Perry Mason: The Case of the Fickle Fortune (1961)
Season 4, Episode 15
10/10
Realizations
7 September 2017
Warning: Spoilers
**SPOILERS** The other reviewers covered the story pretty well, but a little sympathy for the devil might be in order here. Certainly Duncan didn't use good judgment in wanting to show the Greenbacks he'd found to his family. Please remember, though, he was a man in a slot. A boring job that he was good at, and honest, too. Played for a patsy because of this unique trait, he winds up hip deep in a murder.

Duncan's secretary, Norma is in trouble for participating in a fence/scam because she fell for the head dirtbag in a triad (now quartet) of intertwined motives; she's a patsy, too. Unfortunately, unless she can get Perry to represent her in this mess, and she goes state's witness (for immunity), she could be hooked up as an accomplice. Keller and Nickels, on the other hand, are gonna take a fall; they're both dirty as hell.

Now we get to the crafty old bag whose greed produced one dirty decedent (Farrell). Yeah, she's a real piece of work. What is hard to buy is that she'd wait until her last employer was dead to lift the dough from the bottom of the drawer. given her age and sneakiness, she should have been able to slide past any government trifles with just a little more creative dirtiness. Is anyone in the audience stupid enough to believe her story about Farrell slapping her? I didn't think so. Murder one, or else WHY did she take the knife? My opinion is that the nurse should get the equivalent of a finder's fee for the help her honesty provided; I think 10% oughta be okay.

Duncan's wife (herein referred to as Mrs. Olson; of Folger's fame) plays a good part, and in the courtroom attendance in back of her is an incredibly hot brunette milf; eye candy, but WOW. Norma manages to work up a solitary tear of either regret of sorrow when Perry questions her; most of the tears in these episodes are of the Crocodile persuasion. Perry drives a clunky Lincoln; a real set back from the beautiful Cadillac convertible he had before, Paul drives a '58 T-bird. Burger actually gets a very good last line in; back from purgatory, it seems. Good acting, complicated plot, but well done.
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