Sherlock Holmes: the Basil Rathbone Years & Other Films

By Scott Palmer

For more than 100 years, the character of Sherlock Holmes has appeared in scores of films, as well as in a number of television series. For many people, the films made between 1939 and 1946, starring Basil Rathbone as Holmes, with Nigel Bruce as his companion Dr. Watson, remain the most popular.

My own introduction to these films began as a small boy, viewing them on television with my father, who had himself seen them all as a boy or very young adult. Rathbones portrayal of Holmes seems to me the most accurate, in the regard of following the way Sir Arthur Conan Doyle wrote the character, and each of the fourteen films he made playing Holmes have many charming characters and great dialogue. Most of the stories have some elements of Doyles written works; even the updating where Holmes fights the Nazis, for example, is still great entertainment.

Although there are a number of Sherlock Holmes film books, there has never been one devoted to the Rathbone series, in detail. In this book you will find complete cast lists for each film, along with a story synopsis and photographs.

There have been so many other film and TV adaptations of Sherlock Holmes adventures that I feel it necessary to include a number of others as well, even though the emphasis of the book is still on the Rathbone series.

I have included several films from the thirties, i.e. four films starring Arthur Wontner as Holmes (The 1932 film The Missing Rembrandt appears to be a lost film) and also the 1931 Raymond Massey The Speckled Band, along with the 1932 Sherlock Holmes with Clive Brook, and the 1933 film A Study in Scarlet starring Reginald Owen.

Following the Rathbone films a number of other actors have played Holmes, most notably Peter Cushing in the 1959 film Hound of the Baskervilles and a 1968 TV series. I have included one film each from the 1954-55 series starring Ronald Howard, one from the 1968 Cushing series and one from the series starring Jeremy Brett. Other notable films include The 1965 A Study in Terror and the 1979 Murder By Decree, both pitting Holmes against Jack the Ripper. I have included five or six others at random, starring actors like Stewart Granger, Ian Richardson, Charlton Heston, Roger Moore and Christopher Lee. There is also a section at the back with a photo from films made beginning in 1899.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Jun 29, 2015
• ISBN: 9781503560918

Scott Palmer

Bethany and Scott Palmer, otherwise known as "The Money Couple," are financial advisers and lead the financial planning company Envoy Financial, which represents 650 ministries and 12,000 clients. They are the authors of Cents and Sensibility and live in Colorado with their two young sons.

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Sherlock Holmes:

THE BASIL RATHBONE YEARS

&

Other Films

By

Scott Palmer

Copyright © 2015 by Scott Palmer. 710825

Library of Congress Control Number: 2015905457

ISBN:  Softcover    978-1-5035-6090-1

            Hardcover  978-1-5035-6089-5

            EBook        978-1-5035-6091-8

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

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Rev. date: 06/27/2015

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AUTHOR’S NOTE/ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

For more than 100 years, the character of Sherlock Holmes has appeared in scores of films, as well as in a number of television series. For many people, the films made between 1939 and 1946, starring Basil Rathbone as Holmes, with Nigel Bruce as his companion Dr. Watson, remain the most popular.

My own introduction to these films began as a small boy, viewing them on television with my father, who had himself seen them all as a boy or very young adult. Rathbone’s portrayal of Holmes seems to me the most accurate, in the regard of following the way Sir Arthur Conan Doyle wrote the character, and each of the fourteen films he made playing Holmes have many charming characters and great dialogue. Most of the stories have some elements of Doyle’s written works; even the updating where Holmes fights the Nazis, for example, is still great entertainment.

Although there are a number of Sherlock Holmes film books, there has never been one devoted to the Rathbone series, in detail. In this book you will find complete cast lists for each film, along with a story synopsis and photographs.

There have been so many other film and TV adaptations of Sherlock Holmes adventures that I feel it necessary to include a number of others as well, even though the emphasis of the book is still on the Rathbone series.

I have included several films from the thirties, i.e. four films starring Arthur Wontner as Holmes (The 1932 film The Missing Rembrandt appears to be a lost film) and also the 1931 Raymond Massey The Speckled Band, along with the 1932 Sherlock Holmes with Clive Brook, and the 1933 film A Study in Scarlet starring Reginald Owen.

Following the Rathbone films a number of other actors have played Holmes, most notably Peter Cushing in the 1959 film Hound of the Baskervilles and a 1968 TV series. I have included one film each from the 1954-55 series starring Ronald Howard, one from the 1968 Cushing series and one from the series starring Jeremy Brett. Other notable films include The 1965 A Study in Terror and the 1979 Murder By Decree, both pitting Holmes against Jack the Ripper. I have included five or six others at random, starring actors like Stewart Granger, Ian Richardson, Charlton Heston, Roger Moore and Christopher Lee. There is also a section at the back with a photo from films made beginning in 1899.

Over the years I was able to write to, speak to, and meet with a number of actors who appeared in the productions mentioned in this book. For their contributions I would like to thank Joss Ackland, Brian Blessed, Jeremy Brett, Avis Bunnage, Sir Michael Caine, John Castle, Donald Churchill, Micky Clarke, Adrienne Corri, Peter Cushing, Nigel Davenport, Dame Judi Dench, Peter Diamond, Denholm Elliott, Frank Finlay, Bernard Fox, Edward Fox, Paul Freeman, Sir John Gielgud, Stewart Granger, Edward Hardwicke, Ernest Hare, Aidan Harrington, David Hemmings, Charlton Heston, Donald Houston, Ronald Howard, Alf Joint, Ken Jones, Sir Ben Kingsley, Sam Kydd, Ronald Lacey, Marla Landi, David Langton, Roy Lansford, Sir Christopher Lee, Patrick MacNee, James Mason, Sir Roger Moore, Robert Morley, Stuart Myers, John Neville, Ron Pember, Christopher Plummer, Charlie Price, Sir Anthony Quayle, Corin Redgrave, Ian Richardson, Hilary Sesta, Kiran Shah, Ewen Solon, Nigel Stock, Donald Sutherland, John Thaw, Richard Todd, Kay Walsh, John Williams, Barbara Windsor, and Ian Wolfe.

