August 19, 2024 • 44 mins
Welcome to the show Mr. Patrick McGoohan as Colonel Rumford, headmaster at an all-boys military academy and devotee of rules and regulations. When his reign is threatened he retaliates by killing his rival with a cannon! Now it's up to Lt. Columbo to stick around the academy and solve the crime in one of the more solid episodes of Season 4.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:23):
Welcome to The Shabby Detective, yet another Colombo podcast. I'm
your host, Mike White Jo and me, of course, is
mister Chris Dashue.
Speaker 2 (00:32):
You're like a prisoner, Mike, You're like a prisoner.
Speaker 1 (00:34):
On this episode, we are talking about the third episode
of the fourth season, By Dawn's Early Light. It is
the first appearance of Patrick McGowin on Columbo, will not
be the last one, and we'll be talking about that
as we go through the rest of The Shabby Detective.
This one directed by Harvey Hart, written by Howard Burke,
(00:56):
and it dropped on October twenty seventh, nineteen seventy four.
This is the season of ninety some minutes episodes. Can
feel it with this one, but at the same time,
I feel like I'm watching two performers McGowen and fall
just going at it, and I'm really a fan of
(01:16):
this one. Chris, what did you think of by Dawn's
Early Light.
Speaker 2 (01:20):
I don't think you oversold it when you talked about
it on the last episode, you were like, this is
gonna be a good one, and this a pivoting point
for this show. It was pretty good. But Patrick mcgoin
jokes about the prisoner aside, he's a fantastic actor if
he even if he himself was not necessarily the most
exciting or entertaining person in the world. This is the
(01:40):
same guy who said, I quote James Bond has too
much sex for me, so I'm not interested in playing
the role which is boy stodgy dude. I would say
I think episodes fun. I'm not the biggest fan of
a military academy setting. I think it's a little I
don't know, I get it. That's maybe my only quibble,
but in terms of it being a quibble, it's a
(02:01):
minor one. I think this is a pretty good episode.
And the back and forth between Peter Falk and Patrick
McGowan and is why you're here about you? Mike.
Speaker 1 (02:10):
Yeah. I really like this one, and I like that
it shifts so many times. There's this whole idea of
who was the intended victim at one point, Colombo just
these floating ideas out there, and he floats this idea
of our main The pretty much the main character of
this is Patrick McGowan as Colonel Lyles Rumford, and he
(02:35):
is a very set in his ways military person. He's
been running this military academy. We'll talk about his sexuality
later on. I'm sure, because there's some interesting stuff going
on with that as well. He ends up meeting with
this Board of Trustees president William Haynes, who is played
by Tom Simcox, and he was a graduate of the academy.
(02:58):
I believe that mcgoon was his instructor or just a
fellow student, Yeah, something like that. And he does not
like Rumford whatsoever. And Rumford is pretty much just a
major prick. We've talked on this series many times before
as far as the unlikability of the criminals, and this
(03:18):
one is very interesting because I dislike him, but at
the same time I see him living by this code
and he really respects this code, and the code is
what gets him in trouble because he's such a stickler
about things. He can't let things go. And even when
Colombo is there floating these ideas of maybe Simcox or sorry,
William Haynes got killed by accident and you were the
(03:41):
intended victim, he almost immediately rejects that out of hand.
And what are you doing. Columbo's almost handing you an excuse,
an alibia reason for you to not be the suspect.
But at the same time, I'm pretty darn sure that
Colombo knows exactly what's going on from the beginning.
Speaker 2 (04:00):
Yeah, this is one of those ones where I am
with you on that Columbo shows up and he already knows.
Predrick McGowan has a big target painted on his back
the moment Colombo shows because he is I don't know.
It's like Colombo has like an asshole meter or an
asshole detector, and the assholeest character often is the one
(04:21):
that he gravitates towards, and that character, even if we
liked them in a Johnny Cash situation, an asshole, but
charismatic asshole, this one is he's just an asshole. He's
like a Robert Culp level asshole. And it's fine. Like
you said, this being a military military adjacent episode, with
it being in a military academy, it makes a lot
(04:42):
of sense to have this kind of character in the
show and to have this kind of character interacting with Colombo,
because for me, that's the draw of the episode obviously,
or any of the episodes of Colombo, is the interactions
between Colombo and the criminal. But when it's done well,
it's done well, and in this episode it is done well.
It's done as well as I think we've seen, but
(05:03):
not a surprise with someone like Patrick Magoon.
Speaker 1 (05:06):
Patrick McGowan, who in his first interaction with Colombo is
basically trying to shoot him away because he looks like
a homeless person that's on the grounds this is a
private institution, and that he talks to somebody. This man
here he's wandering around, is oh, you mean Lieutenant Colombo,
and then he starts to sing a little bit of
a different tune, but really he cannot hide his disdain
(05:29):
for Colombo most of the time. There's even a moment
where he's I wear a uniform and you wear I
suppose that's a uniform, and just he's so pompous about everything.
But they have that moment where they share the cigar,
and I find that to be one of those moments
where they could have cut that whole scene out very easily,
(05:50):
but instead that's the moment that I'm talking about, when
it is Magoon and Fulk just going at it and
enjoying the scene together really makes a difference for me
with an episode like this.
Speaker 2 (06:03):
And I think, to your point, these two actors together
are giving it the room it needs. But then these
two actors understand that they need to give each other
room in the scene as well, and giving the scene
room to breathe is one thing, but also giving each
other enough room within the scene for each other's performances,
especially when again I'm not going to say Falk's doing
(06:25):
a lot of the heavy lifting, but Falk is doing
a lot of the heavy lifting in this scenario because
the character that Patrick McGowan is playing is such a
specific kind of character, and it's such a specific kind
of role, and like you already mentioned, you don't want
to spend any time around him. But that's the intent.
Patrick mcgoin is nailing the role exactly the way it's
(06:45):
meant to be played, because he's just this stodgy asshole who,
as like you said, he has no ability to bend
the rules, even when he knows following the rules will
get him caught. I guess he's confident in his cover
up enough, but at the same time, I don't know.
That's what happens when you go to Toto with Colombo. Baby.
Speaker 1 (07:06):
Yeah, it's that obsession with stuff I mentioned to you offline.
I was remembering Captain Quig from the Kane Mutiny. When
it comes to this character that he's playing, because he
is that same kind of uptight, follow the rules type
of person. He gets obsessed by strawberries. Who ate these strawberries?
(07:27):
We had this tin of strawberries and he does this
whole thing where he's measuring out the strawberries. Okay, if
it was this many people, then it's these amount of strawberries.
