topic Re: Perry Mason Premiered On TV 60 Years Ago Today in TV and Movies

Perry Mason Premiered On TV 60 Years Ago Today

Pearlee — Fri, 22 Sep 2017 02:48:57 GMT

September 21, 1957 Perry Mason starring Raymond Burr premiered on television.

I loved that show growing up - my dad and I used to watch it together on TV every week - and I still love it. Who else does?

Re: Perry Mason Premiered On TV 60 Years Ago Today

Oznell — Fri, 22 Sep 2017 04:28:49 GMT

I love that show too. Nice ensemble work by all the cast. Perry's high rise office has always impressed me, with those light pecan wood (or somthing!) walls, and the expansive views of Los Angeles...

Although the courtroom scenes were great (and i'm sure a prototype for all the courtroom dramas to follow), I like the clubby little endings, when Perry and Della and Paul Drake are sometimes in a restaurant or the office, discussing the case and bantering. Raymond Burr had a very engaging smile which he didn't overuse, so when he did grin it was cute!

Della was both warm and efficient. William Hopper as Paul was so attractive. I wonder how much of a trial it was being Hedda Hopper's son?

And love that theme music.

What are your favorite things about the show, Pearley?

Re: Perry Mason Premiered On TV 60 Years Ago Today

Carmie — Fri, 22 Sep 2017 05:31:30 GMT

I have been watching Perry Mason all summer long. We have a camper near a lake where we spend most of the summer.. it is in the boonies and there is no cable TV or internet.

We have an antenna that gets a few channels and one station shows all the old shows from the 50's and 60's. I enjoy watching them and I love Perry Mason, 60 years? Wow, that went fast.

Re: Perry Mason Premiered On TV 60 Years Ago Today

juperier — Fri, 22 Sep 2017 08:31:31 GMT

I remember it being on tv, but I was slightly too young to make much sense of it. I still watch (mostly) the "real" episodes once in a while. I started reading the books as a pre-teen. I still have paperbacks of all of them, plus the other series Earl Stanley Gardner wrote, packed away.

Re: Perry Mason Premiered On TV 60 Years Ago Today

meallen616 — Fri, 22 Sep 2017 10:08:18 GMT

It was always on at our house, 60 years,

Re: Perry Mason Premiered On TV 60 Years Ago Today

AuntG — Fri, 22 Sep 2017 11:06:11 GMT

@Carmie, I rather envy you with a camper by the lake and METV to watch the old shows. A bunch of paperbacks and some board games would complete my happy life. The camper has air conditioning, right?

Re: Perry Mason Premiered On TV 60 Years Ago Today

qualitygal — Fri, 22 Sep 2017 11:16:21 GMT

That would put me at 9 yrs old. I wonder if I got to see this first one. I know we enjoyed when I was growing up too.

Re: Perry Mason Premiered On TV 60 Years Ago Today

qvcaddition — Fri, 22 Sep 2017 12:55:43 GMT

@Pearlee

@Pearlee wrote:
September 21, 1957 Perry Mason starring Raymond Burr premiered on television.

I loved that show growing up - my dad and I used to watch it together on TV every week - and I still love it. Who else does?

Loved it. Good courtroom drama. Many years later, Raymond Burr taught at Sonoma State U. and I got his auto. We used to have great TV shows back in the day.

Re: Perry Mason Premiered On TV 60 Years Ago Today

Vivian — Fri, 22 Sep 2017 13:05:23 GMT

When they started showing Perry Mason reruns and I'd turn on the TV, my very young daughter, who spoke at an early age, used to say, "Perry Mason take on a case." My mother-in-law, who lived next door and was a big Perry Mason fan, must have taught her how to say that but we always waited for my daughter's words to introduce every episode.

Re: Perry Mason Premiered On TV 60 Years Ago Today

Pearlee — Fri, 22 Sep 2017 13:47:58 GMT

@Oznell wrote:
I love that show too. Nice ensemble work by all the cast. Perry's high rise office has always impressed me, with those light pecan wood (or somthing!) walls, and the expansive views of Los Angeles...

Although the courtroom scenes were great (and i'm sure a prototype for all the courtroom dramas to follow), I like the clubby little endings, when Perry and Della and Paul Drake are sometimes in a restaurant or the office, discussing the case and bantering. Raymond Burr had a very engaging smile which he didn't overuse, so when he did grin it was cute!

Della was both warm and efficient. William Hopper as Paul was so attractive. I wonder how much of a trial it was being Hedda Hopper's son?

And love that theme music.

What are your favorite things about the show, Pearley?

