Peter Cole, a lifelong sleepwalker, is charged with murdering his stepbrother, Philip Kendal. Peter and Philip's partner, in cahoots with Peter's almost ex-wife, tries to extort money from them by grossly inflating his share of the partnership. He would sell his share of the partnership but only at his price. If Peter and Philip didn't agree, there would be no final divorce decree for Peter. But instead of the corrupt partner ending up dead, it's Philip who's murdered. There is a scene where Perry returns to the office later one evening, Della is still at work and seeing how tired Perry is, massages his shoulders. Such an overt gesture of affection does not occur again in the series, to my recollection. Also in this episode, Perry has an assistant named Jackson who does not appear in succeeding episodes. Another good idea as it allowed Paul Drake to do the legal errands for Perry. The acting highlight is Darryl Hickman as the boyfriend of Peter's niece. Hickman was a well known and respected child actor whose fame, however, was overshadowed but his brother Dwayne who portrayed the enormously popular Dobie Gillis.
16 Reviews
Sterling Cross Examination
bkoganbing22 May 2012
Raymond Burr is brought in by stepbrothers Harry Hickox and John McNamara to untangle a fine legal mess. Hickox and McNamara are business partners in whom a third partner is blackmailing them to buy him out of the business. Partner John Archer and his bottom feeding attorney Tom Browne Henry have entangled the affairs of their company in with the fact that Archer has been having an affair with Hillary Brooke who is McNamara's wife.
When Hickox is stabbed to death and McNamara is arrested that's when Perry Mason's real courtroom skills are needed.
There are two key scenes in the film, one a real battle of wits between Hillary Brooke and Raymond Burr. He cleverly brings her around to help with her estranged husband by explaining her rational self interest.
The second though when under a sterling cross examination he traps the real perpetrator into admitting guilt. This is setting up the Perry Mason paradigm in the best possible way.
That last scene is worth the hour watching this episode.
When Hickox is stabbed to death and McNamara is arrested that's when Perry Mason's real courtroom skills are needed.
There are two key scenes in the film, one a real battle of wits between Hillary Brooke and Raymond Burr. He cleverly brings her around to help with her estranged husband by explaining her rational self interest.
The second though when under a sterling cross examination he traps the real perpetrator into admitting guilt. This is setting up the Perry Mason paradigm in the best possible way.
That last scene is worth the hour watching this episode.
Season 1 Episode 2 = a good time for viewers
kfo949425 November 2011
After watching episodes from the later years, I reverted and watched this episode from the first season. This episode was number two in the entire 'Perry Mason' series.
There is a big difference in this early show than in the later shows. Raymond Burr's performance as Perry is highly energetic with high emotions. (something lacking in the final two seasons) The viewer is caught up in this lawyer's world of trying to find the facts with full involvement of the Perry character. And his exchanges with other characters, especially Lt Tragg, is some of the best work of the entire series.
This episode begins with a man that sleep-walks during times of high stress. In the opening seasons Peter Cole (John MacNamara) comes walking into the bedroom holding the larges letter opener (the largest I have ever seen) and walks up to where his wife Doris Cole (Hillary Brooke) is sleeping. She awakes screaming when Edna, the niece, come running into the bedroom and arouses Peter. Needless to say Ms Cole files for divorce.
Right when the divorce will become final, a business partner of Peter Coles has a scheme to make Peter pay millions for his part of the business and hold the divorce over his head until the money is paid. However before the papers are signed Peter's brother-in-law is found dead and in come Perry to defend Peter for murder.
The viewer is now all aboard for the ride that will produce Perry in some of his best on-camera situations. I found this episode quite entertaining as we see Perry conduct the investigation that will lead his client to freedom. Along the way we meet characters that the viewer finds interesting and wants to follow throughout the entire episode.
Some of the acting seems, at times, slow. Perhaps the series did not yet command respect from CBS and retaking a scene was not of prime importance. But even with some questionable acting this episode delivers what made Perry Mason a favorite for many years.
Note- During the scene where Lt Tragg is talking to Steve Harris at the police station- Look at Lt Tragg's belt. Forget the fact it is pulled up to above the stomach- look at the buckle- perhaps they wore it like that in the late 50's.
There is a big difference in this early show than in the later shows. Raymond Burr's performance as Perry is highly energetic with high emotions. (something lacking in the final two seasons) The viewer is caught up in this lawyer's world of trying to find the facts with full involvement of the Perry character. And his exchanges with other characters, especially Lt Tragg, is some of the best work of the entire series.
This episode begins with a man that sleep-walks during times of high stress. In the opening seasons Peter Cole (John MacNamara) comes walking into the bedroom holding the larges letter opener (the largest I have ever seen) and walks up to where his wife Doris Cole (Hillary Brooke) is sleeping. She awakes screaming when Edna, the niece, come running into the bedroom and arouses Peter. Needless to say Ms Cole files for divorce.
Right when the divorce will become final, a business partner of Peter Coles has a scheme to make Peter pay millions for his part of the business and hold the divorce over his head until the money is paid. However before the papers are signed Peter's brother-in-law is found dead and in come Perry to defend Peter for murder.