Is measuring this whole thing out that still leaves two
cups of strawberries. What happened to the strawberries? And it
so reminds me of Magoa in here with the brandy
that's being made, and I don't understand, and hopefully somebody
(07:49):
can come into the comments and tell me what this is.
I really did look this up. I was trying to
figure out what the answer is. I don't understand whether
they're hanging the brandy from the ceiling and it's only
visible from one spot, one particular time of day. It's
very much like the Well of the Souls from Raiders
at the last start, what's the stick down the canon
(08:11):
looks over sees in that one particular spot this apple
brandy or brandy that's hanging there, and then that becomes
his whole like oh, I have to find this out,
but I'll do that after I murdered this person. And
I love Colombo's just oh you waited. That doesn't seem
like you at Oh why would you wait to go
after this? Because that's not your style? Because he is
(08:35):
studying Macgoin's character like he's got him under a microscope
and just figuring out what makes the sky tick.
Speaker 2 (08:42):
And I love it so best. Second, tell the thing
with the cider is I think that cider you need
to have it freeze and thaw and freeze and thaw
and freeze and thaw to get it.
Speaker 1 (08:52):
Is it like apple Jack?
Speaker 2 (08:53):
I think it's something like that, where it's like the
concentration of the alcohol and freezing and thawing. At least
it's my interpretation of it. Maybe not. I mean I
could be wrong, but the episode doesn't do a very
good job explaining. Again, it's the least interesting part of
the episode because it feels just YadA YadA and not
YadA YadA. But it's definitely the part where Okay, I
(09:14):
get it, this is a military academy and there's alcohol. Okay,
it's not okay, But did they really have to be
making the alcohol couldn't they have just had alcohol that
they were buying, or did we have to have this
subplot at all. I get why it's in this episode,
because again part and parcel, if it's a college episode,
like a stodgy boarding school, you could have gotten away
(09:35):
with the same thing. But I don't know. He felt
just hanging on a little vestigial tale. And we've talked
about this with Columbo before. It's this is how he
gets caught. Really in this one, however, I think to
your point, when we sit here and talk about this
kind of character gets himself caught the cider itself, they
(09:56):
spend too much time on the specifics of it without
giving enough information to explain anything. They didn't need to
go that far into it to get us to understand
why this kind of person would not be okay with
this taking place where he works, because he's this kind
of character who has zero tolerance for anything. I get
all of that, as I'm sure you do. It's just
(10:16):
part of this didn't need to be. They're making me
how gone, they're just bringing fucking beer in. This is
a lot of hoops to jump through to get to
the same spot. It didn't make as much sense as
I think they thought. Unfortunately for them, they didn't have
to do a whole lot of heavy lifting in this
episode because the performances are so good. We can overlook it. Though.
Speaker 1 (10:36):
If he just gave it up, if he just could
not worry about that one violation of the rule's lip,
he might have gotten away with it. But instead, every
single time he just has to hold on to those
rules and does things like the one cadet that he's
I don't want to say he's torturing this guy, but
(10:57):
it really feels like he's just picking on this one person.
It's very great Santini to me, where he's just picking
on this one kid the entire time, and he's cleaning
this cannon supposed to be some sort of big honor
but it's totally not, and that he Riley ends up
running away. We've got that little side plot of Colombo
(11:18):
tracking this kid down and seeing him on this boat
and all this. I'm like, all right, this is entertaining,
and this kid is okay. He reminds me almost of
a young Martin Sheen, though he's not Martin Sheen.
Speaker 2 (11:30):
Obviously.
Speaker 1 (11:31):
Next episode we're gonna get some more familiar faces coming back,
but with this one, it's pretty much Bruce Kirby is
the face that we see that we've seen before on
the show. But I love that we have the introduction
of Bruno Kirby and this I think this might be
one of his first roles and he doesn't even go
by Bruno Kirby.
Speaker 2 (11:49):
He's great, but he does factor into the cider of
it all as it were. It's great to see him.
I mean, obviously he's a fantastic actor, and both him
and his dad are fantastic actor. It's I don't know.
I would say he's not used enough, but obviously he's not.
But again at the same time, and that's fine because
Patrick McGowan and Peter falk are this in a lot
(12:11):
of ways. It doesn't feel like much happens in this episode.
It just feels like Columbo's following Patrick mcgo around for
a day, is what it feels like. It's a very
weird episode, I think, on top of everything else, because
it almost feels like it's happening in real time because
it's only over a day, right, not even we see
Columbo's sleep and that's it one night and then the
next day, next morning he catches him.
Speaker 1 (12:31):
I think it's two nights. I think he's in that
bunk two nights. Yeah, because there's the one night where
he gets woken up, well and early in the morning
he gets woken up by the guy who slaps him
on the ass. Come on, let's go. And then the
next night is when the surprise inspection happens.
Speaker 2 (12:48):
That's right, that's right, okay, But still most of these
episodes we can't even tell how long it takes place
over this one is. Yeah, where two nights, So that's
strange for Lumbo. And also again this is Columbo on
location as well. It feels like a bottle episode in
a lot of ways, which, again, if you're gonna do
this kind of episode at this kind of place, it
(13:10):
does make sense to not have Columbo leave because then
it's just that there's no opportunity for anything else other
than Patrick Rigoan and Peter Falk to interact, which is
obviously the benefit of the episodes. In a lot of ways,
this might be one of the best episodes of the
show just by the design alone, just essentially saying we
are going to hang the hat on. We understand what
the benefit of having a great actor in the main
(13:32):
role is because you just want to see the two
of them go back and forth. So let's just give
the fucking people what they want and just give it
to you for an hour. So it's an hour and
a half episode. It takes about twenty minutes to get
to the point where Columbo shows up, which is fast
too for this show, because in an hour and forty
episode with normally is another ten minutes. Normally hits about
(13:53):
half an hour before we get to Columbo, and Columbo
shows up in the first twenty I think it's twenty
minutes he's in the episode. On top of everything else,
the episode itself and the writers know that this is
going to be one worth getting to the relationship between
the two warring parties quicker than not. So yeah, rest
by this episode's commitment to the back and forth between
(14:13):
the two of them. I just think it's crazy as
it sounds. I think they could have done more with it.
I don't necessarily mean just more Peter Falk and Magoon hawking,
but push it in a different direction or give it
some other flavor for a little bit longer. Just keep
pushing it and massaging it and seeing what comes out
of it. Because they are. Like I said, they're making
a really great case for this being one of the
(14:35):
best episodes we've seen in the show so far in
terms of the interactions between the main people.
Speaker 1 (14:40):
And it's shot in a very good way as well.
The direction is top match for me on this. I'd
love the setup with the cannon and how we have
the explosion happen. We see a little bit of the explosion,
we cut away right as it happens, and then you
see Magoon in the distance and the camera just move
moves in on him and we get that nice tight
(15:02):
close up of him while people are screaming in terror
because this horrible thing just happened in front of them.
