Winter Meeting Report

The Amateur Mendicant Society of Detroit returned to familiar surroundings, the British Commonwealth Club in Warren, for its January 30, 2010 meeting.

The society’s esteemed Gasogene John Kramb called the gathering to order at 7:07 p.m. and welcomed AMS members, various dignitaries and invited guests.

Due perhaps to the publicity surrounding the recent “Sherlock Holmes” movie starring Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law, this dinner meeting drew the highest attendance ever for an AMS meeting – a total of 65 stalwart souls who braved frigid temperatures to share the Sherlockian fellowship.

Among the 10 first-time attendees were the father and son team of Denny and Brad Schwartz, who made the trip down from East Lansing, Mich.

After brief announcements and the introduction of AMS officers and the planning committee, Gasogene Kramb presented a Lifetime Achievement Award for salutary service to Walter Young, the society’s Tidewaiter and arranger of toasts, who helped reanimate the society in the late 1990s after a long hiatus. The framed award, which is the society’s highest honor, includes an authentic English tuppence as a nod to the society’s origins as a band of non-professional beggars.

A tasty repast was then served buffet-style, consisting of mashed or scalloped potatoes, vegetables, roast beef and chicken cordon bleu and the usual accompaniments, including a specially-prepared birthday cake in honor of Mr. Holmes.

During the meal, the first toast was offered to Sherlock Holmes himself, to mark the January 6 anniversary of his birth. The toast, by Tantalus Robert Musial, explained at some length how scholars determined that date to be the Master’s birthday and concluded with a limerick by Isaac Asimov.

Throughout the rest of the meal, glasses were raised and the standard toasts were offered to The Woman (by Commissionaire Chris Music), Watson’s Second Wife (by John LaFond), Mycroft Holmes (Bev Sobolewski) and Mrs. Hudson (Gloria Longueuil).

Next, longtime Mendicant Jerry Alvin rose to propose a toast. He recalled the fateful meeting between Carl Jung and Sigmund Freud, which led Jung to enter his thoughts, dreams and fears in his long-suppressed so-called “Red Book,” which has only been recently published, apparently with the help of the benefactor of the Red-Headed League, the late Ezekiah Hopkins, the American millionaire from Lebanon, Penn.

During such a celebratory evening, it seemed only natural that the society’s other highest award, the annual Beggar’s Cup (which honors the best Sherlockian monograph presented at a meeting during the preceding year) was presented to Richard Jeryan, who is both the Club Lascar and the co-editor of the society’s long-awaited newsletter. Jeryan’s paper, which narrowly edged out the other contenders, concerned the history of the real lascars, which had nothing to do with newsletters.


Following that, Gasogene Kramb ignored some good-natured heckling to briefly elucidate the discussion points in the evening’s story, “The Missing Three-Quarter,” which concerns the mysterious disappearance of a rugby star. That fact alone cleared up the mystery about why the AMS officers and several audience members had donned rugby shirts for the evening.

Baker Street Irregular members Regina Stinson and Scott Monty, along with Mendicant Michael Ellis, briefly recapped the festivities at the recent annual BSI weekend in New York, all of which seemed to involve good food, fine company and modest amounts of alcohol.

In a break from tradition, the evening did not include the presentation of a learned paper by one of the club’s many scholars. Instead, members participated in an “open mic” night, offering jokes, poems and limericks about Holmes, Watson and their adventures.

Several Mendicants and guests came forward to read their selections but Michael Jones took top honors for a spirited rendition, complete with several quick changes of hats, of an incident involving our dynamic duo, a car crash, an English bobby and a monkey.


The evening’s raffle, of a rare umbrella imprinted with scenes of Victorian London, was won by member Jim Conway.

Throughout the evening, Mendicants and guests also visited the swap meet table, buying and selling a wide assortment of excess Sherlockiana, from the usual books, pamphlets and DVDs to a rare brick purported to be from the actual site of 221-B Baker Street.

As the meeting drew to a close, Commissionaire Chris Music asked all to save the date of the society’s next meeting, set for May 23 at the Grosse Pointe Hunt Club.