The viewer is now all aboard for the ride that will produce Perry in some of his best on-camera situations. I found this episode quite entertaining as we see Perry conduct the investigation that will lead his client to freedom. Along the way we meet characters that the viewer finds interesting and wants to follow throughout the entire episode.
Some of the acting seems, at times, slow. Perhaps the series did not yet command respect from CBS and retaking a scene was not of prime importance. But even with some questionable acting this episode delivers what made Perry Mason a favorite for many years.
Note- During the scene where Lt Tragg is talking to Steve Harris at the police station- Look at Lt Tragg's belt. Forget the fact it is pulled up to above the stomach- look at the buckle- perhaps they wore it like that in the late 50's.
A Strong Second Entry
dougdoepke8 October 2009
This second entry in the series is a strong one. In my little book, there are several reasons to catch up with it. Overall, the episode doesn't follow the formula that made later episodes less flexible and more predictable. For one, notice how much looser Mason appears in court and out. In fact, his scene with the regal Doris Cole (Hillary Brooke) is a little gem of verbal sparring and conflicting emotions, nicely scripted and expertly acted. Note that Mason is both attracted and challenged by the coyly aggressive Cole and in ways that would soon disappear from his no-nonsense character. Notice too, how glibly he resorts to tricks and deceptions to win his case. He's still a long way from the embodiment of legal virtue that his character would later become. The climax too is rather surprising given the conventions that would later take hold (I don't want to reveal the culprit). All in all, the entry shows a series feeling its way along and finding an audience, which it did brilliantly for the next ten years.
Shocker of an ending unveils the secret to Perry Mason's constant successes
GaryLThompson20 August 2016
Warning: Spoilers
The classic B western movie formula is kind of an inversion of the whodunit mystery genera. The audience is aware of whom the hero is, and who is the true culprit in the heinous outlawry besieging the frontier community, but invariably it's the hero who is under suspicion (by one side in a feud, by the leading lady, by the authorities, even the hero's own family, sometimes all of the above), and the villains are respected and seen as above reproach. The movie invariably ends when the hero succeeds in exposing the villains, and rounding them up in an exciting shootout finale.
In later years, after William Boyd spent or mortgaged everything he had to buy the rights to his Hopalong Cassidy character, Boyd continued making Hoppy movies but no longer had the financial resources to wind up those films by rounding up those huge posses to run down the black hats. So his postwar approach was to depend more on mystery and moody atmosphere. Unlike many of the B cowboys, Boyd actually possessed the acting chops and gravity in his character to pull that off successfully, and maybe his finest effort was "Silent Conflict." You have the classic B western conflict set up, the obvious villains talking of getting a big payroll entrusted to Hoppy's sidekick, but when Hoppy confronts the villains, no fight takes place because both the hero and bad guys come to realize the other side has no clue to what happened to the missing money and young cowpoke either! Eventually, the true culprit is unveiled in a direction the audience never would have expected, as the story takes as eerie and shocking resolution as any B movie you're liable to see.
This early Perry Mason episode reminds me strongly of that "Silent Conflict" episode. The villains again seem to be glaringly obvious: the ex-wife of Perry's client, her new boyfriend and his shady attorney. Again though, appearances prove to be deceiving as Perry unmasks the real murderer in a real shocker of an ending.
And in bringing the trial to a conclusion with his brilliant interrogation, Perry reveals just why he'll keep on winning case after case in all the coming years that his series will run. Why does the ex-wife conclude her negotiations with Perry Mason by declaring she despises him, but if she's ever in trouble she'll want Mason as her lawyer? Why is it in one Perry Mason novel, in which Mason for once is not forthcoming on his conclusions and the identity of the murderer (because of another of Hamilton Burger's ill- advised attempts to get Mason disbarred), even Della complains that Perry is the most baffling and exasperating person she has ever known because "All those clues are so plain once you explain them...They're so VERY, VERY plain...But somehow I can't ever arrange them and interpret them" and even Burger is forced to admit in the end that perhaps Perry has "applied the knowledge we all have to better advantage." When Lt. Tragg and even Paul Drake can dig up more facts and evidence than Perry could ever hope to, what is the secret behind his constantly beating them to the true solution to a case?
You can find the answer in another adventure in Perry Mason's victorious legal career--"The Case of the Sunbathers Diary." In the conclusion of the novel version, nowhere does Perry explain his approach more clearly and succinctly: "The only flaw in his reasoning was that he made the mistake so frequently by professional as well as amateur detectives of making up his mind in advance as to who was guilty and then trying to fit the facts to suit the guilt of that particular person...Once again...the greatest obstacle to any fair and impartial investigation is jumping to conclusions." Perry Mason always tries to keep an open mind to all possibilities in a case, and whenever he is irritated at failing to arrive at the right conclusion sooner, it's invariably because Perry realizes he failed to do this, at least until the end.
