The Case of Paul Drake's Dilemma

This is my favorite episode. When Paul Drake is arrested notice the resignation of Tragg and Burger in performing their duty. Also notice the lack of zeal of Burger during the courtroom scenes. Mix into the drama a large supply of suspects and this is a great episode. The denouncement by Perry at the end to the rich man is as good as anything Perry has ever said.

Frank Thatcher (Bruce Gordon) married his wife for her father's large fortune and the business opportunities being his son-in-law would bring. He threw over his fiancee at the time, but he's still been seeing her as long as he's been married. She's a sentimental soul and keeps hoping he'll divorce his wife - Not going to happen.

On Frank's way home one night, after having a fight with his girlfriend over her unhappiness with the situation, he hits and kills a pedestrian, out in the country. He tells his wealthy father-in-law, and his in-laws arrange to have everything covered up, but say that Frank must pay the family - if there is one - 25 thousand dollars anonymously as a kind of restitution. Frank has this done through Paul Drake, telling him it is payback for some loan the deceased made to a person who is now a prosperous miner. But Drake figures out what happened when he goes to the widow's home, and is told that her husband was very recently killed by a hit and run driver. Drake confronts Thatcher, they fight, and Thatcher knocks Paul unconscious. He awakens to the police pounding on the door and Frank Thatcher dead in the next room, shot by Paul's gun. Paul is arrested for Thatcher's murder. Of course Perry is on the case.

The situation has the D. A. thinking this was murder over money Paul was trying to extort from Thatcher over the hit and run accident, after he found out that was what the money was for. The dead man's rich father-in-law, Henry Dameron, is helping this theory along by bribing everybody in sight because he thinks one of his children may have committed the murder. He's not troubled about an innocent man going to jail if it spares him embarrassment. Watch and find out how Perry figures this one out.

It's no surprise that Perry, Della, and Paul are very close, having a friendship that transcends their working relationship. But it appears that fondness for Paul Drake extends to the D. A.'s office and the police as well as both Tragg and Berger both tell Perry that they are so very sorry they have to prosecute Paul, but that the evidence indicates an open and shut case. I don't see these two normally shed any tears over people they arrest and prosecute, so they must have at least thought of Paul as an honest PI.

Wealthy patriarch Henry Dameron is a piece of work as he makes Scrooge look like Gandhi. Maybe that's a bad comparison as Dameron is not so much tight fisted as he is afflicted with a messiah complex. He thinks his money can rid him of any problem - and it almost could. He has his daughter marry a man who doesn't love her - this episode's corpse of the week - just so he can have somebody reliable to run his businesses. He's turned one son into a drunk and the other into a bagman. And Perry, the problem that he could not buy, has some harsh closing words for him.

Definitely one of Jackson Gillis' best mysteries, and for all us fans of Paul Drake -- we want answers.

Drake basically is played for a fool, and yes, some of the most obvious cases nevertheless turn out to be complex for Perry, regardless of the client. A big shot named Thatcher (Bruce Gordon) is cheating on his wife and having an affair with a young singer (Vanessa Brown). As luck would have it, Thatcher accidentally runs over and kills a man, needing to cover it up ASAP. This is where Paul comes in, hired and used as a patsy to deliver money to the victim's widow. Paul without too much surprise has a run in with this crafty guy, he's knocked unconscience and wakes up a murderer -- his gun used to kill Thatcher.

If you're a cop show fan, you've seen this scenario played out a hundred times, however clever, it's a first here and rather intriguingly carried out. The cast deserves much credit, particularly Bruce Gordon, known for his tough roles on the UNTOUCHABLES. He fits the part. Pretty Vanessa Brown later appeared on GENERAL HOSPITAL. Simon Scott guest stars as Charles and veteran actor Robert Cornthwaite (Anders), a staple in sci fi films; WAR OF THE WORLDS and the THING.

Deep voiced, dead serious Kenneth MacDonald returns as the judge, one of our favorite barristers.

Did you catch it... Thatcher's Lincoln is in "park" while he is driving the car. Kind of surprising director William D. Russell would miss that, but still 10 Stars for atmosphere. Russell later directed most of the episodes for HAZEL.

A surprise courtoom ending, with some "thoughtful" comments from Perry. This case got under his skin. Again thanks to Jackson Gillis, writer for COLUMBO in the 70s.

SEASON 3 EPISODE 6 remastered CBS dvd box set. Vol. 1 and 2. 4 dvds. Released 2008.

There is a rich family in Los Angeles. The father is a whip cracker and 2 sons are troublemakers. Then, there's the son in law, who cheats on the old man's daughter. One fateful day, the son in law accidentally kills a man walking on the side of the road. But, rather than face the police, he drives off and hides the car. Then, he hires Paul Drake to deliver a lump sum of money to the widow, telling Drake a false story. Later, Drake realizes he's been used and goes to confront the bad son. But, someone knocks Paul out and while unconscious, the Son in law is murdered. Now, Paul is charged with murder and Perry rushes to defend him. What can be better than having Mason as your lawyer? This episode is one of the better ones of am outstanding show. Having Paul as the defendant in a murder case is a deft touch while the supporting cast is wonderful. Look for it.

This episode has some interesting legal points. The case cited on results of the paraffin test being inadmissible (Brooke v State of Colorado) is real, and was decided June 1, 1959, just months before this Mason episode first aired. Perry won the legal point. The now outdated concept of res gestae also appears. Perry has to contend with a family patriarch who spends lots of money to hide some pertinent details, which details would help Paul. The last few minutes of the episode are worth waiting for.