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As Our WHIMSEY Takes Us

(with apologies to Dorothy L. Sayers for our adaptation of Lord Peter’s family motto)

Muse co-editors Susan Diamond and Marilynne McKay once again present this special birthday edition to thank our contributors as well as our managing editor, Evelyn Herzog, who oversees Muse subscriber lists, production and distribution of each issue, and ensures that no typographical gremlins creep into the final copy.

The Jan WHIMSEY (Whimsical Humour Is My Speciality, Enjoy Yourself!) Award

In the Winter 2005 issue, we announced the creation of The Jan WHIMSEY Award in memory of Jan Stauber. The annual award, established and funded by Jan’s husband Al Gregory, is given to the author writing the most whimsical piece during the Muse volume year (i.e., from the December to September issues). All articles, verse, etc., appearing in the Muse were eligible except for the entries in the annual Birthday Challenge and pieces written by the judges or their spouses.

The judges (the Muse editorial board and Jan’s dear friends Francine Kitts and Sue Vizoskie) discussed many outstanding candidates for the first award. It is with great pleasure that we present the first Jan WHIMSEY Award to Regina Stinson for her poem, “A Canonical Number Conundrum,” which appeared in the summer issue. Regina will receive a handsome certificate and a check for $221, both of which will be presented during the January birthday weekend.

Our sincere thanks to Al for sponsoring the award, as well as for his ongoing contributions to the Muse, including this year’s “I Hear of Joe Moran Everywhere.”

New Adventuresses

Congratulations to the seven stellar Sherlockians who joined our ranks during the past year: Susan Cohen (The Women of Many Nations and Three Separate Continents), Carol Fish (Lady Eva Brackwell), Margaret J. Fleesak (Lomax the Sublibrarian), Sabina H. Hollis (The Science of Deduction and Analysis), Anita Janda (Modesty among the Virtues), Rebecca J. Robare (Sophy Kratides), and Glorya Wachs (A Bijou Villa).

Sabina’s imaginative toast to Dr. Who and Holmes, ably illustrated by Laurie Fraser Manifold, enchanted readers. And Carol, along with husband Ron, were the Muse’s eyes and ears at the 2006 Baskerville Bash.

“Stand with me here upon the terrace…”

Trish Pearlman (A Curious Collection), Jan Stauber (Hotel du Louvre, Paris), and Barbara Iris Ulan Van Buskirk (Violet Smith) all died during the past Muse editorial year after courageous battles with cancer. Judith Freeman reminded our readers of Trish’s warm humor and incredible creative talents, while Francine Kitts shared her memories of a delightful trip to Paris with the effervescent irrepressible Jan. Paula Cohen’s remembrance of multi-talented Barbara took us back to the early giddy joyous days of ASH. Then in October we were struck an unexpected blow when Maureen Green (Mary Sutherland) died from injuries sustained during a fall. We’ll honor Maureen in the first issue of Volume 23.

2006 also marked the 10th anniversary of the deaths of two beloved adventuresses: Pat Moran and Marlene Aig. We remembered both at the Spring Dinner. Marina Stajic’s memories of Marlene (with additions by Maureen Green) and M.E. Rich’s of Pat (coupled with those of Lisa Jones Jennes—another early ASH who crossed the Reichenbach many years ago) reminded our readers of these bright and vibrant women who graced our world too briefly.

Adventuress and Non-Adventuress Scholars

This past year brought us many dissertations on a wide range of Canonical topics. From the academic world, Robert J. Bousquet told us about the dashing De Reszkes and solved the Long Island Cave Mystery, while Richard L. Kellogg discussed Doyle and cocaine (now if we’d only had such enlightened academicians when we were in college…).

Judith Freeman, one of our most frequent contributors, provided papers on the thirty-nine beryls and marriage in the Canon. The transition from marriage to motherhood is a logical one, and Joanne Zahorsky-Reeves reported that Victorian mothers (at least the Canonical ones) weren’t all that maternal. Warren Randall took matters a step further with his discourse on widows and widowers.

Julie McKuras, our resident expert on the cinema, provided the perfect cast for NAVA, and husband Mike, assisted by Allan Devitt, provided the lyrics for the next Oscar winning song, “Brain Fever.”

Allan then found inspiration in the stars—not the cinematic variety, but the astrological ones—proving that the Master was indeed a Capricorn and putting an end to all those pesky little arguments about his birthday. Not content with that, Allan took a less than reverent view of the Master in a toast from the Spring Dinner.

Glasses Raised on High

Toasts, of course, are a key component of scion life, and Muse readers enjoyed a number of witty ones on characters and topics both traditional and non-traditional.

Joyce Ann and Arthur Liebman and Sandy Kozinn raised glasses to our heroine Irene Adler. Sandy also found the Crocker-Croker quandary an apt topic for a toast in limericks. The lead Turf Builder of Baker Street, our own Kate Karlson, took time away from the betting window to toast Silver Blaze and, less traditionally, discovered that “it is always 1895” at the Biltmore Estate.

Lynn Walker cleared away the mists in a toast to fog, while Peter Blau honored Emilia Lucca. Francine Kitts found the second Mrs. Watson to be a very lucky woman indeed. And delivering a relatively new traditional toast with her usual panache, Susan Rice reminded us of what makes ASH unique among Sherlockian groups: friendship.

The Muse of Poetry and Puzzles

Dorothy Belle Pollack returned to her classical roots in two sets of limericks: one inspired by Tacitus and the other by Vergil (educating us along the way as to the correct spelling of the latter gentleman’s name). She also provided readers with two challenging Canonical puzzles—one of which remains to be solved correctly by our readers.

Dana Richards, Virginia’s master of the quiz, appeared in our pages for the first time with his clever canonical monograms. Also making her first appearance in the Muse was Ceille Baird Welch with her ballad “Sherlock.”

“Let me recommend…”

Susan Diamond found much to commend in David Hammer’s latest work, Cases of Identity, while Marilynne McKay had a few reservations about Laurie King’s latest effort, The Art of Detection. Judith Freeman gave high praise to E.J. Wagner’s The Science of Sherlock Holmes.