User Reviews

Never trust a guy named Chick.

Dennis Patrick plays Chick Farley, a golf pro and a truly despicable human being. There are at least six suspects who have good reason for killing him, including his alcoholic wife Alma (Phyllis Hill), the beautiful Dina Brandt (hotty Nancy Kovak) who he forces his attentions on; her husband Erwin (Harry Townes); the junior golf pro Jim (Alan Reed Jr.); the caddy he's ripping off and the club president who he's blackmailing. The only person who seems to get along with him in fact is Hamilton Burger, coincidentally a member of the golf club.

It's a pretty intricate mystery but using incredibly focused logic, Perry is able to figure out which of the six is the murderer, who is hung by their own alibi.

For me, this episode stands out because this is the first time that Perry Mason has changed his hairstyle. I do not know the order of production, but it may have been filmed around the time of the color episode, to see if there would be a tenth season.

And it seems to matter.

The show and its overall look seemed a little stale by 1965 or so, and it looks like steps were taken to remedy this. This episode starts off at a golf course, and we see television commentators present. It also does not hurt to see Nancy Kovack present.

And this episode begins the final run of episodes, which offer more action for the first time since the series' beginning in 1957. Had the series gone into a tenth season, this episode and others would have provided a good base from which to work from. And the show would have been in color, starting in fall 1966. Indeed, the series, had it been placed in a better time slot, could have run easily into 1968. But that was not meant to be.

Anyway, this is a good episode, and is not to be missed.

Possible Spoilers .. First, there No pine trees at the Pine Hills Golf Tournament, and the top prize of $2 grand is chintzy, even then, in 1966. Second, Jimmy loses the match because he did a good deed? Chick? Farley wins on a technicality, and NOBODY thinks that's a big deal? Come on !! Anybody think that a guy who'd been kicked off the pro tour would be let back on with that kind of win? Not me, NOPE. Three, Chick is a complete Scurve. I'm talking definable, qualified rat. The last thing he did was fink out someone else. Clearly asking to be offed. Consequently, he made a delightfully deserving, unmissed, cheap, dead guy.

The whole of this case is the timing. In between Chick calling Hamilton, to Danny getting a call, to the cops showing up to find Jimmy walking out of the murder room with his "murder golf club" in his hand, it was 11 minutes. WAY too much time to expect Jimmy to hang around. He's gotta be out of the running. Nancy Kovak is one of the best looking red herrings ever to grace the witness stand; she'll probably never play around on her Huz again. Jimmy's benefactor actually shows up the fact that a good many athletes actually have sponsors who help them get started in their careers.

Even though Perry had provided a very strong alternate theory of the crime, with another perpetrator, and no doubt gotten his client off, WAS there really any proof beyond circumstantial, that the "other guy" did it?, well, you tell me... I also wonder if Jimmy ever "chipped up to the green" with that sand wedge again? Great acting all around; Dennis Patrick made a terrific murder recipient, Plot moved well, Barbara was beautiful, Perry's client reminded me of Maynard G. Krebs.

***SPOILERS*** Getting to win top prize in the prestigious Pine Hills Country Club Golf Tournament by tricking his top rival, who was leading at the time, Jimmy Harrell, Alan Reed Jr, to get himself penalized for two strokes sleaze ball golfer Chick Farily, Dennis Patrick, then tried to steal club member Erwin Brandt, Harry Townes, pretty blond wife Dina,Nancy Novack,away from him. This lead to a free for all with Chick getting slapped by Dina and Erwin, who after Chick belted Dina, coming to his wife's aid. The no match for Chick Erwin ends up being dumped by him into a water fountain in front of dozens of of shocked Pine Hill club members. If that wasn't bad enough Chick so humiliated his long suffering wife Alma, Phylis Hill, that she left the club, that was honoring her husband, in tears. It was in fact Alma a women's golf champion who made her no good husband Chick a success in the sport possible by giving him all the support in that the use of her name, that Chick used to promote himself, could.

As it later tuned out Chick's sleazy and despicable actions got a bit out of hand when someone he was blackmailing just had all he or she could take from him and ended up bashing his skull in with a golf club. That's when Chick was on the phone talking to his friend and club member local D.A Hamilton "Ham" Berger, William Talman, complaining that his lousy and no good life has been threatened. Like out of nowhere it just happened that Jim Harrell was the very first person to come on the scene and with his golf club being the murder weapon in Chick's death he was arrested for his murder! Perry Mason, Raymond Burr, who's a friend of Harrell decided to defend him , Pro Bono, not just because he feels that he's innocent but in order to get a chance to cross examine his bitter rival in the "Perry Mason" TV series Hamilton "Ham" Berger who's to be a top witness for the prosecution and thus get a chance make hamburger meat out of him.

****SPOILERS**** It seems that everyone had no use for the murdered Chick Farley and it seemed almost impossible to get, whoever he or she is, the person who murdered him convicted by a jury of his peers. Perry in defending Jim Harrell had at the same time having to bring out just what a low life the person whom he's accused of murdering Chick Farley really was! Thus having him defend two people,Jim Harrell and Farley's killer, at the very same time.

Even Dina Brandt got into the act by falsely admitting that she was the one who murdered Farley, risking a life sentence or even death in the San Quentin gas chamber, just to prevent the person who murdered him, which Dina thinks was a great thing, from being convicted! In the end it was someone out of Farely's past who in fact did the guy in. That by Farley blackmailing him to do his bidding in covering up a theft of $3,000.00 in golf equipment from the Pine Hill inventory wear-house. A very minor crime by Farley standards which of all the sleazy and underhanded things that Farley did didn't even rate mentioning!