Sherlock Holmes Tour

The fictional detective Sherlock Holmes was created by the Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. He first appeared in publication way back in 1887 where he was featured in 4 novels and around 56 short stories. He is Famous for his astute logical reasoning and use of forensic science when solving difficult crimes. He also has a great ability to take on any disguise.

The author Doyle said the character Holmes was inspired by a real Doctor Joseph Bell who Doyle had worked as a clerk for at Edinburgh Royal Infirmary. Bell would also draw large conclusions from the smallest observations. Another person who inspired the character of Holmes was Sir Henry Littlejohn who was a Lecturer on Forensic Medicine and Public Health at the Royal College of Surgeons. Littlejohn served as Police Surgeon and Medical Officer of Health to the City of Edinburgh which provided a link between medical investigation and the detection of crime.

Holmes lived in London where he ran a detective agency and worked alone until the arrival of Dr Watson. He lived with Holmes for some time before his marriage and then again after his wife's death. The famous phrase "Elementary, my dear Watson." was actually never said by Holmes in any of the sixty Holmes stories written by Conan Doyle, but Holmes did often remark that his logical conclusions were "elementary" and he occasionally referred to Dr Watson as "my dear Watson". But the two phrases never appear together.

Holmes famously used drugs on occasion as he believed that cocaine stimulated his brain and helped him in some cases. Also morphine was used but his partner Watson strongly disapproved of his drug use even though these drugs were legal in the late 19th century England.

There have been many novels, short stories and stage adaptions of this famous character going back to the early 1900's. Plenty of films have also been made of this fictional detective and most recently the director Guy Ritchie did his interpretation with the actor Robert Downey JR playing the famous detective in the 2009 film with Jude Laws as his partner Watson.

Sherlock Holmes fans can now go on a Tour that takes you to all the key locations in London associated with the world famous detective. You can get to see the building where Holmes and Watson first meet in "A Study in Scarlet". Visit the location used for the crypt scene where Lord Blackwood is foiled by Holmes and Watson in the latest Guy Ritchie movie. And of course see the famous 221b Baker St and its famous 1st floor study in the museum dedicated to the detective.

Watching Movies In HD Brings Your Family Together

With the busy modern life that many people live, it is getting harder and harder for folks to come together as a family to enjoy some old fashioned family time. Between homework and soccer games in distant cities, there are very few opportunities for folks to get together and enjoy each other's company. Fortunately, many families are looking to counteract that trend by starting a family movie night. All you will have to do is figure out which night of the week that you will want to be gathering together, and make sure that nobody schedules any conflicts for that night. Then, you and your family can gather around the television set and watch some of your favorite movies in HD. Doing this will be one step that your family can take in order to enjoy family time.

The first thing that you will want to do in order to plan a weekly family movie night is to clear everyone's schedule for the night in question for the first month. Starting something new usually takes a lot of concentration in order to be able to make it stick. If you are able to get everything off of the schedule then it will be more likely that your family will actually stick to the plans that you are making. If everyone knows ahead of time that they will be watching a movie in high definition, then they will be more likely to make the effort to have family movie night stick.

A good tool for being able to pick movies out for family movie night is satellite tv. With satellite you will be able to have a wide selection of movies to choose from. With the selection and flexibility that satellite provides you will be able to have a more successful family movie night. For example, should you find yourselves having a good conversation around the dinner table you can extend your talk and pause the movie. Were you to only have a basic network television you would not be able to do that. Instead of being a slave to the clock, satellite allows your family to control the time.

After watching the movie you may want to start a family movie journal where everyone is able to write a little bit about what they thought of the movie that they just watched. Many family members may appreciate to write a little bit about what they liked and did not like in order to be able to look back on the journal years later with fond memories. Whether horror movies, comedies or sports movies, having a movie journal will be a great way for you and your family to connect with the past.

If you are serious about starting and sticking with a family movie night, then the first step that you should take is making sure that you have satellite tv. Once you have that installed you will find that starting and enjoying family movie night will be a breeze.

Bianna Golodryga Goes Inside the Container Store

As one of the nation's most visible and highly-respected financial reporters, Bianna Golodryga has done more than a little reporting on the ups and downs of Wall Street-in fact, she even covered the World Economic Forum when it was held in Switzerland. But she's no stranger to more street-level financial reporting; in fact, for an ABC News series called "Secrets of America's Favorite Stores," Bianna Golodryga went behind-the-scenes of some of the most popular retail stores in the country, including The Container Store.

What may seem like a niche business is in fact thriving, reported Bianna Golodryga; the chain is especially successful in selling organizational tools for closets, something that has become something of a trademark for The Container Store. Bianna Golodryga spoke with some of the chain's leading executives and uncovered some of the secrets of what makes them so prosperous.

