The Case of the Grinning Gorilla

Really, Perry Mason episodes have the worst bandages of any show on television. The cast and crew must have gotten some really great laughs over the bandages they used in the shows. I can't believe that any make-up people worth their salt could possibly construct such silly things.

Offbeat episode (defined), especially for all us big kids who liked something different. We got our wish. A ratings grab for CBS, perhaps, but worth a look for a most unusual addition.

Victor Buono appropriately guest stars, playing a lawyer ( Nathan) who wants --at any cost! -- a diary that Della bought at an auction. What's in those pages, hmmm? Very intriguing, and a loose gorilla enters the picture as a "phony" suspect when there's a gruesome murder. But you know a very real person wanted someone dead. Just who?

Let's do the math too. Nathan offered Della 5000 dollars for the book. In today's market, that would be close to 50,000 dollars. Amazing.

Some familair faces, Gavin MacLeod plays Mortimer. Long before his comedy days, MacLeod portrayed many villains, and his eyeglasses here (for some reason) make him look even more suspicious. Lurene Tuttle, familair face in classic tv shows, plays the maid, Josephine. And in a very emotional role.

Jackson Gillis wrote this mystery, an adventure writer, credited with shows like TARZAN and SUPERMAN. The original story came from none other than Erle Stanley Gardner. He was picky about material, so it had his approval.

Jesse Hibbs directed, and as usual, captured all those suspicious glances we know and love. Let's put it this way, by the end of this unusual mystery... the gorilla is long out of the picture.

Hollywood stuntman and animal impersonator Janos Perhoska plays the gorilla, often turning up in sitcoms. He was the guy under all that fur. There are some camp CBS photos still in circulation with Raymond Burr and the gorilla, also a monkey. Collectors items to be sure.

Sit back and enjoy something different, however you will be impressed with the outcome. FROM SEASON 8 remastered CBS dvd box set. Thanks much to METV for running these oldies twice daily.

Or, very large Gorilla.

Most of the positive and negative things about this episode were brought out by the other commentators. I have to add my praise for Janos Prohaska: who expertly and believably performed the gorilla, he also performed the Horta in the Star Trek episode "Devil in the dark", the Mogatu in "A private little war", a beaked bird-creature in "The Cage/Menagerie", and the rock-monster Yarnek in "the savage curtain" where Kirk meets Lincoln. Janos was the indispensable performer during 60s television whenever something unusual was required, but usually he did gorillas, and he did gorillas well. Janos would have loved working with Peter Jackson in the motion capture suit, and the most modern salute to Janos' type of acting has been done by Andy Serkis, who played Gollum and King Kong... although Andy did not put on a gorilla suit, his motions and inflections drove the animations for those characters. Sometimes a special effects person was born in the wrong era: Ray Harryhausen, Willis O'Brien, imagine what they could have done with modern techniques. The fact that they did these incredible things in the 30s and 40s, was inspiration to all modern filmmakers. And so Janos was brilliant in every show where he donned a strange costume. You can even see him in the final episode of the outer limits, as an overgrown microbe-pustule, which looks very similar to the Horta. So it is very true that Janos totally stole this PM episode.

When Della and Perry are driving past Benjamin Addicks' house, there is one very alarming moment when Della screams and the camera focuses upon a lit window, and it zooms in. It is not the appearance of the gorilla that is frightening, it is the way the camera zooms in towards the window. The zoom shot cuts to a the window where the gorilla is running amok. This was cleverly done and the first time I saw this episode, it really did make me jump. It was one of those, not Alien chest burster moments, but earlier in Alien when John Hurt is looking directly into the alien egg and the finger-monster (facehugger) jumps out and attaches itself to his face, it is the same kind of startling thing as this gorilla-in-the-window reveal.

This is probably one of the funniest Perry Mason episodes ever made, and very unusual. Victor Buono plays another one of his myriad characters. This time he is able to stand up vocally against Perry, and you have to admit that Perry's irritation was brought about by Victor's needling, as Perry was not known to raise his voice. Although he did on occasion. Although it was not normal for Perry to get agitated or raise his voice, after dealing with a character like the one played by Victor Buono, Perry's response was justified. Perry always would rise to whatever occasion he had to deal with, Perry even wrestled a gun out of an antagonist's hand during the first season while Tragg took pot shots (The case of the moth eaten mink- and it frightens me that I have the names of these episodes memorized).

I don't know if it was deliberate that there were so many references to previous Raymond Burr gorilla-films, and I also don't know what it means that Raymond was in so many movies that had something to do with gorillas... nevertheless, this episode was a fine and amusing Perry Mason diversion

OK. This is light fare, but passes a snowy Iowa afternoon well...

Sit back, enjoy, rest your weary head. Perry yells. Della screams. It's a real hairy show with a fake ape & lotsa silliness...

In an effort to be original within the Perry Mason parameters the writers came up with a rather scenario for a plot. I fear it was all a bit much for my poor old head to take in.

Barbara Hale who buys some memorabilia at an auction belonging to super model Charlene Holt brings Victor Buono in his most unctuous manner to Raymond Burr's office. Holt was reported drowned after falling off the yacht of an eccentric millionaire and Buono works for him. After being rebuffed by Burr, Buono leaves in a huff and soon afterward another of the man's retainers Gavin McLeod contacts him and Perry and Della are at the man's house.

Before long the millionaire is killed, first thought to be by a gorilla he kept on the estate and later by former cleaning lady Lurene Tuttle. She becomes Mason's client.

I won't say more, but the solution to all of this is a truly bizarre one and for once there is more than one murderer involved. It doesn't quite come together in this episode.