tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8529327841739785142.post532894954272480442..comments2023-11-02T05:15:06.723-07:00Comments on The Consulting Detective: "The Valley of Fear" - Forgotten Masterpiece?Nick Cardillohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12941093024318184603noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8529327841739785142.post-21832811903578123532018-09-18T00:29:48.256-07:002018-09-18T00:29:48.256-07:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.Bloggerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07287821785570247118noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8529327841739785142.post-50715026110459032202014-07-29T13:11:45.946-07:002014-07-29T13:11:45.946-07:00I've never heard Merrison, but I must say that...I've never heard Merrison, but I must say that Vance is simply superb. And this is after countless hours spent listening to him. He even does the American voices well. I wrote about it on my blog - so impressed was I. :) It's amazing what a great voice can do for the imagination. Yvettehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08919246184376538331noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8529327841739785142.post-53497019070202484842014-07-26T08:16:48.281-07:002014-07-26T08:16:48.281-07:00I have not heard Vance reading any of the Holmes s...I have not heard Vance reading any of the Holmes stories. I'm actually partial to the Clive Merrison and Michael Williams audio drama which interestingly toys with the structure of the story and presents the flashback in the beginning as Holmes is first introduced to the mystery. <br /><br />Merrison is, I think, the best actor to voice the detective in any audio format. Nick Cardillohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12941093024318184603noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8529327841739785142.post-89719208291523328702014-07-25T17:04:32.163-07:002014-07-25T17:04:32.163-07:00Great post, Nick. I agree with your assessment esp...Great post, Nick. I agree with your assessment especially since I've just recently heard a fabulous rendition of THE VALLEY OF FEAR on audio, narrated by the oh so very wonderful Simon Vance. In fact I've been listening to all the stories in one fell swoop - all Simon Vance, all the time. :) I hadn't remembered VOF being so moving and so bleak. Vance does an amazing job.Yvettehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08919246184376538331noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8529327841739785142.post-23130769981364281372014-07-22T04:08:48.187-07:002014-07-22T04:08:48.187-07:00You should re-read "Silver Blaze," becau...You should re-read "Silver Blaze," because it’s a full-blown, well clued Golden Age detective story, years before the actual period (and style) came around. The clueing is great, "<i>the curious incident of the dog in the night-time</i>" and "<i>the singular epidemic among the sheep</i>," with a least-likely-suspect solution. <br /><br />By the way, I think it was Ellery Queen who called "Silver Blaze" the best sports mystery ever written. TomCathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03415176301265218101noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8529327841739785142.post-62453982775214271132014-07-21T13:04:55.397-07:002014-07-21T13:04:55.397-07:00I have never considered "Silver Blaze" t...I have never considered "Silver Blaze" to be influential. I understand your point-of-view, and I think it along with stories such as "The Speckled Band", "The Problem of Thor Bridge" and even "The Illustrious Client" provided a basis for the mystery genre in decades to come. Nick Cardillohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12941093024318184603noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8529327841739785142.post-78607119001834975022014-07-21T13:01:39.075-07:002014-07-21T13:01:39.075-07:00It's interesting to hear that "The Valley...It's interesting to hear that "The Valley of Fear" sparked your interest in Holmes - it was probably the last story which I came across long ago when my interest in the detective was first piqued. Your reference to the cartoon version with Peter O'Toole is also interesting. O'Toole was a fine actor, but his performance voicing Holmes in those cartoons was surprisingly lifeless. All the same, they're interesting footnote in the history of the great detective.<br /><br />Thanks for the commentNick Cardillohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12941093024318184603noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8529327841739785142.post-60137617997011568802014-07-21T09:14:01.305-07:002014-07-21T09:14:01.305-07:00Hear, hear! The Valley of Fear is grossly underrat...Hear, hear! <i>The Valley of Fear</i> is grossly underrated and, alongside "Silver Blaze," perhaps the Sherlock Holmes story that influenced the Golden generation of mystery writers the most. The "Birlstone Gambit" must have been reworked and copied as many times as Chesterton's bag of tricks. TomCathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03415176301265218101noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8529327841739785142.post-46751778868850203032014-07-21T07:49:36.072-07:002014-07-21T07:49:36.072-07:00"The Valley of Fear" was probably the st..."The Valley of Fear" was probably the story that got me into Holmes as a kid: the animated adaptation (with Peter O'Toole as Holmes) made such an impression on me with its impossible crime and I still regard it as the best Holmes novel.Ho-Linghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04673330638260132388noreply@blogger.com