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Showing posts from July, 2011

Baker Street Saturday - Moffat-grams

     Did anyone watch White Collar last week? The one where Neal has to spend millions of dollars to attract the attention of the bad guy?      Did anyone notice the use of the Moffat-grams? I swear I've heard the term before but cannot find it online. So my definition, a Moffat-gram is writing on the screen to pass information to the viewer in a passive way, neither disturbing nor disrupting the fourth wall.      Steven Moffat's Sherlock did this in the first season. When a character received a text message, we see them looking at the phone and read the writing in the air next to them. We no longer need a close up of the phone and try to read its text.      When Sherlock Holmes is quickly deducing one fact after another, all we see is him kneeling next to a body and looking. But the words floating next to him take us on a wild trip and we not only see how quickly his mind works but understand what he's seeing along with him. (And yet the brilliant detective still m

Wordless Wednesday - 6 months ago today 'Married To Murder' was published!!

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99 cents 

Monday Misc. - 'Psych' Book Review

Psych: Mind Over Magic by William Rabkin A novel based on the characters/show of Psych on USA Network. This book was fun and entertaining. Well, they're all fun and entertaining and they're all like the show. One problem I have is the author goes a tiny bit too long on some of the antics the boys get up to. It works for the show, a visual medium, but I get caught up in the written format. However, it doesn't deter from my enjoyment. I especially liked the Sherlock Holmes comment and the Richard Kimble reference. The author doesn't just mention them but uses who they are to depict something in the book. I like that - basically, if you didn't know Sherlock Holmes or Richard Kimble, you'd understand via connotation but you wouldn't get it . Oh, and Jack McGee was thrown in there too - and I knew excactly who he was. There was a running joke throughout the book of a particularly strange name (P'tol P'kah) which I assumed would get annoying but

Baker Street Saturday - Haikus

Sherlock Holmes Haikus Dogs, death and the moor The Hound of the Baskervilles Watson without Holmes In The Devil's Foot Holmes Just About Kills Watson Watson Then Saves Holmes

Wordless Wednesday - Oma (1927-2011)

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Oma = Grandma (in German) My tribute

Oma

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Oma = grandma (in German) My Oma died last week. It's heartbreaking news. I remember travelling up to Canada for Christmas when I was very young. (We drove from Chicago and left before dawn. My little sister was put in the car asleep, woke up about a block after we left and asked, "Are we there?") I took a plane by myself to visit her one time. I remember three things: 1.) It rained the ENTIRE time 2.) I missed an earthquake in Chicago (thank you, Oma!) 3.) We went into the (soaked) garden every day and Oma cut chives and made buttered toast and put the fresh chives on it for me. She didn't know this but I still do that to this day as a treat (though the closest I can get is fresh chives from the store!) Oma was a bookkeper, teacher, housewife and writer - among many other things. One thing that was cool about Oma was her philosophy of life. A fond memory my Dad has took place when he was a little boy. She sighed and said, "I want to quit the

Baker Street Saturday - Jeremy Brett's Fan Letter To Himself

How cool is this guy? I don't know if anyone deserves credit for sharing this with the world but if someone does - thank you for sharing this with the world! "One incident that David Burke recounted brought the house down at The Northern Musgraves' Jeremy Brett Memorial Lunch. It is a tale that reveals not only Brett's humour and eccentricity, but also his endearing, self-effacing qualities: Jeremy said to me on one occasion, ‘I was feeling so low the other day that I sent myself a fan letter.' ‘Are you serious?’ ‘I'm absolutely serious.’ ‘What did you write to yourself?’ ‘"Dear Jeremy, I would just like to say what a wonderful actor you are. Your Sherlock Holmes puts every other attempt at the part in the shade. Basil Rathbone is not fit to clean your boots; and Douglas Wilmer and Robert Stephens should beg you to give them lessons. You're much prettier than all of them, for a start. There is only one word for your performance — magic.

Wordless Wednesday - Is there something my little carnivore wants to tell me?

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'The Office' Anniversary & 'Sherlock' Pics

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(If you don't like spoilers of any kind for Sherlock , don't scroll down to the pics. They're pics of filming but might be weird with that season 1 cliffhanger still looming over us fans...) The original, British version of the Office premiered 10 years ago today. I've only seen a handful of episodes but Martin Freeman is adorable (in a completely different way than he is as John Watson , yet that 'a' word comes to mind) and perfect in the role of the mousy, shy, practical joker. He was endearing in Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy as Arthur Dent . (As if Martin Freeman wasn't adorable enough, they put him in pajamas...) I was lucky enough to get to see Hitchhiker at the El Capitan in Hollywood. Before the show, the music entertained us as we found our seats. The live music played by an orchestra! After the show, we got to go downstairs for the exhibit in which props from the movie were on display. (Unfortunately, no Martin Freeman wa

Wordless Wednesday - Well, I'm Ready To Go

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Baker Street Saturday - Granada's Sherlock Holmes

I finished Granada's Sherlock Holmes with David Burke and then Edward Hardwicke as Watson and the awesomely talented Jeremy Brett as Sherlock Holmes. This series focused on the original Sherlock Holmes stories written by Doyle. In fact, the episodes say 'adapted for television by' because they are so close to the originals, they weren't even rewritten. This made Brett's performance even more spectacular because he took on Holmes as Holmes. Not an updated version, not a re-imagined version but the original man himself. And, after reading the entire collection of original stories and then watching this series - wow! David Burke is a sparkly-eyed, wonder-struck Watson. (You should see his expression when he meets Mycroft – the only man Sherlock admits is smarter than him.) Edward Hardwicke is an outstanding Watson with the kindest, most comforting voice you can imagine. He is devoted to Holmes but will put him in his place as needed. Jeremy Brett f