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than other detective shows, but I did sympathise with several of the murderers.....
..... or I'm just Evil ! :D
I suppose you could say the same about Robert Culp as Brimmer in 'Death Lends A Hand' or Johnny Cash as Tommy Brown in 'Swan Song'.
See hang. Although even a few Poirot's have him feeling sorry for the killers( because
They have very good reasons for killing ) The most famous Murder on the Orient Express.
The end of which he lets the murder off, because of the crime they were avenging. Even
Though it went against his strict Christian views.
Yes, I read that one - very good I recall. Columbo also let the killer away in 'Forgotten Lady'.
Yes, true. Actually, not one of my favourite episodes.
Like Robert Culp, Jack Cassidy ( a favourite of mine) and Patrick McGoohan.
Yes, I love all of those chaps but Robert Culp is my all-time favourite Columbo villain. Such a great actor.
Culp's third Columbo had its origins in a writer's strike. Stephen J. Cannell, who worked as a writer-producer at Universal, wrote a Columbo to keep busy during the strike (which was *not* OK under union rules). After the strike, he dropped it off with fellow writer-producer Dean Hargrove.
Cannell had grown a bit tired of the sympathetic killer and wanted to write one with a plain evil (but brilliant) guy. Culp got cast and delivered big time.
Co-creator of The Rockford Files, co-creator The A-Team, creator 21 Jump Street and various other TV shows.
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0004798/?ref_=nv_sr_1
award because of the interaction of Columbo and a housekeeper who hated him.
Because he accidentally broke her TV. There are some great scenes with them,
Columbo getting berated by her.
That's one thing I loved. In the best episodes at least. Is it only me or could we consider the murderer the main character of each episode? And often we sympathize, or at least empathize with him or her.
Well I sure hope so! If you're going to murder someone you better do it for a good reason.
Anybody remembers the episodes written by Ed McBain/Evan Hunter? Recycled stuff from his 87th Precinct novels. I love the author but it just did not fit well with Columbo.
Well that's a good reason.
Troubled Waters and Last Salute To The Commodore.
Troubled Waters has to be one of the very best episodes. It is taking place entirely on a big cruise ship where Columbo and his wife are on holiday.
One of the running gags throughout this episodes that Columbo is searching for his wife, or phoning with her, and of course, you never see her :D
Like in Murder, She Wrote tradition soon after the ships departs a murder happens.
This is one of the most elaborate murder plans in the series. Robert Vaughn plays his part so perfectly.
Also this episode may have one of the best ensemble cast in the series too.
Patrick Macnee is the Captain of the ship. There is also Jane Greer, Dean Stockwell, Bernard Fox, Robert Douglas.
Faces you immediately recognise.
Last Salute To The Commodore is one of the very few episodes where the scenario plays out differently.
First you don't see the murder happening, you only see it after the fact. Robert Vaughn is seen getting rid of the murder victim.
Then it's normal game, Columbo suspects Robert Vaughn early on and is on to him.
Sadly, this first 45 minutes are quite dull. If you don't know what to look for that is.
Because the second half of the episode is bloody great, in the middle of the episode happens one of the most surprising plot twists ever in a Columbo show.
The second half plays out like a regular Agatha Christie plot. Quite great.
Still, overall because of the seemingly uninteresting first half, it's a rather forgettable affair.
Dean Stockwells hair is out of control in the former, I have always liked that episode and watched it as much as any other. I think the latter is a experiment in that the bizarre scenes on the boat early on in the episode, are a kind of abstract representation of the inner workings of Columbo mind.
I picked up the full series cigar box set for £40 a couple of years ago, great value for the full set despite no extras.
After doing the double feature of Ray Milland earlier this year and having done the double feature of Robert Vaughn I decided to go on with double features with actors that appeared more than once as the main villain.
Patrick McGoohan
McGoohan may be my favourite of the returning actors in the Columbo series. I absolutely love to see him, no matter in what.
He had quite a career but always remained a name that wasn't recognised, but of course if you see a picture of him, you'll instantly recognise him.
He did four Columbo episodes:
-By Dawn's Early Light (1974)
-Identity Crisis (1975)
-Agenda For Murder (1990)
-Ashes To Ashes (1998)
Watched them all and let me tell you this about them:
By Dawn's Early Light: Definitely one of my favourite episodes, Top 10 for sure and maybe it's the best ever performance of an actor in Columbo. McGoohan is captivating as Col. Lyle C. Rumford who is leading a Military Academy and has murdered the chairman of the board that wanted to turn the Academy into a mixed college.
The whole episode is taking place in the Academy and it's a great, great setting. The incredibly real scenario is marvelous and I guess all the cadets were real, except for maybe two or three actors.
The story is simple, the murder is simple, yet very sinister and Columbo is really going after the Colonel.
Patrick McGoohan won an EMMY for his performance in this episode, and it's so deserved.
Identity Crisis: This episode sees a weak first half with a hard to follow plot, but at least it has Leslie Nielsen playing the vicitim at the beginning.
It's Columbo vs the CIA. A spy, pardon, a secret agent story.
McGoohan plays a high level CIA operative, one of the best in the field, maybe even the best ever as some photos of him show that Columbo gazes at in McGoohan's home.
What saves the episode is the second half where Columbo goes after McGoohan, it's again a great duel of actors. A treat to watch!
Agenda For Murder: From the newer Columbo episodes this is a favourite of mine. Also thanks to Patrick McGoohan who devilishly well plays a lawyer that helps a governor to get on the ticket for Vice-President in the upcoming election.
Oscar Finch. I love this character which comes to life with brilliant acting.
Also this features one of the funniest scenes ever in the series.
Two quotes from the episode:
Columbo telling a joke to lawyer Oscar Finch. The reaction of Finch has to be seen to be believed. Sadly I couldn't find a clip of it.
Lt. Columbo: "There was this Jewish lady walking down Beverly Drive, and coming the other way, this flasher guy in his overcoat. When he gets up to her, he whips open the coat. She looks at him and says, 'You call that a lining?'"
Oscar Finch: [Refering to Columbo's Peugeot] That oxidated relic is yours?
Ashes to Ashes: McGoohan's last appearance in Columbo and also one of the last Columbo episodes.
This one has a great ensemble cast, Sally Kellerman, Rue McClanahan, Richard Riehle, Ron Masak and others.
It's quite a funny episode and a bit morbid too as it plays in a funeral home with Eric Prince (McGoohan) the owner of the company as the murderer.
I think the actors in this one make it worthwhile, but overall this is probably the weakest of the four McGoohan episodes.
McGoohan had quite a run with 24 years between his first and last appearance. Also of note, he directed 5 Columbo episodes himself including three of the four he appeared in.
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I hate to admit it I don't think or rather don't remember watching The Cheap Detective, I'll have a look on Amazon.