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Perry Mason (TV series): Difference between revisions
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'''''Perry Mason''''' is an iconic 1957-1966 [[CBS]] series descended from the radio drama of the same name and inspired by (and frequently dramatizing) the series of books by Erle Stanley Gardner. Perry Mason (Raymond Burr) is a skilled defense attorney who takes seemingly hopeless cases and turns them into victories. Aided by his secretary Della Street (Barbara Hale) and private investigator Paul Drake (William Hopper), he specializes in discovering the one fact that unravels the case against his client, and often ends up getting the true criminal to confess on the stand.
It got [[Revival|revived]] in 1973 as ''[[The New Perry Mason]]'' with a completely different cast, but the series lasted only one season. It was then [[Revival|revived]] again as ''[[Perry Mason (TV film series)|Perry Mason Returns]]'' in 1985 with the surviving original cast plus William "''[[The Greatest American Hero]]''" Katt as Paul Drake, Jr. The success of this TV movie spurred the production of ''29'' more ''Perry Mason'' TV movies between 1985 and 1994, with the last installment airing after Raymond Burr's death in 1993. ([[NBC]] made a few more TV movies without Raymond Burr before calling it quits.)
The series is very popular overseas — a [[Perry Mason (Turkish series)|''Turkish'' version]] (also called ''Perry Mason'') was produced in 1983.
In an odd twist, the series made the jump from radio to TV ''twice'' — and this instance was the ''second''. The first time was in 1956, but at the last minute Erle Stanley Gardner withdrew his support for the project, and it was [[Retool|retooled]] into... the soap opera ''[[The Edge of Night]]''. The attorney also [[Filk Song|inspired a song by]] [[Ozzy Osbourne]].
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* [[Nice Hat]]: Lieutenant Tragg's fedora.
* [[Official Couple]]: Perry and Della.
* [[One-Dollar Retainer]]: Played with in the episode "The Case of the Shapely Shadow": Perry takes a one-dollar retainer before opening a suitcase in the presence of his new client. What he discovers makes him think he's about to defend his client in a blackmail case, but the actual charge turns out to be murder and Perry accepts his usual fee.
* [[Perp Sweating]]
* [[The Perry Mason Method]]: Trope Namer.
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* [[Trickster Archetype]]: Perry is an interestingly lawful example - he often uses a mix of tricky guile and venerable wisdom to uncover clues and solve mysteries, but rarely actually uses coercion or trickery to ''make'' the guilty say something.
* [[True Companions]]: Perry, Paul and Della. Could be expanded to include Tragg ([[Suspiciously Similar Substitute|or Andy or Steve]]) and Burger.
* [[Written
** For awhile (around season six) there was a string of episodes that followed some associate of Perry's while the man himself was recuperating in a hospital room and was only seen in brief telephone calls. This was because actor Raymond Burr was recovering from surgery and couldn't handle the usual workload.
** Burr played the role with one arm in a sling during four season eight episodes
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[[Category:Law Procedural]]
[[Category:American Series]]
[[Category:Perry Mason (TV series)]]
[[Category:TV Series]]
[[Category:Live-Action TV of the 1950s]]
[[Category:Live-Action TV of the 1960s]]
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