''The New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes'' is a

radio drama Radio drama (or audio drama, audio play, radio play, radio theatre, or audio theatre) is a dramatized, purely acoustic performance. With no visual component, radio drama depends on dialogue, music and sound effects to help the listener imagine t ...

series which aired in the USA from 1939 to 1950, it ran for 374 episodes, with many of the later episodes considered

lost media Lost media are pieces of media that are nonexistent, missing, or unavailable to the general public. The term ''lost media'' primarily encompasses visual, audio, or audiovisual media such as films, television and radio broadcasts, music, and video ga ...

. The series was based on the

Sherlock Holmes Sherlock Holmes () is a fictional detective created by British author Arthur Conan Doyle. Referring to himself as a " consulting detective" in the stories, Holmes is known for his proficiency with observation, deduction, forensic science and ...

stories by

Arthur Conan Doyle Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle (22 May 1859 – 7 July 1930) was a British writer and physician. He created the character Sherlock Holmes in 1887 for ''A Study in Scarlet'', the first of four novels and fifty-six short stories about Ho ...

. Some of the surviving episode recordings may be found online, in various audio quality condition. For most of the show's run, the program starred

Basil Rathbone Philip St. John Basil Rathbone MC (13 June 1892 – 21 July 1967) was a South African-born English actor. He rose to prominence in the United Kingdom as a Shakespearean stage actor and went on to appear in more than 70 films, primarily costume ...

as Sherlock Holmes and

Nigel Bruce William Nigel Ernle Bruce (4 February 1895 – 8 October 1953) was a British character actor on stage and screen. He was best known for his portrayal of Dr. Watson in a series of films and in the radio series ''The New Adventures of Sherlock ...

as Dr. Watson. Other actors played Holmes and Watson in later seasons.

Production

From the outset of the show, the series was billed in different listings under various titles including ''Sherlock Holmes'', ''Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson'', and other titles. The most popularly remembered title is ''The New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes''. From 1939 until 1943, episodes were adapted or written by

Edith Meiser Edith Meiser (May 9, 1898 – September 26, 1993) was an American author and actress, who wrote mystery novels, stage plays, and numerous radio dramas. She is perhaps best known for bringing adaptations of Sherlock Holmes stories to radio in the ...

who had written the earlier series ''

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes ''The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes'' is a collection of twelve short stories by British writer Arthur Conan Doyle, first published on 14 October 1892. It contains the earliest short stories featuring the consulting detective Sherlock Holmes, w ...

'' which aired from 1930 to 1935. Meiser left the show after disagreements with a sponsor over the amount of violence in the program. It is also reported that Meiser left the show to focus on other projects. From 1943 onward, most episodes were written by the team of Denis Green and

Anthony Boucher William Anthony Parker White (August 21, 1911 – April 29, 1968), better known by his pen name Anthony Boucher (), was an American author, critic, and editor who wrote several classic mystery novels, short stories, science fiction, and radio d ...

with some early episodes written by Green and

Leslie Charteris Leslie Charteris (born Leslie Charles Bowyer-Yin, 12 May 1907 – 15 April 1993), was a British-Chinese author of adventure fiction, as well as a screenwriter. Edith Meiser returned to write for the show for its seventh season. Max Ehrlich and Howard Merrill wrote the episodes of season 8. Denis Green returned as a writer for the last season. Originally, the show starred

and

Doctor Watson John H. Watson, known as Dr. Watson, is a fictional character in the Sherlock Holmes stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Along with Sherlock Holmes, Dr. Watson first appeared in the novel '' A Study in Scarlet'' (1887). The last work by Doyle ...

. Together, they starred in 220 episodes which aired weekly on Mondays from 8:30 to 9:00 pm. Basil Rathbone's last episode as the famous detective was "The Singular Affair of the Baconian Cipher". He was eager to separate himself from the show to avoid being typecast in the role.

Tom Conway Tom Conway (born Thomas Charles Sanders, 15 September 1904 – 22 April 1967) was a British film, television, and radio actor remembered for playing private detectives (including The Falcon, Sherlock Holmes, Bulldog Drummond, and The Saint) ...

replaced him in the starring role, though Nigel Bruce got top billing and was always announced first. The new series lasted 39 episodes, and Bruce and Conway then left the series. From then until 1950 the series continued with various actors playing the two principal parts. The show first aired on the

Blue Network The Blue Network (previously known as the NBC Blue Network) was the on-air name of a now defunct American radio network, which broadcast from 1927 through 1945. Beginning as one of the two radio networks owned by the National Broadcasting Comp ...

but later moved to the

Mutual Broadcasting System The Mutual Broadcasting System (commonly referred to simply as Mutual; sometimes referred to as MBS, Mutual Radio or the Mutual Radio Network) was an American commercial radio network in operation from 1934 to 1999. In the golden age of U.S. ra ...

