The Case of the Dodging Domino 

Damion White married an actress who has an offer to return to work that involves a great song. However, she recognizes the song which has been plagiarized multiple times. Her husband is one of those involved and is charged with murder.

Director:

Arthur Marks

Writers:

Erle Stanley Gardner (characters created by), Charles Lang

Stars:

Raymond Burr, Barbara Hale, William Hopper

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
Raymond Burr	...	Perry Mason
Barbara Hale	...	Della Street
William Hopper	...	Paul Drake
William Talman	...	Hamilton Burger
Ray Collins	...	Police Lt. Arthur Tragg (credit only)
Wesley Lau	...	Police Lt. Andy Anderson
David Hedison	...	Damion White
Jeff Morrow	...	Alex Chase
Ellen Burstyn	...	Mona Winthrope White (as Ellen McRae)
Lloyd Corrigan	...	Rudy Mahlsted
Robert H. Harris	...	Jerry Janda
Eddie Firestone	...	Leonard Buckman
Janet Ward	...	Freda Chase
James Forrest	...	Phil Schuyler
Maureen Arthur	...	Vera Jordan

Storyline

Phil Schuyler likes to have a good time but he's a songwriter and always seems to be in debt. His sister's husband pays him a visit after Phil forged his signature on a check and wants his $3000 back by the end of the day or he will go to the police. That shouldn't be a problem for Phil since he's also a blackmailer, planning to get the money from Damion White. Damion's wife Mona is approached by Jerry Janda who wants to use a new song - Pearls and Jade - he says was written by Alex Chase. However, Mona recognizes it as a song she thinks was written by Damion so she confronts Alex. Phil contacts Damion ultimately wanting $50,000 but Damion refuses to pay. When Phil is found dead and White is charged with the crime, Perry Mason defends him. He finds that several people had motives including a spurned girlfriend and another songwriter whose most recent hit may not have been his own. The fact that Phil was killed on Halloween is the vital clue that leads to a solution.

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Plot Keywords:

halloween episode | halloween | 

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

1 November 1962 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Case of the Dodging Domino

Filming Locations:

Stage 4, 20th Century Fox Studios - 10201 Pico Blvd., Century City, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

CBS Television Network, Paisano Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

60 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

James Forrest's character Phil Schuyler is murdered when a plugged-in space heater is tossed into the bathtub in which he's bathing. Sean Connery as James Bond kills a villain in "Goldfinger" (1964) by tossing a plugged-in fan into a filled bathtub into which the villain had landed. "Shocking."

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Goofs

Mona accuses Alex of plagiarizing and stealing the melody of her husband's song and incorporating it into Alex's new tune, "Pearls and Jade." Mona throws her drink at Alex hitting him in the face and left shoulder. When the camera angle cuts to a closeup shot, both shoulders are now wet. A switch back to the wide angle shot shows Alex back to one wet shoulder. Then the next closeup shows two wet shoulders again.

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Quotes

[last lines]
Paul Drake: Yeah, some trick.
Perry Mason: Considering the results, wouldn't you say it was more of a treat?

User Reviews

Trick or Treat

Perry Mason's client in this episode is David Hedison a college professor and sometime songwriter who is being blackmailed for a melody that James Forrest wrote. Other than writing a nice tune, Forrest has very little else to recommend him insofar as character is concerned. And when he winds up dead a good circumstantial case gets Hedison arrested and indicted for murder. And of course Hamilton Burger once again thinks he has an airtight case.

This was a Halloween episode on the Perry Mason series and the clue to unmasking the real culprit is the testimony of bungalow manager Lloyd Corrigan who swears that only Hedison could have done the deed. Some trick or treating children are the real clue to unmasking the culprit. And being the wonderful character Forrest was there are plenty who would love to have seen him dead.

You have to like the way Raymond Burr 'unmasks' the real killer.