For example, because Hamilton Burger constantly throws himself into action without reexamining the situation, can anybody even picture Burger ever choosing to believe the denial of a hostile witness? Or having chosen to believe that witness, start wondering if he should start looking for the murderer among HIS OWN ranks? Certainly the murderer in "Perry Mason: The Case of the Sleepwalker's Niece" never dreamed that Perry would do this, and so he walks unsuspectingly right into Perry's inescapable trap. All in all, an exceptional and highly satisfying episode which is a great portent of the classic TV seasons to come.
In later years, after William Boyd spent or mortgaged everything he had to buy the rights to his Hopalong Cassidy character, Boyd continued making Hoppy movies but no longer had the financial resources to wind up those films by rounding up those huge posses to run down the black hats. So his postwar approach was to depend more on mystery and moody atmosphere. Unlike many of the B cowboys, Boyd actually possessed the acting chops and gravity in his character to pull that off successfully, and maybe his finest effort was "Silent Conflict." You have the classic B western conflict set up, the obvious villains talking of getting a big payroll entrusted to Hoppy's sidekick, but when Hoppy confronts the villains, no fight takes place because both the hero and bad guys come to realize the other side has no clue to what happened to the missing money and young cowpoke either! Eventually, the true culprit is unveiled in a direction the audience never would have expected, as the story takes as eerie and shocking resolution as any B movie you're liable to see.
This early Perry Mason episode reminds me strongly of that "Silent Conflict" episode. The villains again seem to be glaringly obvious: the ex-wife of Perry's client, her new boyfriend and his shady attorney. Again though, appearances prove to be deceiving as Perry unmasks the real murderer in a real shocker of an ending.
And in bringing the trial to a conclusion with his brilliant interrogation, Perry reveals just why he'll keep on winning case after case in all the coming years that his series will run. Why does the ex-wife conclude her negotiations with Perry Mason by declaring she despises him, but if she's ever in trouble she'll want Mason as her lawyer? Why is it in one Perry Mason novel, in which Mason for once is not forthcoming on his conclusions and the identity of the murderer (because of another of Hamilton Burger's ill- advised attempts to get Mason disbarred), even Della complains that Perry is the most baffling and exasperating person she has ever known because "All those clues are so plain once you explain them...They're so VERY, VERY plain...But somehow I can't ever arrange them and interpret them" and even Burger is forced to admit in the end that perhaps Perry has "applied the knowledge we all have to better advantage." When Lt. Tragg and even Paul Drake can dig up more facts and evidence than Perry could ever hope to, what is the secret behind his constantly beating them to the true solution to a case?
You can find the answer in another adventure in Perry Mason's victorious legal career--"The Case of the Sunbathers Diary." In the conclusion of the novel version, nowhere does Perry explain his approach more clearly and succinctly: "The only flaw in his reasoning was that he made the mistake so frequently by professional as well as amateur detectives of making up his mind in advance as to who was guilty and then trying to fit the facts to suit the guilt of that particular person...Once again...the greatest obstacle to any fair and impartial investigation is jumping to conclusions." Perry Mason always tries to keep an open mind to all possibilities in a case, and whenever he is irritated at failing to arrive at the right conclusion sooner, it's invariably because Perry realizes he failed to do this, at least until the end.
For example, because Hamilton Burger constantly throws himself into action without reexamining the situation, can anybody even picture Burger ever choosing to believe the denial of a hostile witness? Or having chosen to believe that witness, start wondering if he should start looking for the murderer among HIS OWN ranks? Certainly the murderer in "Perry Mason: The Case of the Sleepwalker's Niece" never dreamed that Perry would do this, and so he walks unsuspectingly right into Perry's inescapable trap. All in all, an exceptional and highly satisfying episode which is a great portent of the classic TV seasons to come.
Laywer v Laywer
darbski1 August 2017
Warning: Spoilers
**SPOILERS** A very quick posit on Mr. Mason. He's a genius. One other small point is the fact that in this episode, as well as so many others, Sherlock Holmes' logic prevails. "If you eliminate all you know to be untrue, whatever is left, no matter how improbable MUST be (true, that is).
As Perry himself said, when he was questioning the opposing attorney in the business side of this case; "when he was answering everything but his own involvement, he could rely on the weight of opinion alone; but when it came to his OWN knowledge of the facts, he had to tell the truth". His reputation and career were on the line. This was really great acting by Thomas Browne Henry as the other lawyer. He was cool as a cucumber when it wasn't about him as an attorney, but he became incensed, indeed when Perry put his professional behavior at question. Hamilton made NO objections to Perry questioning Duncan on professional behavior; a small point, but important for the point of justice. With that question out of the picture, the only thing left was what HAD to be untrue. So long, creepy bad guy; who was revealed to be deeply twisted and evil. He was either criminally insane (Which I doubt), or guilty of Murder One - (Book 'em Danno).
Nancy Hadley is a very good looking brunette who had a secondary but crucial role in this show, and Perry saves her, too. She stood by her uncle, and should be rightly rewarded after. As far as the control of the company, once Perry gets done chopping up all the bad guy's interests, it will be a lock for Mr. Cole and company. Della and Paul do their jobs, but the evil doer almost fooled everyone, except Perry.
