The Case of the Fatal Fortune

Always thought the final season was kind of a bridge to experimental scripts, with all sorts of different angles for a whodunit, and some really offbeat stuff. As usual, there's a fairly good cast to match.

As the last reviewer noted, you can't miss with the likes of Julie Adams in the lead, playing a young woman (Pat) who has caught the eye of her wealthy boss, played by comedian Jesse White. Interesting to see White cast here, but he's very convincing.

Here's the nifty catch. A fortune teller(?) enters the picture and fortells DOOM for their marriage. Jesse, a much older man, keels over -- and Pat is the prime suspect. Also doesn't help her case any that she's been keeping company with a younger man?

The password is POISON. Ford Rainey is right at home as the "dead serious" medical examiner.

Any story with a mysterious fortune teller, a bit of the macabre thrown in, always an audience pleaser. Credit William Bast, who wrote four episodes for the final season. Bast later wrote one of the more notable tv movies of the 70s, THE LEGEND OF LIZZIE BORDEN, starring Elizabeth Montgomery.

Look for Belle Mitchell playing the gypsy. She specialized (in a career going back to silent films) in these types of roles and was great. To her credit, she appeared in horror classics like, HOUSE OF FRANKENSTEIN.

Not to be missed, perfect for a late night snack. SEASON 9 CBS remastered dvd box set. Volumes 1 and 2. Thanks always to METV for running these oldies twice daily.

This one begins with a fortune teller outlining a series of events that will lead to murder. I don't have a lot to say about this one because it seemed unbelievable from beginning to end. It all starts with her marrying the Maytag repair man and goes downhill from there.

This episode of Perry Mason finds him defending Julie Adams a young second and trophy wife for Jesse White. She was his secretary, but on the grounds of having her fortune told by an astrologer she marries White. Then White winds up very dead from someone tampering with his digitalis. As Mason was White's lawyer she inherits him as an attorney and of course that's a good thing.

I found this episode to be way too much of a reach and way too coincidental. This was the ninth season of Perry Mason and the writers were straining to find original stories that were plausible. This one just doesn't work.

This is a plot that has been done a million times -- and is thereby far too predictable. The older, rich, irascible businessman (usually with a bad heart or other dire medical issue), the young, vibrant wife, suitors, disinherited offspring, the works. Of course, the police bother to look no further than the first in line to inherit and take for fact the words of a dying man seemingly without investigation.

The writers were definitely at a loss for original material at this point, and it shows. These late episodes seemed more like filler than actually trying to keep the audience entertained. I think the writing was on the wall, and everyone was just tired and waiting for the other shoe to drop. Eventually, it did...

This episode is one of my favorites. There is a charming, believable and palpable chemistry between Julie Adams and Jessie White. I love all the scenes with them. Both very underrated actors. Adams has never been sexier and White gives the surprise performance of his life, I think. I wished I had seen him in more lead roles on TV. He proves he had the acting chops to handle such roles as does Adams. It's sweet she takes a liking to an older man. Their banter is fun, real. I found the script pretty good for season ten. The first time I saw this I thought it was in one of the earlier seasons. I found myself surprised at the collusion at the end of the show. They had me fooled. Perry, Della and Paul Drake were at there usual best and I also like Richard Anderson as well. I have no complaints about this episode. A great night in TV.