Sherlock Holmes (1931 film series)

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Sherlock Holmes is a film series running from 1931 to 1937. Arthur Wontner portrayed Sherlock Holmes in five films. [1]

Contents

Production

Having been told he resembled Doyle's creation for years, [2] Wontner was finally cast in the role for The Sleeping Cardinal in 1931. Wontner was noticed after portraying Sexton Blake at the Prince Edward Theater in 1930. [2]

Wontner was fifty-six when he began portraying Holmes [3] and was forced to wear a toupée in the first three films to hide his bald spot. [3] Holmes in the novels had retired at age fifty [4] and as such, Wontner was technically too old for the part. [4]

Produced by Twickenham Studios, The Sleeping Cardinal was loosely based on "The Adventure of the Empty House" [4] with the noticeable change that in the film version, Ronald Adair is a card cheat. [4] Wontner was joined by Ian Fleming as Doctor Watson and Philip Hewland as Inspector Lestrade.

The Sleeping Cardinal was well received so producer Julies Hagen rushed a second film into production. The Missing Rembrandt reunited director Leslie S. Hiscott with Wontner, Fleming, and Hewland and was released in 1932. Norman McKinnel joined the cast as Professor Moriarty. Loosely based on "The Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton", [4] the film altered the story converting a blackmailer to an art dealer. [4] The Missing Rembrandt is now considered a lost film.

With the second film another success, Associated Radio Pictures lured Wontner to their studio to make The Sign of Four: Sherlock Holmes' Greatest Case which was produced and released later the same year. [5] For this film, Fleming was replaced by younger actor Ian Hunter to better facilitate the storyline of Watson's wooing of Mary Morstan. [4]

In 1935, Wontner returned to the role for The Triumph of Sherlock Holmes . For this film, Wontner jettisoned the toupée [6] and Ian Fleming returned to the role of Dr. Watson. [7] Lyn Harding took over the role of Professor Moriarty from Norman McKinnel, and Charles Mortimer took over the role of Inspector Lestrade from Philip Hewland. Wontner's age, fifty-nine by this time, was too difficult to hide so Holmes is on the verge of retiring. [6] [7] The film is a very accurate [6] adaptation of The Valley of Fear . [7] The film received rave reviews [7] which would lead to one final film.

In 1937, Wontner's final Holmes film, Silver Blaze , was released in Britain. Ian Fleming returned for a final turn at Dr. Watson, as did Lyn Harding as Moriarty while John Turnbull became the third actor to play Inspector Lestrade. [6] The production was far less faithful than previous films, injecting Sir Henry Baskerville from The Hound of the Baskervilles into this adaptation of "The Adventure of Silver Blaze". [6] The film wasn't released in the U.S. until 1941 by which time it had undergone a retitle to Murder at the Baskervilles. [8]

Main cast

Character
The Sleeping Cardinal
(1931)		 The Missing Rembrandt
(1932)		 The Sign of Four
(1932)		 The Triumph of Sherlock Holmes
(1935)		 Silver Blaze
(1937)
Sherlock Holmes Arthur Wontner
Dr. Watson Ian Fleming Ian Hunter Ian Fleming
Mrs. Hudson Minnie Rayner Clare Greet Minnie Rayner
Professor Moriarty Norman McKinnel Lyn Harding
Inspector Lestrade Philip Hewland Charles Mortimer John Turnbull
Colonel Sebastian Moran Louis Goodrich Wilfrid Caithness Arthur Goullet

Films

TitleYearBased onRef.
The Sleeping Cardinal
(US title: Sherlock Holmes' Fatal Hour)		1931"The Adventure of the Empty House" and "The Final Problem" [9] [4]
The Missing Rembrandt (still considered lost)1932"The Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton" [9] [4]
The Sign of Four: Sherlock Holmes' Greatest Case 1932 The Sign of the Four
The Triumph of Sherlock Holmes 1935 The Valley of Fear [9]
Silver Blaze
(US title: Murder at the Baskervilles, release 1941)		1937"The Adventure of Silver Blaze" [10] [9]

Reception

Wontner's performances as Holmes were highly praised. [11] Lionel Collier wrote in Picturegoer , "Arthur Wontner is a perfect Sherlock Holmes." [7] Vincent Starrett, one of the founders of the Chicago chapter of the Baker Street Irregulars, said of Wontner's performance as Holmes, "Surely no better Sherlock Holmes than Arthur Wontner is likely to be seen and heard in pictures, in our time." [12]

