Perry Mason (TV Series) The Case of the Drowsy Mosquito (1963) User Reviews

A colorful cast in support

[bkoganbing · 8/10 · 12 October 2012]

I'm in complete agreement with the previous reviewers on both issues he covered. This particular Perry Mason episode has one of the most recognizable group of character players ever assembled for one of the show's episodes. With them alone in it, you can't go wrong watching this episode.

And I agree with the fact that Perry Mason would have to be practicing law in different venues other than Los Angeles County Court. And he would have to be facing other adversaries as he is here with Garry Walberg as the local prosecutor in the Mojave Desert town of Gold Gulch.

An old prospector played for the gazillionth time by Arthur Hunnicutt comes to Los Angeles to bring Raymond Burr who takes Barbara Hale along to Gold Gulch on behalf of an old client Russell Collins. It seems as though Collins has both discovered something real valuable at an old mine site and people are trying to kill him.

But it's Collins's son-in-law who makes a nice living salting old played out mines and selling them to suckers who gets killed. Collins looks good for it though no one is charged. The venue for Burr's legal skills is a coroner's inquest presided over by Clinton Sundberg.

Besides those mentioned you will also find Ann Doran, Robert J. Wilke, Strother Martin, and former light heavyweight champion Archie Moore in the cast. You can't go wrong with this bunch.

Season 7 Winner

[hilpzub · 9/10 · 15 January 2020]

Season 7 started out on an upswing for Perry Mason. While there were several episodes that did not measure up later TCOT Drowsy Mosquito an ESG novel had a lot going for it . It took Perry and Della to the desert A great cast with some action that was not seen in LA-Perry actually broke in a door, drove a Jeep and lifted Della from it and went mining for gold. Crusty Mt. Grant kept this episode interesting. Perry being out of his comfort zone kept him from being and looking bored . A fun episode for me!

A Miner Discovery

[zsenorsock · 7/10 · 15 May 2008]

A call from a client out in mining country gets Perry out of the city and into a mining town in the west. That's where old timer Sandy (Arthur Hunnicutt, who was so great in the John Wayne movie "El Dorado") has been salting mines with gold to fool the rubes and sell worthless, played out mines. But he's not the only familiar face in this one. Strother Martin plays a unscrupulous clerk named Gerald Summers while Gary Walberg (Jack Klugman's best friend who played "Speed" on "The Odd Couple" and Lt. Monahan on "Quincy") plays Perry's latest courtroom nemesis, the town's assistant D.A.

It's clear the producers were trying to shake up the series a little and get Perry out of the same old same old. The mystery is okay in this one, but its carried by the strength of the supporting players.

No Failure to Communicate

[Hitchcoc · 7/10 · 6 February 2022]

Interesting appearance of Strother Martin from Cool Hand Luke as a possible suspect. This involves the fraudulent "salting" of mines to sell to unwary prospectors. Another appearance by grizzled old Arthur Hunnnicut. There is some funny stuff with Paul going incognito.

Props Flop

[darbski · 7/10 · 28 August 2018]

***SPOILERS*** This one, I've gotta pan. Not because of the story, or the acting, and absolutely not Della, but because the props dept. totally blew it when it came to "old" guns and other stuff found in the California countryside after what? 80-100 years? Nope. If you are lucky enough to find an artifact like a gun or bows and arrows, there will probably be next to nothing left of the wood, and fletching on arrows? Forget about it. add the fact that there was NO rust on the pistol, and you've got a Prop Flop. I'll give this one a 7.