@@Astrobrant2 He was kind of "cryptic" in that way though, because I think he was actually VERY open to new ideas and technology. That's probably what made him so good at uncovering these incredibly unconventional crimes. Sometimes he'd even use new technology to help discover the crimes or evidence.
@Astrobrant2 that car is the Peugeot 403 and it was the most "instersting" car to have. My dad had that car around the same time in '70 or '71 and the exhaust fell off. I can't really blame the car it looked in worse shape that columbos
That's why Columbo was so good at his job. The murderers always thought they could put one over him but under that crumpled exterior, there was a very shrewd brain at work
Joyce Van Patten was great in that scene. So was Vito Scotti. (He was in about four or five episodes, IIRC.) What I wondered about was if her character was meant to be just playing along with Columbo after he said he was a police officer. My opinion is that the writers meant for her not to believe him. Her attitude was intended to be, "My mission is to feed, clothe, and give shelter to God's disadvantaged children. Don't challenge their delusions, as that may undermine their trust." That makes the scene more fun for me -- especially when she said she would keep his secret. Priceless.
I think my favorite bit from the whole show has to be. "Colonel: Officer you may wish to detain this man, he refuses to leave the area. Sargent: This man is Lt Columbo sir, he's in charge of the investigation." Just makes me laugh and so sums up Columbo, no one suspects him and then he comes in and with his shrewd mind he catches them in their lies and puts them away for their crimes.
It’s very telling that Columbo hardly ever corrects people’s misconceptions. He has no ego. If anything, he fails to instruct anyone in how his dress and seemingly bumbling moments are a shrewd maneuver to get criminals to let down their defenses.
I am not really sure they are even "maneuvers" necessarily. He just has that way about him and it works very well to his advantage for people to underestimate him. I do, however, believe there are moments of intentional misdirection.
Occasionally, suspects would call him out on his pretenses. I'm glad the writers did that. Columbo's usual response was a guilty smirk or a shrug of his shoulders. But much of the time he was just being himself -- and it often worked. One thing I noticed was his pocket-fumbling. He would do that when trying to make suspects think he was addle-brained, but when that wasn't a necessary tactic, he could go directly to the correct pocket. As far as so frequently forgetting his pencil, that was probably really him. As for, "Just one more thing..." yes, I believe that was pure pretense. I entertained the notion that much of his trivial forgetfulness was because his mind was so obsessively immersed in solving the case. He was nothing if not dogged about his work. I've thought how fun it would have been if Columbo and Monk could be teamed up on a case. Imagine the opportunities for humor, there. Unfortunately, Peter Falk was too old by the time Monk rolled around.
Or the episode at the art gallery where he looks at the air vent, thinking it is a piece of art, asks how much it is. LOL!! And at another art gallery he shows an expert is wifes painting. Its actually 'paint by numbers''. The expert nearly faints with horror LOL!!!
@@johnminehan1148 That's the story Peter Falk tells, that he just took a coat he bought some years previously for his role in Prescription Murder, the first appearance as Columbo. The problem is, that isn't the same coat as the iconic coat.
A bit of trivia. Columbo first appeared in an episode of the Chevy mystery hour in a story called enough rope in 1962. He was played by actor Burt freed complete with the cigar and forgetful manner. That character was based on the detective in the French mystery movie les diabolicoliques I need to look up the French spelling. Also some of the movie fatal attraction was cribbed from that movie. The rest was cribbed from play misty for me. But I digress.
which episode was it when Columbo took his car to be repaired at a garage and was asked by the mechanic ' are you undercover?' and Columbo says 'no, underpaid'.
@@annakowalska9935 That was one of the major quirks of the show: Columbo never pulled a gun, never carried. This was back when shows actually made you think along with them as a viewer.
The early years of "Columbo" were simply the best. That 70's look, creative and imaginative plotlines, superb casting and production. And Peter Falk's love for the character made it special.
@@stevefarrington5618 there were talks about Mark Ruffalo (Of Hulk fame) reprising the roles some years back. But then would you set it back in the late 60's/70s or modern times. The 60s/70s would be a safe bet people are still enthralled by the past take Endeavor and Grantchester for example. But then if it was set in todays era how would you get round the smoking indoors and the great trope of Columbo always getting a phone call at the murderers house instead of having a mobile phone and then how would Columbo deal with social media. It would be incredible if they would make one. Any era would do for me.
