Perry Mason (TV Series) The Case of the Cowardly Lion (1961) User Reviews

Biting The Lion Is Only The Tip of This One

[DKosty123 · 8/10 · 19 January 2010]

This story is set mostly at the San Diego Zoo. It starts with the kidnapping of a small ape. This kidnapping leads into a lot of other happenings. The trick is figuring out why the kidnapping has happened.

There is a conflict among several people which results in a zoo vet showing up dead in the Lions cage. The only thing is, even though he has animal scratches, he has not been killed by the lion. Instead, a blunt blow to the neck with a crow bar is the cause of death.

Mason is in San Diego on another case when he gets interested in this case before the murder happens. He picks his way though a few things, has Paul Drake give a lion a manicure, and then solves the case.

Kona Kai on Shelter Is. Location Question

[dorp-2 · 7/10 · 25 February 2020]

This 1961 episode included San Diego location shots of the zoo, a downtown street scene at Ash and Seventh (showing the Security Pacific National Bank building in the shot where my wife worked in the 70s). Perry and company were staying at the Kona Kai hotel or resort along the Bay. According to my research, the Kona Kai resort on Shelter Is. wasn't built until 1964 (and it recently underwent a major upgrade in 2017 or so). Does anyone know if there was a different Kona Kai hotel resort in 1961 when the episode was filmed. Was it were the existing one on Shelter Is. is now? Thanks.

Lois With a New Do Out for the Money

[biorngm · 8/10 · 25 February 2020]

A fine story breaking away from LA with almost a tribute to the San Diego Zoo and my favorite Lois Lane as a suspect. Bigamy, drug-smuggling, illegal profiteering, stolen property all intertwining with some love-interest made for a reasonable showing while focusing on a suspect zoo lion. When the murderer admits in court the swinging crowbar was only meant to teach the victim a lesson, it does lose something in the translation, but it did work; a man was killed.

The sound of Phyllis Coates' voice is distinct to my ears, without watching I could tell who it was, with a better hairdo, looking sharp, the consummate professional delivering her lines as an antagonist in the plot. A pleasure it was to see her act in another favorite series of mine.

The romantic relationships among certain characters, even the shady business relationships have to be brought forth in order to explain the greed prevalent throughout the tale. First of all, the lion was innocent and left unharmed despite accusations to the contrary. Next, the cage used to secure the baby gorilla Toto had a dual bottom by design for structure strength and protection of the animal of transport. Today pet cages are non-metallic with raised corners providing sturdier protection of the animal; the raised platform on the corner supports acts as yesterday's false bottom with far improved design. If you are thinking of hiding your contraband then, the false bottom worked because nobody wanted to inspect a caged animal's quarters, at least not according to Perry. There proved to be no human blood evidence of the lion's paws which Paul verified through the veterinarian.

Perry gets two clues visiting the dentist's side-business office: bookkeeper Keller told of the cyclicality of the side-business, i.e. imports from a German zoo arriving every quarter, otherwise there was no activity; Trudie Braun rattling the door wanting to see Dr. Braun, his first wife, although estranged, living in Seattle and never divorced. Perry brought Trudie to court where she told of being owed living expenses while Abner Keller showed Mason the company ledger proving the gaps in business activity; Abner was never made aware of the actual product being imported, revealed to be foreign-made medicine sold at high-margin in the States. The business was lucrative for the murdered dentist to have his partner in Germany, Seattle wife Trudie, evil conniving dental assistant Frieda Crawson(our Phyllis Coates) and groundskeeper Harry Beacom all after their cut of the dentist's ill-gotten booty.

The good guys in the cast included vet/keeper Boris Zelbowski, despite getting too close to Frieda, Tony Osgood, zoo official, Hilde Fursten, animal assistant, close to Tony and security officer Frank Crawford. The lion would never claw a dead person according to the veterinarian; Paul Drake proved that and Perry brought forth the evidence of a model-lion's paw used to simulate the animal attack plus realizing the groundskeeper wanting the cage of the purloined little gorilla showing the packets of medicine taped to its underside. The dentist was killed for not profit sharing his stash, but the guilty party was only trying to persuade the dentist to share.

Perry solves the zoo murder, feeding the animals with Della and Paul gets clued into Mason's riddle; I was stealing bicycles. You have to watch for the full story on everything and the viewing is worth an above average rating with hot Phyllis Coates looking quite fetching.

The Lion With No Name

[darbski · 10/10 · 18 September 2017]

**SPOILERS** ALL the animals are either cute or harmless. The only one that is scary is a dead Cougar pelt?! It's always nice to see a dead guy who is a creep. The Red Herring is a Lion that is supposedly harmless. Really? Anyone dumb enough to believe that is just too ...oh, well. Wild animals are never harmless. And, a red herring? We'll see.