. The show moved to Mutual in 1943 at the start of its fourth season. The series was originally broadcast from Hollywood. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, the show was also broadcast overseas through the

Armed Forces Radio Service The American Forces Network (AFN) is a government television and radio broadcast service the U.S. military provides to those stationed or assigned overseas. Headquartered at Fort George G. Meade, Maryland, AFN's broadcast operations, which ...

. The program aired on ABC instead of Mutual for its sixth and ninth seasons. Many episodes were recorded in front of a live audience.

Cast

: *

(1939–1946) *

(1947) * John Stanley (1947–1949) * Ben Wright (1947 (stand in for Tom Conway), 1949–1950 (regular)) Dr. Watson: *

(1939–1947) *

Joseph Kearns Joseph Sherrard Kearns
TV Guide. July 15–21, 1961, Savetheorgan.org; retrieved September 28, 2011.

(1946, stand in for Nigel Bruce) * Alfred Shirley (1947–1948) * Ian Martin (1948) * Wendell Holmes (credited as "

George Spelvin George Spelvin, Georgette Spelvin, and Georgina Spelvin are traditional pseudonyms used in programs in American theater. "Georgina Spelvin" has fallen out of general use since it was adopted as a screen name by pornographic actress Shelley Grah ...

") (1948–1949) *

Eric Snowden Eric Snowden (August 8, 1888 – June 27, 1979) was an English-born actor who appeared in radio, films and television. Biography Snowden was born in London, England, on August 8, 1888. He died in Bellevue, Washington, on June 27, 1979. Radio S ...

(1946 (stand in for Nigel Bruce), 1949–1950 (regular)) There is only a limited amount of information available about additional cast members, since complete cast lists are available only for a handful of episodes. In multiple episodes, Mary Gordon played Mrs. Hudson, a role she also played in the 1939–1946 Sherlock Holmes film series featuring Rathbone and Bruce.

Professor Moriarty Professor James Moriarty is a fictional character and criminal mastermind created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle to be a formidable enemy for the author's fictional detective Sherlock Holmes. He was created primarily as a device by which Doyle coul ...

was played by multiple actors in the radio series, including Joseph Kearns (who also played Watson) and

Lou Merrill Louis Dilman Merrill (April 1, 1912 – April 7, 1963) was an American actor, who worked primarily in radio from the 1930s through the 1950s. Early life Lou Merill was born on April 1, 1912, in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada., and moved to the ...

. Frederick Worlock played

Inspector Lestrade Detective Inspector G. Lestrade, or Mr. Lestrade ( or ), is a fictional character appearing in several of the Sherlock Holmes stories written by Arthur Conan Doyle. Lestrade's first appearance was in the first Sherlock Holmes story, the novel '' ...

in at least three known episodes. Worlock also played different roles in multiple films in the 1939–1946 film series, such as the role of Geoffrey Musgrave in '' Sherlock Holmes Faces Death''. Lestrade was played by Bernard Lenrow in the seventh season and Horace Braham in the eighth season. Rex Evans played

Mycroft Holmes Mycroft Holmes is a fictional character appearing in stories written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle from 1893 to 1908. The elder brother (by seven years) of detective Sherlock Holmes, he is a government official and a founding member of the Diogene ...

in at least two known episodes. Evans played an assassin in the Sherlock Holmes film ''

Pursuit to Algiers ''Pursuit to Algiers'' (1945) is the twelfth entry in the Basil Rathbone/Nigel Bruce Sherlock Holmes film series of fourteen. Elements in the story pay homage to an otherwise unrecorded affair mentioned by Dr. Watson at the beginning of the 1903 ...

''. In each episode, the announcer would be presented as arriving at the home of Dr. Watson, then retired, who would share a story about Holmes and his adventures. The announcer for the first three seasons of the show was Knox Manning. In various episodes of the fourth season, the announcers were Owen Babbe, Marx Hartman, and Bob Campbell.

