Seventeen years, just like the seventeen steps to 221B Baker Street.

Revisiting the entire Canon of Sherlock Holmes, as one does reading the appreciative essays of About Sixty, one gets reminded of some pretty wonderful passages of the Watsonian narrative. And one key piece lies at the beginning of the little tale called "The Adventure of the Veiled Lodger":

"When one considers that Mr. Sherlock Holmes was in active practice for twenty-three years, and that during seventeen of these I was allowed to co-operate with him and keep notes of his doings . . ."

A very interesting passage in many ways.

First, seventeen years of Holmes and Watson working together.

Of January 1903, Holmes writes in "Blanched Soldier" that, "The good Watson had at that time deserted me for a wife . . . " which follows Watson's statement that "Creeping Man" in September of 1902 was "one of the very last cases handled by Holmes before his retirement from practice."

So we know from Holmes's return in "Empty House" and the following tales that 1894 through 1902 were eight of the years that Holmes and Watson worked together. The nine that remain?

Well, we know the first run definitely came to a close in May of 1891. And we've got nine years left to play with. A straight calculation would put May of 1882 as the time the Holmes started allowing Watson to keep notes of his cases. And that fits in with the bulk of Watson's case writings, that, for the most part, are dated 1887 forward, with one set in 1883.

That one, which is definitely included in "my notes of the seventy odd cases in which I have during the last eight years studied the methods of my friend Sherlock Holmes," as Watson writes in its opening, is "The Adventure of the Speckled Band." He also writes that it occurred "early in April in the year '83."

So we are left with an eight year span between 1883 and 1891, where Watson took notes of seventy-odd cases . . . leaving us to assume there was one year when Watson was not allowed to "keep notes of his doings" as mentioned in "Veiled Lodger," but still "studied the methods," as stated in "Speckled Band."

But just because Watson wasn't specifically keeping notes of Holmes's doings during that period does not meant that notes weren't being kept. Recall the subtitle of A Study in Scarlet which reads "Being a reprint from the reminiscences of John H. Watson, M.D." Pre-1893, Watson was just keeping notes for his own auto-biography.

June of 1889 through May of 1891 could be the two missing years. as Watson is married and in private practice, and the one case that definitely takes place in that period is "The Adventure of the Red-Headed League," in which Watson is only stopping by Baker Street and actually tells Holmes he'll wait in the next room until Holmes is done with the client.

So the seventeen years of prime Holmes and Watson partnership roughly 1882 to 1891 and 1894 to 1902 . . . and then four years of Holmes operating solo before that, indicating an 1878 start on Montague Street.

It's a fun little mental exercise to work through, stumbling through a few bad calculations and the occasional little side-jaunt into other bits of Watson's writings. So many Sherlockians have worked through the above since the 1930s, but it doesn't take away from the fun of doing it yourself, if you're of that sort of mind. Hope I didn't spoil it for you with this little walk-through, but this, of course, is just the start . . . as anyone with a true mind for chronology knows.

And anyone with that sort of mind, well, they're already picking this essay apart in any case. The only problem is, once you start focusing on the numbers, you start skipping the rest of it -- I was actually intending to write this blog about that weird phrase "allowed to co-operate" and what it said about the relationship between Holmes and Watson. What about the years Watson wasn't allowed to cooperate? What was going on there?

Well, since I wasted all this time on numbers . . . whoops.

About Sixty: Why THIS Sherlock Holmes Story Is The Best!

On the third track on side one of the soundtrack to Rocky, there is a piece called "Going the Distance" composed and orchestrated by Bill Conti. It is a theme the Rocky movies come back to again and again, and has been used by sports television whenever possible. Perfect for a montage of battle, and even though attaching music to a web page is rarely a good thing, I'm going to mentally tag that piece for tonight's blog. I'm even playing it now. Because this is it, the grand finale to the Battle Royale reading of About Sixty: Why Every Sherlock Holmes Story Is The Best.

Things are getting rough here, and only the most determined and most talented opponents have lasted this long. "The Problem of Thor Bridge" comes in fresh, with David Marcum cheering its merits, but the story shoots itself in the head for a number of reasons. Then comes that rampaging ape of a tale, "The Adventure of the Creeping Man," and Barbara Rusch trying to tame its wildness using every intellectual discipline at her disposal. But we didn't come here for a monkey fight.

