It Is For Us to Find the Connection [SECO]

To me, "The Solitary Cyclist" will always be the story that has an illustration of Holmes punching Teddy Roosevelt in the face.

Theodore Roosevelt’s distant cousin and fellow president, Franklin D. Roosevelt was a noted Sherlock Holmes fan and honorary member of the Baker Street Irregulars.  But are there any other connections between Holmes and the 26th president?

The definitive answer is… sort of?

The one that jumps to my mind (and most Google results) is the pastiche The Stalwart Companions.  

This was part of The Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes pastiche series that saw Holmes meeting everyone from Harry Houdini to Professor Challenger to the aliens from The War of the Worlds, Dracula, the Phantom of the Opera, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Martians, passengers of the Titanic, and Jack the Ripper at least three times.

This one looks to be a little more believable than some of the other titles in the series though, where a young Holmes visits New York and teams up with the New York Police Commissioner, a pre-presidential Theodore Roosevelt.  Oh, and Roosevelt is the author of this tale, the manuscript only just discovered in the basement of the New York Police Department.

Another book that comes up often is Sherlock Holmes in America, a short story anthology collected by Martin H. Greenberg, Jon L. Lellenberg, and Daniel Stashower.  Unlike my previous example I’ve actually read this one, but it was over a decade ago.  Roosevelt shows up in one story here.  This collection also includes pieces by well-known names such as Loren Estleman and Lyndsay Faye.  If you enjoy pastiches, this one is a nice way to pass some time.

A little further down in the Google results, you’ll find the 1992 film, Incident at Victoria Falls, the second Sherlock Holmes film with Christopher Lee as Holmes and Patrick Macnee as Watson in old age.  In this made for TV movie, Holmes is sent to South Africa by King Edward to get the Star of Africa diamond.  Along the way, he crosses paths with AJ Raffles, Lillie Langtry, and former president Theodore Roosevelt played by Claude Atkins.

The overall reviews of this film were mid-range, calling it “plodding,” “too long,” and “almost worth it for a completist.”

The only real life connection I could find was this cover of Puck Magazine from 1909 by Louis Glackens, titled “The Adventure of the Crooked House.”  The Theodore Roosevelt Center describes this as 

“Theodore Roosevelt as Sherlock Holmes peaks through a keyhole in a door labeled "Congress." Uncle Sam, as Watson, stands behind him, and a man labeled "Special Privilege" is looking through a window at the top of the door. Caption: Sherlock Holmes--Something devilish has been going on here, Watson!”

So, are there any connections between Sherlock Holmes and Theodore Roosevelt? 

Not really.

Holmes punches him out in the Paget illustration, but it seems like people have had to invent their own connections throughout the years.

Maybe that’s why there are so many Sherlock Holmes teddy bears.