As Perry himself said, when he was questioning the opposing attorney in the business side of this case; "when he was answering everything but his own involvement, he could rely on the weight of opinion alone; but when it came to his OWN knowledge of the facts, he had to tell the truth". His reputation and career were on the line. This was really great acting by Thomas Browne Henry as the other lawyer. He was cool as a cucumber when it wasn't about him as an attorney, but he became incensed, indeed when Perry put his professional behavior at question. Hamilton made NO objections to Perry questioning Duncan on professional behavior; a small point, but important for the point of justice. With that question out of the picture, the only thing left was what HAD to be untrue. So long, creepy bad guy; who was revealed to be deeply twisted and evil. He was either criminally insane (Which I doubt), or guilty of Murder One - (Book 'em Danno).
Nancy Hadley is a very good looking brunette who had a secondary but crucial role in this show, and Perry saves her, too. She stood by her uncle, and should be rightly rewarded after. As far as the control of the company, once Perry gets done chopping up all the bad guy's interests, it will be a lock for Mr. Cole and company. Della and Paul do their jobs, but the evil doer almost fooled everyone, except Perry.
I feel like I was denied certain need to know information...
AlsExGal30 November 2022
... and I'll get back to that.
The episode opens with a man entering a woman's bedroom with a butcher's knife in his hand. The woman awakens, sees the man, and begins screaming. Someone else enters the bedroom and awakens the man. He's been sleepwalking, and it looks like he planned to stab his wife to death.
We get caught up on everything we just saw with the next scene. Apparently the sleepwalking man was Peter Cole and the woman was his wife Doris. The scene is a conversation between Peter's partner Frank Maddox and Peter's soon to be ex wife, Doris. After the sleepwalking incident occurred Doris moved out of the house and filed for divorce. Her divorce will be final the following day. Frank Maddox has come up with a scheme to extort money from Peter in exchange for Doris not holding up the divorce even longer. We also see that Doris has not exactly been a loving and faithful wife to Peter given the passionate kisses that she and Frank Maddox share.
When Peter gets this ultimatum from Frank, he and his stepbrother, his other partner, employ Perry Mason. Perry comes up with a scheme that will turn the tables on Maddox and enable Frank to be free without paying extortion money. The parties all meet at Pete's house and decide to stay the night so things can be settled in the morning. That night Maddox and Cole's stepbrother change bedrooms at the last moment. The next morning Cole's stepbrother is found stabbed to death in his bed, and the murder weapon - a long and sharp kitchen knife from the cupboard - is found under Peter's pillow. Peter is missing, the obvious implication being that Peter stabbed his brother in his sleep, thinking that it was Maddox since those were the sleeping arrangements of which he was aware at the time he retired. What goes on here? Watch and find out.
Although it was a fascinating entry, I felt a couple of things were out of place. First, right before the divorce is final, we see Pete, his niece, and some woman named Lucille May celebrating his imminent divorce. We never see much of this woman. We don't know where this woman came from other than that she and Peter have waited fifteen years to be married, which is a phrase, unexplained, that is stated repeatedly. Why? Why didn't he marry her fifteen years ago rather than faithless greedy Doris? Questions never answered.
The other thing that was odd was that Perry gave a very important surveillance job that would normally go to Paul Drake to some twenty year old engaged to Pete Cole's niece who due to his inexperience could really mess up this vital task.
Finally let me just state that I would never employ Perry Mason for an attorney in some routine civil matter. Divorces, cheating spouses, business partner and trust disputes all evolve into murder cases at a time when being convicted of murder meant the gas chamber. Yikes!
The episode opens with a man entering a woman's bedroom with a butcher's knife in his hand. The woman awakens, sees the man, and begins screaming. Someone else enters the bedroom and awakens the man. He's been sleepwalking, and it looks like he planned to stab his wife to death.
We get caught up on everything we just saw with the next scene. Apparently the sleepwalking man was Peter Cole and the woman was his wife Doris. The scene is a conversation between Peter's partner Frank Maddox and Peter's soon to be ex wife, Doris. After the sleepwalking incident occurred Doris moved out of the house and filed for divorce. Her divorce will be final the following day. Frank Maddox has come up with a scheme to extort money from Peter in exchange for Doris not holding up the divorce even longer. We also see that Doris has not exactly been a loving and faithful wife to Peter given the passionate kisses that she and Frank Maddox share.
When Peter gets this ultimatum from Frank, he and his stepbrother, his other partner, employ Perry Mason. Perry comes up with a scheme that will turn the tables on Maddox and enable Frank to be free without paying extortion money. The parties all meet at Pete's house and decide to stay the night so things can be settled in the morning. That night Maddox and Cole's stepbrother change bedrooms at the last moment. The next morning Cole's stepbrother is found stabbed to death in his bed, and the murder weapon - a long and sharp kitchen knife from the cupboard - is found under Peter's pillow. Peter is missing, the obvious implication being that Peter stabbed his brother in his sleep, thinking that it was Maddox since those were the sleeping arrangements of which he was aware at the time he retired. What goes on here? Watch and find out.