But yet there's no emotion on this face other than
perhaps satisfaction and just this is what this person deserved.
He was going to try to take my academy away
from me. And I don't care what anybody says, this
is my place. There's not going to be any women
(15:25):
at this place. We are not going co ed. We're
not going to become some sort of community college or
institution around that. This is a military institution, God damn it,
and this is my place. You do not come into
my turf and start to put what's the line from
Patrick Games barking me like a junkyard dog, this is
my thing.
Speaker 2 (15:46):
Yeah, the thing is like they don't show it because
it would have been awful, But essentially, a human being
is blown up next to a cannon, blown up while
standing next to a military anti aircraft gun. Really, Patrick
mcgoon essentially loads the shell and makes the shell more
explosive than it needed to be. And this guy's standing
(16:07):
next to it and his explode.
Speaker 1 (16:09):
Yeah, and he shoves that rag down the thing so
it'll backfire on him.
Speaker 2 (16:13):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (16:13):
And even with that, they're like, well, this was an
old cannon was bound to happen, so they could have
tried to just play it off as natural causes. So yeah, no, sorry,
I think at one point they say it was from
World War One, No big deal. Columbo finds that rag
on the ground and I love him there with the
rag and sweeping his foot around the grass and just
(16:34):
you're pulling that through. And then Kirby, Ruce Kirby talking
with the other detective and just what do you want
from me? Look at what I had to deal with,
Look at this guy over here in the fucking grass.
Sweeping his leg around, getting down on all fours and
finding this stuff. I got to deal with this shit.
(16:55):
Everything else is so easy in my life other than
this guy.
Speaker 2 (17:00):
Did you notice on Patrick mcgowin's outfit that he has
the first Infantry division patch, the big red He has
the big red one on one of his shoulder. I
believe it's on his right shoulders. Is that like the
longest serving division in the regular Army is the big
red one, the first Infantry. So the characterization of him
is interesting because, like you mentioned, there is a little
(17:22):
there's a little bit of it that's don't know. What
were they going for, Mike? You tell me, Mike White,
what were they going for with this character who's not married,
who works at a military.
Speaker 1 (17:33):
Academy surrounded by young co eds?
Speaker 2 (17:36):
Yeah? Oh yeah? What were they going for here, Mike White?
Speaker 1 (17:41):
I mean, I think there's even this idea of he's
got a girlfriend, or there's a woman off campus or something.
He's just like the disdain in his voice around women.
Speaker 2 (17:49):
He lives with his roommate.
Speaker 1 (17:51):
Yeah, okay. And McGowan always did a great job when
it came to his physicality as an actor and what
choices he make when it came to not necessarily costuming,
though I imagine he had a hand in it. And
I know we'll talk a little bit about some of
the controversy around this episode as far as who wrote it,
and McGoohan claims that he gave a pass to the script.
(18:13):
But his short blonde hair that he we see him
brushing this it's very particular, and he is sweating so
much of the time, Like when he's doing the stuff
with the bomb at the beginning, he's just completely covered
in sweat, and he's got those little wire rim glasses
that he wears, and he's just so prim and proper
(18:35):
the whole damn time.
Speaker 2 (18:36):
It is great.
Speaker 1 (18:37):
I love the way that he will change his look
in order to make the best appearance.
Speaker 2 (18:42):
For the character joking about the prisoner. Another thing that
I mean, did he I don't remember. Is there controversy
surrounding him getting involved in that show.
Speaker 1 (18:51):
I don't remember, mostly around the end of it.
Speaker 2 (18:54):
Yeah, that show has its own fucking problems. Those problems
being that show. When a show does any when the
show has four different orders, it can be watched in
and effectively none of the matter because the end of
the show is such a bed shitting moment that it
is up there with Dexter, which has shit in its
own bed twice, and Game of Thrones, which is shit
the bed once. Maybe we'll do it again, who knows. Yeah,
(19:15):
I don't know. The Prisoner. I mean he's the actor
he is for a lot of people, and he's well
known for The Prisoner to a lot of people.
Speaker 1 (19:23):
But even before that, with what was a Danger Man
or Agent danger Man?
Speaker 2 (19:28):
I think so yeah. And then also the Avengers, right
was that someone?
Speaker 1 (19:33):
I think that was Patrick McNee who will be in
next week's or next month's episode.
Speaker 2 (19:37):
We're with just one episode behind. I get yeah, But
I mean in The Prisoner, he's yeah, that's such a
strange show, but he's so good in it, and so
I was. I hadn't seen him in anything else, and
so coming to this, I was like, Oh, is he
gonna bring that level of weirdo ass intensity? Patrick Greegwins
just strikes me as a weird, really intense guy. And
(19:58):
then if you do again, like I mentioned the j
Bond story, I mentioned it when we did it last episode,
that is an intense guy. That is an intense feeling
to have. Because this was not like, oh, I don't
want to play James Bond at the beginning pre Sean Connery.
This is no, I don't want to play James Bond
after I already know what's making a fuck ton of
money here. Pretty sure it was like they approached him
after Connery wanted to leave the role, or it was
(20:22):
early on enough where you're going to be getting on
the gravy trained baby all the way to cog Heaven
and you just don't want to because of your deeply
intringed English Protestant morals. I don't know. That's what it
feels like. Patrick McGowan just really intense, dude.
Speaker 1 (20:38):
He did some interesting things, like he directed this movie
called Catch My Soul with Richie Havens, where it was
a retelling of Othello. He did one called Kings and
Desperate Men, which I covered on the Projection Booth quite
a few years ago, where it's basically terrorist ticking over
a radio station and he's the controversial DJ. Those are
(20:58):
the biggest things I know him from. Of course, he
showed up in the seventies like crazy things like Silver
Streak or Man in the Iron Mask. Playing this role
also reminded me a lot of the warden that he
played in Escape from Alcatraz, who is also just straight shooter.
This is the way that it goes, and if you
don't follow my rules, then you will be punished here
(21:20):
on Alcatraz. And he makes a great bad guy in that.
And then of course Scanners, I think, is the other
thing where I always think of him and that, But yeah,
not otherwise.
Speaker 2 (21:31):
Dad, He's them's Dad, Billy's aim.
