| Scottish writer Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, born this day in 1859, was best known for his creation of the detective Sherlock Holmes—one of the most vivid characters in English fiction. Holmes's friend is the good-hearted but comparatively obtuse Dr. Watson, and the detective's principal enemy is the archcriminal Professor Moriarty. The brilliantly eccentric hero, in deerstalker or dressing gown, has been portrayed in a variety of media and has put Conan Doyle's other works—chiefly historical romances—somewhat in the shade. |