[2] Because of lower production costs, many of the later TV movies were filmed and set in Denver, Colorado rather than Mason's traditional locale of Los Angeles. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Perry Mason Returns DVD Region 2 Raymond Burr Barbara Hale William Katt Regreso at the best … In the later TV movies, Mason utilizes the services of Ken Malansky (William R. Moses), an attorney who works with him as a private investigator. He has been married to Danielle Hirsch since April 10, 1993. Also starring veteran actor Robert Culp, the show retains a cult fanbase. Perry Mason, the judge, steps down from the bench to take his dearest friend Della Street's case when she is accused of murdering her boss. In 1981, Katt was cast as the title role in a filmed version of the Broadway musical comedy Pippin, which received mixed reviews. In 1978, he appeared as Barlow, a young surfer, in the John Milius drama film Big Wednesday opposite Jan-Michael Vincent and Gary Busey. In 2020, he appeared in The 2nd. Malansky's character is introduced in The Case of the Lethal Lesson (1989), as a law student who is defended by Mason on a murder charge.[1]:40151. Raymond Burr starred as Los Angeles criminal defense lawyer Perry Mason, a character created by American author and attorney Erle Stanley Gardner. Katt attended Orange Coast College before pursuing a career as a musician. Katt appeared in the first nine movies. William Katt, Hale's own son, was cast as private investigator Paul Drake, Jr., the son of … William Theodore Katt (born February 16, ... Katt co-starred with his mother Barbara Hale, who reprised her role of Della Street from the Perry Mason television series. These four films were presented as A Perry Mason Mystery, with Sorvino starring as Anthony Caruso in the first film and Holbrook starring as Bill "Wild Bill" McKenzie in the remaining three. When his former secretary Della Street is accused of murder, Perry Mason … Katt also has written a Greatest American Hero comic book and contributed to that series' Facebook page.[3]. Budgeted at $3 million, Perry Mason Returns was filmed in Toronto, standing in for Los Angeles to save production costs. William Theodore Katt (born February 16, 1951) is an American film and television actor, voice artist and musician best known as the star of the television series The Greatest American Hero. In the first telefilm, Perry Mason Returns, Mason is an appellate court judge who resigns his position to successfully defend his secretary Della on murder charges. William Katt, who acts under his father’s original last name, is the son of actor Bill Williams and actress Barbara Hale. His father, ... the first of which was Perry Mason Returns (1985). Television producer Dean Hargrove resurrected the Perry Mason character in a series of television films for NBC beginning in 1985. In 2013, Katt played himself in the spoof film Paranormal Movie directed by Kevin Farley. He first became known for playing Tommy Ross, the ill-fated prom date of Carrie White in the original film version of Carrie (1976) and subsequently starred in films such as First Love (1977), Big Wednesday (1978) and Butch and Sundance: The Early Days (1979). Katt starred in the 1989 TV series Top of the Hill and made a guest appearance on the first episode of the short-lived 1991 series Good Sports. The role in Big Wednesday made him so well known in the surfing community that in 2004 he presented one of the Association of Surfing Professionals awards at their annual World Championship Tour ceremony to wild applause from the crowd of professional surfers. Q Why wasn't William Katt on the last Perry Mason TV movie? Both Barbara Hale and William R. Moses reprised their roles for all four films, although in the final film in 1995, Hale contributed only a small cameo with Holland Taylor substituting for her. The original Perry Mason television series was broadcast on CBS television from 1957 to 1966. [2] In 2010 during season 6, Katt guest starred as C.J. By the time Perry Mason returned … Katt explained in a 1979 interview with critic Roger Ebert that he was holding out only for parts that were personally interesting to him. Perry Mason is one of the most popular and enduring television series of all time, and one of the most influential on the format of most every legal-based show that followed. After the 1988 Movie, “The Lady in the Lake,” William Katt departed the cast and Paul Drake, Jr. was replaced by lawyer Ken Malansky, played by William Moses. And his father is Bill Williams (real name also William Katt) who was a star of the 1940s, went into real estate, and still turns up regularly on Police Woman. The magazine was published in Boston, Massachusetts, by the Perry Mason Company (renamed "Perry Mason & Co." after the founder died). These new Mason movies also starred William Katt, who played Paul Drake, Jr., the son of the character made famous by William Hopper on the original series. On June 7, 2016, the first four movie collections were given general retail release. He appeared in an episode of House in 2006. Beginning in 1987, Katt played the recurring role of detective Paul Drake Jr. in the periodic Perry Mason TV movies, co-starring with his mother Barbara Hale, who resumed her "Della Street" characterization from the original 1961-66 Mason run. The name "Perry Mason" dates to creator Gardner's childhood. It's the show that will keep going, but not the character. They were released in five six-film sets that were initially available exclusively through Amazon.com. William Katt , Hale's son, was cast as Paul Drake, Jr. William Hopper , who played private investigator Paul Drake in the original TV series, had died years earlier; Hopper's photograph appears on Paul Drake Jr.'s desk. A series of 30 Perry Mason television films aired on NBC from 1985 to 1995 as sequels to the CBS TV series Perry Mason. He grew up in the San Fernando Valley and began acting as a teenager, sometimes appearing with his parents. Katt married Deborah Kahane in 1979 and they have two sons, Clayton and Emerson. [8], "Perry Mason (1985–1993), The Perry Mason Mystery (1993–1995)", "Raymond Burr, Actor, 76, Dies; Played Perry Mason and Ironside", "Perry Mason – Wide Releases for Movie Collections 1–4, and for Double Features 13–15", "Perry Mason – Movie Collection Volume 1", "Perry Mason – Movie Collection Volume 2", "Perry Mason – Movie Collection Volume 3", "Perry Mason – Movie Collection Volume 4", "Perry Mason – Movie Collection Volume 5", "Perry Mason: The Complete Movie Collection", Perry Mason: The Case of the Mandarin Murder, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Perry_Mason_(TV_film_series)&oldid=999759500, Television articles using incorrect infobox, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, Intermedia Entertainment Company (1985–86), This page was last edited on 11 January 2021, at 20:39. A series of television films for NBC beginning in 1985 seemed to some! An earring, torn fabric from a muddy dress, a character by! 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