With that, Anne Musial and Dr. David Mohan led the traditional singing of “God Save the Queen,” Lascar Jeryan offered the benediction with a spirited recitation of the poem, “221B” and the meeting adjourned at 9:37 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Robert Musial,
Tantalus

Winter Meeting

"There is so much red tape in these matters."
- Sherlock Holmes in "The Adventure of the Missing Three-Quarter"



We cordially invite you to help us cut through the red tape for an enjoyable evening at the Winter meeting of The Amateur Mendicant Society of Detroit.

Saturday, January 30, 2010 at 7 p.m.
British Commonwealth Club, 30088 Dequindre Rd. Warren, MI (between 12 & 13 Mile Roads)
Club Phone: (586) 751-9560

The assigned reading and brief Canonical discussion will concern "The Missing Three-Quarter", an adventure involving a missing rugby star, a miserly uncle, and a shadowy doctor with a secret.

Instead of the traditional presentation, audience participation is on the bill as Mendicants and guests are invited to create (or borrow) and then present their favorite Sherlockian jokes, limericks, and so forth. If shy, bring yours anyway and we'll con someone into reading it for you.

We'll also award the annual Beggar's Cup for the Best Presentation of 2009 and hold a Sherlockian Swap Meet to help refine your collection - or dispose of any excess Christmas gifts you may have received.

There will also be the usual toasts - including a birthday salute to The Master - plus prizes and more. We look forward to seeing you on January 30. Libations begin at 6:30 p.m. with a tasty buffet dinner at 7 p.m.

To join us that evening, please mail your check for $27 per person by MONDAY, January 25th to:

Edward F. Stein, AMS
25015 Oakbrooke
Southfield, MI 48033

The buffet includes Roast Beef, Chicken Cordon Bleu, tossed salad, mashed & au gratin potatoes, vegetable medley, rolls and dessert. Coffee/Tea is included. As always, there will be a cash bar.

Respectfully submitted,

Rob Musial
Tantalus

"Come at once if convenient... if inconvenient, come all the same."

Sherlock Holmes Movie Outing - Dec 27th

Greetings Amateur Mendicants --

We will be having an informal gathering on Sunday December 27th to see the new "Sherlock Holmes" movie starring Robert Downey, Jr. We will meet at the Palladium Theatre in Birmingham for the 1:00 showing. The theatre is located in Downtown Birmingham at 250 Old North Woodward (just north of Maple Road).

Please arrive early in order to buy your tickets. Or you can by them online and be eligible for a prize here (courtesy of Scott Monty, BSI and the Baker Street Blog)

Wishing you the Compliments of the Season. Hope to see you all on the 27th!

Chris

Next Meeting

Mark your calendars... the next meeting of the Amateur Mendicant Society of Detroit will be on Saturday evening January 30, 2010 at the Commonwealth Club in Warren, MI. Check back soon for more details.

-Chris

October Meeting Report

To take advantage of a lascar-themed evening, the Amateur Mendicant Society of Detroit traveled to the Indian sub-continent on October 3, 2009, for its quarterly meeting.
Or rather, traveled to the Indian restaurant, Ruchi Cuisine located on the Northwestern Highway along the frontier of Southfield, Mich.

At 6:17 p.m., the society’s esteemed Gasogene, John Kramb, called the assemblage to order and welcomed members, various dignitaries and invited guests. Following a brief recitation of club business and various Sherlockian news, the 46 members and guests strolled to the other side of Ruchi’s to partake from chafing dishes loaded with tasty Indian fare, ranging from the mild to the mildly volcanic.

During the appetizers and meal, glasses were hoisted and the standard toasts were offered to Watson’s Second Wife (by Jim Conway), Mrs. Hudson (by Chris Music), Mycroft Holmes (by Frank Hostnik) and, to the musical accompaniment of temple bells, The Woman (by the dynamic duo of Bev and Michael Ellis). Longtime Mendicant Jerry Alvin also recalled that the composer Vivaldi had red hair and so offered his additional toast to the benefactor of the famed Red-Headed League, that American millionaire from Lebanon, Penn., the late Ezekiah Hopkins.

