The March 16th is the birthday of Oscar winning actress Mercedes McCambridge and to celebrate

the occasion down these mean streets is presenting an hour of McCambridge starring as Martha Ellis Bryant in defense attorney.

We first heard this series about the Crusading Counselor at Law back on episode 26.

McCambridge, who was hailed as the greatest actress on radio by no less than Orson Wells,

starred as Bryant, a lawyer cut from the same cloth as Perry Mason from 1951 to 1952.

McCambridge was born in Joliet Illinois on March 16, 1916, though she claimed throughout her career to have been born on the 17th, St. Patrick's

day in a tip of the hat to her Irish heritage.

She began her career on radio in the 1930s with performances on soap operas.

Her film debut came in 1949 as Sadie Burke, the love-struck campaign manager to Bradrick Crawford's Willie Stark in All the Kings

Men.

The Performance won the Cambridge Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.

While she would continue to appear in films, eventually turning in another Oscar-nominated performance

in Giant, McCambridge's career would be hindered by battles with drug and alcohol addiction.

She returned a radio with a starring role in 1951.

Defense attorney began as the defense rests,

a program produced by Don Sharp for NBC.

McCambridge was tapped a star and an audition program, The Case of Joseph Moriano, was

recorded in April 1951 and we'll hear that episode now.

Supporting the Cambridge in the cast are Sheldon Leonard, John Stevenson, Tony Barrett, and Peter Leeds.

This episode was written by Cameron Blake and directed by Warren Lewis. I petition I attest I insist that Joseph Moriano was wrongly and unjustly convicted of murder.

No matter how long it takes I'm going to prove it. It will be then, and

only then, that the defense rests.

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