# Columbo - a few questions for discussion **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** tv-shows-scripted\ **Created:** [January 2, 2022, 7:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/columbo-a-few-questions-for-discussion/957074 "2022-01-02T07:34:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![nightshadea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7ba0ec/32.png) [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2023, 8:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/columbo-a-few-questions-for-discussion/957074/101 "2023-03-14T08:41:56Z")
lol she was in murder she wrote 2 or 3 times also and guilty every time The first time as an heiress that tried to get away with offing an unwanted lover on a Concorde flight by poisoning him with medicine he was allergic to what acrewed up the plan was someone tried to steal her prized jewels on the same flight The second was she was a soap actress that tried to marry a rich old guy and force a heart attach so she could run off with her costar lover whom she was supposed to be broken up with ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2023, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/columbo-a-few-questions-for-discussion/957074/102 "2023-03-14T13:33:03Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > In between, she posed as the councilwoman for a district in Boston. She was in the Army for a little while, too. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/JmSmZRCl6A4/maxresdefault.jpg "Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins (1985) - Walking on Water Scene (12/12) | Movieclips") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JmSmZRCl6A4) ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2023, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/columbo-a-few-questions-for-discussion/957074/103 "2023-03-14T13:51:50Z")
> [@nightshadea](#): > > The second was she was a soap actress that tried to marry a rich old guy and force a heart attach so she could run off with her costar lover whom she was supposed to be broken up with Wouldn’t it be _ **more** _ difficult to run away from your husband if you force a heart attach with him? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2023, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/columbo-a-few-questions-for-discussion/957074/104 "2023-03-14T14:18:43Z")
> [@Typo\_Negative](#): > > What I remember most about him was that all the killers, all, would have walked if they had just kept their mouths shut and called lawyers… The guilty parties on Perry Mason would’ve done equally well if they’d avoided jumping up in court to confess. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2023, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/columbo-a-few-questions-for-discussion/957074/105 "2023-03-14T15:28:08Z")
In one episode I watched, a gardener “happened” to mention he was growing aconite in the first five minutes of the show. I knew from watching _ **I, Claudius** _ that aconite is wolf’s bane.\* So I spent the next twenty minutes waiting for someone to be poisoned. \*My daughter learned the same thing from the _ **Harry Potter** _ movies. So neither of us had any feeling of suspense. ---
**Author:** ![Pavelb1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/439d5e/32.png) [@Pavelb1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pavelb1)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2023, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/columbo-a-few-questions-for-discussion/957074/106 "2023-03-14T17:01:01Z")
In the episode i just watched, the killer’s lover TRIED to shut her mouth and get a lawyer and Columbo just harangued her more and yelled at her to sit down and pressed her with more questions. Til finally after the third or fourth time screaming at him to leave her alone and that she wanted a lawyer, Columbo said she could go but he was going to hound her every day until she broke. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2023, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/columbo-a-few-questions-for-discussion/957074/107 "2023-03-14T17:14:13Z")
Which one was it? ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2023, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/columbo-a-few-questions-for-discussion/957074/108 "2023-03-14T17:19:42Z")
And don’t forget on the cruise ship where everyone (except us) saw his wife at some point. ---
**Author:** ![Pavelb1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/439d5e/32.png) [@Pavelb1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pavelb1)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2023, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/columbo-a-few-questions-for-discussion/957074/109 "2023-03-14T17:29:35Z")
The very first one. Prescription: Murder. Also its funny how apparently Kate Mulgrew played a soap star on Murder She Wrote, given that the only bloody thing I remember about Ryan’s Hope is that Kate Mulgrew appeared on it. ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2023, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/columbo-a-few-questions-for-discussion/957074/110 "2023-03-14T17:39:09Z")
> [@Sherrerd](#): > > Especially the few that rely on “new technology” for their plots– Besides that one, there was the one where the killer makes a point of showing off his new digital watch to everyone at a party in order to establish an alibi. In hindsight it’s actually kind of amazing just how quickly digital watches went from “expensive new technology” to “cheapo watch you give to your kids.” ---
**Author:** ![iamatractorboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iamatractorboy/32/21261_2.png) [@iamatractorboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamatractorboy)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2023, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/columbo-a-few-questions-for-discussion/957074/111 "2023-03-14T18:00:15Z")
If anyone is interested, there is a terrific little youtube channel called ‘Watch it for Days’ that does almost forensic-like breakdowns of each Columbo episode. The channel is only a few episodes in to the Columbo 197os run so far, but i have enjoyed it a lot and would recommend to any fans. ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2023, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/columbo-a-few-questions-for-discussion/957074/112 "2023-03-14T23:16:43Z")
> [@WildaBeast](#): > > In hindsight it’s actually kind of amazing just how quickly digital watches went from “expensive new technology” to “cheapo watch you give to your kids.” Indeed—and fairly useless for establishing an alibi, too (who doesn’t know how to change the time?) > > [@iamatractorboy](#): > > If anyone is interested, there is a terrific little youtube channel called ‘Watch it for Days’ that does almost forensic-like breakdowns of each Columbo episode. … Sounds interesting–thanks! ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2023, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/columbo-a-few-questions-for-discussion/957074/113 "2023-03-14T23:59:00Z")