Speaker 1 (21:34):
It's weird because after the early eighties, I just don't
remember him and being in much of anything other than
Columbos and where he also directed a bunch of episodes too,
so that this started this whole friendship between Falcon and
Magoin It just is such strange bedfellows to me, and
(21:55):
especially I think really it's that they're such great actors
and can really buy over the craft, which is hilarious
to me because of the way that they're playing these
two characters. And of course Magoon will show up as
different characters throughout this, but just to see this real
Mutton Jeff of these two characters, the tall one who's
(22:15):
all dapper and everything in his uniform and not a
button out of place, clean collar, everything going on with
this guy. And then you've got Colombo, who looks even
more shabby than usual on this episode, and especially after
a day or two at the academy where he's not shaving.
I mean him at the end of this episode, where
(22:36):
it looks like he just got out of bed. He
looks such a mess, and I love it.
Speaker 2 (22:42):
Big shabby energy.
Speaker 1 (22:43):
Oh yeah, yeah, bs.
Speaker 2 (22:46):
Big, big shabby now coming to the ring, big shabby
Peter fully yeah this again. That's the other thing that
I liked about this episode is by setting it at
a place, we get to see Colombo's nighttime routine and
then we get to see mourning Colombo. The Patrick mcgoon
of it all is interesting. You mentioned he just disappears
(23:08):
the Prisoners like the Prisoner is the last thing he
does before this, and then it's Colombo and something called Rafferty,
which he was in thirteen episodes of. But in terms
of the biggest profile thing, it's Colombo, and like you said,
he directed some of it as well. But yeah, Patrick
McGowan just he had his I feel like once he
was in the Prisoner, I don't know, people didn't seem
(23:30):
as interested in being on the Patrick McGowan train, which
is unfortunate because I like him as an actor. I
think the intensity that he has is well used by him,
at least in the roles that I've seen, because it's
not like Number six and The Prisoners a very likable
character at all. He's an asshole in it of his
own right, and memory serves he hits women in that
(23:51):
show as well, and if he doesn't, I wouldn't be
surprised if he's supported it. He seems like that old
school kind of guy. Sean Connery adjacent might would say.
But he was in the episode of The Simpsons playing
Number six, which.
Speaker 1 (24:04):
Is always done. Yeah, I forgot about that where Homers
running way from spot or whatever. They would call it
the white Ball.
Speaker 2 (24:11):
Yeah, the computer wore menace shoes. It's one of the
weirder episodes of the Simpsons, but it does do like
an odd tribute to the Prisoner in the third act
after the third commercial break, and it's again Patrick McGowan
made a big impact with that show. I think just
recently they were releasing toys from the Prisoners like seven remake. Yeah,
(24:33):
we had thought about covering it in tandem when we
did the Prisoner on the one season show, which can
be found over weirdingwaymdia dot com. But we never got
around to it. We never did what you and I
did with Colechek. We never covered it because I think
it was just like by the time we got to
the end of The Prisoner, we were pretty well done
for good reason. So at least this episode has cleared
my palette with Patrick McGowan. When given the opportunity to
(24:56):
be in something that someone else is writing or maybe not,
he is still like quality actors, so his quality isn't
dictated by the quality of the writing as much as
I thought, because he's still good here even though there
is some controversy.
Speaker 1 (25:12):
Yeah, and I remember there being a lot of controversy
around that finale of The Prisoner. I don't know if
this is true, but I heard some of the makers
had to go in hiding afterwards because people were so
upset about it. And it's funny because I watched it
in conjunction with Lost, because I remember people saying, oh,
Loss is very similar to The Prisoner. So I checked
(25:33):
out The Prisoner saw that finale, and which is like, Wow,
what a mess? And then Lost finale came out, and
you want to talk about shitting in the bed.
Speaker 2 (25:42):
There you go.
Speaker 1 (25:43):
That turned me off of a lot of prestige television
where it's just I don't want to be burned again.
I'm not going to even start this show because I
got burned so hard.
Speaker 2 (25:53):
I see you from the creators have lost click. That's
the way that would be. If someone like from the
creators of The Prisoner, I'd be like, oh, yikes, I'm good.
I don't know. Yeah, it's Patrick mcgoon. Also seems like
a Stalloon type. I think I know what's best for
this because I'm an actor. That was when we talked
(26:13):
about Cliffhanger recently. That was the whole question of like
actors interjecting themselves into the script writing process. And look,
there are plenty of times with something as recent as
Long Legs coming out and you hear Osgod Perkins talking
about Nick Cage and I worked on the role and
he was part and parcel to the process. And there
are some actors I wouldn't be surprised to learn that
Patrick McGowin is one of them. Clearly that again, if
(26:36):
you are an actor who has aspirations to be a director,
it would lead me to believe you might also have
aspirations to have some sort of writing ability or you
believe you have writing ability. None of that would surprise me. Again,
given that we are talking about Colombo with Patrick McGowin,
and he directed two episodes, three episodes three.
Speaker 1 (26:55):
And plus start in at least one more. I know
he's three more than ones he directed, and I think
he's in one or two that he didn't direct, like
this one.
Speaker 2 (27:04):
He's clearly someone who and again he's also a theater guys.
He's an actor with a capital A.
Speaker 1 (27:09):
You get those other actors who they may not have
the writing chops, but they will pair up with writers.
I know Malcolm McDowell had a playwright that he would
work with. I'm trying to remember the gentleman's name, but
he would bring him in on projects even like Caligula
or Tom Cruise is famous for basically having Robert Town
(27:30):
for a long time would do uncredited rewrites on anything
that Cruise was involved in.
Speaker 2 (27:35):
If you want to have somebody on speed dial, well
in the nineties it was what JJ Abrams and josswed
who were doing a lot of like polish up for people,
just like those were the guys. But yeah, for certain
actors have a guy I think is much more impressive
for me. If you're an actor who thinks that you
can write. There are plenty of actors that do. I
mean to re mention Stallone, he did write the script
for Rocky and he did get nominated.
Speaker 1 (27:57):
Going back to that scene with those two sharing the cigar,
and yeah's talk about.
Speaker 2 (28:01):
The cigar, the phallic cigar between two men.
Speaker 1 (28:05):
And that whole thing too, how like Colombo's do I
chew the end off of this thing? I'm not really sure. Oh,
we'll try this. And I'm like that little moment where
he hands them the little cutter, I was just like,
that's really nice. That's a really nice moment between them.
And then also where he asks Columbo if he's got
a first name. I think one of the few people
(28:26):
that have asked if he has a first name is
just yeah, but only my wife uses it. I'm like, oh, okay,
that's nice.
Speaker 2 (28:33):
She calls me daddy, Daddy Colombo.
Speaker 1 (28:37):
But that whole thing too, where they're talking about the
this is a different scene, but when they're at the
eating scene and he's talking about butter and.
Speaker 2 (28:45):
Yeah, my wife doesn't Margarine.
