Perry Mason (TV Series) The Case of the Waylaid Wolf (1961) User Reviews

Characters interaction more interesting than crime- plays well.

[kfo9494 · 8/10 · 3 July 2012]

The episode begins with a young playboy named Loring Lamont Jr is trying to get him some action from one of the secretaries in the office named Arlene Ferris. Mr Lamont blows off his regular secretary and ask Ms Ferris if she will work late. Due to tampering by Lamont, Ms Ferris's car will not start and he will drive Ms Ferris home. But instead he remembers a meeting and takes Ms Ferris to his beach house in Malibu.

While at the beach house Mr Lamont gets a call from Oolong Kim concerning a loan that he wants repaid. Mr Lamont blows off Mr Kim and gets back to the seduction of Ms Ferris.

After forcing himself on her she pushes him over the couch and makes a run for it out the sliding glass door. Mr Lamont gets in his car and chases Ms Ferris down the rural road.(It was very obvious that the small car chase was filmed inside a movie studio) While giving chase Lamont gets out of the car and Ms Ferris gets in. As she is pulling off she knocks Lamont to the ground.

The next day Mr Lamont was found stabbed to death in the Malibu house. And the police arrest Ms Ferris for the murder. But thank goodness Ms Ferris has already visited Perry's office and he will defend her in court.

Even though the writers try to add material to spread blame for the murder to many different people, the best suspect was known after the first few minutes of the show. A simple mystery that was more interesting due to the many conflicts in the script.

We get some good ribbing between Perry and Lt Tragg that makes this episode entertaining. Lt Tragg even hints, while on the witness stand, of improper conduct by Perry. ---- Plus we get an odd scene where some rough gangster-type people invade Perry's apartment-and then leave just as odd as they entered.

This is one episode where the interactions of the characters were more interesting than the crime. Something different with good results.

A real rotten guy gets his

[bkoganbing · 7/10 · 20 October 2012]

One of the rottenest characters ever to be murdered on a Perry Mason show has to be Tony Travis. A no good womanizer, a degenerate gambler, the spoiled rotten son of a rich man who never is seen in this show because he doesn't bother to come back from Europe. Of course there are a host of suspects for this guy's killing.

But the one arrested is Andra Martin who is a stenographer in his office whom he asks home for a little dictation. When she resents being dictated to take her clothes off, Travis roughs her up and Martin flees the scene stealing his sportscar. She's in to see Raymond Burr the next day, worried about a stolen car rap. William Hopper comes in and says that Travis was found stabbed to death in his house and Martin's looking good for it.

This truly was a public service homicide and when the real killer is revealed you hope Perry Mason will take that person's case. You really feel sorry for that individual.

Someone gets what he deserves

[slackersmom · 7/10 · 8 September 2017]

I won't go into the plot of the episode, but I have to point out a very glaring hole in part of the story line. Perry and Della go to check out Madge Elwood's car, to see if there's any evidence of her having seen murder the victim. The landlady lets them into the garage and walks away. About 15 seconds later Della calls out to Perry that she found something: a cardboard box, and inside is a paid of muddy shoes (and trousers, I think, although we don't see them). Perry picks up one of the muddy shoes and is about to put it back in the box when Lt. Tragg appears at the garage door and Perry is accused of "planting evidence" to clear his client. That's bad enough, but the very next scene takes place in court and the ADA is ranting to the judge about Perry Mason's underhanded (and illegal) actions with the evidence.

My beef is that the issue could have been resolved back at the garage, with Tragg asking the landlady one simple question: Was Mason carrying a cardboard box, or dirty shoes, or anything else when he and Della arrived? The answer, of course, would be NO. They were NOT carrying anything that could have been planted, and were only in the garage for 20 or 30 seconds before Tragg saw them.

Very irritating that something so simple--and simply resolved--was spun into such a big deal for plot purposes.

Unexpected

[darbski · 10/10 · 8 September 2017]

**SPOILERS** Objection, your honor. On the use of the word "Wolf" to describe the deserving decedent in this case as being prejudicial and inflammatory. If you look up the meaning of the word "Wolf", you'll find a description of a sentient, familial, protective animal who are not interested in human beings. The dead guy isn't one of those. He's a scurvebomb, plain and simple.

He traps Arlene Ferris in his beach house (or, so he thought), and clearly intends to molest her in some sexual fashion. Here's the unexpected part. SHE'S more of a wolf; in defending herself, of course. She's probably fought off predators before, because she's as tough as hell on her defense. After she gets away from him inside, she loses him on the beach, and then as he's about to get her, she manages to get his car into gear, and takes off, landing him on his sorry ass in the mud (about like home, for him). It was a breath of fresh air. His car is a sweet little Austin Healey 3000; a very fine British sports car.

