“Dr. Watson is a name that resonates with fans of detective fiction, and while [Anna] Fernandez is not that Dr. Watson, her character shares some uncanny similarities to him. When she is sent on an errand to 221B Baker Street (Boston, MA), the game is afoot. The play is a Sherlock Holmes-type murder mystery, set in Boston, 1946, and told in the style of film noir.”

Diane and I have seen several plays based on Sherlock Holmes so when local theater company, Alleyway Theater, advertised His Girl Watson, we immediately bought tickets. Kevin Cirone, the playwright, discussed how His Girl Watson came about in the Playbill: “First off, I’m a great fan of the Holmes canon–I make an effort to read The Complete Adventures…about once ever two years or so, and I’m always feasting on new adaptations.

I knew I wanted to write a new story based on Doyle’s beloved characters and was searching for the right angle. In my research, I discovered the existence of the Women’s Army Corps, the first U.S. instance of enlisted women, which was created in World War II. The ‘OG’ Watson was an army doctor, I thought coming out of the Corps into post-War Boston as a woman in the 1940s, with all the obstacles and experiences that might entail, would put a very interesting spin on the character, especially once she was engulfed by the world of Sherlock Holmes. This gave me a universe of choices of how to play with her story while at the same time giving me room to create a person who can resonate with audiences on multiple levels.” 

A local theater critic, Anthony Chase, loved His Girl Watson and praised the actress who plays Josie Watson. “In that context, Fernandez’s Dr. Josie Watson resembles an archetypal femme fatale. Deploying a tough Boston accent, she embodies a woman who can spot a sap at twenty paces and strip him of his illusions before he’s finished lighting her cigarette — if she smoked, that is. While she may move like a hawk through the city’s shadows, unlike a true femme fatale our Watson is also a medical doctor in a battered urban hospital, tending both to shell‑shocked boys just back from the war and to the women they bruise, seeing the damage on both sides and refusing to look away. She’s a sharp‑witted, self‑possessed, street‑wise woman whose beauty is both armor and weapon. She understands exactly how men see her and plays into that gaze just enough to get what she wants, even as she knows the world will punish her for taking that power. Indeed, Dr. Watson is the conscience of this story. 

I have always thought that Fernandez is a marvelous actor with an impressive range. Strikingly beautiful, she has a wide, Katharine Cornell‑esque face made for stage light. She has been brilliant as Morticia Addams, as Nell Gwynn, and as the lead in Crazy for You. I truly sat up and took notice when she played Sybil Chase in Noël Coward’s Private Lives, taking a character who previously seemed insipid and disposable and making her distinct and purposeful. It remains the finest performance of the role I ever expect to see. 

Just as she is beginning to hit her stride as a leading lady in Buffalo, I report, with mixed feelings, that as soon as His Girl Watson: A Sherlock Noir closes, Miss Fernandez will be relocating to the New York City area to try her luck in that decidedly more competitive market. Our loss is New York’s gain. Anna Fernandez’s Dr. Watson is a knockout: fierce, funny, and unforgettable.” 

So why is this play subtitled “A Sherlock Noir”? Playwright Kevin Cirone explains: “My dad had bookshelves a mile wide with detective novels and VHS tapes of the hard-boiled stories of the 30s and 40s–feature lengths and also action serials, which I would watch repeatedly.” Cirone grew up watching noir and decided to give His Girl Watson a dash of darkness amid all the detection and fun. Hopefully, His Girl Watson is just the beginning of a series of plays about Holmes and Watson. GRADE: B+

I fell in love with Diana Rigg on March 28, 1966. That’s when I watched the first episode of The Avengers broadcast on the ABC Network…and it was love at first sight!

“The show was sold to the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) in 1965, and The Avengers became one of the first British series to be aired on prime-time US television. The US ABC network paid the then-unheard-of sum of $2 million for the first 26 episodes. The average budget for each episode was reportedly £56,000, which was high for the British industry. The fourth series aired in the US from March to the beginning of September 1966.”