Speaker 1 (28:47):
Yeah, And Magoon's trying to get information out of him
about why was your talk with that cadet unsatisfactory? And
he's just like, oh, can I have the butter because
this and it tells this whole winding story. And then
finally gets back and he'say, yeah, but what about the contents.
Speaker 2 (29:05):
Columbo's really shagging it up with the dog. He's shaggy
dog in it there. And this is something we probably
haven't really touched on. But in a lot of ways,
if these people hadn't been murderers, I think they probably
would be Columbo's intellectual equals, because again, like the way
all these villains are being positioned is they're smart, but
Columbo's smarter. Again. I don't know if people need to
hear this for their own self satisfaction, but people who
(29:28):
murder people in reality are fucking dumb, because in this
day and age, if you don't have a ring doorbell,
your neighbor probably does and you're fucking hoes should you
be doing anything like that. Just keep that in mind. However,
in the world of fiction, these characters have to be
written in a certain way to be believably nasty and
get out and have to get away with it, which
(29:49):
means they have to be somewhat smart. I wouldn't actually
say any of the villains in Columbo have been dumb.
For the most part. They're like titans of industry or
well off or or in positions of power that they
didn't just get there by accident if they hadn't been
people that were willing to commit murder for power or
money or whatever. The likelihood it does is that they're
(30:09):
Columbo's intellectual equal. They might be someone that Columbo would
want to be around, but because they're willing to commit murder,
Colombo's just a bloodhound on their trail. But because of
the way the show is written, we do get to
see those character moments between the two of them. But yeah,
Miguel Ferrer is the same thing. These guys would be
intellectually stimulating each other. As probably an understatement for the
(30:32):
way it's being written, but you almost feel a level
of melancholy with Colombo having to catch these people because
they'd be lost to their community in a way. Unfortunately,
with Donald Pleasants, he's an amazing winemaker. With Robert Kulp,
he's an amazing psychologist. Their character flaw is their inability
to accept reality, and Colombo is reality bearing down on
them from all directions. But again, if one angle were different,
(30:56):
if it were just five degrees to the left, these
two people would be intellectual engaging in a way that
they would probably both appreciate.
Speaker 1 (31:03):
I love Colombo too. We've talked about this so many times,
the fake humility that feels like genuine humility when he's
asking questions and Magoon and he's, Oh, that's because of
this and this. Don't worry, lieutenant, there's no reason why
you should know this information. It's really obscure. And then
Columbus just like, oh, I'm so sorry. It's it's it's
(31:26):
not me, it's my mind. I'm very slow, he says,
I have to pin everything down. And then McGowan it's
just like I can totally understand. I'm like, ah, yeah,
I'm amazing, thank you, so superior. And there's Columbo's just
already running circles around you.
Speaker 2 (31:45):
Yeah. Now, And this episode is again we get to
see the full cat. This is a cat and mouse
big time. This episode, the back and forth, and it's
again every frame that Patrick McGowan is in after the
initial murder is just Colombo is bearing down on him,
either literally or off screen just here he comes walking in,
(32:06):
stumbling and fumbling in oh.
Speaker 1 (32:08):
Yeah, and we do some classic Columba things like there's
a great walk and talk between those guys, and at
one point mcgoons, okay, i'll see you later or whatever,
and he starts to walk away, and then Columba does
the whole hand up thing, Oh wait a minute, sir,
just one more thing, and then has to start asking
those questions and just basically everything you just told me
(32:29):
is full of shit. I know it, and I'm about
to call you out on it right here until you
can come up with another bullshit excuse that I will
then pull apart in about five minutes.
Speaker 2 (32:40):
I'm surprised neither one of us have mentioned. I think
the most on the nose set piece in the entire episode,
possibly in the entire show, is Patrick mcgoin and Peter
falk walking around on a giant chessboard, a giant chess board.
Did so on the fucking nose. It's great, I get
it show. Somebody was like, and then they're on a
giant check your chessboard. Set get it, and I get it.
(33:05):
I think it works, but it is a little on
the nose. But that's Okay, it's primetime television in the seventies.
Fuck it, let's we have a great practical set, a
real location. Let's use it. But it's not lost on
us what you're getting at show. We get it.
Speaker 1 (33:20):
Yeah, that they used this location that they were able
to get. I'm trying to remember which school it was,
because I want to say it was over in South Carolina.
Speaker 2 (33:29):
It was Citizen A La South Carolina.
Speaker 1 (33:31):
Yea, they were able to film there. That they moved
all of their equipment across the country or like hired
equipment down in South Carolina to shoot this. I'm trying
to think if we've had the London episode and this
season feels like they're going to start to branch out
a little bit more with some of those things. We
both talked about how the London episode was a waste,
(33:51):
and you just get that one sequence of him running
around with the camera and everything, and the rest of
it's just all southern California. Oh wow, Mary old englad
and looks a lot like southern California. Yeah, or the
back clod at Universal and that either it looks fantastic.
Some of these shots of the two wings of the
(34:12):
school with that big chessboard pattern that you're talking about,
and I love that it's like a red and gray
pattern that you have as they're walking around on there.
I was thinking of either Agnes Varda's The Creatures or
even the earlier episode with oh, the main cheering candidate,
the one that was all focused.
Speaker 2 (34:31):
On chest the most Dangerous match, thank.
Speaker 1 (34:34):
You, because I always get that mixed up with the
football one with Dean Stockwell.
Speaker 2 (34:39):
The one that's the same season.
Speaker 1 (34:40):
Yeah, this water isn't chlorinated.
Speaker 2 (34:44):
I think it was that, so that's the most crucial game,
and then the other one is the most dangerous match close.
Speaker 1 (34:50):
Yeah, Whereas with this one, I love that you've got
the play of by Dawn's early light. For both seeing
that liquor as well as it being right there from
the national anthem. I thought it was wonderful.
Speaker 2 (35:05):
I play Revel a bunch of times too in this episode, Oh.
Speaker 1 (35:07):
Yeah, to hear all the music that's going on, And
you'll get a lot of that in the next episode too,
where there's a band and they're on a ship. And
I only know that because I came in the other
day and Andreo's watching the next episode and I said, oh,
that's funny. We're going to be talking about that next month.
We're talking about the one with Mago in this month,
and she goes, oh, I just watched that because they
(35:28):
were doing a Marasol nice. Like, sorry, honey, you're going
to watch it again.
Speaker 2 (35:33):
On next episode of Colombo. Is there going to be
a werewolf on this boat?
Speaker 1 (35:37):
There's no werewolf, though I know you really wish that
there was.
Speaker 2 (35:43):
Yeah, especially if it was played by Eric Brayden, then,
oh you baby.
Speaker 1 (35:47):
Braiden would be a really good villain for Columbus.
Speaker 2 (35:51):
I'm surprised to learn that he wasn't in this show.