And "The Adventure of the Lion's Mane" tries to wrap its tentacles around the audience when Jacquelynn Morris brings it in, and she uses Sherlock Holmes's own brain to illuminate its motions, but I've noticed a strong tendency to favor the more human competition in this tournament . . . which I guess Holmes's brain is . . . technically.

"The Adventure of the Veiled Lodger" brings a more human face to things, hidden behind that veil as it may be, and Jaime N. Mahoney is not frightened by that face. But that veil is the only mystery to solve for this competitor, and all the rare and special qualities Jaime puts forth in promoting the tale don't quite make up for seeing Sherlock Holmes do what he's supposed to do.

Bob Coghill rolls "The Adventure of Shoscombe Old Place" into the ring where the battle for the title of "Best Sherlock Holmes Story" is going on, then immediately admits "Shoscombe" has no place there. But he pays a nice, loving tribute to the old duffer before ushering it back to the locker room.

And when "The Adventure of the Retired Colourman" makes it to the ring, its promoter Elizabeth Bardawill seems to know from the start that a lot of the audience is going to boo the story. Declaring "Colourman" a loser and then going on to declare that's what makes it great is a good gimmick, but in the end, this tale is still a loser and accidentally gets knocked out of the ring because The Sign of Four backed into it while maneuvering to get a grip on "Silver Blaze." Yes, Sign still somehow stayed in the ring when I had thought "Silver Blaze" knocked it out earlier.

Yes, I may have forgotten to mention the champions still in the ring for a while.

Focusing on the promise and attractions of each new Sherlock Holmes story to come into this Battle Royale might have made us momentarily ignore what was going on behind the latest and greatest entrance to the tournament, but the strongest stories have always been there, whittling away at the competition. Most of the sixty are gone now, sent back to the locker room, beaten and bruised. Who is still here? After sixteen days of constant battle, who is holding on?

Well, The Sign of Four and "Silver Blaze," as I mentioned. A Study in Scarlet, that original Sherlockian sinner. "The Adventure of the Cardboard Box" is still here. It fights dirty and somehow can disappear from one book and appear in another, just to keep itself in play. "The Final Problem" couldn't leave the ring if it tried. And as long as "Final" is here, bitter rival The Hound of the Baskervilles isn't allowing itself to be thrown out. "The Adventure of the Solitary Cyclist" seems to have been cycling around the ring fast enough to stay in, though I don't hold much hope for it once it gets off the bike. Badasses like "Black Peter" and "Charles Augustus Milverton" did leave their bloodstains on the canvas, but those don't really count.

When the tournament took its final rounds to Las Vegas, things got a little fuzzy for this ring announcer at first, and the influences of that gambling capital began to show on the proceedings. Vegas oddsmakers might have swayed the crowd as bets were placed on old favorites.

"Dying Detective" and "Illustrious Client" got a few wagers placed on them, but as this is a battle of for the best of the best of the best, they inevitably fell, as so many before them did. And even though a certain ring announcer kept pushing "Three Gables" back in, it could not hold on either.

In the final moments of About Sixty, one realizes that no matter how hard each of the promoters worked to put their story over, the major responsibility for winning or losing this tournament comes down to the competitor itself. It's skills, it's strengths, and what it has to show us when everything it has is on the canvas. And left to themselves, certain inevitabilities start to take place.

"Final Problem" does take down The Hound of the Baskervilles. And seeing such a strong novel put out of the ring, the brothers A Study in Scarlet and The Sign of Four team up to push all the short stories out of the fight. And then, well, then the elder brother is . . . well, the elder brother.

The About Sixty Battle Royale has come full circle and A Study in Scarlet takes the championship belt. Its ability to capture and hold that fresh spirit of Sherlock Holmes before any of his moves became expected, its original spark that gave life to all that came after . . . one has to wonder if Susan Smith-Josephy happened to be standing right next to him when Christopher Redmond first went, "Hey, I want to organize a collection to argue why each Sherlock Holmes story is the best!" just so she could jump in and go, "Give me that one!"

