tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7527967.post1682835218144792488..comments2024-03-28T18:21:09.285-05:00Comments on Rough Edges: Forgotten Books: The Case of the Glamorous Ghost - Erle Stanley GardnerJames Reasonerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18049917964433932612noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7527967.post-15900052476346077782019-09-15T16:00:19.923-05:002019-09-15T16:00:19.923-05:00Not too long ago, I happened to see the TV adaptat...Not too long ago, I happened to see the TV adaptation of GLAMOROUS GHOST, from Season Five (filmed in December of '61, aired in February '62).<br />I probably saw it for the first time in rerun, while I was in high school; I hadn't yet started reading paperback novels in earnest yet.<br />What I can recall from all those years back:<br /> - The film started out with the scene of the semi-clad damsel-in-distress running around in the park, with <i>Twilight Zone</i> music (possibly by Bernard Herrmann) wailing in the background; this got my teenage attention.<br /> - I happened to be just the right age for a reasonably complicated plot to keep my attention, And this one did; my Mason fanhood dates from this period.<br /> - The Big Reveal in the courtroom is one of the best ones the TV show ever did, in my view; credit the screenplay (frequent <i>PM</i> scribe Samuel Newman) and the staging (<i>PM</i> showrunner Arthur Marks), both on their 'A' games.<br /> - I don't know if you're familiar with <i>The Case Of The Alliterative Attorney</i> by Bill Sullivan and Ed Robertson, which is the best book about the <i>Mason</i> TV series available.<br />The authors had access to many of Erle Stanley Gardner's notes to the producers regarding the scripts and films, showing how much ESG cared about how the show was turning out.<br />Uncle Erle's notes on GLAMOROUS GHOST show that he understood the differences between a novel and a TV script, and sought to reconcile the two as much as he would have been able to; in this case, I believe that everybody succeeded quite well.<br /> I believe that this book is still available, and I recommend that anyone who cares about our genre on television, then, now, or ever, ought to seek it out.Mike Doranhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14427528138598549103noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7527967.post-9087931245182827382019-09-14T08:14:08.559-05:002019-09-14T08:14:08.559-05:00You capture the essence of the appeal of the PERRY...You capture the essence of the appeal of the PERRY MASON series: the characters and the courtroom interaction. Yes, some of the plots aren't as strong as the series progressed, but the winning formula ESG devised works for over 80 books! After reading your review I'm tempted to pick up a PERRY MASON novel and read it right now!Georgehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04546161337366365635noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7527967.post-78538461498858633752019-09-13T12:17:23.297-05:002019-09-13T12:17:23.297-05:00I love the Mason series and it is one of my limite...I love the Mason series and it is one of my limited “rereads”. Agree completely that sometimes not great mysteries but always a great read. Spikenoreply@blogger.com