Perry's client is first seen driving up in a sweet 1956 Chevy Nomad. It actually belongs to the San Diego Zoo, and I think most of the outdoor shots are taken there; very nice. As usual, one important person hasn't revealed a seriously important fact to someone who should have been told much earlier; then, of course, right when she's about to come clean a couple of interruptions make that impossible. Until later, certainly.

Creep dead guy has a nasty sexetary who's squeezing him in blackmail, a wife squeezing him for support, details, details.... Sexytary is also involving and manipulating the Big Cat Caretaker, and involving him in the situation. Which is: she re-arranged the murder scene, created false evidence, obstructed justice, perjured herself, lied to police (official investigation); makes you wonder if cops can tell when they're being lied to. The D.A. is aggressive, loud, belligerent, snotty, rude, in short; all the things that make it a pleasure to watch Perry knock him off his pompous perch when he reveals the real motive and uncovers the real killer. A little role reversal, here. A lion that is too cowardly to kill, and a coward who does kill. Cowards always kill for cowardly reasons.

The actresses are very pretty, less Della, who is, of course, beautiful. Paul is driving a Lincoln (I think Perry drives it in other episodes) instead of his usual T-bird, in the Ford era. This car is a tank, squared off function and zero beauty; whoever procures these vehicles MUST be getting a kickback, or they have no sense of design.

The dirty secretary who evilly framed Perry's client is guilty of enough stuff to put her behind bars for quite a while, and make her life a wreck for even longer. Boris, the lion keeper, is probably guilty of conspiracy, and foolishness, but someone will talk him into turning on Frieda (sexy), and he'll wash his hands of her. He'll lose his job, of course; hope he's got another trade. In fact he almost HAD to help her, but she admitted it on the stand.

The lion that was supposed to be put down? If weren't for the fact that Perry questioned the evidence against him, the rest of the case would not have been brought forth. Perry had to show that without the lion, somebody else had to move the body. He'd cast serious doubt on the prosecution's case. One thing; HOW did Frieda get her hands on the cougar pelt, and then return it? That's a lot for anyone to make happen unprepared, as it was. Still, I don't like her, so...

What about little miss "I should have told you before"? Hlide? Tony Osgood's girlfriend? Yeah, her. Well, like Perry said: the only way she could be deported is if she'd committed a crime. Unfortunately, participation in bigamy is a crime, as is misrepresenting one's true identity to the state department. When she was being threatened, THAT was the time to get a lawyer. She's supposed to be smart, after all. I wonder if Tony will see her as an asset or a liability?

Kona Kai history

[griswoldconsulting · 24 March 2022]

The Kona Kai Club was founded in 1953, and earned the name "boatel". It was visited by the rich and famous, including, including JFK, Richard Nixon, Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh, Jimmy Durante, Clark Gable, Arthur Godfrey, Connie Haines, Burt Lancaster, Jack Lemmon, Liberace, Gregory Peck, Danny Thomas, Dick Van Dyke, Lawrence Welk, Meredith Wilson, and many more. It did go through changes and renovations over the years.

The Sincerest Form of Flattery

[steviejoelbakersfield · 10/10 · 7 December 2022]

The Perry Mason episode from 1961, entitled The Case of the Cowardly Lion, involves smuggling cocaine in the bottom of a lion's cage. There is also an anecdotal story about a boy who crosses the border everyday on a bicycle carrying bags of sand. One day he stops crossing the border with the sand. It is revealed to the customs worker that he was stealing bicycles, and not bags of sand with contraband.

The Matlock episode SE7 EP8 from 1993, two part "The Fortune" also takes place in a zoo. Eventually they deduce that diamonds were being smuggled inside the bars of a llama's cage. In this episode, the anecdotal is about a young boy bringing wheelbarrows across the border filled with sand. Of course here, the boy was stealing wheelbarrows and there was no contraband in the sand crossing the border.

Copyright, anyone?

A Three timing dog done in

[bkoganbing · 6/10 · 29 October 2012]

While in San Diego on a case that got a postponement Perry Mason picks up another client in Fred Beir. At first Beir is seeking assistance for Carol Rossen who is married to Leslie Bradley. Both are over from Germany and work at the San Diego Zoo, Bradley as a veterinarian and Rossen as his assistant. He's got something over her Beir surmises and needs legal assistance.

It's Beir that needs the assistance as he's charged with Bradley's murder after he's found in a lion's den quite dead with claw marks which later prove to be a red herring. It was the old fashioned blunt instrument whack that did the trick.

Bradley was quite a dog he married Rossen to get her into America to become a citizen. But he was already slightly married to Betty Lou Gerson so that second marriage was bigamous. And he was having Phyllis Coates on the side. Once again the Mason show gives the viewer a host of alternatives.

