User Reviews

This actually is a good story. You have Jason Foster (Richard Anderson) and Randolph Cartwell (Ford Rainey) running for state senate. Mr Cartwell's step-son is seeing Mr Foster's sister and this paves way for trouble in both election headquarters.

The boy, David Cartwell (Stewart Moss), also has some floating bad checks that just happens to be picked up by a rough guy that wants to use the checks to get a racetrack in the area. The girl, Susan Foster (Lynn Loring) lives with her brother and has already caused problems with Jason's bid for election. Anyway the boy, David Cartwell, ends up dead. And Mr Foster's wife, Margaret Foster (Jan Shepard) is accused of the murder. This leads Perry to defend Ms Foster in as neighboring jurisdiction away from the hall of the LA courthouse.

Everything is great up to this point. Then we have the courtroom scenes. And like Christmas Eve- we rush, at full speed, to the ending.

Most of the problem in this show was it needed longer than 52 minutes. And the writers spend most of the show's time getting to know the characters- there is not much time left to save Ms Foster and find the true murderer.

So we are left with a courtroom scene where there seems to be no rules or order of justice. There are spectators standing and giving testimony in the courtroom audience. Forget calling a witness, we go from one witness to another in the click of a camera in hopes of getting all the dialog presented before time expires. I felt like I was cooking a three minute egg and two minutes were gone.

There is also a weird scene in the courtroom where Susan Foster, played by Lynn Loring, is called to the stand. I hope she was not directed to acting in the scene because 'acting-up' was more of the wording. She goes into some fit and yelling at her brother accusing him of the murder. Then the very next scene they are hugged up like old time chums returning from war. How Ms Loring ever worked again is beyond me- she was bad.

Anyway this was a good story. This is one that could have been a real good 'Perry Mason' movie. Instead, the last 20 minutes, is like watching the last lap of the Daytona 500.

***SPOILERS*** Sleazy politics as well as murder and gambling addictions are added to the mix in this Perry Mason, Raymond Burr, episode during the height of the Citrus Valley state senatorial election campaign in the great state of California.

Candidate Jason Foster's, Richard Anderson, unruly teenage sister has been getting it on with gambling addict David Cartwell, Stewart Moss, who's father just happens to be her older brother's, as well as court appointed legal guardian, opponent in the upcoming election Randolph Cartwell, Ford Rainy. Needing $6,000.00 to pay off the bookies or else end up with two broken legs David meets Susan at the Red Reef Bar to talk over his pressing problems and see what she can to to help him. This leads to Susan who was having a drink at the time to be picked up by the local police from underage drinking. Susan also had her photo secretly taken as she's being busted by the cops that is now in danger of being published in a local supermarket tabloid that can sink her brother's, Jason Foster, chances of getting elected.

To make a long and boring story,about Susan's drinking problem, short it's later that David is found shot to death on the Cartwell property and non other then Susan's mom Mrs. Margaret Foster, Ian Shepard, is arrested in her being at the scene of his murder! The Foster's family lawyer Perry Mason takes on Mrs. Foster's defense and soon realizes that she's covering up for David's murder or murderer but why. That even if she's willing to face a life sentences behind bars to do it!

It takes Perry Mason a while to get to the meat of the matter but it all boils down to this race track that's to be built that Foster is dead set against! And if elected he'll do everything he can to keep state funds from building it. And even more shocking it's the now deceased David Cartwell who's murder was being used as a blackmail weapon in getting his girlfriend Susan's brother Jason Foster, if he gets elected, to agree on building it!

***SPOILERS*** One of the better later Perry Mason episodes in it not trying to over complicate things and try to stick to the story as best as it can. The connection to David's murder and the race track issue was intelligently handled and the person who we find out murdered him did in fact have a solid and money making motive to do it. That unlike in some of the other later Perry Mason episodes where he or she, the killer in the episode, is just haphazardly thrown in to finally put and end to the story.