The entire first series of investigations featuring Peter Falk's
now-classic depiction of the trenchcoat-clad detective Columbo,
who uses his humble ways and disingenuous demeanour to winkle out
even the most well-concealed of crimes. In 'Murder by the Book',
the talents of a bestselling writing duo are jeopardised when one
tries to murder the other. In 'Death Lends a Hand', a top
businessman hires a private detective to ascertain whether or not
his wife is having an affair... but his plan backfires. In 'Dead
Weight', a celebrated war hero becomes a murder suspect.
'Suitable for Framing' sees a multimillionaire art dealer cutting
his art critic nephew out of his will - with deadly consequences.
In 'Lady in Waiting', the younger sister of a rich corporation
chairman loses her patience with him when he refuses to let her
marry the man she loves. 'Short Fuse' sees a brilliant scientist
plotting to murder his wayward uncle. Finally, in 'Blueprint for
Murder', an architect hustles the wife of a rich Texan tycoon
into funding an ambitious new multi-million dollar office complex
- but when her husband returns, he is none too impressed...
From .co.uk
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TV detective fans rejoice: Peter Falk's rumpled and infallible
Lt. Columbo joins the DVD precinct with a five-disc set that
features the detective's first nine appearances for NBC. Though
Falk as Columbo (no first name) made his TV debut in 1967, the
detective had actually first appeared on an episode of the
1960-61 Chevy Mystery Show (Bert Freed played the role) written
by veteran TV scribes Richard Levinson and William Link (The
Fugitive, Alfred Hitchcock Presents). The pair turned the episode
into a stage play titled Prescription: Murder, which was adapted
into a TV movie in 1967 with Falk in the lead. NBC greenlit a
two-hour Columbo pilot (Ransom for a Dead Man) in 1971, and the
series was launched that fall as part of the NBC Sunday Mystery
Movie, a rotating 90-minute program that alternated Columbo with
episodes of MacMillan and Wife and McCloud (another Levinson/Link
creation). Viewers were quickly won over by Falk's shrewd
performance as he matched wits with a host of exceptional guest
stars (including Gene Barry, Patrick McGoohan, and others), all
of whom assumed that the disheveled detective would never figure
out their "perfect crimes"; the popularity and quality of the
original series allows Falk to continue to don the trenchcoat
some 30 years later for occasional Columbo TV movies.
All seven 90-minute episodes of the 1971-72 debut season are
included here, along with Prescription: Murder and Ransom for a
Dead Man; unfortunately, as the lieutenant himself would say,
"Oh, just one more thing"--no extras are included in the set, but
having these fine TV mysteries in one set should be reward enough
for armchair sleuths. --Paul Gaita
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Synopsis
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Raincoat-clad detective Columbo (Peter Falk) is one of
television's most popular private investigators. Outwardly
Columbo appears to be a pushover, a quiet man who appears to only
grasp rudimentary facts concerning detective work. His mind is
brilliant, however, and he always appears able to ask the one
question that no one else thought to ask, leading to a string of
successful cases. Each episode of the series features a careful
deconstruction of events by the pl cigar smoking sleuth,
ing to keep viewers second-guessing everything until the final
moments of the show. This release offers 7 episodes from the
first season, as well as two Columbo TV movies.
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