Welcome
Next Meeting
Sunday, September 8, 2024
The Folger Shakespeare Library
The Stuart and Mimi Rose Collection
Including the original Manuscript of
The Valley of Fear
Archives
All times US prevailing Eastern
2024
- August 10 Open House at Denny Dobry's Sherlockian sitting room in Reading PA. See Inner Circle at left for information and to rsvp.
- August 14 - September 8 Murder on the Orient Express The Riverside Center for the Performing Arts in Stafford, Virginia presents Ken Ludwig's adaptation of the classic Agatha Christie tale of revenge on the railroad. The theatre is just off I-95, a little more than an hour south of Washington. Information is here.
- September 8 Red Circle Meeting at the Folger Shakespeare Library, Washington. 2 pm and 4 pm. See full details in The Inner Circle at left.
- November 16 A Saturday with Sherlock Holmes The 45th annual edition of this staple of the Sherlockian calendar will once again grace the auditorium at the Enoch Pratt Free Library in Baltimore. Save the date and watch this space for details.
- November 22 - December 29 Death on the Nile The Red Circle's Ken Ludwig has adapted another Agatha Christie thriller for the stage. The world premiere of Ken's fresh take on Death on the Nile is slated for a holiday run at Arena Stage's Kreeger Theatre in Southwest DC. Watch this space for ticket information, and watch out for the snake!
- December 8 - 22 Lucy Worsley's Holmes vs. Doyle A three-part series airing Sundays on PBS in which a popular British historian examines the love-hate relationship between Sherlock Holmes and the complex man who created him. See the detailed PBS press release here.
2025
- January 15 -- 18 Sherlock Holmes Birthday Weekend As always, January will feature the longest "weekend" on the Sherlockain calendar, with legions of the devoted descending on midtown Manhattan to celebrate. The annual dinner of the Baker Street Iregulars--the sole invitation-only event of the weekend--will be held on Friday, January 17. We'll alert you to the many other events which are cordially open to all as information becomes available.
For a much more comprehensive list of Sherlockian meetings and events around the United States and beyond, see Ron Fish's
Sherlockian Calendar.
The Slavering Hound by Frederick Dorr Steele is an unpublished drawing for the 1939 Basil Rathbone Hound of the Baskervilles film. It was shown in the program for the film and featured in the 1951 Festival of Britain exhibition
Red Circle Fall meeting to convene at Folger Shakespeare Library Taking a break from our usual luncheon meetings, the Red Circle is planning to visit the Folger Shakespeare Library on Sunday, September 8. We’ll be treated to an exclusive tour of the Stuart and Mimi Rose Collection, which conveniently includes the manuscript of The Valley of Fear among its many eye-popping literary treasures. The collection curator, Greg Prickman, will personally conduct the tour at 2:00 pm, and reservations will be accepted in the order they are received. Please request reservations via an email to Peter E. Blau, and we'll do our best to accommodate everyone. If you would like to know more about what you'll see at the exhibition, the Folger has kindly created a virtual tour which you can access here. Case #4 will be of particular interest. There's much more to see at the newly renovated and glorious Folger, including the world's largest collection of First Folios, and docents will be available to tell you some interesting stories. The Folger will be open from 11:00 am to 6:00 pm, in case you'd like to come early or stay late, and there is every hope that the Quill & Crumb café will be available for those who want a bite to eat. There is no charge for admission to the Folger, but they do request a voluntary minimum donation of $15.00 for timed entry to the exhibition. The Folger is located on Capitol Hill at 201 East Capitol Street, SE, between Second and Third Streets. Capitol South is the nearest Metro stop. Because there is limited street parking, Uber or Lyft might be a good choice for some. So, “The game is afoot,” as the Bard said in two plays, both to be found in the First Folio. Looking forward to seeing you at the Folger! 7/30/24 AR
The Red Circle’s June 22 meeting featured Burt Wolder’s fine presentation, “Arthur Conan Doyle: Adventurous Life, Enduring Memories.” Read Carla Coupe’s Meeting Notes here.
The end of an era approaches The Red Circle's own Denny Dobry has for many years welcomed fellow Sherlockians to visit his splendid recreation of the sitting-room at 221B Baker Street in his home in Reading, PA. Now, as Denny prepares to move his amazing room to a place of safekeeping, he has invited his Red Circle friends to an open house on Saturday, August 10, beginning at 11:00 am. When you visit, you'll be able to purchase books and other Sherlockiana that have been donated to the BSI Trust. Plan now to take advantage of what may be your last chance to enjoy this remarkable homage to The Great Detective. Contact Denny directly to rsvp and get directions to Reading. 7/1/24 AR
"The Red Circle" under the magnifying glass A low bow to Alexander E. Braun, who is publishing detailed inquiries into the Canonical adventures on the Hounds of the Internet website. He's kindly made his fine paper on our namesake story available to us, and you're welcome to read and/or download it here. It's an essential reference work. 8/4/24 AR
Holmes manuscript brings record price at auction June 26 saw five Sherlockian lots go under the hammer at Sotheby’s. The star of the show was the manuscript of the second Holmes novel, The Sign of Four, which sold for $960,000, making it the most valuable Sherlockian item ever sold at auction. Next up was the breathtaking original Sidney Paget illustration called “The Death of Sherlock Holmes,” which was an accurate title for the work when it was created. It shows Holmes and Moriarty grappling on the path above the Falls of Reichenbach just before the tumble into the abyss. Perhaps the most well known of Paget’s Sherlockian illustrations, it sold for $384,000, about 10% above the top end of the pre-auction estimate. Two of the other items brought good prices, and bidding on one didn’t reach the reserve. Detailed information about the auction is in Peter Blau's Scuttlebutt here. 7/8/24 AR STOP PRESS We now learn, and it comes as no surprise, that the purchaser of both The Sign of the Four Manuscript and the Paget "Death of Sherlock Holmes" is one of the foremost collectors of Sherlockiana in the world, friend of The Red Circle and of all Sherlockians, Glen Miranker. It is gratifying to know that these items are now part of Glen's breathtaking holdings, where they will no doubt claim considerable pride of place. Congratulations Glen! When Glen visited the Red Circle in March of 2023, he talked to us about "Why Glen Miranker Collects." If you weren't at that meeting, or even if you were, this would be a great time to look at the video of his talk. You can watch it here. 7/28/24 AR
- Be an Inner Circle Contributor We welcome submissions from all quarters for this page. Please direct materials to the webmaster, alan@redcircledc.org
- For earlier, archived items from The Inner Circle, click here.