@Oznell Well, back in the day when I was a girl watching the shows with my dad, I was so impressed with how clever Perry was. It didn't occur to me then that Mason was more detective than lawyer! LOL I liked all courtroom dramas back then too - Owen Marshall, The Defenders (with E.G. Marshall and Robert Reed, later to be Mr. Brady from the Brady Bunch), etc. I've always loved reading mysteries and so I loved the mystery element best in the Mason shows. Even though pretty early on I caught on to the formula of the show. so formula-ed that you could set your watch by when the real culprit would confess or be found out or whatever. There was truly a formula to the show! I loved the women's outfits back then - they all dressed for court including wearing hats! (My mom and I used to go to her milliner's shop back in those days to pick out hats for my mom - you know, veil and all).

The show was perfectly cast, as you pointed out and I also thought Paul Drake was so handsome. I remember as a young girl saying to my dad: "Daddy, did you know that Hamilton Burger's name is Ham Burger?" and thought that was hilarious. I always thought Perry and Della were a "item" in their off hours from work (not in real life), probably due to those final scenes at the end of shows when they were together in restaurants and such outside the office. Of course, Raymond Burr being gay was not known to the public back then and I probably wouldn't have know what that meant anyway.

Each Sunday night right before Perry Mason came on, my father would call my grandmother (his mother) and say, "Turn on the TV - it's time for Perryleh" (Yiddish endearment term for Perry). I can still hear him saying that in my head, all these years later.

My parents had built-in bookcases in their bedroom and my mom's shelves were filled with Erle Stanley Gardner myeteries (and other mysteries) which I also read. I remember she was in a book-of-the-month club and the Gardner books came with three books in one volume and I devoured those.

Ahhhhh.....yes, how did these last 60 years go by so quickly?

Re: Perry Mason Premiered On TV 60 Years Ago Today

Shogirl — Fri, 22 Sep 2017 14:49:08 GMT

My husband and his friend (both retired) watch it every day and call each other and talk about it - cracks me up! I just told him that it premiered 60 years ago and he couldn't believe it. Same year that I was born... :-)

Re: Perry Mason Premiered On TV 60 Years Ago Today

Carmie — Fri, 22 Sep 2017 15:30:28 GMT

@AuntG wrote:
@Carmie, I rather envy you with a camper by the lake and METV to watch the old shows. A bunch of paperbacks and some board games would complete my happy life. The camper has air conditioning, right?

LOL! Yes it has AC.

It's not really roughing it at all. It has two bedrooms and a sleep number mattress for yours truly.

We have a beautiful deck to hang out on too. I no longer enjoy tenting and roughing it.

Re: Perry Mason Premiered On TV 60 Years Ago Today

TheMemphisVette — Fri, 22 Sep 2017 15:37:09 GMT

love the show. class all the way.

i drink in the furniture, decor, fashions, etc. most could be done today!

and shhhhhhhh don't tell the haters.......i saw a cold shoulder on one of the earlier episodes.....hahaha, cracked me up.

Re: Perry Mason Premiered On TV 60 Years Ago Today

Oznell — Fri, 22 Sep 2017 16:06:13 GMT

Enjoyed your analysis of the show, and those are priceless family memories, Pearley-- thanks for sharing them.

Re: Perry Mason Premiered On TV 60 Years Ago Today

aggravated — Fri, 22 Sep 2017 21:22:05 GMT

A couple of years ago a much younger employee than I asked me why I became a legal secretary. I replied that I thought I was going to be another Della Street. She asked "Who's Della Street?" UGH.

Love the show. I too love the furniture and especially Della's great style/fashions. Paul Drake was certainly an extremely handsome guy too. Raymond Burr another favorite in the original series and then again when they started making the mystery movies. All good!

Re: Perry Mason Premiered On TV 60 Years Ago Today

Pearlee — Fri, 22 Sep 2017 22:48:21 GMT

So many people are seen smoking on that show!

And Perry is constantly saying to someone when he's outside his office, "May I use your phone?" LOL - no cell phones then!

And there were so many bit players in the show who later became huge stars. Robert Redford being one of them.

The shows are so much fun to watch.

Re: Perry Mason Premiered On TV 60 Years Ago Today

DSD2 — Fri, 22 Sep 2017 23:24:29 GMT

Long before Ironside there was Perry Mason.

I was a baby when this started, but watched reruns over the years.

If memory service, I belive he only lost 1 case, is that correct? He was in almost every scene which must have meant pages of dialog to memorize.

I remember Barbara Hale played Della and the very handsome William Hopper was on as well.

60 years! Wow.

Thanks for the trip down memory lane.