Show189
While Irene Tsu was striking in this episode, her baby-talk act became a little grating as time wore on. I realize she was only 18 or 19, but the constant whining and pouty sad faces every time things didn't go her way were a bit much IMO.
Then there was the Burger replacement. Oh boy. From his sneering demeanor to tough guy tone, he came off more like a criminal than a man sworn to uphold the law. It was comical when he rudely asked to treat Tyrell as a hostile witness; and then proceeded to address him in a condescending manner. Who is actually the hostile one here? Submitted by DellaMason
I can see why the Summary describes this episode’s setting as a favorite. The sets are rich, and the action takes place in Hong Kong and San Francisco, with nice establishment shots of Hong Kong. It’s a rather different kind of plot for Perry Mason, too, long in development before the murder takes place. And I just love all the Chinese decoration. Submitted by gracenote, 2/22/2011.
I liked the location backdrop of Hong Kong as well, but Irene Tsu put a lump in my throat ... not just for her beauty, but that she bore a VERY strong resemblance to a Chinese-American girl I attended high school with. Need I say that my crush was quite major ... but more to the serious, I noted the rather imperious attitude the 'Mrs. Culpepper' character took toward 'Juli Eng'. She just met the woman, and is practically ordering her around? Some things don't weather well. Can you imagine that happening today? Submitted by MikeReese, 3/17/2016.
San Francisco was Raymond's jurisdiction as Detective Chief Ironside from 1967-75: the SF Police Officers wore 7-pointed badges. Mike Bedard 3.3.15.
The summation suggests the diamonds are back in Hong Kong. How did they get there?
+ Tyrell, the smuggler, never took them away from Hong Kong. Sometime between Lorraine Iverson sneaking a peek at them on board ship and the ship casting off (I assume) Tyrell was able to pass the package to a sailor who took it back to shore with him. Fast work! Submitted by JazzBaby, 4/15/2019.
TCOT Puzzling Pretense How did Tyrell know he was going to be followed and spied on? He set up the whole subterfuge of passing a fake package to a boat, then throwing it into the water when Iverson's goons threatened him. How did he know they were going to be there? He took a big chance, too, because only Paul's sudden appearence saved him from a beating or worse. Perhaps it was all "just in case," but it felt improbable in the extreme to me. Submitted by JazzBaby, 4/15/2019.
By the way, the women’s haridos are getting BIG by now (hey, it’s 1963). I noticed lots of these time-consuming coifs on the ship. Let’s just hope nobody got her hair wet. Submitted by gracenote, 2/22/2011.
+ In Texas we say, "the bigger the hair, the closer to Jesus".
I nearly fell out of my seat when I saw it: The framed print on the wall of Iverson’s cabin—a pagoda—is exactly the same one that I saw every day growing up in our living room. My mother had gotten it from her travels in Japan. Submitted by gracenote, 7/29/2011.
Look carefully - when people are shown entering cabins from the outside, there is a wall with a coat rack just inside on the right that is not there in the interior scenes. The interior scenes are apparently a stage set, the exterior scenes filmed on a real ship. And cabins that big with bunk beds? DOD 03/07/23
"The SS Ione was just casting off." -- and the next shot is of the...SS President Wilson? Also, a big thank-you to gracenote and others for the many fascinating comments, which make these episodes even more enjoyable to watch. Submitted by masonite, 8/26/12.
One of the small joys of watching this show is the accumulation of actors we don't know, but they are, as one actor described himself to me, "an actor who works." We know the stars, but so many of them make a good living in small nameless parts in westerns and TV mysteries. Check out Marshall Reed ("Fisherman") or Walter Brooke ("district attorney") to see the credits of "actors who work." cgraul 11.23.14
What happened to Juli Eng's mother? It was mentioned early in the story that the diamonds were for Juli and her mother. She seemed to have been forgotten. Submitted by H. Mason 3/4/15
+ In the early 60s, lots of people tried to escape China when Mao took over. Some made it, some were killed in the attempt. Even more people were simply turned back. Juli's mother might have fallen behind and was either captured or killed, or, she might have been forced to remain in China. A lot of families were forcibly separated back then. Submitted by Lazarus0 03/31/2016
++Mao actually took over China in 1949 when the CCP won control of the country after the Chinese Civil War. If people were escaping in the 1960s, it may have been because of Mao's Great Leap Forward, which was a program of forced industrialization that led to the deaths of 50 million people. It was only when Mao died in 1976 that Chinese people could finally breathe a little easier. That said, the first part of this story takes place in Hong Kong, which was a British protectorate during this time period. Hong Kong had been controlled by Britain since the 1800s, which is why all the police we see in Hong Kong are British, not Chinese. DellaMason
The Ms. Culpepper character (first name Agatha) reminded me of Miss Marple. I was waiting for her to help Perry solve the murder. Submitted by H. Mason 3/4/15
Gilbert Tyrell aka Colonel Chilton aka Marquis de Frontenac, while giving advice to Mr. Iverson on how to smuggle the diamonds into the USA, said: "don't submerge them in a jar of cold cream or toothpaste tubes." That was, without a doubt, a reference to episode 142 TCOT Glamorous Ghost. Submitted by H. Mason 3/4/15
TCOTFS & TCOT Glamorous Ghost have Parallels: a Maritime Smuggling ring & Customs Service reward-hunters. "The Constitution of the US went into effect on March 4, 1789. A bit more than 4 months later, on July 31,...the US Customs Service started operating, among the very 1st of the Federal agencies to come to life," the trac.syr.edu/traccus site observes. Mike Bedard 3.5.15.
TCOT Peculiar Pronunciation When Paul is talking to Customs Inspector Wendel, he refers to Tudor Sherwin as "Two-Door Sherwin." I laughed out loud! I assume Hopper was having fun with the rather pretentious name. Submitted by JazzBaby, 4/15/2019.
> Subliminal Advertising? Ford Motors used to sell their Model A's with such rather punning names (Tudor and Fordor). I'm not sure Ford provided the cars for this episode - and even if they did, they certainly weren't pushing Model A's! - but it's possible the writers were aware of the heritage. Notcom 073124
Many scenes were filmed on a real ship, not a set. Any ideas what ship was used? I assume it was docked in Los Angeles. DOD 01/21/20
TCOT Disconnected Detective In his hotel room, Perry takes a phone call from Paul Drake and then hangs up on Paul without concluding the call. Submitted by Miss Carmody, 7 October 2023.