One of the most major components, she found, is in the scripted dialogue that store associates use to engage customers. Bianna Golodryga reported that Container Store employees are discouraged from using more traditional lines like "May I help you?"-instead, they try to engage the customer on a deeper level, something that The Container Store executives believe strengthens their sales.

Indeed, Bianna Golodryga discovered that a big part of what sets the company apart is the emphasis they place on employee training. Associates at The Container Store are trained for some 240 hours, compared to the typical 12 of other retail stores.

Bianna Golodryga has filed similar reports retail chains including Costco and The Gap, just one example of what makes her an invaluable and integral member of the ABC News team. After studying theater arts and acting at Houston's prestigious High School for Performing and Visual Arts-the same school attended by Beyonce-- Bianna Golodryga moved into finance when she was in college, and enjoyed a brief career in that field before ultimately moving into television. She began her career in journalism as a producer for the CNBC network, having been inspired by the financial reporting style of Maria Bartiromo.

Her work with that network quickly drew praise from across the industry, and got the attention of ABC News. She was recruited by that network and immediately became a favorite on-air journalist, covering economic and business affairs for a variety of ABC's news programs. She has co-anchored the weekend edition of Good Morning America ever since Kate Snow left the program in May 2010.

Black Swan Ballet Costumes

The dark thriller, Black Swan, is just as much about the psychological tension as it is about the beautiful costumes. While the plot focuses on the young ballet dancer, Nina, who is on the verge of a break through or break down, her outstanding dance costumes almost take a starring role. With the popularity of this flick (Oscar buzz, we hear) and the pure gorgeousness of the ballet costumes, you can be pretty sure that women's costumes styled after Black Swan are going to be all the rage this coming masquerade and Halloween seasons.

The signature dance costume that is featured in all the movie trailers and posters is the black ensemble worn by Nina (Natalie Portman). Styled to artistically resemble a black swan, this ladies costume features a black bodice embellished with lots of sequins and a baroque style ballet tutu that sticks geometrically out from layers and layers of black tulle.

Added to this costume are the requisite tights with a seam in the back, ballet flats (toe shoes if you dare) and a dark silver tiara with black diamonds sparkling on the crown. If you are tying to replicate this look for your own Halloween costume, pull your hair back into a sleek bun worn low on the nape. Very pale, pale makeup covers the face and d?collet?, while elaborate face painting surrounds the eyes and forearms to look like a swan's feathers. The final touch is dark red lips.

While there is no officially licensed Black Swan costume out in the stores, women and girls who want to dress up as this distraught dancer can make do with many of the black ballerina costumes found online. Or, a simple black leotard and tutu will capture the look as well. Even men can go out in a Black Swan costume if they so desire! Jim Carrey has already spoofed Portman's character on "Saturday Night Live!"

Like to Watch Movies Online? You Are Not Alone - That's the Latest Trend!

In the digital era in which we live, the old ways of doing things are almost anathema. No longer do people actually write paper checks, instead, they swipe their credit or debit cards to keep things moving. Convenience and speed have taken the place of hard copies and slowness. The same is true when it comes to watching movies at home. Rental houses like Blockbuster have seen a dramatic decrease in their profits since movies and the Internet joined forces. Today the easiest thing to do is to watch movies online.

There are a number of sources that allow you to see movies online. Some are free and some are paid services, but things they all have in common is the easy access, immediate gratification, and the total convenience they offer to consumers. While services that still rent physical DVD's still have a wide range of clientele continue to crop up, the future of movies at home has a direct connection to the Internet. While the cost savings for places like RedBox in not having a physical store that needs maintenance and employee staffing, it pales in comparison to the number of people that can be reached using the Internet. It is getting easier and cheaper all of the time, to watch movies online.

Netflix has risen to stardom in recent months because of the popularity of their streaming application. They saw record earnings in 2010 that placed them firmly at the top of the list of the best money making stocks of the year. They have announced that they plan to put a lot of money and work into the area of making more titles available for online streaming in 2011. The biggest complaint that people have with Netflix is the ability to watch movies online that are newly released. Netflix is aware of the issue and has plans to resolve it in the near future.

Another venue to watch movies online comes in the form of the networks themselves. It is now common to offer full episodes online on the network's site after they have aired on television. For many people who do not subscribe to the channels from a cost savings standpoint, if they watch the movies online, or in this case, watch TV shows online, it will give little reason for them to pay the exorbitant fees charged by the cable companies.

