ABA imprint republishes Perry Mason series

 Ankerwycke, the new consumer-oriented imprint of ABA Publishing, is bringing back author Erle Stanley Gardner’s series of books featuring criminal defense lawyer and sleuth Perry Mason.

This month, five paperback releases are planned in the series that stars America’s most famous fictional criminal lawyer, Perry Mason. With brief descriptions, they are:

• “The Case of the Velvet Claws” Married Eva Griffin has been caught with a prominent congressman and is ready to pay the editor of a sleazy tabloid hush money to protect the politician. But first Perry tracks down the publisher of the blackmailing tabloid and discovers a shocking secret, which eventually leads to Perry being accused of murder. This was made into a 1936 movie starting Warren William as Perry and Claire Dodd as Della Street.

• “The Case of the Sulky Girl” — Bratty heiress Frances Celane visits Perry to inquire about an odd codicil in her father’s will, stating she would be disinherited if she married young. Her uncle is the trustee, and stands to inherit everything if Frances marries ? which she has. And when her uncle is found murdered, her groom is accused.

• “The Case of the Lucky Legs” — Unfortunately, Marjorie Clune’s legs are not as lucky as they first appear. When movie promoter Frank Patton’s hype clears, it’s obvious his “lucky legs” contest (and the movies that were supposed to follow) was a fraud. When Patton is found with Marjorie’s lover’s knife in his chest, Perry must exonerate the young woman and find the real killer. The 1935 movie starred Warren William as Perry and Genevieve Tobin as Della.

• “The Case of the Howling Dog” — An agitated and desperate man spares no expense in insisting that Perry represent him against a neighbor’s howling dog and act as executor of his will. The 1934 movie starred Warren William as Perry and Helen Trenholme as Della.                                 

• “The Case of the Curious Bride” — Rhoda Reynolds is blackmailed by Artie Kane for a past indiscretion, which she would like to keep from her weakling husband Carl and his overbearing father Philip. Artie turns up dead, and Rhoda is charged with his murder. The 1935 movie starred William and Dodd and was notable for the first-released American screen appearance of legendary actor Errol Flynn as the corpse, who is seen alive but not speaking in a brief flashback.

Many of the Perry Mason series titles have not been in print for years. With the reissue of these iconic books, Ankerwycke will introduce an entirely new generation of readers to the investigative brilliance of Perry Mason and the masterful storytelling of Gardner. Each book will sell for $9.99.

The books, which had first editions spanning 40 years starting in 1933, served as the precedent for the television series of the same name broadcast from 1957 to 1966. The series starred Raymond Burr as Perry Mason.

Ankerwycke, launched in December 2014, is the consumer-oriented imprint of the American Bar Association. In 1215, Magna Carta was sealed underneath the ancient Ankerwycke Yew tree, starting the process which led to rule by constitutional law — in effect, giving rights and the law to the people. Today, the ABA’s Ankerwycke line of books continues to bring the law to the people. With legal fiction, true crime books, popular legal histories, public policy handbooks and prescriptive guides to current legal and business issues, Ankerwycke is a contemporary and innovative line of books for everyone from a trusted and vested authority.