Wontner on radio

Wontner's final performance as Sherlock Holmes was in a 1943 BBC adaptation of "The Boscombe Valley Mystery" with Carleton Hobbs as Dr. Watson. [6] Hobbs himself later went on to play Holmes in the BBC 1952–1969 radio series. [6]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Inspector Lestrade</span> Fictional character from Sherlock Holmes

Detective Inspector G. Lestrade is a fictional character appearing in the Sherlock Holmes stories written by Arthur Conan Doyle. Lestrade's first appearance was in the first Sherlock Holmes story, the 1887 novel A Study in Scarlet. His last appearance is in the 1924 short story "The Adventure of the Three Garridebs", which is included in the collection The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes.

<i>The Hound of the Baskervilles</i> (1959 film) 1959 film by Terence Fisher

The Hound of the Baskervilles is a 1959 British gothic mystery film directed by Terence Fisher and produced by Hammer Film Productions. It is based on the 1902 novel of the same title by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. It stars Peter Cushing as Sherlock Holmes, Sir Christopher Lee as Sir Henry Baskerville and André Morell as Doctor Watson. It is the first film adaptation of the novel to be filmed in colour.

<i>The Hound of the Baskervilles</i> (1939 film) 1939 film by Sidney Lanfield

The Hound of the Baskervilles is a 1939 American gothic mystery film based on the 1902 Sherlock Holmes novel of the same name by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Directed by Sidney Lanfield, the film stars Basil Rathbone as Sherlock Holmes and Nigel Bruce as Dr. John Watson. Released by 20th Century Fox, it is the first of fourteen Sherlock Holmes films produced between 1939 and 1946 starring Rathbone and Bruce.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arthur Wontner</span> British actor (1875–1960)

Arthur Wontner was a British actor best known for playing Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's master detective Sherlock Holmes in five films from 1931 to 1937.

<i>The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes</i> (film) 1939 film by Alfred L. Werker

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes is a 1939 American mystery adventure film based on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes detective stories. Although claiming to be an adaptation of the 1899 play Sherlock Holmes by William Gillette, the film bears little resemblance to the play.

<i>Sherlock Holmes</i> (1932 film) 1932 film

Sherlock Holmes is a 1932 American pre-Code film starring Clive Brook as the eponymous London detective. The movie is based on the successful stage play Sherlock Holmes by William Gillette, in turn based on the stories by Arthur Conan Doyle, and is directed by William K. Howard for the Fox Film Corporation. Brook had played Holmes previously in The Return of Sherlock Holmes and the "Murder Will Out" segment of Paramount on Parade.

<i>The Woman in Green</i> 1945 American film directed by Roy William Neill

The Woman in Green is a 1945 American film, the eleventh of the fourteen Basil Rathbone-Nigel Bruce Sherlock Holmes films based on the characters created by Arthur Conan Doyle. Produced and directed by Roy William Neill, it stars Rathbone as Sherlock Holmes and Bruce as Dr. Watson, with Hillary Brooke as the woman of the title and Henry Daniell as Professor Moriarty. The film follows an original premise with material taken from "The Final Problem" (1893) and "The Adventure of the Cardboard Box.

<i>The Sleeping Cardinal</i> 1931 film

The Sleeping Cardinal, also known as Sherlock Holmes' Fatal Hour in the United States, is a 1931 British mystery film directed by Leslie S. Hiscott and starring Arthur Wontner and Ian Fleming. The film is an adaptation of the Sherlock Holmes stories by Arthur Conan Doyle. Although it is not based on any one particular story, the film draws inspiration from "The Empty House" and "The Final Problem". The film is the first in the 1931–1937 film series starring Wontner as Sherlock Holmes. It is unrelated to the Basil Rathbone series of Sherlock Holmes films that began in the late 1930s.

<i>The Sign of Four</i> (1932 film) 1932 film

The Sign of Four is a 1932 British crime film directed by Graham Cutts and starring Arthur Wontner, Ian Hunter and Graham Soutten. The film is based on Arthur Conan Doyle's second Sherlock Holmes novel The Sign of the Four (1890). The film is also known as The Sign of Four: Sherlock Holmes' Greatest Case.

