Been watching reruns lately and I have to wonder how Lt Tragg kept his job with 9 seasons of arresting the wrong person!
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Perry Mason
- Thread starter Chuck24
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But he was always there to arrest the true culprit. That makes his arrest/conviction rate about 50%. Still not good, but it was California.
...I'm also a fan of Perry Mason and it is certainly proof that formulaic can still be entertaining. I think I feel the most sympathy for poor old Hamilton Burger though.
It seems like Perry Mason did a lot of Hamilton Burger's work for him.
Protocall_Design
Vendor
They made Perry the hero by having him clean up everyone else's mess and make it all work out in 1/2 an hour. What I'd like to know is - how did he always get the innocent client? Good script writers, probably.
rockquarry
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Lt. Tragg was already an old man when that show premiered.
OP
It’s an hour show, takes the first half hour before you even find out who’s dead and who’s accused, and very rarely do you see Perry actually get paid.
TJm15.38
Member
I like it because there are some interesting prosecution murder "exhibits" that generally involve a revolver as the tool of choice. I have seen some beauties including Colts, S&W mixed in with a few automatics as well. Lot of short barrel .38 caliber in that series, but some .32 as well.
I remember one episode has Colt .38 Supers.
twodog max
Member
I really enjoy those old Perry Mason shows. Head and shoulders above entertainment compared to the sewage that is on these days.
There was an old lady that took out her change purse and paid him two dollars or something like that . He just smiled and said ok that's fine .
Try to find a recognizable "character actor" from that general time period who never once was on Perry Mason, Gunsmoke, or Bonanza. Probably there are more who appeared in all three rather than those who were in none 
LoboGunLeather
US Veteran
Finding the guilty bystander is more difficult than many people realize. The innocent bystanders are very common, find them just about anywhere.
The other big challenge for cops is never being where they are needed, when they are needed there. Arranging your day to always be somewhere else at every possible moment can be very stressful.
(Tongue firmly in cheek).
The other big challenge for cops is never being where they are needed, when they are needed there. Arranging your day to always be somewhere else at every possible moment can be very stressful.
(Tongue firmly in cheek).
Puller
Member
Lieutenant Arthur Tragg – played by Ray Collins – appeared in all but a handful of episodes in seasons 1–3. Illness forced him to appear in fewer and fewer episodes in later seasons: nineteen episodes in season 4, eleven episodes in season 5, nine episodes in season 6, and three episodes in season 7. Collins continued to be billed in every episode through the end of season 8, though he ceased to appear midway through season 7
It was in the script. Seriously though, it was just a great show. Have seen them all many times, still hard to remember who done it in most of them.
Barbara Hale !!!
Many of the actors in the B movies at the time appeared in Perry Mason. Just ask Svengoolie!
Perry Mason never got evolved with any woman romantically and wore a pinkie ring on his left hand.......
Maybe formulaic....
....but there were only a few 'clinker' episodes. Tragg and Burger were so adamant about their arrests it makes me wonder what happened to all the people that DIDN'T get Perry Mason for their attorney.
Interesting to note that William Talman was kicked off the show for a time after being involved in a raid on a nudie-pot party. He was rehired after Burr and the producer of the show got Erle Stanley Gardner involved in a making a public outcry for him.
....but there were only a few 'clinker' episodes. Tragg and Burger were so adamant about their arrests it makes me wonder what happened to all the people that DIDN'T get Perry Mason for their attorney.
Interesting to note that William Talman was kicked off the show for a time after being involved in a raid on a nudie-pot party. He was rehired after Burr and the producer of the show got Erle Stanley Gardner involved in a making a public outcry for him.
