The Case of the Garrulous Go-Between

The Perry Mason client for this episode is Sue Randall who is trying to nail fortune teller Lori March for bunco as her father put his trust in her and lost control of his company, the one that Randall and her brother Tommy Stiller would have inherited.

Only it's Jacques Aubuchon who winds up murdered. Randall was renting a room from him. As it turns out March and Aubuchon have history.

In the end you feel sorry for the perpetrator, hopefully Raymond Burr will take her as a client. Good investigative work from William Hopper helps a great deal here.

This is a better-than-average offering from the later seasons. The acting is superb, the directing is more than adequate (a welcome change) and the plot isn't muddled, as some recently have been. The highlight of this episode are the three lovely competing actresses, Sue Randall, Merry Anders and Lori March. All three play their very different parts with flair, and the emotional courtroom confession is one of the better played roles in the series. There are enough suspects to keep the viewer guessing, and the side plots are good reinforcements of the plot and not distractions. I'll recommend this one.

This episode has all the things that make 'Perry Mason' still interesting today as it was in the early 60's. Good storyline, good acting and characters that are believable today as they were so many years ago.

Also in this episode we get to see Sue Randall (who played Beaver Cleaver's elementary school teacher) with those big beautiful eyes and girl-next-door presents. She plays Amy Scott that is going to a fortune-teller, named Madame Zillia (Lori March), and trying to find information about her life. But little does Madame Zillia know- she is being recorded during all the sessions with Amy.

We also see that Amy has hired Paul Drake to find out the whereabouts of a man named Tommy Stiller (John Napiers). At the beginning we are not sure why she wants to find him but by the end of the show it becomes clear.

Anyway a neighbor ends up dead and Amy becomes the suspect. And with Paul's ties she is defended by Perry.

I was captivated by the acting in the episode. Lori March, that played Madame Zillia, did a good job of becoming the fortune-teller and making the viewer accept her in the part. She is mysterious and rigid when she has to be- but also produces a soft side that has the watcher connecting with her feeling.

Sue Randall, with a face that stops traffic, is beautiful and outgoing in this episode. And from her looks, the viewer knows that she could have never done something as wrong as what has been accused in Hamilton Burger's complainant. (Sad that Ms Randall died of lung cancer at the age of 49)

This is a good watch because there is something for everyone in this episode. - Note, this is the third episode in a row that Della is not seen. She still must be visiting her aunt.

I thought this was very well paced in the way the usual complications were introduced and resolved. The beautiful young innocent accused is seeing a fortune teller, but it is telegraphed early on that she has designs. What are they? Then the involvements of the several players, including the victim, are also revealed, step by step. Finally the big picture takes shape at the usual "preliminary hearing", and we are put on tenterhooks with the subpoena of the very attractive surprise witness. I have to say I was quite taken with Madame Zillia, and her part gave her full play. Also, one of the best red herrings ever, if that's not too much of a spoiler. I was surprised to see that Lori March, as Madame Zillia, has a very thin filmography, although this is the last of her five Perry Masons, which is certainly enough to make her familiar to a devotee. Finally I must mention that Paul Drake had a lot of interesting involvement in the case, particularly in one unusual scene, and then a memorable closing vignette with Perry. I have to say I felt quite engaged for the entire hour.

Raise your hand if you can spot all the Warner Brothers/ABC TV stars here. With the cancellation of 77 SUNSET STRIP and HAWAIIAN EYE, producers eagerly wanted to cast some of these folks, including director Irving J. Moore.

One bizarro episode, and Moore works his magic, just like he did on 77SS. WB alum Sue Randall (also from LEAVE IT TO BEAVER) plays Amy Scott. She's got her suspicions about fortune teller Madame Zillia (Lori March in a camp role), suspected con artist. Or is she? March hams it up, dressed in black with a crystal ball(!), forcasting doom for those around Amy. Her kindly landlord, Mr. Bundy (Jacques Aubuchon, a poor man's Sidney Greenstreet), has a theatrical connection to the fortune teller and is promptly murdered. Dead men tell no tales...

Now the little problem; there's a time lapse as to when Amy saw Bundy dead. Perry stares her down when he also learns Amy's father was financially ruined by Madame Zillia. Who to believe, what to believe? Putting this prime mystery together is absolute fun, the courtroom re-construction and reveal well worth the wait.

Anthony Eisley, star of HAWAIIAN EYE, looking dashing as ever, has an interesting role, also landing on the witness stand. March should have been nominated for an Emmy, a wonderful dramatic actress, who appeared in a string of soaps; SECRET STORM, AS THE WORLD TURNS, later TEXAS.

Best Scene; Paul pretending he's sleeping in someone else's bed?

SEASON 7 EPISODE 22 remastered CBS dvd box set. Volumes 1 and 2. The entire series is in a mega box. Released 2022. Thanks METV for running these oldies twice daily.