<i>Silver Blaze</i> (1937 film) 1937 British film

Silver Blaze is a 1937 British, black-and-white crime and mystery film, based loosely on Arthur Conan Doyle's 1892 short story "The Adventure of Silver Blaze". It was directed by Thomas Bentley, and was produced by Twickenham Film Studios Productions. It stars Arthur Wontner as Sherlock Holmes, and Ian Fleming as Dr. Watson. In the United States, the film was released in 1941 by Astor Pictures, where it was also known as Murder at the Baskervilles, retitled by distributors to capitalize on the success of the Basil Rathbone Holmes film, The Hound of the Baskervilles.

<i>The Triumph of Sherlock Holmes</i> 1935 British mystery film

The Triumph of Sherlock Holmes is a 1935 British mystery film directed by Leslie S. Hiscott and starring Arthur Wontner. It was based on the 1915 Sherlock Holmes novel The Valley of Fear by Arthur Conan Doyle.

<i>The Missing Rembrandt</i> 1932 film

The Missing Rembrandt is a 1932 British mystery film directed by Leslie S. Hiscott and starring Arthur Wontner, Jane Welsh, Miles Mander, and Francis L. Sullivan. It is considered a lost film. The film was loosely based on the 1904 Sherlock Holmes story "The Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton" by Arthur Conan Doyle.

<i>The Hound of the Baskervilles</i> (1972 film) 1972 film directed by Barry Crane

The Hound of the Baskervilles is a 1972 American made-for-television mystery film directed by Barry Crane and starring Stewart Granger as Sherlock Holmes and Bernard Fox as Doctor Watson. The movie is based on Arthur Conan Doyle's 1902 Sherlock Holmes novel The Hound of the Baskervilles.

From 1921 to 1923, Stoll Pictures produced three series of silent black-and-white films based on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes stories. Forty-five short films and two feature-length films were produced featuring Eille Norwood in the role of Holmes and Hubert Willis cast as Dr. Watson with the exception of the final film, The Sign of Four, where Willis was replaced with Arthur Cullin. Consequently, Norwood holds the record for most appearances as Sherlock Holmes in film.

Der Hund von Baskerville is a 1914 German silent film adaptation of Arthur Conan Doyle's 1902 novel The Hound of the Baskervilles, the first film adaptation of the work. According to the website silentera.com, the film was considered lost, but has been rediscovered; the Russian Gosfilmofond film archive possesses a print, while the Filmmuseum München has a 35mm positive print.

The Hound of London is a television film directed by Peter Reynolds-Long and starring Patrick Macnee as Arthur Conan Doyle's character Sherlock Holmes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Professor Moriarty in other media</span>

Professor James Moriarty is the fictional archenemy of Sherlock Holmes in some of the stories written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. He has appeared in several forms outside of the original stories.

The Three Garridebs is a 1937 television presentation that aired on NBC, based on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's 1924 story "The Adventure of the Three Garridebs". Louis Hector played Sherlock Holmes, the first actor to do so on television.

References

  1. ↑ Arthur Wontner at IMDb
  2. 1 2 Barnes, Alan (2002). Sherlock Holmes on Screen. Reynolds & Hearn Ltd. pp. 193–194. ISBN   1-903111-04-8.
  3. 1 2 Bunson, Matthew (1997). Encyclopedia Sherlockiana. Simon & Schuster. p. 290. ISBN   0-02-861679-0.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Eyles, Allen (1986). Sherlock Holmes: A Centenary Celebration . Harper & Row. pp.  81–83. ISBN   0-06-015620-1.
  5. ↑ Barnes, Alan (2002). Sherlock Holmes on Screen. Reynolds & Hearn Ltd. p. 175. ISBN   1-903111-04-8.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Allen Eyles (1986). Sherlock Holmes: A Centenary Celebration . Harper & Row. pp.  86–88. ISBN   0-06-015620-1.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 Barnes, Alan (2002). Sherlock Holmes on Screen. Reynolds & Hearn Ltd. pp. 219–220. ISBN   1-903111-04-8.
  8. ↑ Barnes, Alan (2002). Sherlock Holmes on Screen. Reynolds & Hearn Ltd. p. 178. ISBN   1-903111-04-8.
  9. 1 2 3 4 Detective-Mystery Films
  10. ↑ Murder At The Baskervilles (1937)
  11. ↑ Byrne, Bob (29 December 2014). "The Public Life of Sherlock Holmes: Arthur Wontner, The Third Great Holmes". Black Gate . Retrieved 22 September 2023.
  12. ↑ Starrett, Vincent (1933). The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes . The Macmillan Company. p.  158. ISBN   1-883402-05-0.
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