Just One More Thing

Tell the landscaper to get away from that fountain- our next one is Season Two’s “Requiem for a Falling Star.” Past guest Nate Patrin (Vice sports) returns to talk about has-been Anne Baxter becoming a murder-been (?). It’s available on Netflix instant and the DVDs, if you want to catch it before the podcast.

In “An Exercise in Fatality,” gymnasium chain magnate Milo Janus’ (Robert Conrad) business double-dealings are about to be exposed by a disgruntled franchisee! What’s his wisest course of action? Why, cancel the fellow’s contract with a metal pipe to the throat and make it look like a tragic gym accident! As Columbo tries to put it all together, you’ll be plunged […]

Wipe off those machines when you’re done, because we’re going to talk about season four’s “An Exercise in Fatality.” Robert Conrad is a gym magnate/fitness flim-flam man who resorts to murder when someone’s about to expose his whole operation. Critic Phil Dyess-Nugent will be helping Jon and RJ maintain quality.

GOTV! Time to vote for your candidate for killer with a mustache in a 90s Columbo who’s tripped up by not finishing a tiny snack. Your clear choice is Patrick McGoohan, in “Agenda for Murder.” McGoohan (who also directs) is Oscar Finch, a criminal defense attorney and political fixer whose ambitions are put in jeopardy when a racketeer […]

After a break, we are back. This time, it’s still a 90s episode, but it’s a McGoohan! Season nine’s “Agenda for Murder,” which is directed by and stars Patrick McGoohan (Double-threat! Okay, triple-threat, if you count killing a guy). Chris Sims and Matt Wilson will join Jon and RJ on the discussion. The episode is […]

Hopefully, “Rest in Peace, Mrs. Columbo” will put lie to the “There is no Mrs. Columbo” conspiracy theories out there. Because, in this one, someone actually tries to take out the Lieutenant’s wife! Helen Shaver plays Vivian DiMitri, a crooked real estate agent whose husband was sent to the pen by Columbo a few years ago. […]

Staying in the 90s, with season ten’s “Rest in Peace, Mrs. Columbo,” which the title kind of gives away, in terms of the big story at its core. Along for the ride will be Stevie VanBronkhorst (@spoolses). This one’s only on the DVDs or the occasional TV broadcast, so keep those eyes peeled.

In the later episode, “Columbo Goes to College,”  Columbo goes to a college. There you go. Wait, no, there’s more- while Columbo’s at the college, guest lecturing before a criminology course, the professor is murdered. Thankfully for justice, the Lieutenant was the one who drew the short straw to be there that night and get the […]

Next up is season ten’s “Columbo Goes to College,” in which the Lieutenant is asked to be the guest lecturer for a criminology course. When the professor winds up murdered before the class is through, it seems the kids are going to get some first-hand education in homicide. Joining in the discussion will be returning guest Richard Massara. The […]

“Lady in Waiting” stars Susan Clark as Beth Chadwick, heiress to the fabled Chadwick advertising fortune. When she shoots her brother after years of his holding her back and trying to sabotage her relationship with Leslie Nielsen, Columbo is the only one who sees not a tragic accident, but a calculated murder. Daniel Kibblesmith (Late Show with Stephen Colbert) […]

Sticking with season one, we’ll be talking about “Lady in Waiting,” which features Susan Clark as a wealthy woman who kills her domineering older brother. It’s on DVD and Netflix Instant. Joining Jon and RJ will be writers Daniel Kibblesmith (Late Show with Stephen Colbert) and Jennifer Wright (It Ended Badly: Thirteen of the Worst […]

Robert Culp’s first outing as a killer is a really, really good one, the first season’s “Death Lends a Hand.” When an attempt at blackmailing newspaper publisher Ray Milland’s wife turns into murder, private detective Culp makes sure that his firm is involved in the investigation. Of course, he doesn’t count on Columbo being assigned to the case […]

Yes, finally, a Robert Culp episode. From season one, “Death Lends a Hand,” in which Culp, as the head of a detective agency, is tasked to help Columbo solve a murder he committed. Guest JD Ryznar (Yacht Rock, Channel 101) will be here to help us talk about how awesome that is. It’s on Netflix instant, if you’d […]

In “It’s All in the Game,” Faye Dunaway is a very wealthy woman (who throws awful-looking parties) plotting with Claudia Christian to murder the gambling Lothario who’s been two-timing them both. When Lt. Columbo is assigned to the case, Dunaway tries to distract him with gifts, smooching and cocktail dates. Wait, what? Columbo, unfaithful to […]

We’ll be returning from our brief hiatus with “It’s All in the Game,” a season twelve episode that pits Columbo against Faye Dunaway, as he investigates the murder of her rake of a lover. Writer and cartoonist Carolita Johnson (The New Yorker) returns as our guest.

In “Butterfly in Shades of Grey,” William Shatner is popular conservative talk radio host Fielding Chase. He’ll do anything to advance his political agenda and sphere of power, as well as keep his adopted daughter Victoria close. You see, Fielding was in love with Victoria’s late mother and for him, creepily, the apple doesn’t fall […]

Two returns for the next show- William Shatner as the killer and Alex Knapp (forbes.com) as our guest. It’s season twelve’s “Butterfly in Shades of Grey,” which has Shatner as a murderous and possessive conservative talk radio host who will do anything to keep his adopted daughter creepy close.

In “A Friend in Deed,” (dir. Ben Gazzara!) Richard Kiley is an LA police commissioner who helps a pal cover up the murder of his wife. Then, on top of it, Kiley tries to crisscross-Strangers-on-A-Train the guy into helping with the murder of his wife! Not cool. How does Columbo manage the case when he suspects the boss’ […]

What happens when one of LA’s top police brass is the last one who wants Columbo to find the killer? We’ll find out, in season three’s “A Friend in Deed,” starring Richard Kiley. Ron Hogan (beatrice.com) will be here to talk it over with Jon and RJ. The episode is available on DVD and Netflix […]

Ever wonder exactly where Columbo came from? Well, wonder no more, as we delve into the origins of the show while talking about “Prescription: Murder,” the TV movie that started everything. Okay, well, first there was the short story, then the play, then the 1950s anthology show episode, then this, but it’s all covered in the […]