I don't know how many Sherlockians read A Study in Scarlet first. For me, my first was "The Adventure of the Speckled Band" in an eighth grade English class. And, as much as I hate to say it, I didn't fall in love with Sherlock in that story. It wasn't until I got that slow introduction to him alongside Dr. Watson in A Study in Scarlet that I truly became a fan. And as much as I may favor this story or that, or go along with the very convincing arguments of the sixty non-me authors of About Sixty: Why Every Sherlock Holmes Story Is The Best, A Study in Scarlet will always be the champion of all Sherlock Holmes stories, for just that reason. Like Irene Adler was the woman, A Study in Scarlet can be nothing but the Sherlock Holmes story for me.

Did you see a result from experiencing About Sixty that was different from mine? Will you, if you haven't picked up the book yet? (And why not, it's that rare modern "must have" for a Sherlockian collection.) Let me know . . . or better yet, let Christopher Redmond know in case he decides to put together Sixty More Besides Yourselves: Why Every Sherlock Holmes Story Is Better Still (or something like that) one day. 

Because I don't think Sherlockians will ever get done telling the world about their favorite Sherlock Holmes stories. 

About Sixty: Bring it!

Get ready. The best Sherlock Holmes story ever is finally about to enter the Battle Royale.

About Sixty: Why Every Sherlock Holmes Story Is The Best has been a real chance to see Sherlock Holmes's cases put up against the ropes and forced to show us what they're really made of. We've seen some outstanding talent pushed to even greater heights by some skilled and knowledgeable promoters. We have seen massive works of fiction challenged by child-sized portions of literary entertainment. We have seen murderers opposed by domestics, and the familiar favorites versus the rare oddities. But what have we yet to see in this arena? What could still shock and amaze?

Well, no sooner than I ask that question, "The Adventure of the Blanched Soldier" limps down to the ring, accompanied by Dr. Richard J. Sveum. And I know what you're thinking -- we all thought that. "Oh, here's a story with a medical theme and a specialist in that field going to give us an in-depth analysis of skin disease!" BUT, NO! Dick has re-trained "Blanched Soldier" to play up it's secret super-power -- being the one Sherlock Holmes story written by Sherlock Holmes while still working as a detective. And then he tag-teams Holmes and Watson with Dodd and Emsworth, giving the story more strength than I've ever see this "just a medical matter" tale ever have before. Even without Watson present, Dick has managed to his friendship with Sherlock Holmes the key to this tale, and as a result, make this tale more important than any other in the Canon.

BOOM goes the "Blanched Soldier," shaking up this tournament of champions, and surely putting the fear of Holmes into the next case about to enter the ring.

That case, "The Adventure of the Mazarin Stone," had to be the lowest odds-to-win entry in this contest. But Jack Arthur Winn makes it dangerous from the start, and has that old favorite, Billy the page-boy, do a run-in, which none before him tried. Billy is a bit of a Hornswoggle, for those of you familiar with WWE wrestlers, and always adds some fun to the match. The tale is a tiny one, Jack Winn admits, but well deserving of its place among the sixty . . . and that should be good enough for any story.

But is it good enough, for "The Adventure of the Three Gables," charging into the ring being egged on by yours truly? Yes, "Three Gables" is my dog in this fight, and I'm not holding back anything tonight, as much as I might respect or admire any of my fellow promoters. "Three Gables" is simply the best story in this tournament, and will finish out on top! I mean, look a how Watson is taking a hit for the story early in the essay, sacrificing himself to get past the unsavory hurdle of Steve Dixie's portrayal. And Isadora Klein tags in, a woman who could pop off Irene Adler with one delicate hand behind her back on a bad day. Oh, it's just too good, this story! I mean . . .

HEY! WAIT! "The Adventure of the Sussex Vampire" shouldn't be coming in so soon! What's Carlina De La Cova think she's doing, pushing that vampire into the ring before I'm done? And she's even citing another book by Chris Redmond, the guy who organized this tournament! No fair! Watson being all athletic? CLIVE BARKER?!?

I fear I may have over-excited myself with that last one, like a South American lady who may or may not be a vampire. (Is there anything hotter than that, I ask you? Whoa!)

