However, a select -- and extremely persistent -- group of fans did manage to find the information they wanted about the men playing their heroes.
"I've made some excellent friends as a result," Sherwood said. "These are people who understand the nature of what we were doing at the Villa, and who value it as a means of enjoying literature in a real-world way. And I'm overjoyed that I've earned the respect of these fine people by being true to their own vision of that literature."
The second-floor landing of the Villa's carriage house -- directly between the "Dr. John Watson Bedchamber" and the "Sherlock Holmes Bedchamber" -- is an area devoted to Holmes memorabilia, books, posters and collectibles. On one wall are two gifts to the Villa -- a full-length oil by Daniel Frey and a charcoal bust by Mark McGovern, both of them artists from Ohio. The works depict Sherwood as Sherlock Holmes. Sherwood also has been the recipient of original sketches by Sherlockian artists Regina and Sam Stinson of Michigan.
"I can't tell you what an honor it is," Sherwood said, "to have someone devote so much time, effort and skill to create something new, something that honors work that you've done yourself. It's the sincerest form of flattery I know -- and I tend to regard the skill and talent that goes into these gifts far more highly than I regard the work I've done at the Villa -- which, quite frankly, sometimes involves a great deal of mere drudgery."
Having "fans" does have its darker side, as many actors have found.
"My Sherlock has been seriously propositioned more often than John Sherwood has, and that's really disconcerting. What has he got that I don't? Perhaps it's his inaccessibility -- his reputation for having 'never loved' -- that sets up the challenge. My wife, thank the stars, fell for me before she saw my Sherlock. I've considered writing about some of the more bizarre experiences with my small group of female fans, both in and away from the Villa, but I'd have to find a way to avoid legal action!"
Sherwood fondly remembers a late-night call to his home from the late William Rabe, a fellow Michiganian who was curious about a business card that had been delivered to him by a friend. The card was Sherlock Holmes's -- and it gave the address as that of the Victorian Villa. Rabe, a noted Sherlockian of many decade's standing and global reputation, was fascinated with what was being done at the Villa and talked with Sherwood at some length about what was being done there. Sadly, Rabe died before he could pay a visit.
Other noted Sherlockians, however, did manage to drop in. Among them were members of the New York-based Baker Street Irregulars, who told Gibson that they had been deeply impressed with the authenticity with which the character of Holmes was presented. Canadian Sherlockian author Chris Redmond had the same reaction during his visit in 1998, and in his newsletter pronounced the Villa's Sherlock as genuine.
Two members of the Criterion Bar Association of Chicago -- an eminent scion society of the Baker Street Irregulars -- were married in the Villa parlour. At their request, Sherlock Holmes gave the bride away. At the conclusion of the service, the bride presented Holmes with a gold sovereign, as Irene Adler had done in "A Scandal in Bohemia." It was the only "tip" that Sherwood has ever been offered at the Villa -- and the only one that he accepted.
"It was very appropriate," he said, "and I placed it on my watch-chain immediately, as Holmes had done."
221B Baker Street - Visit the Sherlock Holmes Museum in London
Go to John Sherwood's performance credits.
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