oscaralbert Review of The Case of the Velvet Claws

The Case of the Velvet Claws (1936)

In the middle of the Great Depression, what could be funnier . . .

[6/10 · 19 August 2015]

. . . to movie goers spending dimes they scarce could afford than to see the folks projected on screen lighting cigarettes with thousand dollar bills? This hilarious bit takes place 8 minutes, 32 seconds into Perry Mason's fourth movie, THE CASE OF THE VELVET CLAWS. And newly-minted bride Della Street Mason is not messing around with monopoly money, either. The Great Depression was caused by America's One Per Cent getting almost as greedy as they are today, latching on to nearly as big a share of the U.S. wealth, and wasting it pretty much as unproductively as today's Rich People. This period gave rise to the expression, "They've got money to burn." Without having the availability of Black Market transplant organs, personal jet planes, Platinum Starbucks Cards, and Apple Watches, Great Depression One Per Centers literally had no way to spend their money fast enough. Some of them grew depressed at this problem, and complained to President Herbert Hoover that smoking might kill them if they had to consume one cigar for every $50 or $100 bill they burned. Out of concern for the health of America's "Betters," the U.S. Treasury slapped Grover Cleveland's face on the $1,000 bill (and high rollers could light their Cubans with Salmon P. Chase $10,000 bills). VELVET CLAWS validates that the American Dream always has been to rake in enough resources from normal people to have "money to burn." I'm sure that Perry Mason himself would side in the current currency debate with those in favor of leaving Alexander Hamilton in place on our tens and Andy Jackson gracing our twenties, so that our One Per Cent folks can light their future cigars with Rosa Parks on inflation-adjusted $100,000 bills.