Though adapting a book for television may seem simple to the average viewer, it's easier said than done. Though book adaptations are common today, bringing a story to the small screen wasn't always so simple.

One successful book-to-television adaptation was Perry Mason. The series, which ran for nine seasons, was based on a series of novels by acclaimed author Erle Stanley Gardner.

With great respect for the source material, the producers involved Gardner in preproduction. Gardner even hand-picked Raymond Burr for the title role. It was a case of the author helping bring his famous attorney to life.

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But years after the show premiered, Burr confessed that television's limited runtime meant the cast and crew could never fully do Gardner's work justice.

"You couldn't and we didn't do one of Erle Stanley Gardner's great stories in one hour," Burr said during an interview with the Spokesman-Review. "To squeeze into the time slot made it necessary to cut down on the number of clues. The audience never got background on the characters or on Perry Mason himself."

For a mystery series, fewer clues meant less room for the story to unfold. Burr believed the solution was simple: Give the stories more time.

After the original series ended, Burr returned to the role in several Perry Mason television films. The longer format allowed the stories more breathing room, which he believed was the key to a proper adaptation.

"Now, we're doing it right," Burr said. "I'm working with Fred Silverman and Dean Hargrove writes the best stories in the world."

Ultimately, Burr felt indebted to Gardner for giving him the role of a lifetime. He was determined to honor the author's work by bringing his stories to the screen as faithfully as possible.

"When they came to me last winter with Perry Mason returns, I was delighted," Burr said. "I felt I owed it to Erle's memory and to his wife, Jean, a lovely lady, to do a two-hour Perry Mason movie the way it should be done. I'll keep on doing them as long as Silverman and Hargrove want to do them."

For Raymond Burr, giving Perry Mason’s stories the time they deserved was a case worth taking.