David Koenig - Shooting Columbo: The Lives and Deaths of TVs Rumpled Detective

SHOOTING COLUMBO

The Lives and Deaths of TV's Rumpled Detective

David Koenig

Bonaventure Press

Copyright 2021 David Koenig

All rights reserved
The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.
No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without express written permission of the publisher.
ISBN-13: 978-1-937878-13-9
ISBN-10: 1-937878-13-9
Cover art by Kevin Jakubowski
Edited by Hugh Allison

For my dearest friends
Bill Jagielski, who loved Columbo every bit as much as I do,
and David Keefe, despite his inexplicable preference for The Rockford Files

Preface

A great mystery, at its heart, is an intricate puzzle that stumps its audience despite providing all the pieces needed for solving it. My favorite mystery show is Columbo. Ironically, many people dont even consider Columbo a mystery, since the traditional solutionthe murderers identityis usually revealed before the first commercial break.

To me, Columbo is betterthe show gives its audience a head start. Hercule Poirot and Jessica Fletcher spend much of their time seemingly chasing red herrings, their thought processes often a secret to the viewer until the final reveal. At long last, the detective identifies and explains each clue. Columbo, on the other hand, is one long reveal. We are Sgt. Kramer with a cheat sheet, along for the ride yet still one step behind. We marvel at the ingenuity andbecause of Peter Falks engaging characterizationthe fun of his reaching the solution. Hes a magician performing expert sleight of hand in slow motion, with his sleeves rolled up.

I have always wondered about what went into the making of the show. Over the years theres been one great book about the series: The Columbo Phile by Mark Dawidziak, first published in 1989. Still, Ive always held out hope for an even deeper, more comprehensive account. In fact, Dawidziak confided to me that he too hoped his book would not mark the end of Columbo scholarship, but the beginning, one that inspired carry-it-on research.

In 2006, Falk released his memoirs, Just One More Thing . I got a copy as soon as I could, anxious to learn additional secrets about his most famous character. To Falks credit, the book is wonderful; it reads as if youre in the room with the author, hearing about his life in his own voice. Falk, though, was a storyteller, not a historian. He loved to share a good yarn, accuracy be damned. Whatever made for the most ripping tale, to Falk, thats what happened. The book contains more than a few verifiable exaggerations, like claiming The Iceman Cometh ran every night for seven hours, and outright fabrications, such as recounting how he first met John Cassavetes at a Lakers gameyears after theyd already co-starred in a movie together.

Later, as I began comparing Falk interviews to scripts and studio records, I realized he regularly disregarded reality. It dawned on me that if I were to accurately chronicle the shows history, my trickiest puzzle would be separating fact from fiction among the words of Falk.

Fortunately, so many of the instigators and eyewitnesses to these adventures graciously shared their memories. Even more beneficially, I was granted access to the personal papers of more than a dozen other players in the story. These are firsthand reports, not shaded by bias nor dimmed by the passing of years. Chief among them were the business diaries of Bob Metzler, NBCs liaison to the series from 1975 to 1977. Metzler documented everything the production was up to, and I could trust the honesty of his assessments and veracity of his reporting of events and conversations. Metzler wasnt selling anything or trying to make himself look better. His notes were meant for his eyes only.

What I hope emerges from my account is a roller-coaster ride of what happens when the creation of two extremely protective geniuses is co-opted byGod forbidan actor, one who was supremely creative, irresistibly winsome, uncontrollably volatile, and born to play the role. Its an adventure in which truth makes the best story of all.

David Koenig

May 2021

Acknowledgments

This books cover and title page credit a single author, but it has truly been a group effort, a feat that could not have been accomplished without the assistance of others more talented, generous and better connected than me.

First and foremost, I am grateful for those who shared their memories and insight: Penny Adams, Jeffrey Bloom, Everett Chambers, Shera Danese, Richard Dick DeBenedictis, Charles Charlie Engel, Peter S. Fischer, Barry Glasser, Jeffrey Hatcher, Shirl Hendrix, Jack Horger, Dean Hargrove, Lucetta Kallis, Charles Kipps, Milt Kogan, Judy Lamppu, Alan J. Levi, Todd London, Jerrold L. Jerry Ludwig, Patricia (Ford) Mayo, Vincent McEveety Jr., Nancy A. Meyer, Jeffrey Reiner, Mark Bruce Rosin, Robert Seaman, David Simmons, and Katherine Wenglikowski.

Unfortunately, being forced to complete this project during a pandemic prevented me from meetingand thanking in personmost of these kind souls. I hope to rectify that situation as soon as possible.

The health crisis also kept me from visiting a number of research facilities, which all went into lockdown mode for a year and counting. That meant I was unable to view several items that I had hoped to. But, miracle of miracles, most of the facilities that held vital materials employed at least one guardian angel who helped me complete my research. Chief among them were Hilary Swett, Javier Barrios, and their team at the Writers Guild Foundation (Theodore Flicker, Jackson Gillis, and Robert van Scoyk collections).

Equally exhaustive assistance was provided by Jane Parr at Boston Universitys Howard Gottlieb Research Center (Everett Chambers and Ken Kolb collections) and Lindsay Moen at the University of Iowa (Robert Metzler Collection).

No ones contributions were more valuable nor more appreciated than those of Dene Kernohan. Dene had compiled a mountain of Columbo research of his own, including interviews with Jeffrey Hatcher, Charles Kipps, and Nancy Meyer, which he had hoped to one day use in a book of his own. Thank you, Dene.

Similarly, Gergely Hubai kindly allowed me to quote from his Dick DeBenedictis interview, which went into far greater depth than my own.

Jim and Melody Rondeau graciously supplied copies of rare scripts I could find nowhere else.

Charlie Christ, Randy Skretvedt, and Jordan Young provided additional research assistance.

Peter Meyer, Herbie J. Pilato, and Leslie Simmons put me in touch with wonderful interview subjects.

I thank Hugh Allison, the most precise editor I have ever encountered. Working alongside eagle-eyed Hugh is revelatory and maddeningand the project is always 100 times better because of it.

The incomparable cover illustration and design were created by supremely talented artist Kevin Jakubowski (www.kevinjakubowski.com).