Perry Mason Returns

[GA Russell]

I'd like to see Perry Mason movies of the early books, which don't call for Raymond Burr-acting at all.

Unfortunately, I think that the public would be disappointed because they (or it) would expect to see a courtroom drama.

[WT Sharpe]

Originally Posted by ElsieC

Alas, I can't imagine anyone but Raymond Burr as Perry Mason but I wish it could happen as I would love to see Perry Mason on the big screen.

I've had that same thought. I can't imagine anyone else but Burr in the role, but even he wasn't completely perfect to play the early Mason. I could never imagine Burr slugging anyone, for example, as he did on at least one occasion in the early stories.

Originally Posted by ElsieC

Hollywood would probably ruin it by adding car chase scenes and hanky panky between Perry and Della.

You're probably right. I have nothing against car chases or hanky-panky, but neither has a place in a Perry Mason film, although, again, some of the early books did drop occasional hints that the relationship between Perry and Della was not entirely platonic.

[ElsieC]

Originally Posted by WT Sharpe

You're probably right. I have nothing against car chases or hanky-panky, but neither has a place in a Perry Mason film, although, again, some of the early books did drop occasional hints that the relationship between Perry and Della was not entirely platonic.

I agree about the hints and some slight innuendo was included in some episodes of the old television show if I remember right. It was this subtleness that I suspect might be overdone by Hollywood. I have nothing against car chases or love scenes either.

[WT Sharpe]

Originally Posted by GA Russell

I'd like to see Perry Mason movies of the early books, which don't call for Raymond Burr-acting at all.

Unfortunately, I think that the public would be disappointed because they (or it) would expect to see a courtroom drama.

Exactly. And that's why I'd like to see them done as period pieces. The things he did in those early stories would never fly in a modern setting. He was a bit of a rascal.

[GA Russell]

Tom, ca. 1984 HBO did a series of Philip Marlowes which were period pieces. I only saw a couple, but I would give them five stars. I think a similar Perry Mason series, true to the books, would be a big hit provided that the audience understood that this is not the 1950s Perry Mason.

The Raymond Burr shows are still shown on broadcast tv here, so I imagine that many too young for the original series might be at least a little bit familiar with them.

[poohbear_nc]

If HBO produced a period piece production, or a modern updated version, I can somehow see Jack Black as Mason - he embodies the "rascal" approach to criminal defense that is found in many of the books.

[WT Sharpe]

Pooh, are those migraines bothering you again?

[poohbear_nc]

Think of his character in King Kong ... in a suit!

[WT Sharpe]

Now that I could see—as long as he didn't smile. He does look like a fighter.

[SensualPoet]

I'm surprised no one has mentioned the Perry Mason movies made in the mid-1930s. They featured a couple of different Masons and they were more action oriented than Burr's portrayal. If Sherlock Holmes can be updated repeatedly (Rathbone, Brett, Downey, Cumberbatch ... see also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...herlock_Holmes), I don't see why Mason can't be reinvented. The books were written over a forty year period so there's a good case for setting them in the 1940s as a compromise, giving them a "vintage" feel but also allowing for a little more noir-grit.

But the stumbling block would still remain the Gardiner estate which, I presume, controls the film rights. In absentia.

[WT Sharpe]

I just saw an episode of the Jack Benny Program that I didn't know existed. In it, Jack's neighbors had him summoned him to court for disturbing the peace because of a rooster he was keeping in his yard. He fell asleep, and that led to a dream sequence where he was in court charged with murdering the rooster. He was defended by Perry Mason (Raymond Burr), who entered the courtroom to cheers, including a standing ovation by the jury. Unfortunately, Mason's skills were not so evident as they were on the Perry Mason show, and when Jack Benny asked him how he managed to win all the cases on his show, Mason replied, "I don't know. Maybe I've got better writers than you." Eventually Jack Benny was exonerated when in a stunning courtroom turn of events, Perry Mason confessed to the crime, having been driven to exasperation by the constant crowing of the rooster.

[GeckoFriend]

Originally Posted by WT Sharpe

I just saw an episode of the Jack Benny Program that I didn't know existed. In it, Jack's neighbors had him summoned him to court for disturbing the peace because of a rooster he was keeping in his yard. He fell asleep, and that led to a dream sequence where he was in court charged with murdering the rooster. He was defended by Perry Mason (Raymond Burr), who entered the courtroom to cheers, including a standing ovation by the jury. Unfortunately, Mason's skills were not so evident as they were on the Perry Mason show, and when Jack Benny asked him how he managed to win all the cases on his show, Mason replied, "I don't know. Maybe I've got better writers than you." Eventually Jack Benny was exonerated when in a stunning courtroom turn of events, Perry Mason confessed to the crime, having been driven to exasperation by the constant crowing of the rooster.

I'm not a big Jack Benny fan but that sounds hilarious. How did you find it?

[WT Sharpe]

Originally Posted by GeckoFriend

I'm not a big Jack Benny fan but that sounds hilarious. How did you find it?

It was on a station called "Antenna TV", which plays a lot of the old TV shows, including Alfred Hitchcock Presents and The Burns and Allen Show. I just happened to tune in tonight and that's what was shown.