"Perry Mason" The Case of the Borrowed Baby (TV Episode 1962) Poster

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8/10
Perry and Della find a baby in the office.
kfo949425 December 2012
Perry and Della are returning to the office late one evening and upon opening the door find a baby on Perry's desk. All that is left with the baby is a note asking Perry to keep the baby safe. Other than that the only thing the baby possess is a St Christopher medal with an rare car on the back. Perry finds out that the car on the back of the medal is a electric car owned by the widow Derrick.

As Della is caring for the baby a series of odd events happen. We find out how the baby got to Perry's office, someone else is trying to kidnap the baby, a rich widow feels like she is being blackmailed and we find out that the supposed mother, Ginny Talbot, is accused of murder.

Perry will defend Ms Talbot in court for the murder plus trying to establish the fact she actually is the mother of the baby. Paul gives Perry some information that appears to only hurt his client but Perry finds the information interesting and is ready for cross examination of witnesses.

A very interesting mystery that is entertaining. With some good actors like Hugh Marlowe, Sara Taft and Corey Allen this episode is dramatic. A good watch for any Mason viewer.
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7/10
Leander
bkoganbing30 September 2014
Kaye Elhardt is the Perry Mason client for this story, but she only comes in by way of her baby. Unlike other Mason stories where Raymond Burr and his team get called in once we're into the story, this episode starts with them as part of the story.

One night when Raymond Burr and Barbara Hale are working late a small intruder is left in the office. It's a baby with a note saying that his name is Leander and he has a St. Christopher medal. Ace detective William Hopper traces that medal to the wealthy dowager Sara Taft with the thought that it is her grandson. But she says she has no grandson and the mother Elhardt never registered the birth on some bad advice.

Elhardt worked in a sanitarium where she met the baby's father who was being treated for injuries in a plane crash. They married there and he died and he was Taft's son.

As that baby could be the heir to a considerable fortune young Leander is the object of a lot of intrigue by various parties for their own reasons. The worst of all is an orderly played by Corey Allen who is a real bottom feeder and working several angles. One of those angles gets him killed and Elhardt up for murder.

Of course justice is obtained for both Mason clients, mother and baby son. This episode shows Barbara Hale developing quite the maternal instinct. Of course in the over 35 years that Hale played Della Street she never went to the altar much less had a baby. At least in her life as the character.
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8/10
Little Tot Mugs The Plot
DKosty1237 December 2010
Warning: Spoilers
Johnathan Latimer who wrote The Big Clock & Tooper Returns films tries his writing hand at doing something a little different. It seems Perry finds a present in his office one night, a baby. The baby has a St. Christophers medal with an antique car on the rear. That is the only clue.

As Della cares for the tot, & Perry & Paul go hunting for clues, someone tries to break in & steal the tot from her. It seems the child, Leander, might just be the child of a now dead heir to a large estate. An eccentric Grandma drives an electric car around & at first denies it is possible.

The plot thickens as we find out who put the baby in the office, who the mother is, & then someone gets killed. This puts a major complication on proving if Perry's client is mom or the murderer, or both.
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10/10
All Barbara
darbski29 May 2017
Warning: Spoilers
**SPOILERS** Don't even start this if you haven't seen the episode. First, whoever did the restoration (or preservation ) of the electric car driven by the old gal did a fabulous job; it's beautiful. It is a Detroit Electric Brougham. Read about it from Curbside Classics. Next, did anyone even notice that the dead dirtbag was played by Corey Allen, the dead juvenile delinquent dirtbag in Rebel Without a Cause? I didn't until I checked IMDb's reference. Very notable career, Mr. Allen. (R.I.P.).

Now, for my main gripe, and yeah, it's a gripe. METV should absolutely have changed their lineup when Barbara Hale passed away to put this Perry Mason in that slot honoring Miss Hale. She has a strong part that she puts deep talent to work. It shows just why she had been a leading lady, and one of the top actresses in Hollywood. She was a mother herself, so she knew how to act with a baby, and be very protective doing so. It's one of her best performances on Perry, and should have been played up by METV. Usually a pretty good lineup, they dropped the ball, here. Barbara will never be forgotten by her fans, as am I.
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