Watson into WWII to help fight the Nazis. HOW COOL. It is rather funny to see them dressed in the period attire of the 40's rather than the late 1800's but still cool. The writers did a great job adapting Conan-Doyle's character to a new time period. They stayed pretty true to the character. (if you ignore the fact that they say "It's elementary, ____" to nearly every character and that is not something that Conan-Doyle wrote.)
So needless to say, I really am enjoying this collection. And I have two recommendations for you.
1. If you are watching late night tv and see a Brett or Rathbone Sherlock Holmes coming on, WATCH IT!
2. Help support the archive. What they do is invaluable and we have preserved so much history through their techniques.
Sherlock Holmes ala Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce
Okay, so a stated previously, I LOVE Sherlock Holmes. My dad even got an autographed copy of the complete works... which I thought was totally cool until I realized two things -
A. #1. It was signed, "To Talia.... Sincerely, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle" and he has been dead for oh, I don't know... 50 years?
B. #2. It was totally my dad's handwriting.
But that did make it kinda more cool, that my dad would do that for me.
Anywho, so I was watching a little late night TV the other night and two things happened (and they say things come in threes...) -
A. #1. I saw a listing for the old (1980's) Jeremy Brett version of the Sherlock Holmes tv series AND
B. #2. My curiosity peaked, I went searching on Comcast for more and found that Encore was showing the old, OLD (1940's) Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce version of the Sherlock Holmes tv/movie series that they were making while doing the radio show during WWII!!!!
I have never seen #2 and got super excited... until I realized I don't get Encore. So I went searching... I found the entire set on Amazon.com! Both of them! The 1980's and 1940's versions! All episodes! ON DVD!!!!
Of course I bought them immediately (early birthday present to me)!
So here's the deal. Brett was brilliant as Holmes but Rathbone created the role... and yet, I have never seen his face! (okay, except on wikipedia) The earlier episodes that Rathbone did were taken out of Doyle's context and put during WWII so Holmes and Watson were fighting the Nazis. When the war was over, they went back to dramatizations of stories like Doyle's (they did that a lot, write new 
episodes based on Doyle's characters and style).
episodes based on Doyle's characters and style).
So, needless to say, I am anxious to get my DVDs and have a Sherlock Holmes marathon! :-)
P.S. The top is Jeremy Brett and the bottom is (obviously) Basil Rathbone.
--Talia
It’s my first time, be gentle…
Okay so here's the deal. I blog for work, I tweet for work, I tweet for me, I facebook, I myspace, I link-in... but I have never blogged personally.
I thought it would be an interesting experiment to try to blog. I do well with the 140 characters of Twitter... how will I do with a full blog?
We will see. I have promised myself I won't resort to blogs full of quotes (okay, sometimes... I love quotes) or links or "I am brushing my teeth."
So here's some back story and expectations.
I am a 27 (nearly 28) year old Public Relations professional in Denver. I work in the non-profit arts sector and love my work. [So look for blogs about PR, social media, marketing, networking, arts, dance, theatre, film... etc.]
I am in grad school, working on my masters in PR & Marketing. [More PR & marketing stuff, plus school trials and tribs.]
My father is a rabbi (seriously, follow his blog - Rocky Mountain Hai. It rocks.) and so I do a lot of work in the Jewish community. [Yes folks, that means Judaism, Jewish holidays, Israel, and Israeli politics, etc.]
I volunteer for Goodwill in Denver and my sorority, Gamma Phi Beta. [You'll hear about that I am sure. GPhi, volunteering, working with needy kids.]
I love yoga and am a bit of an addict. [Yup, you will hear when I master hurdler and if I fall out of my flying crow. Did I mention that birds of paradise is one of my favs? I'll get ya a picture.]
Lastly, I think, I am obsessed with a few things.
A. Angela Lansbury is my hero (hence Talia, She Wrote).
B. Fred Astaire, Ginger Rodgers, Gene Kelly... most films made between 1930 and 1955.
C. Agatha Christie and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (that means Hercule Poirot and Sherlock Holmes, people)
D. Old radio shows. I love the old commercials... Petri Wine, Clipper Craft Clothing...
E. Wait, Wait Don't Tell Me (on NPR)
[All of the above, free game for blogs.]
Okay, one more thing... I am going to try to not delve too deeply into my personal like (aka dating) because, well, it's personal and frankly, I know some people who would love to use that against me. But I have no doubt a few details will slip in. :-)
Alright, enough level setting. Nice comments appreciated.
I hope this blog works out. It's fun already!
-- Talia Davis