Speaker 1 (35:53):
I think he would be better because not spoilers for
two months from now, but the episode with Oscar Werner
as Harold von Wick, I think that Brayden would have
played it better. But we'll talk about it.
Speaker 2 (36:08):
I can't wait. I'm on a boat. I'm on a
boat and I've got a glass eye, and I'm annoying
people with my questions. And yeah, at all Colombo. And
the next one is not a mgoon one. We don't
see mcgooon again for quite some time. I don't think.
Speaker 1 (36:26):
Yeah, I can't remember when that next one is where
it's the return of Leslie.
Speaker 2 (36:30):
Nielsen, Frank Drebin, everybody.
Speaker 1 (36:33):
Yeah, so he's back and he has a I believe
a bigger role of memory serves. I want to say
it's next season where it's McGowen and Nielsen and McGowen directing.
Speaker 2 (36:45):
Yeah, that would be the third episode of the fifth
season Identity Crisis to do with Superman and Batman.
Speaker 1 (36:52):
No, nothing to do with those two. Nobody's named Martha
in that.
Speaker 2 (36:55):
Episode, were so why would you say that name?
Speaker 1 (36:58):
Yeah? I thought that they used the location beautifully, even
just using the little dorm rooms and everything was nice,
and Colombo being so impressed by the size of the
dorm rooms and just how different it is. Because I
do like too. He talks about his military experience a
lot in this episode, and yeah, that's great that you're
doing this, but I was in the real military and
(37:20):
it's not this way.
Speaker 2 (37:22):
It's not like this though.
Speaker 1 (37:24):
Yeah, we played grab ass and knew when it was
time to fair respects and everything. Can you imagine Colombo
and the military, like he was probably peeling fucking potatoes,
knew more than all the generals combined.
Speaker 2 (37:38):
I'm just I guess the other thing I was disappointed
by in this episode is Patrick would going at no
points at baising you? That was the fucking thing from
the prisoner, wasn't it basing? As they would always say
to each other, is that one number five or number
three would say?
Speaker 1 (37:54):
Or I just remember that who is number one? You
are number four? And yeah he's number one.
Speaker 2 (38:00):
Yeah, it's a monkey and it's a mask the monkey.
That actually is Patrick going in a monkey misk. God, wow,
none of that on Colombo, thank Christ. Yeah the Lord.
Speaker 1 (38:11):
At the very end of this episode, he runs away
from Colombo, jumps on a bus and you never see
him again.
Speaker 2 (38:18):
At the end, he just goes to the island. And
it's just anything with Patrick mcgoon is just in fact
number six getting away in the be number six. We've
got you back once again. That was always the joke
with David d'coveny. I'd be like, it's just Fox Molder,
he just lost his mind and everything that is and
just Jillian Anderson walks in at the end, Molder, what
are you doing? And the show is a writer in
(38:38):
California named Hey Mody, are you doing? Undercover? For seven seasons?
Speaker 1 (38:43):
You lost me on that one.
Speaker 2 (38:45):
Californi occasion that's like the only other show David to
Copany's been ever Keiven an opportunity to lead for more
than like a season or two.
Speaker 1 (38:51):
Unfortunately, or David to Cony.
Speaker 2 (38:53):
But Patrick mcgoan, I just imagine he's always number six
because he always tries to get away in that show
and he never does.
Speaker 1 (39:00):
Love Columbo, Colin, Captain Loomis, Loomis is a great such
a great name, McCall. Captain Loomis up in the middle
of the night. The payphone becomes such a big thing
in this episode. Between that and then later on it's
Loomis calls up mcgowon and it's just, oh, hey, we
found the found more about this apple cider. Hurry up,
(39:20):
then let's go, and just that whole finale, the reveal
at the end and confronting him with everything, and I
just love how everybody's coming down and mcgoon's just hurry up,
get down here. And then Colombo steps in and just
does again with the hand thing, hold on delay that
(39:40):
order basically, and I'm just like, oh, this is the
mutiny moment right here, when Colombo is going to stop
mcgoon's order and then just starts to lay it all
out for him classic reveal, which is wonderful. And I
just like I said, I really liked this episode. I
just find it very solid.
Speaker 2 (40:00):
I'm with you. It's a well written episode, a well
directed and yeah, the fact that it's on location I
think helps it stand out. And again the fact that
it's really the first Bottle episode we've had in a
lot of ways. Also, I think great performance, great location,
great writing, a little fuzzy from time to time in
terms of the how catchum really being anything other than
(40:20):
just it's fine, But the interactions between Magoon and Folk
are so good that it just makes up for everything
I think is probably underselling it.
Speaker 1 (40:30):
So mcgoon won an Emmy for Outstanding Guest Actor in
the Drama Series, and he also won again for another
Columbo episode called Agenda for Murder, which I can't remember
what season that's in, but yeah, so we'll see more
of him. It's probably not going to win an Emmy
for the one from season five. We'll talk about that
(40:52):
once we get there, but until then next month we'll
come back and talk about one that is directed by
falks ol friend Ben Gazzara is a back behind the camera.
I'm trying to remember if he was in front of
the camera at all, on the chauffeur was always just
behind it. I think it was just behind it at
least to this point. I think you're right yeah, And
that one is yes. As you said, Columbo on a boat,
(41:16):
on an MF.
Speaker 2 (41:16):
A boat, Patrick Meey, you were right yeah.
Speaker 1 (41:20):
And the return of Dean stockwell as well as the
return of Bernard Fox aka Doctor Bombay from Bewitched, who
is back from England and now he's on a cruise ship.
And our friend Robert Vaughan, who I don't think I
think this was his only villain. No, he comes back
in the Commodore one. He comes back in one of
the worst episodes of Columbo. But we will give Oh yeah,
(41:44):
I could really use someone to polish my chrome r
What does he say? I need someone to help sand
the floors, a lay some carpet. So good, until then, Chris,
what are you up to these days?
Speaker 2 (42:00):
What I'm up to professionally can be found at weirdingwaymedia
dot com, where everything that I work on is all
the audio diversions that I work on, either producing or
being a part of, can be found other than ranking
on Bond, which can be found at Patreon dot com,
slash or Injection Booth and Slash Culture cast at a
ten dollars level or higher. Once a month you get
(42:21):
to hear Richard HadAM of Richard Adam's paranormal Bookshelf, Mike
White and I talk about James Bond and right now
we just released an episode about on Her Majesty's Secret Service?
Is that right? Is correct? About Honor majesty Secret Service?
And we were joined by Richard Adam's wife, Susan Lambert
HadAM and her co host Sharon Johnson from eighties TV Ladies.
So if that's the thing you should be into, which
(42:41):
it is, you know where to find it. What about you?