Although it was a fascinating entry, I felt a couple of things were out of place. First, right before the divorce is final, we see Pete, his niece, and some woman named Lucille May celebrating his imminent divorce. We never see much of this woman. We don't know where this woman came from other than that she and Peter have waited fifteen years to be married, which is a phrase, unexplained, that is stated repeatedly. Why? Why didn't he marry her fifteen years ago rather than faithless greedy Doris? Questions never answered.
The other thing that was odd was that Perry gave a very important surveillance job that would normally go to Paul Drake to some twenty year old engaged to Pete Cole's niece who due to his inexperience could really mess up this vital task.
Finally let me just state that I would never employ Perry Mason for an attorney in some routine civil matter. Divorces, cheating spouses, business partner and trust disputes all evolve into murder cases at a time when being convicted of murder meant the gas chamber. Yikes!
An Early Gem
lewis-5131 March 2013
I have long been a fan of Perry Mason, both the books and the TV series. I remember the TV series fondly when I saw it in reruns as a young adult, and the books were my introduction to the mystery genre.
As others have written, this was the second filmed episode. It is closer to the early books in mood than most of the TV episodes. Della looks especially young and attractive. She playfully massages Perry's neck. Mason is himself playful, almost flirting, with one the the female leads whom he needs to get on his side. He almost playfully traps the murderer on the witness stand. You don't see that sort of thing (especially Mason smiling so much) later in the TV series, after it became a huge hit, and a bit formal, if not stodgy.
The early books have a pronounced film noir flavor, and this book is no exception. The TV episode is a very good representation of the book. Of course they had to abridge it somewhat, to make it fit into 53 minutes. They've left out some of the material about the niece, which makes one wonder, who has seen only the TV episode, why the title is the way is it. My major criticism of the TV episode is that the actor who portrays the murderer doesn't fit the part; it's poor casting. The result is a person who is hard to imagine as a murderer.
Still, a great 53 minutes of television.
As others have written, this was the second filmed episode. It is closer to the early books in mood than most of the TV episodes. Della looks especially young and attractive. She playfully massages Perry's neck. Mason is himself playful, almost flirting, with one the the female leads whom he needs to get on his side. He almost playfully traps the murderer on the witness stand. You don't see that sort of thing (especially Mason smiling so much) later in the TV series, after it became a huge hit, and a bit formal, if not stodgy.
The early books have a pronounced film noir flavor, and this book is no exception. The TV episode is a very good representation of the book. Of course they had to abridge it somewhat, to make it fit into 53 minutes. They've left out some of the material about the niece, which makes one wonder, who has seen only the TV episode, why the title is the way is it. My major criticism of the TV episode is that the actor who portrays the murderer doesn't fit the part; it's poor casting. The result is a person who is hard to imagine as a murderer.
Still, a great 53 minutes of television.
I hate to tell you what I think of you Mister Mason!
sol121819 February 2013
Warning: Spoilers
***SPOILERS*** It's when Doris Cole's, Hillary Brooke, sleepwalking husband Peter, John McNamara, got a bit out of hand with him almost stabbing her to death while he's asleep and walking that she ends up filing for divorce. While the divorce papers can't become finalized after one year Doris is out playing the field and is now having an affair with Frank Maddox, John Archer, and her sleepwalking estranged husband Peter is engaged to marry Lucille Mays, Helen Mowery. But it's Peter partners in his business that includes Maddox and his step brother Philip Kendell, Harry Hickox, who are intent on keeping Peter married to Doris for reasons of taking over the company that he's the CEO of.
Getting this ambulance chasing shyster,lawyer, Ralph Duncan, Thomas Bowne Henry, the two come up with this cockamamie scheme, that's way over everyone but their heads, to keep the two together or still married until they can get control of the business. As things later turn out it's Kendell who ends up getting stabbed to death in his sleep by what seemed to be someone who was really targeting Frank Maddox! What saved Maddox's life is that he switched rooms with Kendell while staying at the Cole Mansion at the very last moment thus confusing the person who was set to murder him! Perry Mason, Raymond Burr, who was handling Peter Cole's divorce as well as finances is now up to his neck in a murder trial with his client the sleepwalking, and not knowing what he does while asleep, Peter Cole as the #1 suspect!
A trim and very emotionally driven, unlike the later overweight cool and calculated, Perry Mason really goes to work here making an end run on Doris Cole as he batters her unmercifully in and out of the courtroom. Perry even going so far as flirting with her to get Doris not in the sack but to admit her part in the scheme to clean her husband Peter out. Seeing that she's no match for Perry and now behind the eight ball with Perry about to shoot or bang her into the side pocket Doris agrees to take a 25 G's, legal not illegal, payoff in order to let her divorce papers with Peter go through.
****SPOILERS*** It was Doris who was supposedly involve in a phone conversation with Ralph Duncan that in the end sealed Philip Kendell's killers fate! Not knowing that Perry was on to him Kendell's killer fell into he trap that Perry set for him while on the witness stand. Wanting to kill off or have jailed all those involved in Peter Cole's business ventures so he can take full control of them Kendell's killer went a bit to far in trying to come up with an air tight alibi for himself. But in him not being able to be in two places at the same time he screwed up royally when Perry proved that he couldn't have possibly have been where he claimed he was at the time of Kendell's murder: Some 50 miles away from the murder scene!
