- Title: Perry Mason – The Case of the Sleepwalker’s Niece
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Throwback Tuesday takes us back to the courtroom of Perry Mason. “The Case of the Sleepwalker’s Niece” has a little of everything. Perry Mason (Raymond Burr) is initially hired to help with a messy divorce when a busman’s unscrupulous partner (John Archer) conspires with the man’s soon-to-be ex-wife (Hillary Brooke) to extort hundreds of thousands of dollars. However, when a member of the household is killed in a way that resembles an earlier sleepwalking incident (one that opens the episode), Mason is soon defending his client (John McNamara) against murder charges.
The sleepwalking scene works well as a red herring offering the killer an idea of how to frame Mason’s client when the opportunity presented itself. Although initially suspecting the wrong person of the crime, Mason is able to trick the killer (Darryl Hickman) into self-incriminating himself after a witness’ testimony contradicts events and clues the defense attorney to both the killer’s identity and motive for the crime. “The Case of the Sleepwalker’s Niece” also marks the first appearance of Hamilton Burger (William Talman) who earns the first of many loses to Perry Mason.