I need to calm down with a Garrideb, and fortunately, "The Adventure of the Three Garridebs" is next up on the program. Tamara R. Bower escorts "Garridebs" to the ring, but far from letting pleasant old Nathan Garrideb set the tone for this next part, Tamara has this tale throwing off its robes in a dramatic flair and revealing it as a shipping extravaganza! Yes, fans, we made it through ninety percent of this tournament before the shipping card got played quite so hard, or maybe just my XY chromosomes are limiting my retention of previous incidences of that thread. In any case, turning "Three Garridebs" into a love story totally throws off the massive testosterone build-up in this battle for the best, and once again, it's a whole new ball game.

And with the end of it all coming soon, who knows what this will mean for our eventual winner?

Onward!

Those whom the Wiggins deems worthy.

"Most, or all, Irregulars can be adjudged somewhat eccentric by virtue of our worship of a person who never lived, and yet who, in our eyes and many others worldwide, will live forever. However, some people are just not a good fit for this society. Perhaps it’s a matter of habitually putting themselves first (narcissistic, highly entitled), or unfortunately having limited funds with which to participate in BSI events."

  -- From this year's recommendation guideline for suggesting invitees

to the annual dinner of the Baker Street Irregulars of New York

For the most part, I try to leave the Baker Street Irregulars alone in these pages. But if one is writing on Sherlock Holmes fandom in America, that topic has to come around occasionally, and the exclusive country club nature of our oldest Holmes fan club cannot go overlooked.

What combination of being centered in New York City and bestowing Irregular shillings like knighthoods eventually led America's first Holmes fandom to this place is hard to say. The slow shift of Irregular menswear from suit-and-tie to tuxedo was an indicator, and one can't help but see a focus that tended to gaze overlong on the club itself rather than Sherlock Holmes at times entering into the equation. And becoming a bucket-list destination for the Sherlock Holmes fans of the Baby Boom definitely brought the laws of supply and demand into play.

Such is life, one might say, and you don't get a selfie with Benedict Cumberbatch without paying the convention corporation's price. Money talks.

But it was rather unsettling to see that factor placed into the guidelines for suggesting who gets invited to the annual dinner. How would you feel if an Irregular took that note, and deemed you too poor to suggest to the B.S.I.'s doorman when an invitation might have motivated you to come up with the cash for the trip? (Admittedly, you're not going to get enough warning to save up for more than a month . . . but still, heroic efforts can be made.) Fandom folk tend to be highly motivated to get to events that attract them, and do get there, more often than not.

There are plenty of more affordable options for Sherlock Holmes fans out there these days, from the Scintillation of Scions to 221B Con, so one can live a very happy Sherlockian life without ever setting foot inside the annual Irregular dinner. And that's pretty cool.

But this ongoing tone of selecting star-bellied sneetches for the Caddyshack country club of Sherlockiana . . . maybe the B.S.I. should check into a public relations guy. So not cool.

The annual written lecture from the B.S.I.'s Wiggins on who is appropriate and who is not appropriate (and, heaven forbid, NO CAMPAIGNS!) to show up to his "private" dinner party is going to be an interesting piece of current Sherlockian culture for some future historian to peruse in the B.S.I.'s Harvard archives, especially as one watches it evolve over the years. They might even enjoy speculating on what incident or person inspired each new specific suggestion. (Let's name names on the narcissistic and highly entitled! Yeah, I know . . . .) But each year, I get these letters, and each year I find myself less motivated to gather up my own travel budget and choose New York in January over some more welcoming climate.

Perhaps eventually that Baby Boom demand is going to peter out and perhaps the next head of the Irregulars will decide to try being a little sweeter in his invitation to participate, just to get a few more folks to come. Or just build a wall around the dinner . . . that is apparently a popular option these days, too.

Time will tell.

About Sixty: Battle Internationale.

Sixty stories enter. One story leaves.

About Sixty: Why Every Sherlock Holmes Story Is The Best has been a book at war with itself. Not as in "Civil War," which generally just has two sides. No, About Sixty has so many competitors coming at each other, from so many angles, to prove each of the sixty Sherlock Holmes tales deserves to stand atop the heap of its defeated fifty-nine foes.

