**SPOILERS** Being paged by what she thought was her boss the star of the very popular Josie TV Show Josie Joplin's, Dayan Cannon, her associate producer Ivy West, Susan Diol,rushes over to Josie's suite at the Belmont Hotel only to find Josie dead. Ivy is herself belted and knocked out cold by whoever was the person who murdered Josie. Being on the scene with no alibi but that she was called by the murder victim to come over Ivy is arrested and booked for Josie Joplin's murder.
Wild Bill McKenzie, Hal Holbrook, who's not only one of the nations top defense attorney but also Ivy's uncle is summoned to her defense. right away he spots an opening to get his niece off with the fact that the call to the police, over a violent fight in Josie's hotel room, and the time the police got there finding a dead Josie and a barley conscious Ivy was 14 minutes. Not only more then enough time for the real killer to have may his getaway but proof that Ivy, by innocently being on the scene, of not being responsible for the murder but a pasty who was set up to the take the rap for it.
Leaving no stone unturned Wild Bill has his good friend Perry Mason's, hot shot private eye Ken Malansky, William R. Moses, check out who's license plate it was that was seen by Ivy driving away from the hotel the night Josie Joplin was found murdered. It turned out to belong to this masseuse who worked at a Malibu health spa named Martin Kessler, John Laughlin.
Trying to get a statement from Kessler Malansky gets whacked and almost run over but lucky for him he get's the license plate of a young woman who was on the scene taking pictures Later Ken tracks down the woman who turned out to be Pat McDonland, Khrystyne Haje, a top reporter and photographer for the well known supermarket tabloid The Nationial Informer. Working as a team with Pat, who's looking for the big scoop, Malansky uncovers a maze of leads that all point to Josie. Josie was so nasty and vindictive towards everyone that she had any business with that those who would have had a reason to do her in amounted to almost the entire state of California including Ivy West.
Wild Bill mixing the legal work with his own brand of inciting and aggravating those whom he's interrogating eventually found things out about the sweet and lovable Josie that made he realize that she had a lot of people who would have gladly did her in. Wild Bill in his uncouth behavior got people good and mad with her actions but the trick was to get guard down of who was, of dozens of suspects, as the person who murdered Josie. The clues to Josie's murder lead to a Malibu drug dealer of the rich and famous a stuck-up and strung out co-star of the Josie Show who just happened to be the drug dealers best customers.
The was the last of the Perry Mason TV movies even though it's star Raymond Burr passed away some two years before the show was finally put to rest. Hal Holbrook as defense attorney Wild Bill McKenzie was a good replacement for the late Mr. Burr and didn't try to imitate the title character. Holbrook was very affective with his country or farm boy charm wits and common sense in his going out on his own and mixing with unsavory and dangerous characters in order to dig up evidence.
Wild Bill McKenzie, Hal Holbrook, who's not only one of the nations top defense attorney but also Ivy's uncle is summoned to her defense. right away he spots an opening to get his niece off with the fact that the call to the police, over a violent fight in Josie's hotel room, and the time the police got there finding a dead Josie and a barley conscious Ivy was 14 minutes. Not only more then enough time for the real killer to have may his getaway but proof that Ivy, by innocently being on the scene, of not being responsible for the murder but a pasty who was set up to the take the rap for it.
Leaving no stone unturned Wild Bill has his good friend Perry Mason's, hot shot private eye Ken Malansky, William R. Moses, check out who's license plate it was that was seen by Ivy driving away from the hotel the night Josie Joplin was found murdered. It turned out to belong to this masseuse who worked at a Malibu health spa named Martin Kessler, John Laughlin.
Trying to get a statement from Kessler Malansky gets whacked and almost run over but lucky for him he get's the license plate of a young woman who was on the scene taking pictures Later Ken tracks down the woman who turned out to be Pat McDonland, Khrystyne Haje, a top reporter and photographer for the well known supermarket tabloid The Nationial Informer. Working as a team with Pat, who's looking for the big scoop, Malansky uncovers a maze of leads that all point to Josie. Josie was so nasty and vindictive towards everyone that she had any business with that those who would have had a reason to do her in amounted to almost the entire state of California including Ivy West.
Wild Bill mixing the legal work with his own brand of inciting and aggravating those whom he's interrogating eventually found things out about the sweet and lovable Josie that made he realize that she had a lot of people who would have gladly did her in. Wild Bill in his uncouth behavior got people good and mad with her actions but the trick was to get guard down of who was, of dozens of suspects, as the person who murdered Josie. The clues to Josie's murder lead to a Malibu drug dealer of the rich and famous a stuck-up and strung out co-star of the Josie Show who just happened to be the drug dealers best customers.
The was the last of the Perry Mason TV movies even though it's star Raymond Burr passed away some two years before the show was finally put to rest. Hal Holbrook as defense attorney Wild Bill McKenzie was a good replacement for the late Mr. Burr and didn't try to imitate the title character. Holbrook was very affective with his country or farm boy charm wits and common sense in his going out on his own and mixing with unsavory and dangerous characters in order to dig up evidence.