The Case of the Woeful Widower

The housekeeper calls the wayward husband of Elizabeth (we never see her) Lothario. Interesting word & good description of this wandering husband. I enjoyed this episode though twisted.

Della had 4 children so I wondered if she was on Maternity leave. What happened to Detective Trag- Ray Collins?

Had to replay the end several times. Hard to believe the husband didn't suspect the housekeeper. Did the writer want us to think the shallow husband thought he was just "lucky" to keep inheriting money from wives? Housekeeper, in a twisted way, thought she could keep her job & her boss.

Perry Mason is a convincing attorney. The actor, Raymond Burr, delivers his lines with such brilliance that one would think he was a real attorney.

As stated by other reviewers, this is a re-write of the Case of the Fiery Fingers from season one, which was not one of my favorites to begin with. In this version, the writers added in more characters and subplots which simply muddied the story and made it even more implausible. It was a nice change of pace to see a different actor for a change, in this case Jerry Van Dyke ("Burford" from his brother's show and the goofy coordinator on "Coach"). Overall, there's nothing much to get excited over here, it's about as milquetoast as the title character. A common theme for the later seasons, a poorly done rewrite...

Some of the paradigm that govern Perry Mason stories if they're not broken they get twisted a bit in this episode.

Raymond Burr gets two clients to defend in this story. The stepsister of the future victim Nancy Gates asks for his services to help housekeeper Joan Banks who has been accused of theft. Later on it's Gates who becomes the client when she's arrested for poisoning her stepsister.

We never see the murder victim only hear her voice as she asks for this and that from her bedroom.

There's a nice performance from Jerry Van Dyke as an intrusive in-law. William Talman's examination of him on the witness stand is devastating.

You'll have to watch to see how the paradigm is twisted.

Last of four episodes without Barbara Hale as Della Street. Why was she gone? Where did she go? That's irrelevant, incompetent and immaterial. Plus I haven't found out yet.

A couple of intriguing look-alike character actors in this one. The scary housemaid Nellie Conway is played by the multi-named Joan Banks (Lovejoy). She plays it like a haunted Virginia Christie, who later boldly proclaimed herself the Folgers Coffee Lady I.

I yearn tragically across the decades for the stunning Ann(a Lee) Carroll, playing Georgiana Douglas. She's a belle ringer for Arlene Martel. These women are so beautiful they can only exist in Hollywood.

I like this episode. I don't mind that they picked the ubiquitous Harry Townes to play Newton Bain, a middle-aged Lothario. Most Perry Mason episodes involve old geezers lusting after ladies young enough to be their granddaughters. That was the way they played it back then. Good thing that doesn't happen nowadays.

And lay off Jerry van Dyke. I think any final laugh-with-a-fade-out benefits with 59 percent more banjo.

This episode looks so promising when the show started. We have a invalid women that was in some kind of automobile accident- and a housekeeper that looks like she could have been cast in 'Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte'. The poor invalid women will not let her husband come into her room making one thinks that perhaps the husband may have had something to do with the accident. Instead the housekeeper believes the husband is trying to poison his wife and takes some pills to Perry that the husband gave her to be giving to the invalid women.

That is how the episode starts off- and I am on the edge of my seat. Then enter Jerry Van Dyke. Sorry but I cannot take him in a serious acting part. He was good in the part and the acting was fine- but the entire show I was seeing him playing the banjo and fumbling around the stage. I know this is bad of me but the show seemed to fall when he entered the scene. It was nothing that Jerry did- it was the story took a turn away from what we were lead to believe was going to happen.

The story does come back around to the invalid women but it take a little time. Meantime we take a trip with Perry and Paul to New Orleans. We know it was New Orleans because they had a street sign that said 'Canal Street' and we are introduced to a person that as a terrible southern accent.

After getting back to LA the story returns -and again is interesting. I liked the episode but felt the middle part of the story was long and had little to do with the ending. It is still watchable.

note- fourth episode in a row without Della. Must still be visiting her aunt.