@@daryledwards90 , that got me wondering if that behavior of her allowed the officer to search the bags. Since she consented them to be obtained by him and wasn't there to revoke the consent when realized the mistake.
It's sad how people judge others worth by how they appear and dress...its also interesting that if you don't have a big ego or false pride it goes a long way and your mind can think so much... Columbo never gets annoyed or irritated and stays so much focused on his work...
Columbo can get irritated; I've seen him explode at times, such as in A Stitch In Time when he lets Leonard Nimoy have both barrels, or another movie (can't remember the name) when he tears into a gym owner in a hospital waiting room.
To be fair, people expect public servants, particularly those in a supervisory role, to have a reasonably smart appearance. In reality, the LAPD would not have tolerated Columbo’s shabbiness.
Columbo is one of the best written characters. You see so many sides to the personality over the seasons. Just wonderful writing. and acting by Peter Falk, who IS Columbo. No one else could play that character like him.
My salute is to watch all episodes, season by season, every year in English and Spanish, just as if I were watching them for the first time. I love this man.
I'm so glad I found this channel. I used to watch the show with my dad and dad's commentary on Columbo doubled the pleasure. Needless to say this was a long time ago, in fact, many decades ago, but feels like yesterday. BTW, the nun is brilliant.
Sorry no smoking ... Well in that case I will ask that you come with me down to the police station where I can smoke their and interrogate you in a more uncomfortable situation.
On an Apple phone push on the green phone , then select "contacts" at the bottom and find your own name. Probably the phone number is there. I can't remember it either.
"Negative Reaction (1974)" was the most hilarious episode involving question about Columbo's authenticity, in which a nun serving meal in a soup kitchen duly or unduly took him (looking for a witness to a murder there) for another homeless person. Upon being shown his police badge the nun would say, "Then, you're under cover?".
'Murder By Death'. Peter Falk, Peter Sellers, David Niven, Truman Capote, Alec Guinness and Nancy Walker. Had the DVD for years. Superb murder/mystery comedy. Peter Falk playing a Sam Spade type character.
@MrHappyBollox I thought he slumped because he had to resort to outright lying to get the bad guy. While Columbo does normally trap/trick the criminal that episode involved him flat out lying. To catch the bad guy he had to first falsely accuse Van Dyke, based on a mirror photograph, then he claimed the original was destroyed. Columbo doesn't generally go that far to trick the bad guy. He does a few things here and there. Like when he stole a bottle of vine in the vinyard episode to get the criminal to explain what was wrong with the wine. Or create a fake file to catch his boss. But with Van Dyke, his ruse involved him flat out lying. Pretty sure that method if catching the bad guy had a zero percent change of conviction. It's entrapment.
@@stevesmith1383 Those examples you gave or no less lies than the photo one. In fact, I think stealing the wine was a worse since that was actually illegal unless he had a seizure warrant. The most egregious one to me was is when he tossed that pearl into the umbrella, since in that instance he had actually tampered with evidence.
Colombo is always confused with a wayward person never a homicide detective. When he produces the badge the response of the people are priceless. I crack up everytime this happens. Thank you uploader .
“Has it ever struck you that life is all memory, except for the one present moment that goes by you so quick you hardly catch it going?”― Tennessee Williams
3:15 that is so intentionally uncomfortable it's hilarious. There is another one where Columbo sits on an antique chair. Murder by the Book I think. LMFAO!!! Timeless.
One of the bits of information I really want to know is where Link and Richard Levinson got the idea to skip the obligatory “Who done it?” aspect of mystery writing and instead focus on "How they did it?” instead. This in my opinion made Columbo not only one of the best mysteries ever on television, but one of the most creative as well. Does anyone know the anwser to this?
There was a tribute that spoke on it, but I can't remember which or their answer. There's also been talk about his character in most cases knows the guilty party within 5 minutes of arriving to where they are. There were exceptions of course. As I recall, they didn't do the who done it because it was hackneyed by the time Columbo debuted.
@@michaelwallace2487 I believe it was because they both loved Hitchcock's "Dial M for Murder" ... In that film , we know who the bad guy is almost from the start, yet Hitchcock made it very suspenseful. If it was good for Hitchcock, it was good for Columbo
I remember an episode when he was investigating a murder at a junk yard and on arrival at the gate, the Security guard would not open the gate to let him in thinking he was there to sell the car he was driving. They Guard told him that they were not buying any junk today because there was a murder on the premises 😁😁😁