Mike White?
Speaker 1 (42:45):
Yeah, pretty much the same thing all the way down
to the ranking on Bond. So come on by Wordingwaymedia
dot com and hear more of me talking about movies.
Barney Miller, I just released a bonus episode of our
old colt Check tape show is out there talking with
a writer Paul Terry, who recently wrote a short story
(43:07):
collection of col check stories all for Moonstone Press. Remember
how we tried to talk to somebody from Moonstone couldn't
get anybody? Well, he finally did though I think Moonstone
is going away and whatever. But yeah, this is a
great book and Paul was really fun to talk with.
So I hope you enjoy that. Find that at Wheredoma
Media dot com or Colchaktapes.
Speaker 2 (43:27):
Dot com Coljacktapes, The Podcast that Never Dies.
Speaker 1 (43:31):
I want to thank John Walker for our opening theme
and Colin Gallagher for our closing theme, and I don't
want to thank you the listeners for supporting us and
continuing to listen to us. Jo On about Colombo. One
of my favorite shows and I imagine it's one of
yours as well. Otherwise, why are you listening.
Speaker 2 (44:00):
An a gay bow, a gay boun
Welcome to The Shabby Detective, yet another Colombo podcast. I'm
your host, Mike White Jo and me, of course, is
mister Chris Dashue.
Speaker 2 (00:32):
You're like a prisoner, Mike, You're like a prisoner.
Speaker 1 (00:34):
On this episode, we are talking about the third episode
of the fourth season, By Dawn's Early Light. It is
the first appearance of Patrick McGowin on Columbo, will not
be the last one, and we'll be talking about that
as we go through the rest of The Shabby Detective.
This one directed by Harvey Hart, written by Howard Burke,
(00:56):
and it dropped on October twenty seventh, nineteen seventy four.
This is the season of ninety some minutes episodes. Can
feel it with this one, but at the same time,
I feel like I'm watching two performers McGowen and fall
just going at it, and I'm really a fan of
(01:16):
this one. Chris, what did you think of by Dawn's
Early Light.
Speaker 2 (01:20):
I don't think you oversold it when you talked about
it on the last episode, you were like, this is
gonna be a good one, and this a pivoting point
for this show. It was pretty good. But Patrick mcgoin
jokes about the prisoner aside, he's a fantastic actor if
he even if he himself was not necessarily the most
exciting or entertaining person in the world. This is the
(01:40):
same guy who said, I quote James Bond has too
much sex for me, so I'm not interested in playing
the role which is boy stodgy dude. I would say
I think episodes fun. I'm not the biggest fan of
a military academy setting. I think it's a little I
don't know, I get it. That's maybe my only quibble,
but in terms of it being a quibble, it's a
(02:01):
minor one. I think this is a pretty good episode.
And the back and forth between Peter Falk and Patrick
McGowan and is why you're here about you? Mike.
Speaker 1 (02:10):
Yeah. I really like this one, and I like that
it shifts so many times. There's this whole idea of
who was the intended victim at one point, Colombo just
these floating ideas out there, and he floats this idea
of our main The pretty much the main character of
this is Patrick McGowan as Colonel Lyles Rumford, and he
(02:35):
is a very set in his ways military person. He's
been running this military academy. We'll talk about his sexuality
later on. I'm sure, because there's some interesting stuff going
on with that as well. He ends up meeting with
this Board of Trustees president William Haynes, who is played
by Tom Simcox, and he was a graduate of the academy.
(02:58):
I believe that mcgoon was his instructor or just a
fellow student, Yeah, something like that. And he does not
like Rumford whatsoever. And Rumford is pretty much just a
major prick. We've talked on this series many times before
as far as the unlikability of the criminals, and this
(03:18):
one is very interesting because I dislike him, but at
the same time I see him living by this code
and he really respects this code, and the code is
what gets him in trouble because he's such a stickler
about things. He can't let things go. And even when
Colombo is there floating these ideas of maybe Simcox or sorry,
William Haynes got killed by accident and you were the
(03:41):
intended victim, he almost immediately rejects that out of hand.
And what are you doing. Columbo's almost handing you an excuse,
an alibia reason for you to not be the suspect.
But at the same time, I'm pretty darn sure that
Colombo knows exactly what's going on from the beginning.
Speaker 2 (04:00):
Yeah, this is one of those ones where I am
with you on that Columbo shows up and he already knows.
Predrick McGowan has a big target painted on his back
the moment Colombo shows because he is I don't know.
It's like Colombo has like an asshole meter or an
asshole detector, and the assholeest character often is the one
(04:21):
that he gravitates towards, and that character, even if we
liked them in a Johnny Cash situation, an asshole, but
charismatic asshole, this one is he's just an asshole. He's
like a Robert Culp level asshole. And it's fine. Like
you said, this being a military military adjacent episode, with
it being in a military academy, it makes a lot
(04:42):
of sense to have this kind of character in the
show and to have this kind of character interacting with Colombo,
because for me, that's the draw of the episode obviously,
or any of the episodes of Colombo, is the interactions
between Colombo and the criminal. But when it's done well,
it's done well, and in this episode it is done well.
It's done as well as I think we've seen, but
(05:03):
not a surprise with someone like Patrick Magoon.
Speaker 1 (05:06):
Patrick McGowan, who in his first interaction with Colombo is
basically trying to shoot him away because he looks like
a homeless person that's on the grounds this is a
private institution, and that he talks to somebody. This man
here he's wandering around, is oh, you mean Lieutenant Colombo,
and then he starts to sing a little bit of
a different tune, but really he cannot hide his disdain
(05:29):
for Colombo most of the time. There's even a moment
where he's I wear a uniform and you wear I
suppose that's a uniform, and just he's so pompous about everything.
But they have that moment where they share the cigar,
and I find that to be one of those moments
where they could have cut that whole scene out very easily,
(05:50):
but instead that's the moment that I'm talking about, when
it is Magoon and Fulk just going at it and
enjoying the scene together really makes a difference for me
with an episode like this.
Speaker 2 (06:03):
And I think, to your point, these two actors together
are giving it the room it needs. But then these
two actors understand that they need to give each other
room in the scene as well, and giving the scene
room to breathe is one thing, but also giving each
other enough room within the scene for each other's performances,
especially when again I'm not going to say Falk's doing
(06:25):
a lot of the heavy lifting, but Falk is doing
a lot of the heavy lifting in this scenario because
the character that Patrick McGowan is playing is such a
specific kind of character, and it's such a specific kind
of role, and like you already mentioned, you don't want
to spend any time around him. But that's the intent.
