Sherlock Holmes (1954 TV Series)
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Sherlock Holmes
The first and only American television series of Sherlock Holmes adventures aired in syndication in the fall of 1954. The 39 half-hour mostly original stories were produced by Sheldon Reynolds and filmed in France by Guild Films. Ronald Howard starred as Holmes and Howard Marion Crawford starred as Watson. Archie Duncan appeared in many episodes as Inspector Lestrade (and in a few as other characters). Richard Larke played Sgt. Wilkins in about fifteen episodes billed as Kenneth Richards. The series' associate producer, Nicole Milinaire, is considered to be the first woman to attain a senior production role in a television series.
Most of the episodes were non-Canonical stories except for an adaptation of the Red-Headed League. Other episodes used the basic ideas of Holmes stories but changed details ( e.g. The Greek Interpreter became the French Interpreter).
[edit] History
Sheldon Reynolds had been successful with his European-made series Foreign Intrigue and decided a Sherlock Holmes series made in France for the American syndication market might also be successful. Several sets were built in Paris for the street otside 221B Baker Street and the flat itself. There were a number of other sets build for a variety of locations and then re-dressed as necessary ( homes, Scotland Yard, shops,parks, offices, etc.). Besides the three principals of Howard, Crawford and Duncan, a number of actors appeared regularly in the series including French-born Eugene Deckers who played no fewer than seven different characters both victims and villains. The most famous actor to appear as a guest was Paulette Goddard but others who would gain fame or near-fame in the future included Delphine Seyrig,Michael Gough,Dawn Addams, Mary Sinclair, and Natalie Schafer.
There was very little location work and most of the series was filmed in the studio with many stock shots of carriages on London Bridge and near Big Ben giving the impression of London. However, on a few occasions like the Case of the Eiffel Tower the French filming locations were used.French actors were extensively used in small parts and several affected English accents with varying levels of success.
Many of the episodes were directed by Steve Previn who was the brother of composer Andre Previn.
[edit] External Links
[edit] DVD Release
- Mill Creek Entertainment (http://www.millcreekent.com) released the entire 39 episodes of the 1954-55 Sherlock Holmes series, in broadcast order, on a 5-DVD set. The episodes are not restored but are very watchable and can be had from many online retailers for $15 or less.
- Selected episodes are available elsewhere and some may have been restored
