The inside door handle mechanism may have been installed incorrectly or the wrong side mechanism used. On the later models, including your '53, the bar going to the latch doesn't lay in the recess in the door.
Adjusting the door latch is a bit difficult. The Service Manual should cover how to do it, but if it's worn, as most driver side latches are, it may need to be rebuilt or replaced. I welded on my latches to resurface them, but I have the earlier style that uses the pull-down outside handles. I haven't worked on later latches.
