The Case of the Lucky Legs

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The Case of the Lucky Legs ★★½ 1935

Yes, there was a Perry Mason before Raymond Burr. Erle Stanley Gardner's sleuthing litigator's first appearance was 1934's “The Case of the Howling Dog,” which initiated Warner Bros' “A”-grade (but soon-to-be “B” grade) series. More akin to Nick Charles than to Gardner's character or to his later TV incarnation, the “Lucky Legs” Perry is a high-living, interminably hungover tippler who winces and wisecracks as he unravels the case of the corpse of a crooked con man. William, who left shortly after the series was downgraded to “B” status, plays the esquire; Tobin plays his smartmouthed secretary, and Ellis is the tomato suspected of murder. 76m/B VHS . Warren William, Genevieve Tobin, Patricia Ellis, Lyle Talbot, Allen Jenkins, Barton MacLane, Peggy Shannon, Porter Hall; D: Archie Mayo.