John and his then-wife, Katari Brown ("Irene Adler"), a clinical psychologist, relocated from Michigan to live in Pennsylvania. John, a journalist since 1967, continues to work for the Gannett Co., at The News Journal of Wilmington, Del. As a result of the move, Ron Gibson decided that the Sherlock Holmes Mystery Weekends would end at The Victorian Villa. John and Katari separated in 2005 and remain friends.
"While Ron and I have encountered a few actors who could handle the role extremely well, none has the interest in or mindset for creating faithful Holmes-style mysteries out of whole cloth, or, for that matter, out-arguing guests, being insufferably smug and knowing while maintaining an appropriate level of humor -- which is vital in any good Holmes case -- while tracking down suitable actors for other roles, committing the minutiae to memory, studying 19th century British history as well as its seedy side -- including the drug culture -- the Buddhism of Ceylon and the works of Winwood Reade, and so on. I wouldn't wish it on anybody!"
Sherwood knows that, because the character of Holmes has entered the global consciousness, others may develop ideas that will be carried to greater and different heights.
AT LEFT: John Sherwood as Holmes, by Mark McGovern"The Sherlockian genre never will be milked dry," he said. "The character and the format that goes along with him is limitless as a means for imparting memorable entertainment and intellectual stimulation. Look at the audiences that followed Basil Rathbone and Jeremy Brett, and the hundreds of societies that have formed in Holmes's name worldwide. There is something about this character -- something rational and something morally profound that makes justice a personal quest -- and it speaks to us inwardly and culturally.
"Someday, maybe I'll be granted another venue to try to do it again. In the meantime, we can all hold the flame high in some way, by constantly stressing clear-headed thinking, shouting down prejudice and striving for justice. These are the attitudes that Holmes stands for. That's why I'll always be a fan, too."
Sherwood's challenge now will lie in finding something to do to occupy the time he otherwise spent at the Villa.
"What began as a brief series of Christmas shows in 1984 ended as a year-round gig," Sherwood said. "Brooks and I continued to do our magic-and-music program in Novembers and Decembers, and of course the mysteries also kept us busy. But, as the Villa's artistic director, I also was in charge of the Charles Dickens Dinners, parlour entertainment for special dinners and at New Year's and a three-month program of theatrical shows during the summer."
Each December, Sherwood grew a beard and re-created Charles Dickens' own personal readings of "A Christmas Carol," a performance the author took "on the road" in the United States during his latter years.
AT LEFT: John Sherwood as Holmes, by Daniel Frey"I studied descriptions of Dickens' manner and voice, and tried to duplicate what audiences then must have encountered," Sherwood said. "I abridged the original story from a three-hour reading to a one-hour presentation, then split it into six parts. During our roast-goose Christmas dinners, each story segment followed a course of the meal."
The summer theatrical presentations were chosen to reflect the Villa's Victorian/Edwardian atmosphere, and included a performance as Bernard Shaw in "Dear Liar," as well as roles in Bernard Shaw's own "Village Wooing," Noel Coward's "Private Lives," and Sherwood's own original plays -- "Jeeves and the Nasty Business," a one-man show about 19th century humorist Jerome Jerome entitled "Idle Thoughts" and a re-creation of a 19th-century mind-reading act called "They Know Your Thoughts!"
The Villa's most successful show was another original play, "The Mysteries of Houdini," a dramatic biography of the great escape artist. Featuring Marv Boyes as Ehrich Weiss (Harry Houdini's original name), Katari Brown as Houdini's wife Bess, and Sherwood's son, Nathan, as Houdini's brother, known as Hardeen, the show was revived twice -- once at the Villa and once on a stage in nearby Marshall.
Each "Houdini" production featured a daring escape by Nathan Sherwood from Harry Houdini's own Milk Can Escape, the actual 60-year-old apparatus that Houdini owned, on loan from the American Museum of Magic, based in Marshall.
Sherwood said being allowed to use the legendary equipment was one of the greatest honors his production company ever received.
AT LEFT: John Sherwood's photo (top center) -- taken in July 1999 at the Sherlock Holmes Museum, 221b Baker Street, London, England -- rests among on the "actor's gallery" wall outside a reconstruction of Holmes's flat maintained by Sherlockian scholar Dennis Dobry of Reading, Pennsylvania. To expand the specific photo, click HERE. For a virtual tour of Dennis Dobry's lovingly impressive recreation of 221b Baker Street, click HERE.
"Because of our involvement with the world of Victoriana and Sherlock Holmes," Sherwood said, "we felt comfortable dealing with characters and dramas steeped in the world that was contemporaneous with Sherlock Holmes. We focused on people and situations that might have involved Holmes, had he been present. In fact, some writers have written joint adventures for Holmes and Houdini, and for Holmes and Bernard Shaw."
Sherwood brought Sherlock Holmes to the Villa's summer stage through a one-man production of "A Scandal in Bohemia," which he called his most ambitious undertaking -- the memorization and single-handed staging of a complete Conan Doyle story. The task meant creating the characters of both Holmes and Watson, as well as those of the King of Bohemia and Holmes's adversary, the American adventuress Irene Adler.
Will Sherwood portray Sherlock in another mystery-weekend format?
"I may come back to the Villa from time to time for special events, and since I have taken the character 'on the road' before, I may do it again. But I have no illusions about making a career of being Sherlock Holmes," said Sherwood. "There have been, and perhaps are still to be, much better portrayals of Holmes than I'll ever give. I've had my moment in that sunshine, and -- whatever Conan Doyle might have thought about it -- for me, it was wonderful. For the sheer length of time I've been associated with it, playing Sherlock has been the most rewarding acting job I've ever had."
Profound thanks to REGINA STINSON for use of some scans on these pages.
Other photos on these pages are by KAT�RI BROWN.
Text copyright 1997-2007 by JOHN C. SHERWOOD by e-mail.
Bring SHERLOCK HOLMES to your own event!
What happened at The Victorian Villa? - The world of Holmes and Watson came to life!
An amazing story - By Ronald J. Gibson, owner of the Villa
"Adventures and Lessons" - Mr Sherlock Holmes addresses the Criterion Bar Association
"The Noblest Bachelor" -- Mr Sherlock Holmes is interviewed at the Criterion Bar Association
"Sherlockian Pastiches: The Dilemma" - A defense of new tales of The Master by John Sherwood
"Jack the Ripper Considered as a Media Event" -- an original historical analysis by John Sherwood
The Ribston-Pippins' visit - A Sherlockian organization battles crime!
Quotes from Sherlock - Sage advice on observation, deduction and more.
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Go to John Sherwood's performance credits.
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