Of the many actors who have portrayed Professor Moriarty in the movies, my two favorites are George Zucco and Henry Daniell. Both comprised that sinister reptilian physical appearance with the noted diabolical intellect quite well. Basil Rathbone, of course, will always remain one of the key Holmes' players. It was a shame Nigel Bruce, as Dr. Watson, was directed to be a bumbling idiot in the Rathbone and Bruce pairing, but their series, taken as a whole, even with bringing Holmes into the then contemporary period of the Second World War, was an entertaining canon in itself. In fact, revitalizing Holmes by making him part of the war effort was a stroke of marketing and budgetary brilliance and a breadth of fresh air to the venerable detective.