Diana Rigg is best known for her iconic role as secret agent Mrs. Emma Peel. But you might remember she also starred in a James Bond movie. Diana Rigg played Countess Teresa “Tracy” di Vicenzo in the 1969 James Bond film On Her Majesty’s Secret Service. She remains the only woman to have officially married James Bond in the franchise’s history.

Diana Rigg also performed in The Royal Shakespeare Company and won an Emmy for her role of sharp-tongued matriarch Olenna Tyrell in HBO’s Game of Thrones (2013-2019).

Pilato’s biography includes wonderful photos of Diana Rigg and takes the reader from her early days to her death in 2020 at the age of 82. Are you a fan of Diana Rigg? GRADE: B+

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Foreword by Rupert Macnee — xi

Introduction by Ray Austin — xiii

Preface — xix

PART ONE: BEFORE

Chapter 1: Rigged — 3

Chapter 2: First signs of royalty — 8

Chapter 3: Great expectations — 17

PART TWO: DURING

Chapter 4: Embracing Emma — 31

Chapter 5: Avenging angel — 36

Chapter 6: Defending Mrs. Peel — 43

PART THREE: AFTER

Chapter 7: From the Bureau to Bond — 63

Chapter 8: Hailing Caesar, the Hospital, and Blood — 75

Chapter 9: When Diana met Diana — 84

Chapter 10: Her craft, unstoned — 96

Chapter 11: A little night music with a three-piece suite, and more — 106

Chapter 12: The Bradley Bunch — 121

PART FOUR: FOREVER AFTER

Chapter 13: The queen of Thrones and Thornes — 141

Chapter 14: Final bows — 152

Chapter 15: Encore — 158

Appendix: Life and career highlights: a selective timeline — 173

Acknowledgments — 187

Notes — 189

Bibliography — 197

Index — 203

Yes, this six-storey rubber duck is visiting Buffalo this weekend. Thousands of fans are on the waterfront to view this 61 foot high extravaganza! Are you a fan of ducks…rubber or otherwise?

Diane and I were watching the NBC Nightly News when there was a bright flash of light in our backyard. Then, the BOOOM! When we looked out, we saw one of our tall trees toppled by a lightning strike and it demolished our neighbor’s shed.

Diane, who is always thinking, told me: “Call the tree service and get on their list.” So I called Kelley Tree Service (no relation) that we’ve used before and the wife of the Tree Guy said, “We’ll drive over to your house to scope it out in a half hour.” That’s why we love these people!

Sure enough, the Tree Couple arrived in a half hour and we all walked out to assess the damage. There were tree limbs everywhere! Plus our neighbor’s shed was crushed. The Tree Guy told us: “We can clean this all up tomorrow. We’ll be here around noon. It will cost about $2000.”

Our home insurance deductible is $2500 so Diane and I knew we would be paying for this tree damage. I called AMICA INSURANCE and asked them about whether we would have to pay for our neighbor’s shed. “No, that lightning strike is an Act of God. Your neighbor’s insurance will have to pay for it.”

The next day the Tree Crew showed up with trucks, tractors, wood chippers, and a bucket truck with an Aerial Lift. The chain saws were busy buzzing and cutting. The chipper was grinding up the leaves and limbs. One of the trucks hauled the logs and stumps away. The whole operation took a couple hours. When the job was done and the Tree Crew were packing up their equipment, I went out and tipped each member $20. “Thank you for doing such a great job,” I told them. They worked in 90 degree heat with high humidity.

More lightning storms are predicted for the 4th of July weekend so this might not be over! Have you encountered a lightning strike?

The early 1970s featured diverse styles of music. There was folk-rock like the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band’s “Mr. Bojangles,” R&B like Dionne Warwick and The Spinners’ “Then Came You,” and quirky novelty hits like Mungo Jerry’s “In the Summertime.”

