The first season of Columbo originally aired from September 15, 1971 to February 9, 1972. Prior to this season, two pilot TV movie were made under the name of Prescription: Murder and Ransom for a Dead Man in 1968 and 1971 respectively.
Episodes[]
| No. in series | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Runtime | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 1 | Murder by the Book | Steven Spielberg | Steven Bochco | 73 minutes | September 15, 1971 |
| 4 | 2 | Death Lends a Hand | Bernard L. Kowalski | Richard Levison, William Link | 73 minutes | October 6, 1971 |
| 5 | 3 | Dead Weight | Jack Smight | John T. Dugan | 73 minutes | October 27, 1971 |
| 6 | 4 | Suitable for Framing | Hy Averback | Jackson Gillis | 73 minutes | November 17, 1971 |
| 7 | 5 | Lady in Waiting | Norman Lloyd | Story by Barney Slater, Teleplay by Steven Bochco | 73 minutes | December 15, 1971 |
| 8 | 6 | Short Fuse | Edward M. Abroms | Story by Lester Pine, Tina Pine and Jackson Gillis, Teleplay by Gillis | 73 minutes | January 19, 1972 |
| 9 | 7 | Blueprint for Murder | Peter Falk | Story by William Kelley, Teleplay by Steven Bochco | 73 minutes | February 9, 1972 |
Behind the Scenes[]
- Peter Falk won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series for his role Columbo at the 1972 Emmys. He won again in 1976 and 1990 among several additional nominations.
- This season aired on Wednesdays from 8:30 to 10:00 pm (EST) as part of The NBC Wednesday Mystery Movie.
- In any DVD release on this season, either standalone or as part of a boxset, the two pilots episode are always included.
- Of the seven episodes in Season 1, there are ten murders committed. Of these, five are by gunshot, three are due to head trauma, and the final two are due to being blown up by exploding cigars.
- Four episodes contain only one murder. Blueprint for Murder is the only one where the murder itself takes place offscreen.
- The murder in Suitable for Framing occurs less than one minute into the episode, making it the quickest of the series. It is also the only episode where the victim doesn't speak, as he never gets the chance.
- Peter Falk had it written in his contract that he would be allowed to direct an episode. When the producers tried to back out of the deal, Falk became difficult. The height of this tension came during production of Dead Weight, as detailed by guest star Suzanne Pleshette, but eventually the studio gave in and Falk directed the season finale Blueprint for Murder. It was the only episode of the entire show directed by Falk.
- After the massive success of the early series, NBC ordered "just one more" episode; Short Fuse was the result. Though it was aired second-to-last, it was actually the final episode of the season to be filmed.
- Similarly, Death Lends a Hand was the first episode filmed but the second to be aired.
- Every episode of Season 1 was directed by different individual. Only Seasons 3, 6 and 9 share this distinction.
- Of these directors, only three (Bernard L. Kowalski, Hy Averback and Edward M. Abroms) would return to work on the series again (in a directorial capacity, of course - Peter Falk would continue on in front of the camera).
- On the other hand, Steven Bochco and Jackson Gillis each worked on three episodes. Interestingly it would not be until the Season 2 finale Double Shock that they would share a writing credit on a single episode.
- This is the only season of Columbo to be seven episodes long, making it the fourth-longest season.
- Two of the most prolific Columbo killers, Jack Cassidy (played the murderer three times) and Robert Culp (played the murderer three times plus a fourth non-homicidal appearance) make their debut in this season. They first appear in consecutive episodes.
| Columbo Seasons |
|---|
| NBC
Season 1 (1971 - 1972) ~ Season 2 (1972 - 1973) ~ Season 3 (1973 -1974) ~ Season 4 (1974 - 1975) ~ Season 5 (1975 - 1976) ~ Season 6 (1976 - 1977) ~ Season 7 (1977 - 1978) ABC Season 8 (1989) ~ Season 9 (1989 - 1990) ~ Season 10 (1990 - 2003) |