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Tales inspired - RANDOR GUYA

The immortal Sherlock Holmes

Reprising the role:Jeremy Brett is one of the many to have played Sherlock Holmes.

In literary circles of the past, detective stories were not considered respectable. Termed ‘pulp fiction,’ it was looked down upon. But all that changed when a doctor from England turned writer to earn some extra money.

Arthur Conan Doyle studied medicine at Edinburgh University. He set up his practice in Portsmouth, England. Initially, he did not get many patients and so he began to write.

Like most writers of that genre, he created a detective whom he first called Sherringford Holmes and then, in an inspired moment, changed the name to Sherlock Holmes.

For nearly six decades, films have been made on the Sherlock Holmes tales. This resident of Baker Street, London, is still popular enough to have his stories re-told on TV and radio and in many languages.

Many great actors and stars of England and Hollywood have played this character on the screen. The roster includes John Barrymore, William Gillette, Ellie Norwood, Clive Brook, Raymond Massey, Reginald Owen, Arthur Wontner and the most famous Holmes of them all was Basil Rathbone.

John Barrymore was a leading stage star before he joined films during the silent era. Barrymore played the detective in the silent film ‘Sherlock Holmes’ (1922), which was produced by movie mogul Samuel Goldwyn under his banner, Goldwyn Pictures. The film was adapted from the well known play by William Gillette, who had the blessings of the author to dramatise his tales. Gillette also successfully played Holmes on stage first and later in movies.

In the film, Barrymore gave Holmes a touch of class and his famous profile helped too! But the star, who was already addicted to the bottle, was not keen on the role as his involvement in theatre was too absorbing. (In early 1920s, the medium of cinema was still considered ‘dirty’ and so most leading stage stars were not inclined to act in the movies.)

Ellie Norwood’s contribution was impressive but, sadly, he has been forgotten today. He was a British stage actor, who, within a span of two years, 1921-1923, played Holmes in 47 films. However, most of them were not of the standard feature film length. Norwood was 60 when he played the role first and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was most pleased with his portrayal. He said, “Norwood has that rare quality which can only be described as glamour which compels you to watch an actor even when he is doing nothing. His wonderful impersonation of Holmes has amazed me!” As an expert in the art of make-up, Norwood put on several disguises in the films and devised a special innovative ‘bald wig.’

The actor who played Holmes for the first time in talking pictures was Clive Brooks. Produced by Paramount and directed by Basil Dean in 1929, ‘The Return of Sherlock Holmes’ saw Brook in the title role. David. O. Selznick, then with Paramount, thought that the British star resembled Holmes. Canada-born actor Raymond Massey reprised the role in ‘The Speckled Band’ (1931), considered as one of the most intriguing of all Holmes stories. The next Holmes was Reginald Owen in ‘A Study In Scarlet’ (1933 ). He had earlier played Dr. Watson. Besides acting, he also wrote the dialogue and scenario. As it often happens in Hollywood, the only thing that was true to the book was the title.

Then came Basil Rathbone, whose portrayal is still remembered. According to a Hollywood grapevine, the Twentieth Century - Fox boss Darryl F. Zanuck met the actor at a party and exclaimed that he would make the perfect Holmes.

Basil Rathbone was introduced as Holmes in ‘The Hound of Baskervilles’ (1939). Produced for Fox by Darryl Zanuck and directed by Sydney Lanfield, it had the portly Nigel Bruce as Dr. Watson, whose acting is considered as the best till today. He made the role comical and proved a prefect foil for Rathbone. The cast included well known Hollywood character actors, John Carradine and Lionel Atwill, and the menacing hound was ‘Chief’, a 140-pound Great Dane picked up from a kennel in San Fernando Valley not far from Hollywood. The moor set was built on the Fox back lot over an area of 6000 square feet. It was so vast that an actor, Richard Greene, was lost in the set and a search team had to go looking for him.

The film was a major hit both at the box-office and with critics. Interestingly, the film was re-released in 1975 and proved its successful staying power. Today it is hailed as a classic of the crime genre.

Inspired by such a success, Rathbone was cast as Holmes in 14 films. The list includes ‘The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes’ (1939), ‘Sherlock Holmes and the Voice of Terror’ (1942), ‘Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon’ (1943), ‘Sherlock Holmes in Washington’ (1943, the detective’s first adventure in America! Based on a story never thought of by Sir Arthur!), ‘Sherlock Holmes Faces Death’ (1943), ‘Spider Woman’ (1944) and finally in 1946, ‘Dressed to Kill.’ Rathbone became synonymous with Holmes, a fact he disliked.

With the last film, in which Holmes dies, he bade good bye to the character. But Sherlock Holmes did not die in the hearts of his fans.

In 1959, the Holmes movies were revived with Peter Cushing playing the detective in ‘The Hound of Baskervilles.’ It was produced by the well known British company, Hammer, noted for their horror films. The novel underwent changes but the film was a success.

Holmes films were made in Germany and Holland with equal success. The celebrated Hollywood filmmaker, Billy Wilder, made ‘The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes’ (1970). Wilder known for his humour, satire and lampooning made the film in his inimitable style but it was not a success. ‘The Hound of Baskervilles’ inspired the hit Hindi film, ‘Bees Saal Baad.’ Its haunting song, ‘Kahin deep jale…,’ was sung by Lata Mangeshkar and has been immortalised. Although Sir Arthur Conan Doyle has passed away many decades ago, his creation, Sherlock Holmes, remains alive in movies, on television, and in the hearts of fans.

(MONTHLY COLUMN ON FILMS ADAPTED FROM LITERARY WORKS)

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