Columbo
(1968-1978)
Crime / Drama
73 - 98 minutes
Cast:
Peter Falk as Lieutenant Columbo
Columbo was an extremely popular crime drama airing on NBC for 45 episodes from February 20, 1968 to May 13, 1978. The show was different from most other crime dramas in that the audience was almost always shown the crime in progress and knew the identity of the criminal. In what is now called an inverted detective story , episodes of Columbo were more about watching the detective catch the criminal than about figuring out who committed the crime.
Episodes were directed by several well-known names, including the first episode by Steven Spielberg. Other episodes were directed by Jonathan Demme, Ben Gazzara, Nicholas Colasanto, Patrick McGoohan, and even Falk himself.
Lt. Columbo, a homicide detective, is an ordinary-appearing man, almost always wearing his rumpled overcoat and brandishing a half-smoked cigar in his hand. He seems to be inept and bumbling, and is often looked down on by the criminals he is investigating. Always polite and low-key, the character is rarely excited or flustered. He seems to be easily distracted and is generally underestimated by the culprit, but always manages to outwit his prey in the end.
Episodes:
Season One
1. Prescription: Murder 2/20/1968
2. Ransom For a Dead 3/1/1971
3. Murder By the Book 9/15/1971
4. Death Lends a Hand 10/6/1971
5. Dead Weight 10/27/1971
6. Suitable For Framing 11/17/1971
7. Lady in Waiting 12/15/1971
8. Short Fuse 1/19/1972
9. Blueprint for Murder 2/9/1972
Season Two
10. Étude in Black 9/17/1972
11. The Greenhouse Jungle 10/15/1972
12. The Most Crucial Game 11/5/1972
13. Dagger of the Mind 11/26/1972
14. Requiem for a Falling Star 1/21/1973
15. A Stitch in Crime 2/11/1973
16. The Most Dangerous Match 3/4/1973
17. Double Shock 3/25/1973
Season Three
18. Lovely but Lethal 9/23/1973
19. Any Old Port in a Storm 10/7/1973
20. Candidate for Crime 11/4/1973
21. Double Exposure 12/16/1973
22. Publish or Perish 1/18/1974
23. Mind Over Mayhem 2/18/1974
24. Swan Song 3/3/1974
25. A Friend in Deed 5/5/1974
Season Four
26. An Exercise in Fatality 9/15/1974
27. Negative Reaction 10/15/1974
28. By Dawn's Early Light 10/27/1974
29. Troubled Waters 2/9/1975
30. Playback 3/2/1975
31. A Deadly State of Mind 4/27/1975
Season Five
32. Forgotten Lady 9/14/1975
33. A Case of Immunity 10/12/1975
34. Identity Crisis 11/2/1975
35. A Matter of Honor 2/1/1976
36. Now You See Him... 2/29/1976
37. Last Salute to the Commodore 3/2/1976
Season Six
38. Fade in to Murder 10/12/1976
39. Old Fashioned Murder 11/28/1976
40. The Bye-Bye Sky High I.Q. Murder Case 5/22/1977
Season Seven
41. Try and Catch Me 11/21/1977
42. Murder Under Glass 1/30/1978
43. Make Me a Perfect Murder 2/28/1978
44. How to Dial a Murder 4/15/1978
45. The Conspirators 5/13/1978