> [@Sherrerd](#): > > Indeed—and fairly useless for establishing an alibi, too (who doesn’t know how to change the time?) I think you’re maaaybe being unfair. If it’s the episode I’m thinking of, the idea is that he’s arranged things so that it’ll look like his mother-in-law is getting murdered on the other side of town at, like, ten-thirty — and so, at the party, he’s showing off his cool new digital watch and saying something along the lines of _‘hey, check out this cool digital watch, which is displaying ten-twenty-eight! Everyone: check out my watch, which now says ten-twenty-nine! Okay, lemme grab a round of drinks for the table, doop-de-doo, doop-de-doo, oh, hey, didn’t realize you’d arrived to join us! Here, have the beer I’d grabbed for myself; but, first, check out my cool watch, which now says ten-thirty-one!’_ And that’d all fall apart if, during this, anyone looks at their own analog watch and says _“what? No, it’s eleven-forty-five.”_ Which is why he isn’t doing that; in fact, he’d be delighted if someone looks at their own watch in response and says, _“wow, is it really ten-thirty already? Let me check my own watch; yep, it sure is!”_ ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2023, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/columbo-a-few-questions-for-discussion/957074/114 "2023-03-15T00:29:44Z")
Yeah, as I recall he faked the time of the murder, not the time of the alibi. It’s been a long time since I saw that one, but as I recall he set up a VCR\* to record the murder on the CCTV camera (with him standing just off camera) at say 10:00, while the security guard was actually watching a tape of an empty room on the monitor. Then he set the timer on the VCR to play back the tape of the murder on the monitor in the security booth at 10:30, where the security guard would assume the murder was taking place right then. Then he drove to the party across town and showed everyone his digital watch, so the guests would all remember seeing him there at exactly 10:28. \*Hey, it involved the new technology of VCRs _and_ digital watches. ETA: And now that I think about it it probably wasn’t really necessary to spoiler that, considering it happens at the very beginning of the episode. Force of habit I guess. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2023, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/columbo-a-few-questions-for-discussion/957074/115 "2023-03-15T01:02:17Z")
He left (and checked his watch in front of the security guard) at 9:13, **after** the murder had been committed and **after** he set up the VCR to play it back at 10:30, or what ever time it was. (I may be shaky on the second time, but I’m absolutely certain of the first.) He screwed up by taking his invitation off the desk **after** the murder instead of **before**. ---
**Author:** ![Pavelb1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/439d5e/32.png) [@Pavelb1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pavelb1)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2023, 6:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/columbo-a-few-questions-for-discussion/957074/116 "2023-03-15T06:34:51Z")
Just got done watching the second ‘Pilot’, _Ransom for A Dead Man._ Again, the writing is so solid. WE the audience are wont to think, “How stupid can this woman be to pay off her stepdaughter”, but Columbo has us covered. “You have no conscience. You lack imagination. You actually believe a normal person could be paid off to forget a murder. You can’t imagine someone who isn’t like you.” Oh, …one more thing…I tagged you because…Celeste Yarnell was credited third from the bottom. I certainly don’t remember seeing her so she must have been a ‘friend at funeral’, and if she had any lines it would have been like two. I mean I know you gotta pay the bills but this was right around when she had the lead in Beast of Blood and The Velvet Vampire…which I’ve seen a couple of times and never realized til now it was her. I dunno. Little things like that bother me. You know…my wife is always telling me… ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2023, 10:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/columbo-a-few-questions-for-discussion/957074/117 "2023-03-15T10:15:28Z")
I made these additional comments a few weeks back on a different thread: > [@Spotting Star Trek actors in other programs](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spotting-star-trek-actors-in-other-programs/794982/1551): > > Got news here: I watched that episode on two different nights this week and read an on-line transcript of it. Despite what it says on the credits, I could find neither “Richard” nor “Gloria” in any scene. I suspect they both ended up on the cutting room floor. The business about fabricating the victim’s keys was, BTW, dumb and completely unnecessary. I watched a clip of the first act on YouTube and he puts them down in the foyer at 01:20. At 03:05, Lee Grant takes them to dump the body. At … ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2023, 10:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/columbo-a-few-questions-for-discussion/957074/118 "2023-03-15T10:39:20Z")
Speaking of Celeste Yarnell, I saw her in a documentary about Elvis Presley over the weekend. (She was cast opposite him in _ **Live a Little, Love a Little** _ (1968).) When they met for the first time, he gave her a big hug and told her how much he enjoyed her in the _ **Star Trek** _ episode “The Apple,” in which she played Chekov’s squeeze. It seems Elvis was a big _ **Star Trek** _ fan. I didn’t know Celeste had passed away in 2018. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![abcdefghij](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/43a26b/32.png) [@abcdefghij](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/abcdefghij)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2023, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/columbo-a-few-questions-for-discussion/957074/119 "2023-03-15T13:27:21Z")
> [@WildaBeast](#): > > Then he set the timer on the VCR to play back the tape of the murder on the monitor in the security booth at 10:30 That’d never work. Everybody knows that VCRs just blink `12:00`. ---
**Author:** ![Pavelb1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/439d5e/32.png) [@Pavelb1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pavelb1)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2023, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/columbo-a-few-questions-for-discussion/957074/120 "2023-03-15T15:59:27Z")
I didn’t either til yesterday. Turns out the actress who played the unhinged step-daughter in the second Columbo died in 2003 at age 52 of course. Every time I wonder what happened to someone they died young. > **[Walls Are Waiting (1971)](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0612507/mediaviewer/rm1821155585/?ref_=tt_md_3)** > > William Shatner and Patricia Mattick in Ironside (1967) Here she is with some schlub [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/columbo-a-few-questions-for-discussion/957074.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/columbo-a-few-questions-for-discussion/957074.md?page=7)