Next, your Tantalus briefly elucidated the key points in the evening’s assigned reading, “The Man with the Twisted Lip,” which involved a lascar, a mysterious disappearance and a professional mendicant – not to mention several suppositions on why, in the story, Watson’s own wife called him “James” instead of “John.”


Following that discussion, the evening’s program began as the club officers briefly illuminated what their job titles (Gasogene, Commissionaire, Tantalus and Tidewaiter) meant. For some strange reason, most had some connection to drinking. This led into the evening’s PowerPoint presentation featuring club Lascar Richard Jeryan, who left no stone unturned explaining his title, which, in the end, came down to Lascar the Sailor Man – a sailor that is in service to the British Navy and the English East India Company.

Drawing on help from the crowd, Anne Musial then revealed the evening’s free raffle winners, Ann LaFond, who took home a book detailing a tale Watson only mentioned (Holmes’ encounter with the Amateur Mendicant Society) and Eddie Stein, who scored a book containing several short Holmes exploits not scribed by Watson at all.

The evening’s $1 raffle raised $48 for club coffers as Michael Jones won a two-volume set of Leslie Klinger’s annotated Sherlock Holmes stories, graciously donated by noted vagabond Phil Jones.

As the evening wore down, Commissionaire Chris Music reminded members and guests to mark their calendars for the society’s winter meeting on January 30, 2010 in more familiar digs, the British Commonwealth Club in scenic Warren, Mich.

With that, Anne Musial, Gayle Conway and Gasogene Kramb led the traditional singing of “God Save The Queen” and Tidewaiter Eddie Stein offered the nightcap by reading the poem “221B.”
Meeting adjourned at 9:57 p.m.

Fulsomely submitted,

Robert Musial
Tantalus

“It is, of course, a trifle but there is nothing so important as trifles.”
— Sherlock Holmes in “The Man with the Twisted Lip”

Instead of something trifling, we forthwith tender this invitation for you to attend the special fall meeting of The Amateur Mendicant Society of Detroit.

Saturday, October 3, 2009 at 6 p.m.
Ruchi Indian Cuisine, 29555 Northwestern Hwy., Southfield
(between 12 Mile & Inkster roads)
Restaurant phone: (248) 352-3200

As befits our first Indian-themed evening, our brief Canonical discussion will concern “The Man with the Twisted Lip,” an adventure that concerns Neville St. Clair, an opium den and a rascally lascar.

For the main course, AMS veteran (and club Lascar) Richard Jeryan will present “Lascarly Yours: An Imperfect Yet Scholarly Investigation.” There will also be brief etymological examinations of the other mysterious job titles of the AMS officers (Gasogene, Commissionaire, Tantalus and Tidewaiter).

We’ll also have the usual toasts, a drawing for a Holmes-related prize and other such doings. We look forward to seeing you on Oct. 3. Libations begin at 6 p.m. with a tasty buffet dinner at 6:30 p.m.

And don’t worry, old chap, the food offerings will range from very mild to spicy, so there’s sure to be something for everyone. After all, the restaurant’s name – Ruchi – is an Indian word for “tasty.”

Respectfully submitted,
Robert Musial, Tantalus

To join us that evening, please mail your check for $25 per person by MONDAY, SEPT. 28th to:

Edward F. Stein, A.M.S.
25015 Oakbrooke
Southfield, MI 48033

The dinner includes a selection of mild to spicy appetizers and vegetarian or chicken entrees, rice dishes, side entrees and dessert. Coffee/tea is included. As always, there will be a cash bar.

“Come at once if convenient … if inconvenient, come all the same.”

Sherlock Holmes Film Posters

Thought you all would be interested in seeing the posters for the new Sherlock Holmes film which will be opening on Christmas Day. Looks interesting! You can also visit the website for the film here.