One hint for future viewers. It wasn't Bradley's love life that got him killed. It was a lucrative side venture supplementing his income as a vet.

All those animals as witnesses though and none was a horse named Mister Ed.

The lion snores tonight

[sol1218 · 6/10 · 28 December 2012]

***SPOILERS*** Perry Mason, Raymond Burr, moves from his home turf in L.A to San Diego to defend San Diego Zoo employee Tony Osgood, Tony Beir, in the clawing murder of zoo dentist Dr.Walter Braun, Leslie Bady. It was Dr. Braun who was found with his neck broken and mauled in the lion compound at the zoo where he was treating a sick lion. The almost toothless and inoffensive lion whom Dr. Braun and his keeper zoo worker Boris Zelbowski, Warren Kimmerling, were treating for a gum infection was tranquilized when he suddenly or supposedly attacked Dr.Braun killing him! This was soon changed in that it was discovered that Dr.Braun actually died from a severe blow with a steel object across his neck and Osgood was seen lurking around in the lion compound at the time of his murder!

This murder case is soon complicated by the kidnapping of a cute baby gorilla named ToTo as well as a the discovery that Osgood's girl friend German born zoo veterinarian Hide Fursten,Carol Eve Rossen, is secretly married to Dr. Barun! It's Dr. Braun's old lady from Seattle Trudie, Betty Lou Gerson, whom he hasn't had any contact with in eight years who's been putting the squeeze on him all that time. That's by her blackmailing the good doctor in threatening to expose his life, in being married to two woman at the same time, of sin to the public! What this has to do with Dr.Braun's murder will soon come to the surface, thanks to Perry Mason, in what the real reason behind ToTo the baby gorilla being kid or better yet gorilla-napped was really all about!

***MAJOR SPOILERS*** It was Dr. Braun secret drug smuggling operation from Hanover Germany to the San Diago Zoo that in fact ended up doing him in. It's when one of the people working at the zoo found out about it he tried to get a piece of the action only to have Dr. Braun rebuff him. It was then that Dr.Braun ended up getting his neck broken and killed by him. And to make things even worse it was the conniving and heartless, in framing the poor old lion, Frieda Crawson played by Phillis Coates, remember her as Lois Lane in "The Adventures of Superman" TV series, who was behind all this except for Dr. Braun's murder.

Fridea was in fact fooling around with the lion keeper Boris Zelbowski who refused to get his loin involved in what Frida was planning for him, frame him for the murder of Dr. Braun, and thus did it on her own! As for Dr. Brauns actual murderer that was a piece of cake for Perry Mason to solve in fact Perry was on to him right from the start! That In his unusual interest in the cages, being sent in and out of the country, at the San Diago zoo that was the real reason behind Dr. Braun's murder!

Sometime too much information does not help a show

[kfo9494 · 5/10 · 29 July 2013]

There is so many things going on in this episode that some of the better ideas was crowded out by information that was useless to the story. And when the show ended in a rather abrupt manner, we are left with a show that had high expectations but in reality was just average for a Perry mystery.

The mystery is quite simple as it involves the death of Dr Braun at the San Diego Zoo. He was found in the lion's cage and believed to have been mauled. However when the police learn that the doc died from a blow to the head- they are looking for someone to charge with murder. And trust me there are many people that fit that bill.

We learn that Ole Doc Braum was married to two women. His estranged wife, Trudie, and a young German woman Hilde. We learn that the doc was being blackmailed plus runs another business outside of his duties at the zoo. And with a secretary that seems suspicious the writers have painted a picture that includes many people as suspects.

But when the evidence is gathered the police will charge Tony Osgood, someone that wanted to run away and marry Hilda, with the crime. Perry will defend Tony for the crime and sift through the testimony until he knows the true murderer.

This is one of those episode that only Perry could have came up with the murderer. The viewer will have no idea until a quick confession brings the show to an end. Nothing remarkable about this episode other than a story that Perry tells about a bag of sand and a bicycle. It is sad when that story was the highlight of the show.

A laugh riot!

[pmike-11312 · 1/10 · 25 November 2022]

If PM couldn't get any worse in the plot, writing, directing, dialogue, etc., they certainly tried to top themselves here. I couldn't stop laughing when Lt. White gets out of the car to address Mason, et al. He starts with a big spiel about wanting to take "Mrs. Braun" to HQ to get a statement on the murder. And then, after a rather long thing about her BEING Mrs. Braun, it's oh, by the way. I have a warrant for your arrest Mr. Osgood... for murder. LOL! Corny, silly, completely unrealistic. I don't know how the writers, directors, producers, and actors kept a straight face through all of this. Maybe they didn't....