Also included on this compilation CD are classics like Ike & Tina Turner’s “Proud Mary,” The Four Tops’ “Ain’t No Woman,” James Taylor’s “Fire and Rain,” and Carly Simon’s “You’re So Vain.”

And, of course, there are filler songs like Shocking Blue’s “Venus” and The 5 Stairsteps’ “O-O-H Child.” This is another hodgepodge of songs that manages to satisfy my ears as I’m driving around running errands. Do you remember these songs? Any favorites here? GRADE: B-

TRACKLIST:

James Taylor (2)–	Fire And Rain	3:16
	Nitty Gritty Dirt Band–	Mr. Bojangles	3:46
	Don McLean–	American Pie	4:10
	Seals & Crofts–	Diamond Girl	3:50
	Dionne Warwick And The Spinners*–	Then Came You	3:53
	Mungo Jerry–	In The Summertime	3:32
	Three Dog Night–	Joy To The World	3:15
	Shocking Blue–	Venus	3:01
	Alice Cooper–	School’s Out	3:29
	Ike & Tina Turner–	Proud Mary	2:45
	Gladys Knight & The Pips*–	Midnight Train To Georgia	4:38
	Four Tops–	Ain’t No Woman (Like The One I Got)	3:04
	The 5 Stairsteps*–	O-O-H Child	4:59
	America (2)–	A Horse With No Name	4:13
	Melanie (2) Accompanied By The Edwin Hawkins Singers*–	Lay Down (Candles In The Rain)	3:46
	The Main Ingredient–	Everybody Plays The Fool	3:24
	Carly Simon–	You’re So Vain	4:17
	Three Dog Night–	Mama Told Me Not To Come	3:19
	The Guess Who–	American Woman	5:07
	Bachman Turner Overdrive*–	You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet	3:52

Metropolitan Mysteries (2025) is another of Martin Edwards’ wonderful anthologies. This one focuses on London and the mostly famous detectives who investigate the many crimes committed in that city.

If you glance at the Table of Contents, you’ll see a large number of Big Name Mystery Writers–Sayers, Conan Doyle, Baroness Orczy, Anthony Berkley, Anthony Gilbert, Carter Dickson/John Dickson Carr–mixed in with some lesser known authors.

These 18 mystery stories from 1908 to 1963 feature Lord Peter Wimsey, Dr. Gideon Fell, Superintendent Aldgate, and, of course, Sherlock Holmes. If you’re in the mood for some classic mystery stories from that era, check out Metropolitan Crimes. GRADE: A

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Introduction / Martin Edwards — ix

A Note from the Publisher — xv

The vindictive story of the footsteps that ran / Dorothy L. Sayers — 1

The adventure of the Bruce-Partington plans / Arthur Conan Doyle — 24

The miser of Maida Vale / Baroness Orczy — 64

The real thing / Henry Wade — 102

These artists! / Henry Wade — 122

The case of the faulty drier / Josephine Bell — 141

Unsound mind / Anthony Berkley — 153

Man in Bond Street / Anthony Gilbert — 173

Death on Nelson’s Column / Eric Bennett — 184

The crime in nobody’s room / Carter Dickson — 208

The locked room / John Dickson Carr — 232

Sergeant Dobbin works it out / J. Jefferson Farjeon — 254

Mum knows best / Margery Allingham — 267

Sergeant Pockle in Parliament / William Fienburgh — 277

Murder in St. James’s / Malcolm Gair — 285

The most hated man in London / Patricia Moyes — 292

The dead man climbed upstairs / Raymond Postgate — 298

Back in five years / Michael Gilbert — 309

Toy Story 5 took in $227 million at the Box Office in its first week.Toy Story 5 might end up the most lucrative movie of the year. The Toy Story films have earned $4.5 billion so far.