Harry Bartell Harry Alfred Bartell (November 29, 1913 – February 26, 2004)Aaker, Everett (2006). ''Encyclopedia of Early Television Crime Fighters''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . p. 34. was an American actor and announcer in radio, television and film. Wit ...

became the announcer for the fifth season. The announcer for the sixth season was Joseph Bell. Bell had previously been the announcer for ''

''. Cy Harrice took over the role for the seventh and eighth seasons. Herb Allen was the announcer for the ninth season. Actors who performed in multiple roles on the show include

Verna Felton Verna Arline Felton (July 20, 1890December 14, 1966) was an American actress, best known for providing many voices in numerous Disney animated films. She also provided the voice for Fred Flintstone's mother-in-law, Pearl Slaghoople in Hanna-Bar ...

Paula Winslowe Paula Winslowe (born Winifred Reyleche; March 23, 1910 – March 6, 1996) was an American television, radio and voice actress, best known for her role as the voice of Bambi's mother in the 1942 movie ''Bambi''. Career In the early 1930s, ...

Carl Harbord Carl Harbord (26 January 1908 – 18 October 1958) was an English stage, film and television actor. Stage When he was 19, Harbord appeared in the play '' The Happy Husband'', which was presented at the Criterion Theatre in London, England. ...

(who also played Inspector Hopkins in the Sherlock Holmes film '' Dressed to Kill''),

Herbert Rawlinson Herbert Banemann Rawlinson (15 November 1885 – 12 July 1953) was an English-born stage, film, radio, and television actor. A leading man during Hollywood's silent film era, Rawlinson transitioned to character roles after the advent of sound f ...

Paul Frees Solomon Hersh "Paul" Frees (June 22, 1920November 2, 1986) was an American actor, comedian, impressionist, and vaudevillian. He is known for his work on Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Walter Lantz, Rankin/Bass, and Walt Disney theatrical cartoons during ...

Theodore von Eltz Theodore von Eltz (November 5, 1893 – October 6, 1964) was an American film actor, appearing in more than 200 films between 1915 and 1957. He was the father of actress Lori March. Von Eltz was a Yale University professor's son. After 12 ...

, and

June Foray June Foray (born June Lucille Forer; September 18, 1917 – July 26, 2017) was an American voice actress. She was best known as the voice of such animated characters as Rocky the Flying Squirrel, Natasha Fatale, Nell Fenwick, Lucifer from Disney' ...

Episodes

Season 1 (October 2, 1939 – March 11, 1940; 24 episodes) started with an adaptation of " The Adventure of the Sussex Vampire" and ended with an adaptation of "

The Adventure of the Retired Colourman "The Adventure of the Retired Colourman" (1926), one of the 56 Sherlock Holmes short stories written by British author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, is one of 12 stories in the cycle collected as ''The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes''. Plot Sherlock Hol ...

". The last episode of the season was originally intended to be an adaptation of "

The Final Problem "The Final Problem" is a short story by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle featuring his detective character Sherlock Holmes. It was first published in ''The Strand Magazine'' in the United Kingdom, and '' McClure's'' in the United States, under the title ...

". It is not known why the change was made, but it may be because "The Final Problem" had already been used on radio several times. It was announced on the penultimate show that "The Final Problem" would be the last episode; in the final episode, Watson said he had changed his mind about which story he was going to tell. Season 2 (September 29, 1940 – March 9, 1941; 24 episodes) started with an adaptation of "

The Adventure of the Empty House "The Adventure of the Empty House", one of the 56 Sherlock Holmes short stories written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, is one of 13 stories in the cycle collected as ''The Return of Sherlock Holmes''. It was first published in ''Collier's'' in the ...

". The last episode was an adaptation of "

The Adventure of Shoscombe Old Place "The Adventure of Shoscombe Old Place" is the last of the 56 Sherlock Holmes short stories by Arthur Conan Doyle. The story is part of the short story collection ''The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes''. It was first published in the US in ''Liberty ...

". The season included a six-episode serial adapted from ''

The Hound of the Baskervilles ''The Hound of the Baskervilles'' is the third of the four crime novels by British writer Arthur Conan Doyle featuring the detective Sherlock Holmes. Originally serialised in ''The Strand Magazine'' from August 1901 to April 1902, it is set ...