- Chris

Summer Meeting Report

SATURDAY, JULY 18, 2009

The Amateur Mendicant Society of Detroit returned to familiar digs for its summer 2009 meeting – the British Commonwealth Club in suburban Warren, Mich.

The gathering was called to order at 7:17 p.m. on Saturday, July 18 by the society’s esteemed Gasogene John Kramb, who welcomed members and guests and introduced the AMS board members and notables in attendance.

Following announcements of Sherlockian news and upcoming events, the 39 attendees dug into a tasty buffet dinner of roast beef, chicken, potatoes and fixings.


During the meal, glasses were raised and the standard toasts were offered to The Woman (by Patience Nauta), Watson’s Second Wife (by Joyce Hostnik), Mrs. Hudson (by Ray Mandziuk) and Mycroft Holmes (by Regina Stinson). Longtime AMS member Jerry Alvin also offered a special toast to the benefactor of the Red-Headed League, the late Ezekiah Hopkins, the American millionaire from Lebanon, Pennsylvania.

Next, AMS Commissionaire Chris Music briefly enumerated the key discussion points in the evening’s assigned reading, “The Adventure of the Illustrious Client.”


Among the points were the possible identity of said Client and the background of said case, which first bubbled to the surface in a Turkish bath on Sept. 3, 1902, but didn’t appear in Collier’s magazine until 1924, due no doubt in part to some procrastination on Watson’s part.

Following the story discussion, AMS Tidewaiter Walter Young revealed the discovery of a previously-unknown and uncatalogued 71-year-old research paper that referenced Holmes and stressed how often the detective fiction of the day (and the actions of the detectives) defied actual law. Young graciously provided copies of the paper, written in 1928 by the mysterious author W.L. Johnston, so that these questions could be studied further.

Then, it was time for the main course of the evening’s program – an investigation by attorney Michael Ellis on that very point: How Holmes solved cases, nabbed the malefactors and what (likely) would have happened to them next.


Weaving in Sally Jesse Raphael, the so-called “poison tree” of admissible evidence and several of his own cases including a gruesome bow-and-arrow death in which a father was supposedly mistaken for an opossum, Ellis offered his astute legal perspectives and profound insights into the Master’s methods and their likely outcomes.

Following Ellis, Gasogene Kramb and Commissionaire Music ran the evening’s raffle which Lois Krawczyk won, taking home a copy of the pastiche ‘The Adventure of the Amateur Mendicant Society’ graciously donated by Phil Jones.

In quick succession, Commissionaire Music highlighted the society’s next meeting at an Indian restaurant on October 3. Amid other merriment at that meeting, AMS Lascar Richard Jeryan will reveal just what a lascar is and the society’s other officers will detail the meanings of their Odd Jobs, none of which involves throwing a steel-rimmed top hat at a certain British secret agent.

Speaking of Britain, the meeting concluded with the traditional singing of “God Save The Queen” and the reading of the poem “221B” by Dr. David Mohan.

Belatedly submitted,

Robert Musial, Tantalus

Summer Meeting

“It may be some fussy, self-important fool; it may be a matter of life or death.”

— Sherlock Holmes in “The Adventure of The Illustrious Client”

Actually, it’s neither. Instead, it’s merely the summer meeting of The Amateur Mendicant Society of Detroit, to which you are most cordially and heartily invited.

Saturday, July 18, 2009 at 7 p.m.
British Commonwealth Club, 30088 Dequindre Rd., Warren
(between 12 & 13 Mile Roads)
Club phone: (586) 751-9560

Our brief Canonical discussion will concern “The Adventure of the Illustrious Client” in which a woman’s honor is saved and the evil Baron Gruner meets his match – by a surprising hand.

Following that, Tidewaiter Walter Young will introduce a previously unknown monograph dating to 1928 that investigates how “Detective Fiction Defies the Law.” The plot will then thicken as Mendicant Michael Ellis will offer his keen legal insights into the very same question.

There will also be the usual toasts, a drawing for a Holmes-related prize and other doings.