The Toy Story franchise began in 1995 and has continued for 30 years of success. The latest installment features Lillypad (Greta Lee), an iPad-like device that 8-year-old Bonnie immediately becomes addicted to. Cowgirl Jessie (Joan Cusack) fears devices are stealing the youth from kids. Most of the toys from these movies we love–Rex (Wallace Shawn), Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head (John Hopkins), etc.–get relegated to a cardboard box in the garage.

In this toys vs. devices setup, Bonnie’s parents are oblivious to the changes in their child caused by her stopping playing with toys and her constant obsession with Lilypad. Toy Story 5 has a message behind its story.

Patti Abbott wrote that she liked Toy Story 5, but didn’t love it. Diane and I had the same reaction. GRADE: B

Both David Epstein–an expert in work design–and Herbert A. Simon–1978 Nobel Prize Winner for Economics–argue that work can be done more productively if we focus on how we do the work. Constraints, Epstein insists, can make the U.S. better. I remember taking a Psychology class in college where the professor told the class: “If you want to create a monster, just tell your child to do anything they want.”

Diane and I didn’t have a lot of rules for Patrick and Katie, but the rules we imposed we were strict about. Our key rules were: Don’t tell lies, Don’t steal, and Don’t cheat. We told our kids that if they did those things, they wouldn’t have any friends.

Diane and I also tried to model behavior for Patrick and Katie. Every night, we would all sit around the dining room table and do school work. Diane did her correcting of student papers, I did my lectures for the next day’s classes, and Patrick and Katie either did homework or read books. I think these good work habits carried over to our kids’ success in college and their careers.

Organization is another word for constraints. Both Epstein and Simon have worked with Artificial Intelligence and suggest models that might be used to integrate AI into the work flow.

Work environments will change radically in the years ahead. Inside the Box and Models of My Life provide insights into what the Future may look like. GRADE: A (for both books)

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Introduction: A Textbook Case of Discovery — xiii

PART I: HOW BOUNDARIES CREATE BREAKTHROUGHS

1. A World Without Limits — 1
2. A World With Limits — 15
3. Limit-Powered Learning — 33

PART II: CREATIVE CONSTRAINTS

INTERLUDE 1 — 47

4. The Green Eggs and Ham Effect — 51

5. Building a New Box — 71

6. The Remix of Everything — 87

PART III: WHERE (AND HOW) TO FOCUS

INTERLUDE 2 — 111

7. Designing for Constraints — 115

8. Widen the Bottleneck — 129

9. One Thing at a Time — 147

PART IV: COLLABORATION AND CONTENTMENT

INTERLUDE 3 — 171

10. The Rules of the Game — 175

11. Framing for Invention — 197

12. Maximizing by Satisfying — 213

Acknowledgements — 237

Notes — 241

Index — 265

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

PREFACE TO THE SERIES — xi Acknowledgements — xiii Introduction — xvii Prologue — xxiii The Boy in Wisconsin — 1 Forests and Fields	24
Education in Chicago	36
Encounter with a Scientific Revolution:
Political Science at Chicago	55
THE SECOND PANEL	67
A Taste of Research: The City Manager’s Association	69
Managing Research: Berkeley	78
Teaching at Illinois Tech	93
A Matter of Loyalty	117
Building a Business School: The Graduate School of Industrial Administration	135
Research and Science Politics	161
Mazes Without Minotaurs Roots of Artificial Intelligence Climbing the Mountain Artificial Intelligence Achieved — 198 Exploring the Plain — 217	175 189

Personal Threads in the Warp	235
Creating a University Environment for Cognitive Science and Α Ι	248
On Being Argumentative	269
The Student Troubles	279
The Scientist as Politician	290
Foreign Adventures	305
THE FOURTH PANEL RESEARCH AFTER SIXTY	317
From Nobel to Now	319

The Amateur Diplomat in China and the Soviet Union	335
Guides for Choice	360
The Scientist as Problem Solver	368
References	389
Index	401