<< Nervous Accomplice | Episodes | Sulky Girl >>

#4: The Case of the
Drowning Duck
Original Airdate: 10/12/57

Summary Edit

From The Perry Mason TV Show Book
Chem student Marv Adams is popular for his drowning-duck trick. He can make a duck sink in water with a special chemical solution. Marv is about to go to court for a new trick: poisoning Donald Briggs. Perry believes that Adams is innocent but he must bust two cases in one to prove it. The key evidence lies in finding out the truth about the murder case that sent Adams's father to the gas chamber eighteen years before.

PMESG

Credits Edit

Opening

Starring Raymond Burr
in Erle Stanley Gardner's The Case of The Drowning Duck
Barbara Hale, William Hopper, William Talman, Ray Collins

Trailing

Directed by William D. Russell
Teleplay by Al C. Ward
Ben Brady Producer
Produced by CBS Television in association with Paisano Productions
Gail Patrick Jackson Executive Producer
Sam White Associate Producer

Raymond Burr as Perry Mason
Barbara Hale as Della Street
William Hopper as Paul Drake
William Talman as Hamilton Burger
Ray Collins as Lt. Tragg

Cast

Carol Kelly as Lois Reed
Noland Leary as Judge Meeham
Victor Sutherland as Clyde Waters
Carolyn Craig as Helen Waters
Don Beddoe as George Norris
Paula Winslow as Martha Norris
Gary Vinson as Marv Adams
Harry Landers as Donald Briggs
Olive Blakeney as Mrs. Adams
Rusty Lane as Chief Glass
Tom London as Cabbie
Phillip Tonge as Cortland
Joseph Forte as Dr. Creel
Helen Hatch as Secretary
Clifford Botelho as Pedro

Crew

Gene Wang Story Editor
Production Supervisor J. Paul Popkin
Director of Photography Frank Redman, A.S.C.
Art Direction Lyle Wheeler, Lewis Creber
Assistant Director Maxwell Henry
Editorial Supervisor Art Seid, A.C.E.
Film Editor Richard Cahoon, A.C.E.
Makeup Mel Burns
Wardrobe Supervision Dick James
Set Decorations Walter M. Scott, Charles Q. Vassar
Properties Ray Thompson
Recorded by Alfred Bruzlin
Rerecording Mixer Harry M. Leonard
Script Supervisor Cosmo Genovese

Trivia Edit

CARS: 1957 Cadillac convertible, black w/ black & white int., top down (Mason). From The Cars by Greg Cockerill.

In the scene where Paul and Della drive out to find Marv's mother, you can see Mason's convertible with Della in the passenger side and someone with dark hair driving coming down the road towards the camera, but when the car pulls up to the house it is still Mason's convertible but it has Della and Paul driving.

+Paula Winslowe makes the first of two appearances on Perry, (the other was as a judge in TCOT Unsuitable Uncle). Paula Winslowe is best known as Peg Riley, Chester Riley's wife in the long running radio show, The Life of Riley. Submitted by PaulDrake33.

+Watch the scene where Marv Adams is carrying the duck and the bottle of chemicals to the water trough. When Marv begins his journey the bottle has a cap on top, but when he get ready to do the trick the cap has disappeared. Submitted by PaulDrake 33.

The (shooting?) script for this episode was dated 16 July 1957. There were at least 12 episodes with scripts dated earlier. It seems possible, if not probable, that this episode was no earlier than the 13th filmed. If so, there was a little less than a 3 month lag between filming and broadcast. Submitted by billp. 3 November 2009.

Harry Landers (Donald Briggs) played "Man with Miss Lonelyheart" in "Rear Window." Submitted by billp. 15 November 2009.

Comments Edit

Does anyone know where "Logan City" is located? Or, is that just the back lot at the studio? What about the other locations? Any look familiar? daveb, 11/11/08.

That $5000 that Briggs attempts to extort from Mrs. Adams would be $36828.06 in 2007 dollars. My impression is that such a sum was well beyond her reach. As good a prescription for murder as any - blackmailers take note. billp 12/26/08

<< Nervous Accomplice | Episodes | Sulky Girl >>