Getting this ambulance chasing shyster,lawyer, Ralph Duncan, Thomas Bowne Henry, the two come up with this cockamamie scheme, that's way over everyone but their heads, to keep the two together or still married until they can get control of the business. As things later turn out it's Kendell who ends up getting stabbed to death in his sleep by what seemed to be someone who was really targeting Frank Maddox! What saved Maddox's life is that he switched rooms with Kendell while staying at the Cole Mansion at the very last moment thus confusing the person who was set to murder him! Perry Mason, Raymond Burr, who was handling Peter Cole's divorce as well as finances is now up to his neck in a murder trial with his client the sleepwalking, and not knowing what he does while asleep, Peter Cole as the #1 suspect!
A trim and very emotionally driven, unlike the later overweight cool and calculated, Perry Mason really goes to work here making an end run on Doris Cole as he batters her unmercifully in and out of the courtroom. Perry even going so far as flirting with her to get Doris not in the sack but to admit her part in the scheme to clean her husband Peter out. Seeing that she's no match for Perry and now behind the eight ball with Perry about to shoot or bang her into the side pocket Doris agrees to take a 25 G's, legal not illegal, payoff in order to let her divorce papers with Peter go through.
****SPOILERS*** It was Doris who was supposedly involve in a phone conversation with Ralph Duncan that in the end sealed Philip Kendell's killers fate! Not knowing that Perry was on to him Kendell's killer fell into he trap that Perry set for him while on the witness stand. Wanting to kill off or have jailed all those involved in Peter Cole's business ventures so he can take full control of them Kendell's killer went a bit to far in trying to come up with an air tight alibi for himself. But in him not being able to be in two places at the same time he screwed up royally when Perry proved that he couldn't have possibly have been where he claimed he was at the time of Kendell's murder: Some 50 miles away from the murder scene!
Really good....and even better than the first episode.
planktonrules31 August 2019
When the story begins, you see Peter sleepwalking while carrying a knife. The woman in bed is his wife and she screams that he is trying to kill her. Well, he did not appear ready to plunge the knife...though it's easy to see the wife getting upset.
Time passes. Peter and his wife are divorcing and obviously it's been a very unhappy marriage. But the wife is determined to destroy her husband and she sends her boyfriend and his lawyer to harass Peter--telling him that they want $500,000 to buy out the boyfriend's interest in the company...though it's not worth anything close to that. This meeting is rather acrimonious...though oddly, when it's over the lawyer and boyfriend stay the night at Peter's house.
During this night, Peter's brother is murdered...stabbed with a carving knife. Immediately the old sleepwalking with a knife comes to mind and Peter is arrested for murder...though there really is no direct evidence that he did anything this time. Can Perry unravel the mess and find out who the real killer is?
The only complaint I have in this one is that Perry is a lawyer who specializes in murder cases. Yet, oddly, he practices corporate law and dabbles in divorce law as well. In real life, lawyers don't do this. But despite this minor flaw, the episode is exceptionally well written...with a couple great scenes (such as Perry with the wife and the courtroom confrontation with the photo). Among the best of the episodes I've seen.
Time passes. Peter and his wife are divorcing and obviously it's been a very unhappy marriage. But the wife is determined to destroy her husband and she sends her boyfriend and his lawyer to harass Peter--telling him that they want $500,000 to buy out the boyfriend's interest in the company...though it's not worth anything close to that. This meeting is rather acrimonious...though oddly, when it's over the lawyer and boyfriend stay the night at Peter's house.
During this night, Peter's brother is murdered...stabbed with a carving knife. Immediately the old sleepwalking with a knife comes to mind and Peter is arrested for murder...though there really is no direct evidence that he did anything this time. Can Perry unravel the mess and find out who the real killer is?
The only complaint I have in this one is that Perry is a lawyer who specializes in murder cases. Yet, oddly, he practices corporate law and dabbles in divorce law as well. In real life, lawyers don't do this. But despite this minor flaw, the episode is exceptionally well written...with a couple great scenes (such as Perry with the wife and the courtroom confrontation with the photo). Among the best of the episodes I've seen.
Perry takes the word of a marginal lawyer
ebertip30 September 2020
Perry's involvement begins with a call from niece Edna, at the recommendation of her boyfriend Steve (played by Darryl Hickman). Her uncles (Cole and Kendall) are being pushed by their business partner Maddox to buy out Maddox for the exorbitant price of $500k, basically the value of the whole company. If not so, Cole's wife won't sign off on a final divorce decree. Somehow, Cole and Kendall had not done due diligence on the shady past of Maddox, facilitated by his lawyer Duncan. Other than Cole wanting to re-marry soon, this threat could have been easily handled. Perry creates a "fast plan," oddly relying heavily on Steve, about whom Perry knows little. Much turns on a 3am phone call. Ironically, Perry relies on the word of Duncan. There are lots of holes in this plot, including whether the killer correctly understood what the benefit would be.
There are threads that would not be followed in later Masons. Della giving Perry a massage. Perry ecpressing frustration when his cigarette lighter didn't work.
