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His Last Bow

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For the short story, seeHis Last Bow (short story).
Not to be confused withHis Last Vow.
His Last Bow
First edition cover
AuthorArthur Conan Doyle
IllustratorRichard Gutschmidt
Cover artistJoseph van Abbé
LanguageEnglish
SeriesSherlock Holmes
GenreDetective fiction
PublisherJohn Murray
Publication date
22 October 1917
Publication placeUnited Kingdom
Media typePrint(hardcover)
Pages305
Preceded byThe Valley of Fear
Followed byThe Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes
TextHis Last BowatWikisource

His Last Bow: Some Reminiscences of Sherlock Holmesis a 1917 collection of previously publishedSherlock Holmesstories by British writerArthur Conan Doyle,including the titular short story, "His Last Bow. The War Service of Sherlock Holmes"(1917). The collection's first US edition adjusts the anthology's subtitle toSome Later Reminiscences of Sherlock Holmes.

All editions contain a brief preface, by "John H. Watson, M.D.", that assures readers that as of the date of publication, Holmes is long retired from his profession of detective but is still alive and well, albeit suffering from a touch ofrheumatism.

Publication history[edit]

The book was published in the UK byJohn Murrayin October 1917, and in the US byGeorge H. Doran Co.that same month.[1]

The collection contains "The Adventure of the Cardboard Box",which was also included in the first American edition ofThe Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes(1894) but was dropped from later editions of that book.

Six of the stories were published inThe Strand Magazinebetween September 1908 and December 1913.[2][3]The Strandpublished "The Adventure of Wisteria Lodge" as "A Reminiscence of Sherlock Holmes" and divided it into two parts, called "The Singular Experience of Mr. John Scott Eccles" and "The Tiger of San Pedro".[4]Later printings ofHis Last BowcorrectWistariatoWisteria.

The final story, "His Last Bow. The War Service of Sherlock Holmes"(1917), an epilogue about Holmes' war service, was first published inCollier'son 22 September 1917—one month before the book's premiere on 22 October.[2][3]

Contents[edit]

  1. Preface by John H. Watson (1917)
  2. "The Adventure of Wisteria Lodge"(1908)
  3. "The Adventure of the Cardboard Box"(1893)
  4. "The Adventure of the Red Circle"(1911)
  5. "The Adventure of the Bruce-Partington Plans"(1908)
  6. "The Adventure of the Dying Detective"(1913)
  7. "The Disappearance of Lady Frances Carfax"(1911)
  8. "The Adventure of the Devil's Foot"(1910)
  9. "His Last Bow. The War Service of Sherlock Holmes"(1917)

Adaptations[edit]

Series for which all the stories inHis Last Bowwere adapted include the Sherlock HolmesStoll film series(1921–1923)[5]and the radio seriesThe Adventures of Sherlock Holmes(1930–1936).[6]All the stories in the collection except "His Last Bow" were adapted as episodes of the 1939–1950 radio seriesThe New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes,[7]and all were dramatised for the BBC Sherlock Holmes1952–1969 radio series.

Except for the short story "His Last Bow", the stories in the collection were adapted for television as episodes of theGranada television series(1984–1994).[8]His Last Bowwas dramatised forBBC Radio 4in 1994 as part of the BBC Sherlock Holmes1989–1998 radio series.[9]All the stories in the collection were adapted as episodes of the radio seriesThe Classic Adventures of Sherlock Holmes(2005–2016).[10]The stories inHis Last Bowhave also been adapted for various other productions.

References[edit]

  1. ^Cawthorne, Nigel(2011).A Brief History of Sherlock Holmes.Running Press. p. 138.ISBN978-0762444083.
  2. ^ab"His Last Bow".De Encyclopédie de Conan Doyle & Sherlock Holmes.Société Sherlock Holmes de France.Retrieved21 January2014.
  3. ^ab"His Last Bow: Some Reminiscences of Sherlock Holmes".De Encyclopédie de Conan Doyle & Sherlock Holmes.Société Sherlock Holmes de France.Retrieved21 January2014.
  4. ^Doyle, Arthur Conan (October 1979).The Sherlock Holmes Omnibus(2nd illustrated ed.). John Murray.ISBN071953691X.
  5. ^Barnes, Alan(2011).Sherlock Holmes on Screen.Titan Books. pp. 13–14, 64–66, 104–105.ISBN9780857687760.
  6. ^Dickerson, Ian(2020).Sherlock Holmes and His Adventures on American Radio.BearManor Media. p. 49.ISBN978-1629335087.
  7. ^Dickerson, Ian(2020).Sherlock Holmes and His Adventures on American Radio.BearManor Media. pp. 88–89, 103, 129.ISBN978-1629335087.
  8. ^Barnes, Alan(2011).Sherlock Holmes on Screen.Titan Books. pp. 21–23, 41, 114–115, 152–153.ISBN9780857687760.
  9. ^Bert Coules."His Last Bow".The BBC complete audio Sherlock Holmes.Retrieved12 December2016.
  10. ^Wright, Stewart (30 April 2019)."The Classic Adventures of Sherlock Holmes: Broadcast Log"(PDF).Old-Time Radio.Retrieved5 December2020.

First edition dustjacket image courtesy of Lucius Books Ltd.

External links[edit]

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