And by the time we get to "The Disappearance of Lady Frances Carfax," Thierry Saint-Joanis is bringing the entire country of France into the battle for story superiority. It is the first story in About Sixty with an actual anthem, written to the tune of the Marseillaise, to play as it enters the fray. And what is the French way to say "The game is afoot!" -- well, even that is included, and if the final battles of this tournament were being held in Paris instead of Las Vegas, Thierry might just get "Carfax" the title belt just on national pride alone.

But a dark cloud is descending upon the arena, and with it, Diane Gilbert Madsen conjuring the power of "The Adventure of the Devil's Foot" to stamp out its competition. But the tale's Sherlock Holmes is in a weakened state, and that definitely lowers the case's chances to last long against healthier foes.

"His Last Bow: The War Service of Sherlock Holmes" would promise to be one of the healthiest of those, but Thomas Drucker gets "Last Bow" to take a more cerebral attack. A Euclidean something is brought to bear here, but the little gray cells of this wrestling fan are far too low in census counts to fully digest. About the time I'm starting to get it, Socrates and Plato are invoked, and my brain, simple with weariness, starts to wander and my eyes look to the program . . . will some bruiser come in next to toss this egghead?

The opponent Leah Guinn introduces is not a muscle-bound hulk, however, but the dangerous power of an unwise choice of lover. And that means "The Adventure of the Illustrious Client" has come to toy with our affections. Leah makes it personal from the get-go, and there is advantage in that. And "Illustrious Client" was always a stand-out among the scuffling sixty, with a problem for Holmes that touches the heart of anyone who has seen someone they care about fall under a malefactor's power. It makes this tale a top contender -- it's motivated!

With "Illustrious Client," the tournament has slipped into its final phase -- The Casebook of Sherlock Holmes combatants. And the heart of so many of these competitors is really starting to show. Some have exhibited great staying power, even in the face of fresh new entrants.

Eleven stories left to enter the ring . . . and one is my personal favorite. Get ready for a rumble of a weekend!

Spanking the Irregulars.

Oh, yes, the Baker Street Irregulars of New York are still out there.

For those of you who are new to the Sherlock scene, the Baker Street Irregulars of New York are considered one of the oldest and most respected Sherlock Holmes clubs in the world. Its primary function is holding one dinner a year on the weekend closest to Sherlock Holmes's birthday, though their website would seem to indicate their primary functions are putting out a journal and maintaining an archive. The B.S.I. is a great example of something that starts as a fun, carefree little club and eventually becomes a serious, important institution over the course of eighty years.

How serious? How important?

Well, the sovereign of the group seems to have actually considered confiscating cell phones from the membership at the annual dinner this year, for the duration of the program. And, yes, these are full-grown adults he was considering this with. Why?

Well, apparently some of the older generation of Irregulars find it offensive that some attendees are paying more attention to their phones than said older attendees. I'm very familiar with this sort of disagreement, as my loyal companion Carter and I have long had little debates as to whether or not looking at a phone is rude behavior. Among the younger people I socialize with, however, it's perfectly common and acceptable to listen to someone while looking at your phone. Multi-tasking, as our demanding workplaces call it, a part of everyday American life. But a lot of older folks, entering the "get off my lawn" phase of life, find it quite abhorrent.

The thing I've noticed about this smartphone issue is simple: If you're interesting enough, you can have anyone's complete attention, phone or no. Smartphones are only rude if you can't accept the fact that maybe, just maybe, you aren't holding someone's attention. Social Darwinism at work.

Smartphones are a part of modern culture. Sharing one's life in real-time is a part of it as well. For a group leader who purposefully avoided the internet itself with an overly proud anti-tech boast for as long as humanly possible to treat his group's membership as an unruly class of school kids for being part of the modern world . . . well, it's just a little bit silly. And not helpful in moving the club forward into the world it actually exists in. People not at the BSI dinner would be much more excited about it if they could share in the festivities via those attendees kind enough to stay in touch with social media during the happenings there. It can also enhance the experience for those attending, believe it or not, as they share their feelings with people even just on the other side of the room.