Really Strong Script - Hey Abbott Wake Up
DKosty12314 June 2020
Warning: Spoilers
This show features Abbott & Costello show regular Hillary Brooke among a large guest cast. These early shows are so strong and there's a lot of differences from later in the series. First, Perry is wearing a hat which is no longer on any episodes later on.
Second, we have scenes in Della Streets office which does not happen later in the series. Della even gives Perry a tension relieving massage on the shoulders. There's a lot of telephone calls involved and eye witnessed. It starts with a sleep walker with a knife.
Third - Tragg gets more scenes in these early shows. It's a loss later that there were not many scenes in Tragg's office with him grilling a suspect. He gets some scenes with Perry here too. Perry pulls a major cross examination to get a witness stand confession. He gets involved because his client is trying to divorce and then gets accused of murder.
Second, we have scenes in Della Streets office which does not happen later in the series. Della even gives Perry a tension relieving massage on the shoulders. There's a lot of telephone calls involved and eye witnessed. It starts with a sleep walker with a knife.
Third - Tragg gets more scenes in these early shows. It's a loss later that there were not many scenes in Tragg's office with him grilling a suspect. He gets some scenes with Perry here too. Perry pulls a major cross examination to get a witness stand confession. He gets involved because his client is trying to divorce and then gets accused of murder.
The Case of the Sleepwalker's Niece
Prismark101 December 2020
Peter Cole is a sleepwalker who is on the throes of a divorce that he become messy. His wife will not divorce him unless he and his step brother Phillip Kendall buy out the other partner Frank Maddox for $500,000.
That is more than the company is worth but Cole wants the divorce so he can remarry.
Cole's niece calls on Perry Mason who offers a solution. However when Philip is killed, Cole is arrested for the murder.
The second episode of the series was better than the first.
There are some real shysters involved in this episode such as Maddox and his unethical lawyer who wanted to shakedown the two stepbrothers. Perry sees through them easily as well as Cole's ex wife.
However the real gem is in the courtroom scenes as Perry Mason uses cunning and guile.
That is more than the company is worth but Cole wants the divorce so he can remarry.
Cole's niece calls on Perry Mason who offers a solution. However when Philip is killed, Cole is arrested for the murder.
The second episode of the series was better than the first.
There are some real shysters involved in this episode such as Maddox and his unethical lawyer who wanted to shakedown the two stepbrothers. Perry sees through them easily as well as Cole's ex wife.
However the real gem is in the courtroom scenes as Perry Mason uses cunning and guile.
Gentle thrills and suspense.
jamesraeburn200313 December 2018
Warning: Spoilers
Doris Cole (Hillary Brooke) is divorcing her husband, Peter (John McNamara), after he terrified her with his sleepwalking in which he came into her room carrying a carving knife. The final decree is due to come through within the next twenty four hours, which will leave Peter free to marry Lucille (Helen Mowery). However, Doris, her attorney, Ralph Duncan (Thomas B. Henry) and Peter's business partner Frank Maddox (John Archer), have hatched the seemingly perfect blackmail plan. Unless Peter allows Maddox to sell him and his stepbrother - business associate Philip Kendall (Harry Hickox) his shares in their business for $500,000, which is ten times more than they are worth, then Doris will not give him a divorce. Peter's niece, Edna Hammer (Nancy Hadley), and her boyfriend Steve Harris (Darryl Hickman) approach Perry Mason (Raymond Burr) and ask him to help Peter defeat the blackmail. But, on the following morning, Kendall is found murdered in his room and Peter is accused of killing him using his sleepwalking as a cover...
All in all, The Case Of The Sleepwalker's Niece, the second episode in season one, is another thoroughly enjoyable entry from the original series about the cases of Erle Stanley Gardner's ace defence attorney Perry Mason, which made Raymond Burr an international star. I grew up with the feature length revival TVM's that Burr made throughout the 1980's-90's and loved them so being able to see some of the episodes from the original 1950's-60's series was a real treat. Considering that they are now sixty years old, they have not dated too badly and remain perfectly watchable to contemporary audiences. I found that they shoehorn a lot of plot into their 50-minute running time and their twists and turns come so quickly that if your attention wanders for even an instant then there is little chance of making much sense of the stories. But, if you really pay attention and can keep up with what is happening then they are fairly satisfying and rewarding for people who enjoy good whodunits. Burr's courtroom scenes with William Talman's prosecutor, Hamilton Burger, are fun since much to his annoyance, Perry, as usual, finds the real killer with his familiar brand of courtroom theatrics. The standard of the acting is good all round, but Barbara Hale's Della Street and William Hopper's private eye, Paul Drake, are given very little to do. The production values are of a high standard and Frank Redman's b/w lighting and Russell Garcia's mood music combine to create a feeling for the mysteriousness augmenting the gentle thrills and suspense. Fred Steiner's Perry Mason theme tune sounds as fresh as ever and the film is most ably directed by William D. Russell.