As the trend of watching movies online continues to grow, it is likely that we will see other venues arising yet to be imagined. The access most of the people in developed countries have to high speed internet make watching movies online more of a reality than ever before. People are realizing that watching movies online is quickly becoming the most preferred way to see movies at all.

It is hard to say what the future will hold for movies and the internet, but one thing that we can be sure of is that innovation and the entrepreneurial spirit will drive innovation to the point that will make it easier and more profitable for everyone involved. If you have not done so yet, you might consider trying it in the near future. You might just find yourself hooked enough to watch movies online from them on.

Anthony Hopkins, The Rite - Another Monster Success

The Rite, starring Anthony Hopkins has hit the movie box offices big time this past weekend, upon its' release. Hopkins fans will be thrilled to see the resurgence of Anthony Hopkins in another monster role in this slick supernatural thriller, well worthy of being at the top of Anthony Hopkins movie list.

"I am able to play monsters well. I understand monsters. I understand madmen", said the great British actor about his legendary role as Hannibal-the-Cannibal Lecter in the trilogy of Lecter movies, one of which was The Silence of The Lambs, the movie that propelled him to 'A' list stardom and an Oscar for Best Actor, as well as the movie winning the top awards in all five categories, undoubtedly due to Hopkin's possibly unsurpassable performance.

Anthony Hopkins plays Father Lucas in this dark, suspense movie with deep religious overtones. It is claimed that The Rite is based upon a true story (a popular assertion these days to draw movie goers). Father Lucas is a Vatican certified, veteran exorcist, giving Hopkins plenty of scope to develop this character, character studies being one particular skill which he excels at, in all Anthony Hopkins movies delighting audiences with his portrayal of characters to their very souls, such as the quirky Corky Withers in the 1978 movie Magic and as Hitler in the 1981 movie The bunker. Soul is an unfortunate choice of words perhaps, did Father Lucas even have a soul?

Support acting from co-star Colin O'Donaghue, as Father Michael Kovak is OK, as Hopkins would say, but could have been better served with a more experienced actor, playing the young American 'doubting Thomas', a fledgling priest whose resignation from the calling is not accepted, in favour of sending him to Rome to learn the rite of exorcism.

The veteran actor Hopkins certainly gives his all in this role, furnishing us with the necessary suspense,drama, humour and the fleshed out character of eccentric Father Lucas to the hilt. He even ad-libbed his own script, as is usual for Hopkins to bring something of himself to all movies with Anthony Hopkins, which is exactly what makes them such, uniquely.

If you are expecting Linda Blair exorcism antics and gore, look away - this is a far sleeker take on the paranormal.

However, The Rite is deep, dark and exciting, which should appeal well to both exorcism movie fans as well as fans of the monsters Anthony Hopkins continues to recreate, even though the age old story may be rehashed but in an inherently stylish fashion to enthrall and capture a wide, but discerning audience.

Once Upon A Time - Sexy Storybook Costumes

Sexy nursery rhyme and fairytale characters are very popular women's costume choices for Halloween, masquerade parties and even some role-playing behind closed doors. Dressing up in a sexy adult costume based on a storybook damsel, maiden or little girl character brings together the sweet and innocent with the naughty and not-so-nice! Women like to wear these costumes and men like to look at them creates to create a fantasy and escape from the real world - let's just make sure everyone's over 18 years old! Some of the most popular sexy nursery rhyme costumes and fairy tale costumes for adults include:

Goldilocks: You'll look like a seductive home intruder in a sexy Goldilocks costume designed as a pale yellow strapless dress with thigh-high white stockings. After you eat porridge, you can coly suggest that you'll test out all the beds to see which one is "just right." Don't forget to add the storybook wig cascading with curls - everyone knows that blondes have more fun.

Little Miss Muffet: A Little Miss Muffet costume is pretty in pink with a corset style top and a short, flounced skirt. Add a little apron with a spider appliqu? and an old-fashioned mop hat and you'll look like a sexy version of this classic storybook character that sat on her tuffet eating curds and whey.

Dorothy: Follow the yellow brick road and dress up as a sexy Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz. With a vamped up version of the blue gingham, white apron dress, you'll be strutting your stuff all the way to Emerald City in your sexy red sequined shoes. Don't forget to add the signature brown-braids wig and a lidded basket holding the plush toy dog, Toto.

Alice: Fall down a rabbit hole and into a land of whimsy and wonder wearing a sexy Alice costume from AliceIn Wonderland. A sexy spin on her simple blue dress and headband will turn you into your own lovely wonderland, especially when you add some saucy black-and-white striped knee-high stockings and a long blonde wig. This is a popular choice in storybook women's costumes.