Finally I would like to thank Daniel McDade, Avco Embassy Pictures, CBS, DFC, Columbia Pictures, Compton Films, Hammer Film Productions, MC-One, 20th Century Fox, United Artists and Universal Pictures for supplying and allowing me to use certain photographs in this book. I would also like to especially thank my friend John Stover, without whose assistance this book would not have been possible.

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INTRODUCTION BY DR. JOHN MONTEVERDE

There is a great and fundamental difference between reading the stories featuring Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and viewing the films based upon those stories. It is the difference between seeing people and action upon a screen and visualizing them in the eye of the mind.

The one constant in the stories by Doyle and the films starring Basil Rathbone is the character of Holmes. He is the same in both. Not only was Rathbone able to resemble physically the Holmes depicted in the illustrations in The Strand Magazine by Sidney Paget, he was able to combine his art with that of Doyle to create the Sherlock Holmes who has become a real person for millions of devoted believers.

Many other actors have made the effort, but Rathbone stands alone, and he is mainly responsible for the popularity of the films included in this volume. There are other delights. One remembers fondly the comical antics provided by Nigel Bruce and Dennis Hoey, no matter the fact that their characterizations are far removed from those found in Doyle’s works.

They do, however, echo Doyle by communicating their profound love for the man who amazed them and enriched their lives. George Zucco, Henry Daniell, and Lionel Atwill have caused many happy hours to be spent by fans debating the question of which one came closest to Professor Moriarty.

John Monteverde

TITLES: SHERLOCK HOLMES:

1931-The Sleeping Cardinal

1931-The Speckled Band

1932-Sherlock Holmes

1932-The Sign of Four

1933-A Study in Terror

1935-The Triumph of Sherlock Holmes

1937-Silver Blaze

1939-Hound of the Baskervilles

1939-Adventures of Sherlock Holmes

1942-Sherlock Holmes & the Secret Weapon

1942-Sherlock Holmes & the Voice of Terror

1943-Sherlock Holmes Faces Death

1943-Sherlock Holmes in Washington

1944-The Pearl of Death

1944-The Scarlet Claw

1944-The Spider Woman

1945-The House of Fear

1945-Pursuit to Algiers

1945-The Woman in Green

1946-Dressed to Kill

1946-Terror By Night

1955-The Case of the Jolly Hangman

1959-Hound of the Baskervilles

1966-A Study in Terror

1968-The Blue Carbuncle

1972-Hound of the Baskervilles

1976-Sherlock Holmes in New York

1979-Murder By Decree

1983-Hound of the Baskervilles

1987-The Sign of Four

1988-Without a Clue

1991-Crucifer of Blood

1991-Incident at Victoria Falls

THE SLEEPING CARDINAL (1931)

Directed by Leslie Hiscott

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CAST

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Arthur Wontner: Sherlock Holmes

Ian Fleming: Dr. Watson

Norman McKinnel: Professor Moriarty

Leslie Perrins: Ronald Adair

Jane Welsh: Kathleen Adair

Philip Hewland: Inspector Lestrade

Minnie Rayner: Mrs. Hudson

Louis Goodrich: Colonel Sebastian Moran

William Fazan: Thomas Fisher

Sidney King: Tony Rutherford

Gordon Begg: Marston, the butler

Charles Paton: JJ Godfrey

Harry Terry: No. 16

84 minutes.

While a group of men plays cards, butler Marston notices the ace of spades is on the floor; he returns it to the table. Dr. Watson comes to call on Kathleen Adair, sister of Ronald Adair-one of the men playing cards.

Kathleen has sent for Watson because she is worried about Ronald. It seems that Ronald is constantly playing high-stakes Bridge-and he always wins. Watson tells Kathleen that he will put the matter to Sherlock Holmes.

Thomas Fisher and Tony Rutherford, two of the card players, excuse themselves at the conclusion of the game. They both say they can’t come the following Monday. Is it because they don’t like to lose, or do they suspect Ronald of cheating?

Kathleen confronts Ronald and asks him if he cheats; Ronald tells her she is mistaken. But she says all the evidence points to it (as when Marston found the card on the floor) and she would rather put a bullet through your head than find out he was a card cheat.

Next morning at Baker Street, Holmes tells Watson that Professor Moriarty is behind much of the evil going on in London. Holmes suspects Morairty is responsible for a recent bank robbery and murder.

Inspector Lestrade visits Holmes and tells him that he doesn’t believe in Moriarty. I ask you, is it possible for a man to plan half the crime in this country without the yard knowing who he is, where he lives, or anything about him? asks the Inspector. Lots of people know him, but they don’t know he’s Moriarty, says Holmes.

Adair, who works for the Foreign Office, is taken to a secret location, where he meets The Sleeping Cardinal. He is told that he has been cheating at cards, and if he does not want to be exposed, he must take a certain package to Paris. Adair at first refuses, until he is told that he will be killed if he doesn’t do as he is told. A disguised Moriarty visits Holmes in Baker Street and warns the detective to keep out of his affairs. A remark leads Holmes and Lestrade to bootmaker JJ Godfrey and his warehouse, although there appears to be nothing wrong at the premises. But upon a deeper search, they discover a printing press for Bank of England notes. Godfrey and the others are taken away.

Holmes deduces that the bank thieves-who have apparently stolen nothing-have actually duplicated real bank notes, breaking into the bank to get