That is a line spoken by Professor Moriarty, the evil nemesis of Sherlock Holmes, regarding their epic battle of wits. Also, it rather reflects the enduring influence that the Great Detective has had over my professional writing career in the past twenty years.
There appears to be no ending in sight and, although I haven't always felt this way, I sincerely hope there never is. I owe the Victorian know-in-all a lot, probably even more than I realize.
This is the finished cover painting of the sixth printing of my Sherlock Holmes/Dracula graphic novel, SCARLET IN GASLIGHT, by artist Gary Carbon. (the makeshift logo is temporary for Diamond's i.d. purposes.)
The book is due in stores for Christmas.
Looks good, Martin, and perfect for holiday gift giving.
ReplyDeleteGrowing up in Chicago they played the Sherlock Holmes/Charlie Chan movies to death. It would always be one of the two if the Cubs weren't playing. As a result, and it's something I combat, I still judge the books by the movies. I wonder if it's the other way around for those who read the books first. Jumping back in time from the movies to the books has always been a chore. I adapted a Holmes story for First Comics long ago and writing in the proper time period made my skull ache.
Have you heard any buzz on the upcoming Robert Downey Jr. film? Just as long as it doesn't suck too hard. Blowing is okay, but sucking is bad news.
Much as I love the Rathbone/Bruce Universal series of the 1940s (their THE SCARLET CLAW just might be my favorite Sherlock Holmes movie ever), I would never write the Great Detective out of his proper Victorian and Edwardian settings. Just wouldn't be Holmes to me.
ReplyDeleteRegarding the upcoming movie, well, I'll admit that it looks mighty foolish from the trailer. However, my pal Leslie Klinger, editor of THE NEW ANNOTATED SHERLOCK HOLMES (and THE NEW ANNOTATED DRACULA) told me that he recently saw a preview of the finished movie and loved it.
Les cautioned other Holmes fans--myself included--not to prejudge the remaining 120 minutes of the film because of this rather goofy short trailer.
Apparently, once Downey begins a stream of dazzling deductions its next to impossible not to accept him as a legitimate Sherlock Holmes. Leslie's Holmesian tastes are very much the same as my own, so I certainly hope he's right about this.
Regardless, the plus-side of the new film for me is that I've suddenly had publishers approaching me for new printings of my own old Sherlock Holmes stories, which is good news and very gratifying.
I wasn't aware that you wrote a Holmes comic. I need to hunt for that!