''. Season 3 (5 October 1941 – March 1, 1942; 22 episodes) started with an adaptation of "

The Adventure of the Illustrious Client "The Adventure of the Illustrious Client" (1924) is one of the 56 Sherlock Holmes short stories written by British author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and one of the 12 stories collected as ''The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes'' (1927). It was first p ...

" and ended with an episode titled "The Giant Rat of Sumatra". An episode also titled "The Giant Rat of Sumatra", inspired by a reference in " The Adventure of the Sussex Vampire", had previously aired in 1932 in the second season of the radio series ''

''. Season 4 (May 7, 1943 – May 28, 1945; 109 episodes) started with a dramatization of " The Adventure of the Copper Beeches". The last episode of the season is titled "Dance of Death". According to the ''

Pittsburgh Press ''The Pittsburgh Press'' (formerly ''The Pittsburg Press'' and originally ''The Evening Penny Press'') was a major afternoon daily newspaper published in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from 1884 to 1992. At one time, the ''Press'' was the second larg ...

'', Nigel Bruce "astounded sound engineers" by imitating the sound of a seagull required for the episode "Death in Cornwall", which aired on February 7, 1944. Some episodes in this season and the following two seasons were novelized by H. Paul Jeffers in his 2005 book ''The Forgotten Adventures of Sherlock Holmes''. Season 5 (September 3, 1945 – May 27, 1946; 39 episodes) started with an episode titled "The Case of the Limping Ghost", based on an incident in " The Adventure of the Crooked Man". The last episode of the season was "The Singular Affair of the Baconian Cipher", suggested by an incident in ''

The Sign of Four ''The Sign of the Four'' (1890), also called ''The Sign of Four'', is the second novel featuring Sherlock Holmes by British writer Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Doyle wrote four novels and 56 short stories featuring the fictional detective. Pl ...

''. This was the last season with Basil Rathbone playing Sherlock Holmes. Rathbone and Bruce also appeared on the CBS radio program ''Request Performance'' in November 1945, and swapped roles as Holmes and Watson in a short sketch performance on the program. Some of the episodes in this season were novelized by Ken Greenwald in his book ''The Lost Adventures of Sherlock Holmes'' (1989). Season 6 (October 12, 1946 – July 7, 1947; 39 episodes) started with the episode "The Adventure of the Stuttering Ghost", suggested by an incident in "

The Adventure of the Noble Bachelor "The Adventure of the Noble Bachelor", one of the 56 short Sherlock Holmes stories written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, is the tenth of the twelve stories collected in ''The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes''. The story was first published in ''The ...

". The season ended with "The Adventure of the Iron Maiden". This was the last season with Nigel Bruce playing Watson. Season 7 (September 28, 1947 – June 20, 1948; 39 episodes) started with "The Case of the Dog Who Changed His Mind" and ended with an adaptation of "

The Adventure of the Veiled Lodger "The Adventure of the Veiled Lodger" (1927), one of the 56 Sherlock Holmes short stories written by British author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, is one of 12 stories in the cycle collected as ''The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes''. Synopsis Holmes is ...

". Season 8 (September 12, 1948 – June 6, 1949; 39 episodes) started with an episode titled "The Case of the Unwelcome Ambassador" and ended with an episode titled "The Adventure of the Red Death". Season 9 (September 21, 1949 – June 14, 1950; 39 episodes) started with an episode with an unknown title. The second episode, which aired on September 28, 1949, was titled "The Eloquent Corpse". Many of this season's episodes, including the last two episodes, have unknown titles. The last episode with a known title is "Command Performance", which aired on May 31, 1950.Dickerson (2019), pp. 276–279. Scripts of some missing episodes have been published by Purview Press. 'Sherlock Holmes:The Lost Radio Scripts' (), 'Sherlock Holmes: More Lost Radio Scripts' () edited by Ian Dickerson.

References

;Notes ;Sources *

External links

Jerry Haendiges Vintage Radio Logs: ''The New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes''
* * *
''Sherlock Holmes programs available on the Internet Archive''

Information on the shows releases on Audio Cassette and CD (Open Library list)

Episodes of ''The New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes'' from Old Time Radio Researchers Group Library
{{DEFAULTSORT:New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, The American radio dramas Detective radio shows 1939 radio programme debuts 1950 radio programme endings 1930s American radio programs 1940s American radio programs Mutual Broadcasting System programs Works based on Sherlock Holmes NBC Blue Network radio programs

Production

Cast

Sponsors

Episodes

References

External links