What amuses me the most about this little situation is that after all the fuss made over the selection of just the correct Sherlockians for inclusion in the exclusive society, after the careful screening of those who just want an invitation to the party, the group's "benevolent" dictator feels the need to chastise his chosen few about their phone manners. So much for all that careful selection.

But as said leader states during the close of his cell phone chastisement in this year's invitation letter, "The BSI is a private society," which roughly translates to "I'm the boss. Deal."

And he is, and that's that, proud Luddite attitudes or no. But like I said, if you're interesting enough, you can get someone to quit looking at their phone. So if you're looking for me this January, rest assured, I'll be here in Peoria . . .

. . . looking at my phone.

About Sixty: The Las Vegas finale begins!

Little did I realize, when I started pitting Sherlock Holmes story against Sherlock Holmes story with About Sixty: Why Every Sherlock Holmes Story Is The Best as the arena, that said venue would eventually be moving to Las Vegas, a city known for its spectacular prize fights.  Of course, given the lack of a laptop and the non-lack of copious diversions, the transfer of my commentary from a pen-on-paper handwritten Moleskin notebook to the web also had to wait until I returned home. So, with that brief explanation, let the Battle Royale resume!

When the overlong intermission began, we had just finished seeing what the stories of The Return of Sherlock Holmes could do, and The Valley of Fear, the last of the novel competitors in this tournament, had just thrown its bulk into the fight. And while The Valley of Fear may have impressed some of the audience with it's one-two-part punch, the next tale coming to the ring has a one-two-part move as well!

"The Adventure of the Wisteria Lodge" gets first introduction in the last leg of the About Sixty Battle Royale with Mark Hanson doing the honors. "Wisteria" comes in ready to fight with that previously mentioned one-two of story chapters, and an actual detective dual between Sherlock Holmes and Inspector Baynes. Holmes gives it up early in this one, though, which doesn't help "Wisteria's" cause.

Were the stories of the previous book, The Return of Sherlock Holmes, a bit more of the "same old, same old" than the stories of His Last Bow? David Lewis inspires that thought as he brings "The Adventure of the Red Circle" down to the ring like a champ. When the first words of his announcement are "Beware, beware, beware, DANGER!" in both Italian and English, you know he's about to let "Red Circle" go for the throat.

David basically compliments you for being a true fan if you get "Red Circle," and you go, "Sure! I get 'Red Circle!'" He is probably the first story promoter to make me go, "I need to re-read this story NOW!" But did I bring a copy of the Canon to Las Vegas? No! About Sixty competitors must stand and fall on their champion's efforts in this arena.

And "The Adventure of the Red Circle" is standing proud!

Now, I want to be honest for a second. When I saw "The Adventure of the Bruce-Partington Plans" on the program nest, I immediately starting booing. The story simply bores me. Julie McKuras, however, starts her spiel by giving the story a sort of "Miss Congeniality" award with "top of the 'high diplomacy and intrigue category," but I start booing that category. Julies's attempts to get "Bruce-Partington" to have the eye of the tiger is a noble one, but as the case brings out the failings of not one, but two Holmes brothers in their respective fields, no silk purse is happening here. Love ya, Julie, and all your other efforts, but "Bruce-Partington" exits the arena with me booing as loud as when it came in.

Maybe I'm just in a "morning-after" Vegas mood and the Advil hasn't kicked in yet.

Did you know that "The Adventure of the Dying Detective" takes place on my birthday? Well, few do, and Nancy Stott Jones is not among them. But her intro to "Dying Detective" still has me cheering as it enters the ring. Media bias seems to be in full swing on this particular morning of the About Sixty Battle Royale, but even with that said, Nancy's dressing Holmes up as Hamlet for this fight is a genius move.

The key to About Sixty success, I'm finding, often isn't warming our hearts with what we already know, it's showing us a new move from an old champion. We know "Dying Detective," but did we know how close to Hamlet this story was? Not me, and this "Dying Detective" isn't laying down during this fight.

Myself, on the other hand, is showing more wear and tear in Las Vegas and needing some rest before the next competitor is announced. Will this city of gamblers change the odds on how this tournament comes out? Will Nevada give A Study in Scarlet the needed edge as it's the only story that Nevada appears in?

Stay tuned!