All in all, The Case Of The Sleepwalker's Niece, the second episode in season one, is another thoroughly enjoyable entry from the original series about the cases of Erle Stanley Gardner's ace defence attorney Perry Mason, which made Raymond Burr an international star. I grew up with the feature length revival TVM's that Burr made throughout the 1980's-90's and loved them so being able to see some of the episodes from the original 1950's-60's series was a real treat. Considering that they are now sixty years old, they have not dated too badly and remain perfectly watchable to contemporary audiences. I found that they shoehorn a lot of plot into their 50-minute running time and their twists and turns come so quickly that if your attention wanders for even an instant then there is little chance of making much sense of the stories. But, if you really pay attention and can keep up with what is happening then they are fairly satisfying and rewarding for people who enjoy good whodunits. Burr's courtroom scenes with William Talman's prosecutor, Hamilton Burger, are fun since much to his annoyance, Perry, as usual, finds the real killer with his familiar brand of courtroom theatrics. The standard of the acting is good all round, but Barbara Hale's Della Street and William Hopper's private eye, Paul Drake, are given very little to do. The production values are of a high standard and Frank Redman's b/w lighting and Russell Garcia's mood music combine to create a feeling for the mysteriousness augmenting the gentle thrills and suspense. Fred Steiner's Perry Mason theme tune sounds as fresh as ever and the film is most ably directed by William D. Russell.
Nice Plot Twists
Hitchcoc28 October 2021
The joy of a good mystery is where several people are viable suspects. Here we have some relatively nasty characters, with financial motives. We also have a successful businessman who has the curse of sleepwalking when stressed. It was refreshing after a disappointing debut.
SLEEPWALKING INTO THE JAIL CELL!
tcchelsey10 November 2023
This actually should have been the premier episode of the series, as it's just soooo intriguing. You'll also notice that the earlier episodes are very dramatic, this in keeping with the style of Earle Stanley Gardner's novels. It's amazing to think that in later seasons there would be gorillas, ghosts and fortune tellers!
The story is original. It deals with an actual sleepwalker who approaches his sleeping wife one late night, wishing to stab her to death. Fortunately, she wakes up, and about as quick as you can bat an eye, she's filing for divorce! I agree with the last reviewer that divorces weren't exactly Perry Mason's cup of tea --but murder is.
At stake is a business, worth hundreds of thousands dollars, the financial wheelings and dealings and someone gets killed. As simple as that, and it will all hold your attention.
Hillary Brooke plays Doris Cole, the lady in the middle of this mess. Hillary, although a dramatic actress for many years, will always be remembered as the neighbor to Abbott and Costello on their tv show, and Lou's sometimes gal pal. Watch for stern Dennis (Denny) Moore as the judge, a role he would play for years, mainly due to his deep, rich voice. Like Hillary Brooke, he was also known for comedies, playing the villain opposite the THREE STOOGES!
Look for Thomas B. Henry (as Ralph), a regular in cult and sci fi films of the 50s, later a successful acting teacher in Hollywood. Darryl Hickman, brother of Dwayne (DOBIE GILLIS) plays Steve, who assists Paul Drake in his investigation. Darryl appeared in numerous classic films to his credit, later to become a tv executive. He said many times he was inspired by Spencer Tracy.
There is a very good scene between Perry and Della Street (Barbara Hale), Perry being totally exhausted from this case and how much he needs her assistance, her input and can genuinely rely on her. Their relationship, as can be expected will grow, and it's truly surprising by the final season they did not marry, as many fans had hoped.
A great adventure. SEASON1 EPISODE 2 remastered CBS dvd box set, from 2006. 4 dvds in all.
The story is original. It deals with an actual sleepwalker who approaches his sleeping wife one late night, wishing to stab her to death. Fortunately, she wakes up, and about as quick as you can bat an eye, she's filing for divorce! I agree with the last reviewer that divorces weren't exactly Perry Mason's cup of tea --but murder is.
At stake is a business, worth hundreds of thousands dollars, the financial wheelings and dealings and someone gets killed. As simple as that, and it will all hold your attention.
Hillary Brooke plays Doris Cole, the lady in the middle of this mess. Hillary, although a dramatic actress for many years, will always be remembered as the neighbor to Abbott and Costello on their tv show, and Lou's sometimes gal pal. Watch for stern Dennis (Denny) Moore as the judge, a role he would play for years, mainly due to his deep, rich voice. Like Hillary Brooke, he was also known for comedies, playing the villain opposite the THREE STOOGES!
Look for Thomas B. Henry (as Ralph), a regular in cult and sci fi films of the 50s, later a successful acting teacher in Hollywood. Darryl Hickman, brother of Dwayne (DOBIE GILLIS) plays Steve, who assists Paul Drake in his investigation. Darryl appeared in numerous classic films to his credit, later to become a tv executive. He said many times he was inspired by Spencer Tracy.
There is a very good scene between Perry and Della Street (Barbara Hale), Perry being totally exhausted from this case and how much he needs her assistance, her input and can genuinely rely on her. Their relationship, as can be expected will grow, and it's truly surprising by the final season they did not marry, as many fans had hoped.
A great adventure. SEASON1 EPISODE 2 remastered CBS dvd box set, from 2006. 4 dvds in all.
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