In series 4 of the BBC drama, were told Culverton Smith is to beSherlocksdarkest villain yet.
), were taking a look at Culverton Smiths on-screen history through the ages.
Weve got your silent films.
Weve got your fan films.
Weve got your Jeremy Brett.
The short story chronicles the time Sherlock Holmes was seemingly struck deathly ill by a rare, highly-infectious disease.
Because Holmes does love his theatrics.
So, not a nice guy overall.
A high bald head had a small velvet smoking-cap poised coquettishly upon one side of its pink curve.
Not a nice description.
Youve got to love the Victorian habit of equating beauty with heroism and less-than-beauty with villainy.
(Oh wait… we still do that.)
Rookie move, Smith.
It doesnt have an accompanying soundtrack (though I recommend using theSherlocksoundtrack).
The image is blurry and indistinct.
And, like most silent films, the story movesmuchslower than the pace we are used to today.
However, from a media history and Sherlock Holmes fandom perspective,The Dying Detectiveis fascinating.
Eille Norwood plays the famed detective in the adaptation.
As far as endorsements go, thats a pretty good one.
Its interesting to see how the director struggles to tell this plot-heavy story in such a nascent medium.
The result is lots of long shots and wordy intertitle.
This makes Wheatley one of the least-known incarnations of the iconic detective.
Like the 1951 BBC serial, it is hard to find much information about this German serial.
Wolfgang Jarnach played Smith, withErnst Fritz Furbringer as Holmes andHarald Mannl as Watson.
In the context of our purposes, extra points for starting off with Culverton Smith watching his nephew dying.
as a fresh-faced, but no less sinister Culverton Smith.
Ray Frensham plays Culverton Smith in Rings of Change and The Ecuador Equation.
Definitively, not much but didnt you have fun learning about all of these on-screen versions of the character?
This knowledge can also help us shape our expectations and wishlists for what the character might be… Brace yourselves for series 4,Sherlockfans.
And, in the mean time, dont open any unidentified boxes you recieve in the mail.
You never know when they may be spring-loaded with rare, infectious, and deadly tropical diseases…
