While growing up in the Texas Panhandle, Michael J. Veitenheimer was a fan of the TV series “Perry Mason.” Actor Raymond Burr played Mason, a criminal-defense lawyer who specialized in getting his wrongfully accused clients cleared of murder charges by finding the real murderers.
“Since I was 6 years old, according to my mother, all I ever wanted to do is be a lawyer and try lawsuits,” says Veitenheimer, vice president and general counsel of Michaels Stores Inc. in Irving. The TV show ran from 1957 to 1966. “I would be glued to the TV watching Perry Mason,” he says. “I was a huge Perry Mason fan.”