We look forward to seeing you July 18. Libations begin at 6:30 p.m. with a tasty buffet at 7 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,
Robert Musial, Tantalus

To attend this capital event, please mail your check for $27 per person by FRIDAY, JULY 10th to:

Edward F. Stein, A.M.S.
25015 Oakbrooke
Southfield, MI 48033

The buffet dinner will be roast beef and chicken, potatoes, vegetables and a tossed salad. Rolls, dessert, coffee/tea included. As always, there will be a cash bar.


“Come at once if convenient … if inconvenient, come all the same.”

Spring Meeting Report

A 98-year-old private hunt club tucked discreetly near the mansions of Grosse Pointe provided the setting for the 2009 annual spring meeting of the Amateur Mendicant Society of Detroit.
Held at the Grosse Pointe Hunt Club in Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan, the meeting was called to order at 1:12 p.m. on Sunday, April 19 by John Kramb, the society’s esteemed Gasogene.

Standing before the clubhouse’s large fireplace and several original oil paintings of English hunting scenes, Gasogene Kramb introduced various AMS board members as well as several new attendees.

A tasty repast of seared salmon, flank steak or chicken-and-mushroom crepes was soon on its way to the 48 members and guests who had come from far and wide, braving freeway construction, vague MapQuest directions and other hazards of the open road.

Their fortitude was amply rewarded by the menu and the program, not to mention the standard honorary toasts offered up during the afternoon. Among those singled out by the hoisted glass were The Woman (offered by Fritzi Roth), Mrs. Hudson (by AMS Commissionaire Chris Music), Mycroft Holmes (by Jim Conway) and Watson’s Second Wife (by Terri Roth).

Befitting the special location were two special toasts, the first to the late Natasha Richardson, who got her acting start as Violet Hunter with Jeremy Brett in the 1985 Granada TV episode of “The Copper Beeches” (offered by AMS Tantalus Rob Musial) and finally, to Ezekiah Hopkins, the late millionaire from Lebanon, Pennsylvania who bequeathed a fortune for the propagation of red heads and, apparently, the Detroit Red Wings (by Jerry Alvin).

Gasogene Kramb then briefly enumerated both the many Detroit-area clubs the AMS has gathered in over the years as well as the clubs mentioned in The Canon. Phil Jones next touched on his exhaustive work, cataloging the many Holmesian pastiches done over the years.

With the luncheon concluded, it was on to the meat-and-potatoes of the program, a scholarly dissertation by Sam Stinson of “The Brook Street Horror,” his story-behind-the-story of the meeting’s assigned reading, “The Adventure of The Resident Patient.”

Stinson noted the discrepancies in the both the tale and the adventure itself, foremost among them what happened to the purported 7,000 pounds that Blessington had kept in his trunk. It was Stinson’s view that Dr. Percy Trevelyan and Arthur Conan Doyle (Dr. Watson’s literary agent) were likely linked to the money by their shadowy ties to Freemasonry, which also points to a suspicious footnote in the Jack the Ripper murders.

With that line of reasoning fresh in their minds, the room turned to a 24-answer quiz on “The Resident Patient,” with several attendees earning high accolades as consulting investigators. Bobbie Gorevitz got 23 correct answers; hot on her trail were Tom Biblewski (22) and Frank Hostnik (20) – enough to earn all three the society’s beribboned medals of honor.

The raffles were next with David Gorevitz taking home the current edition of the Baker Street Journal, Eddie Stein winning the Sherlock Holmes action figure and newcomer Mel Rourk scoring the Sherlock Holmes English pewter pocket magnifier. Proceeds from the $1 raffle for the magnifier totaled $41, a princely sum that the society has decided not to invest with Bernie Madoff.

In closing, Anne Musial and Dr. David Mohan led the assembled multitude in a rousing chorus of “God Save the Queen” and Tantalus Musial concluded the event by reading the traditional poem, “221-B” by Vincent Starrett. A brief comment before the reading also cleared up a strange phrase in the poem dealing with a “view hal-loo.”

With that, we bid you a “view goo-bye.”

Respectfully submitted,

Robert Musial
AMS Tantalus