She then enlists her friend's help. They go to Perry, and he confuses things by having Madge go to a witnesses business to find out if he could I.D. Arlene, he can't. Tragg falls for the trick, and Perry has Arlene hide out in Madge's apt. Enough of the case already !! Just a couple of questions, though...

Was Arlene supposed to understand the workings of a Kettering ignition? Does the prosecution have ANY evidence of mechanical training or background on the defendant? Never asked, and yet, the rotor was removed from her distributor, and put in her glovebox. Oh, yeah, by the way, you have to use a screwdriver to remove this distributer cap. Hmmmmm well, then was the hood, engine compartment, distributor, rotor, door, glovebox examined for fingerprints? It's impossible to detach the distributor cap, handle it, pull off the rotor without getting residue of road dirt and engine oil on your hands, and this stuff is just great for leaving hand/finger prints. Did they check? I didn't think so; not a good show, Lt. Tragg. How about the box with the deserving decedent's muddy shoes and clothing? Well, why not ask the landlady who let Perry and Della into the garage? That was a good sized, heavy corrugated container. She (landlady) would have surely noticed, wouldn't she? You KNOW it!! How about fingerprints on the shoes, and the container in question? They didn't look, did they? Right there is enough counter evidence to cast serious doubt on the prosecution's case.

The key to the case, of course, was the double parked car (red convertible). It adds up to the real killer, and I'll bet with a little prodding from Della, Perry would be able to get her charges knocked down to Man2 (manslaughter, second degree). Probably not self defense; even if it was true, because she didn't come forward voluntarily. Man2 definitely do-able, though.

That's how many tears are shed for Lamont. Right, none. The best thing anyone ever called him was "WOLF".

The four young women (including Frances Kim), who were involved in this problem were all very good looking, as was the Hot Brunette sitting behind the defense table during the trial. I've got the series, as well as seeing it on METV. Della is prettier. Concerning that. I still watch it on METV, but the series from Amazon is much clearer, and, of course, there are more complete scenes. I know... why watch both? Hooked, I guess; on good stories and great acting, plus a chance to criticize the show's choices of automobiles that they make Perry drive. Thanks to IMDb for references.

Rapist Gets His

[Hitchcoc · 7/10 · 15 January 2022]

A young woman is manipulated by her boss into a possible sexual encounter. She deals with it as best she can, but then becomes the defendant when he is murdered. The guy is portrayed as the worst of the worst.

That rat got exactly what was coming to him!

[sol1218 · 6/10 · 23 October 2012]

***SPOILERS*** Taking advantage of his new and naive secretary Arlene Ferris, Andra Martin, her boss Loring Lamont Jr, Tony Travis, gets her to go to his secluded bachelor beach pad to do some overtime on legal papers that she's working on. Getting her drunk with shots of gin & whiskey that he very possibly tried to slipped some date drugs into Arlene realized what Lamont was up to and made a run for it with Lamont hot on her tail in his hopped up and jazzy sports car. Carjacking Lamont's car after he, affected by all the booze he gulped down, staggered out of it Arelne takes off for home. It's later that Lamont is found stabbed to death and Arlene being the last person to see him alive is arrested and booked for his murder.

With Perry Mason, Raymond Burr,taking on Arlene's defense he soon finds out that Lamont was living a secret life besides chasing women. He was deeply involved with the mob in his gambling and betting, on the horse, activities. In fact Lamont was stiffing everyone in sight in him getting the cash to pay off his bookies before he ended up in cement overcoat at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean. But as Perry discovered it wasn't at all Lamont's gambling problem that did him in! It was in fact his womanizing! He just went too far and in the end he ended up paying for it big time: with his life!

***SPOILERS*** This is one Perry Mason episode that you pull for the killer to get off Scot free in that his or her victim deserved everything that he got coming to him. I would think that Perry would later take up the killers case. In that he would feel guilty not only in not defending him but being the man who had him convicted!

Poor Mr. Kim

[cayuselane · 6/10 · 7 December 2023]

Mr. Kim lent $2,000 to the pre-deceased and after the murder will never see the money even when Mr. Kim will likely lose his home.

Why did Mrs. Kim lie about the victim calling Mr. Kim by his initials O. K.? This lie wasted much screen time on dead ends. And what was the purpose of the Kim family anyway? All they did was describe a car, important to the plot but which could have been described without the Kim family drama.

The accused was arrested for no cause whatsoever, only seen being driven out of the parking lot after her car had been sabotaged, an act in which the police are remarkably incurious. Later when the "wolf" makes passes at her she runs out of the house through some mud and takes off in the victim's car. The wolf chases her and slips in the mud. Police find her own muddy clothes in her own home and calls it evidence of murder!

The plot is simple but extended with numerous wild goose chases, too many to list, useful only as filler.