Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was the not the first writer of detective fiction; that title goes to Edgar Allan Poe. But it is safe to say that he was the first to create a detective who became a true superstar--Sherlock Holmes.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was a physician as well as a writer. The character of Sherlock Holmes is based on Dr. Joseph Bell, for whom Conan Doyle worked as a clerk at the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary. Dr. Bell displayed the powers of observation and deductive reasoning that became Holmes's trademarks.

The Sherlock Holmes stories were originally published as a series in The Strand magazine, and almost immediately became wildly popular. Conan Doyle was sometimes criticized for inconsistencies in some of the details of his characters. His response was that he had to produce a new story every week and didn't have time to check every detail.

Conan Doyle in time came to detest the Holmes character; he felt that the stories were keeping him from writing a better form of literature. And he was just plain tired of the character. So he killed him off in The Adventure of the Final Problem. Mystery fans all over the world remember the fatal struggle between Holmes and the evil Professor Moriarty at Reichenbach Falls.

But the public simply wouldn't stand for it. By popular demand, Conan Doyle brought Holmes back in the book The Hound of the Baskervilles. And he later resumed the series in The Strand.

Conan Doyle also wrote historical novels, and he considered these his best works. But it is the Sherlock Holmes stories that have made him famous for over a century.

Sherlock Holmes is one of the most popular fictional detectives of all time, from his first appearance in the late 19th century, to the present. In the 1930's and 1940's, a number of the stories were made into movies, starring Basil Rathbone. More recently, there was a TV series from the BBC, starring Jeremy Brett. Many people feet that Brett's portrayal most accurately reflected the character according to the stories.

Holmes possesses remarkable powers of obsevation. From seemingly minor details, he can deduce an incredible amount of information about the victim, the perpetrator, and the crime itself. And he appplies this same process of deductive reasoning to the solving of each case.

The stories are all told through the eyes of Dr.John Watson, a physician and retired Army officer. We first meet Holmes and Watson in A Study in Scarlet. Watson is looking for a place to live and is referred to Holmes, who is looking for someone to share his rooms--at the famous 221B Baker Street. Watson moves in, and their long collaboration begins.

Watson's life circumstances over the series are somewhat erratic, to say the least. In the second story, The Sign of the Four, Watson falls in love with and marries one of Holmes's clients. As the series progresses, she is mentioned only in passing, She must certainly be one of the most long-suffering wives in history,as Watson is continually leaving her and his practice to go off with Holmes. And then all of a sudden, we find Watson back living with Holmes again. Presumably, his wife died,but this is never mentioned.

Watson is, of course, the perfect straight man for Holmes. As each case progresses, Holmes will ask Watson for his input on what took place. Watson will come up with a complete scenario--which invariably is totally wrong.

Another recurring character in the series is Inspector Lestrade of Scotland Yard. He and Holmes frequently find themselves working on the same case--much to :Lestrade's chagrin. He has no patience with Holmes's methods--particularly since he is so often shown up by them!

A character who appears occasionally is Holmes's brother Mycroft. Mycroft is even better at deductive reasoning than his brother; he is able to solve cases without leaving his room!

It's no accident that Sherlock Holmes has remained a superstar detective for over 100 years. He is a completely unique figure in detective fiction and his cases are as fascinating today as when they were first written.

One final word. I have read every Sherlock Holmes story ever written, and at no time does he ever say "Elementary, my dear Watson"!