Perry Mason (1957–1966)

A master attorney works difficult criminal cases for his clients.

Creator:

Erle Stanley Gardner

Stars:

Raymond Burr, Barbara Hale, William Hopper

Won 3 Primetime Emmys. Another 1 win & 6 nominations.

Cast

Complete series cast summary:
Raymond Burr	...	Perry Mason (271 episodes, 1957-1966)
Barbara Hale	...	Della Street (271 episodes, 1957-1966)
William Hopper	...	Paul Drake (271 episodes, 1957-1966)
Ray Collins	...	Lt. Arthur Tragg (236 episodes, 1957-1965)
William Talman	...	Hamilton Burger (228 episodes, 1957-1966)

Storyline

Perry Mason is an attorney who specializes in defending seemingly indefensible cases. With the aid of his secretary Della Street and investigator Paul Drake, he often finds that by digging deeply into the facts, startling facts can be revealed. Often relying on his outstanding courtroom skills, he often tricks or traps people into unwittingly admitting their guilt.

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Plot Keywords:

courtroom | secretary | perry mason | two word title | name in title | 

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

21 September 1957 (USA)

Also Known As:

Perry Mason yllättää

Filming Locations:

Chaplin Studios - 1416 N. La Brea Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS), Paisano Productions, TCF Television Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

60 min 60 min (271 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

During the series' original run, Raymond Burr was accosted in public by a woman who demanded to know: "How come you never lose?" To which Burr dead-panned: "Madam, you only see the cases that I try on Saturdays."

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Goofs

In the episode "Case of the Crying Comedian", actress Sue Ane Langdon is seen sitting at the bar, then she comes down the stairs and moments later is seen sitting at the bar again.

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Quotes

Della Street: [a simple question] What do you know about art?
Paul Drake: [astonished] Me? I don't even know what I like!

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Connections

Follows The Case of the Howling Dog (1934)

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Soundtracks

"Park Avenue Beat"
(uncredited)
Written by Fred Steiner
(series theme)

User Reviews

Arguably, the greatest TV drama ever

Everything about this series was perfect, from the acting, to the scripts, to the directing, and even to the fact that black and white was used even after the advent of color. Of course, Raymond Burr WAS Perry Mason, just about the world's greatest defense attorney, who stops at NOTHING in his search for the truth. The supporting cast was also excellent, and the guest stars, unlike in so many other series, were always of a high calibre. Some might say that the scripts were a bit formulaic, but within the basic format, over the 10 year run of the series there was infinite variety in the details of each show, with enough unexpected plot twists to constantly keep any audience guessing. The atmosphere was perfect: black and white lent a mysterious, almost gothic feeling to the episodes, which at the same time was beautifully contrasted with Perry Mason's ice cold reasoning and razor sharp sense of right and wrong. There are so many other things I could say about this series; perhaps it is best left at saying that this is the one, the only court drama, probably the best TV drama in general, and definitely one of the ten greatest series of all time.