"The Case of the Restless Redhead" is the premiere episode of the

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

television series ''

Perry Mason Perry Mason is a fictional character, an American criminal defense lawyer who is the main character in works of detective fiction written by Erle Stanley Gardner. Perry Mason features in 82 novels and 4 short stories, all of which involve a c ...

''. Adapted from the 1954 novel of the same title by

Erle Stanley Gardner Erle Stanley Gardner (July 17, 1889 – March 11, 1970) was an American lawyer and author. He is best known for the Perry Mason series of detective stories, but he wrote numerous other novels and shorter pieces and also a series of nonfiction b ...

, this episode marked the beginning of

Raymond Burr Raymond William Stacy Burr (May 21, 1917September 12, 1993) was a Canadian actor known for his lengthy Hollywood film career and his title roles in television dramas ''Perry Mason'' and '' Ironside''. Burr's early acting career included roles ...

's long-running portrayal of the famous fictional lawyer.

Synopsis

Red-headed waitress Evelyn Bagby (

Whitney Blake Whitney Blake (born Nancy Ann Whitney; February 20, 1926 – September 28, 2002) was an American film and television actress, director, and producer. She is known for her four seasons portraying Dorothy Baxter, the mother, on the 1960s sitco ...

) comes home to her apartment one night and is shocked to find a revolver, which she'd never seen before, in her cigarette box. Having once been accused, then acquitted, of stealing jewelry from a famous movie star, Evelyn calls defense attorney

(

) to ask for his advice. He advises her to leave her San Fernando Valley apartment and check into a hotel in Hollywood for the night. As she drives to Hollywood, a driver with a hood over his head tries to force her off the road; panicking, she fires the revolver twice in his direction, causing him to drive off the road. Evelyn brings the gun to Mason's office and tells him what had happened. Mason goes to the scene of the incident, and finds that the homicide police are already there; the hooded driver was killed by a bullet to the head. He's identified as a man who had cheated Evelyn out of $1500 when she first came to Hollywood, and there's no bullet hole in the man's hood—which turns out to be a pillowcase from the apartment house where Evelyn lives. The police refuse to believe her story, and she's arrested for murder. After a great many twists and turns (including Mason using an identical gun to fire two bullets into a tree and a post at the crash site), Mason, with help from private investigator Paul Drake (

William Hopper William DeWolf Hopper Jr. (January 26, 1915 – March 6, 1970) was an American stage, film, and television actor. The only child of actor DeWolf Hopper and actress and Hollywood columnist Hedda Hopper, he appeared in predominantly minor r ...

), exposes the true killer in the courtroom; as a result, Evelyn is cleared of all charges.

Notes

* Sergeant Holcomb, who was a regular character in the original Perry Mason novels, only appears in two episodes of the TV series; this one, and "The Case of the Fan Dancer's Horse" (in which he's played by

Rusty Wescoatt Norman "Rusty" Wescoatt (August 2, 1911 – September 3, 1987) was an American supporting actor who appeared in over 80 films between 1947 and 1965. Early life The son of Mr. and Mrs. W.W. Wescoatt, he was born on August 2, 1911, in Maui, Hawa ...

). In most of the episodes, this character's role is filled by that of Lieutenant Arthur Tragg ( Ray Collins) and/or Lieutenant Andy Anderson (

Wesley Lau Wesley Lau (June 18, 1921August 30, 1984) was an American film and television actor, and occasional screenwriter. Early life Wesley Lau was born and raised in Sheboygan, Wisconsin. His parents were Albert and Agnes ( Feldner) Lau. He graduated ...

). * Whitney Blake, who plays the "restless redhead" in this episode, later plays wrongfully accused Diana Reynolds in the episode "The Case of the Black-Eyed Blonde". * Although this was the first episode broadcast, it was not the pilot episode for the series; that episode, "The Case of the Moth-Eaten Mink", was broadcast twelve weeks later.

References

External links

* *
"The Case of the Restless Redhead"
at CBS.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Case of the Restless Redhead, The 1957 American television episodes Perry Mason