Patrick mcgoin is nailing the role exactly the way it's
(06:45):
meant to be played, because he's just this stodgy asshole who,
as like you said, he has no ability to bend
the rules, even when he knows following the rules will
get him caught. I guess he's confident in his cover
up enough, but at the same time, I don't know.
That's what happens when you go to Toto with Colombo. Baby.
Speaker 1 (07:06):
Yeah, it's that obsession with stuff I mentioned to you offline.
I was remembering Captain Quig from the Kane Mutiny. When
it comes to this character that he's playing, because he
is that same kind of uptight, follow the rules type
of person. He gets obsessed by strawberries. Who ate these strawberries?
(07:27):
We had this tin of strawberries and he does this
whole thing where he's measuring out the strawberries. Okay, if
it was this many people, then it's these amount of strawberries.
Is measuring this whole thing out that still leaves two
cups of strawberries. What happened to the strawberries? And it
so reminds me of Magoa in here with the brandy
that's being made, and I don't understand, and hopefully somebody
(07:49):
can come into the comments and tell me what this is.
I really did look this up. I was trying to
figure out what the answer is. I don't understand whether
they're hanging the brandy from the ceiling and it's only
visible from one spot, one particular time of day. It's
very much like the Well of the Souls from Raiders
at the last start, what's the stick down the canon
(08:11):
looks over sees in that one particular spot this apple
brandy or brandy that's hanging there, and then that becomes
his whole like oh, I have to find this out,
but I'll do that after I murdered this person. And
I love Colombo's just oh you waited. That doesn't seem
like you at Oh why would you wait to go
after this? Because that's not your style? Because he is
(08:35):
studying Macgoin's character like he's got him under a microscope
and just figuring out what makes the sky tick.
Speaker 2 (08:42):
And I love it so best. Second, tell the thing
with the cider is I think that cider you need
to have it freeze and thaw and freeze and thaw
and freeze and thaw to get it.
Speaker 1 (08:52):
Is it like apple Jack?
Speaker 2 (08:53):
I think it's something like that, where it's like the
concentration of the alcohol and freezing and thawing. At least
it's my interpretation of it. Maybe not. I mean I
could be wrong, but the episode doesn't do a very
good job explaining. Again, it's the least interesting part of
the episode because it feels just YadA YadA and not
YadA YadA. But it's definitely the part where Okay, I
(09:14):
get it, this is a military academy and there's alcohol. Okay,
it's not okay, But did they really have to be
making the alcohol couldn't they have just had alcohol that
they were buying, or did we have to have this
subplot at all. I get why it's in this episode,
because again part and parcel, if it's a college episode,
like a stodgy boarding school, you could have gotten away
(09:35):
with the same thing. But I don't know. He felt
just hanging on a little vestigial tale. And we've talked
about this with Columbo before. It's this is how he
gets caught. Really in this one, however, I think to
your point, when we sit here and talk about this
kind of character gets himself caught the cider itself, they
(09:56):
spend too much time on the specifics of it without
giving enough information to explain anything. They didn't need to
go that far into it to get us to understand
why this kind of person would not be okay with
this taking place where he works, because he's this kind
of character who has zero tolerance for anything. I get
all of that, as I'm sure you do. It's just
(10:16):
part of this didn't need to be. They're making me
how gone, they're just bringing fucking beer in. This is
a lot of hoops to jump through to get to
the same spot. It didn't make as much sense as
I think they thought. Unfortunately for them, they didn't have
to do a whole lot of heavy lifting in this
episode because the performances are so good. We can overlook it. Though.
Speaker 1 (10:36):
If he just gave it up, if he just could
not worry about that one violation of the rule's lip,
he might have gotten away with it. But instead, every
single time he just has to hold on to those
rules and does things like the one cadet that he's
I don't want to say he's torturing this guy, but
(10:57):
it really feels like he's just picking on this one person.
It's very great Santini to me, where he's just picking
on this one kid the entire time, and he's cleaning
this cannon supposed to be some sort of big honor
but it's totally not, and that he Riley ends up
running away. We've got that little side plot of Colombo
(11:18):
tracking this kid down and seeing him on this boat
and all this. I'm like, all right, this is entertaining,
and this kid is okay. He reminds me almost of
a young Martin Sheen, though he's not Martin Sheen.
Speaker 2 (11:30):
Obviously.
Speaker 1 (11:31):
Next episode we're gonna get some more familiar faces coming back,
but with this one, it's pretty much Bruce Kirby is
the face that we see that we've seen before on
the show. But I love that we have the introduction
of Bruno Kirby and this I think this might be
one of his first roles and he doesn't even go
by Bruno Kirby.
Speaker 2 (11:49):
He's great, but he does factor into the cider of
it all as it were. It's great to see him.
I mean, obviously he's a fantastic actor, and both him
and his dad are fantastic actor. It's I don't know.
I would say he's not used enough, but obviously he's not.
But again at the same time, and that's fine because
Patrick McGowan and Peter falk are this in a lot
(12:11):
of ways. It doesn't feel like much happens in this episode.
It just feels like Columbo's following Patrick mcgo around for
a day, is what it feels like. It's a very
weird episode, I think, on top of everything else, because
it almost feels like it's happening in real time because
it's only over a day, right, not even we see
Columbo's sleep and that's it one night and then the
next day, next morning he catches him.
Speaker 1 (12:31):
I think it's two nights. I think he's in that
bunk two nights. Yeah, because there's the one night where
he gets woken up, well and early in the morning
he gets woken up by the guy who slaps him
on the ass. Come on, let's go. And then the
next night is when the surprise inspection happens.
Speaker 2 (12:48):
That's right, that's right, okay, But still most of these
episodes we can't even tell how long it takes place
over this one is. Yeah, where two nights, So that's
strange for Lumbo. And also again this is Columbo on
location as well. It feels like a bottle episode in
a lot of ways, which, again, if you're gonna do
this kind of episode at this kind of place, it
(13:10):
does make sense to not have Columbo leave because then
it's just that there's no opportunity for anything else other
than Patrick Rigoan and Peter Falk to interact, which is
obviously the benefit of the episodes. In a lot of ways,
this might be one of the best episodes of the
show just by the design alone, just essentially saying we
are going to hang the hat on. We understand what
the benefit of having a great actor in the main
(13:32):
role is because you just want to see the two
of them go back and forth. So let's just give
the fucking people what they want and just give it
to you for an hour. So it's an hour and
a half episode. It takes about twenty minutes to get
to the point where Columbo shows up, which is fast
too for this show, because in an hour and forty
episode with normally is another ten minutes. Normally hits about
(13:53):
half an hour before we get to Columbo, and Columbo
shows up in the first twenty I think it's twenty
minutes he's in the episode. On top of everything else,
the episode itself and the writers know that this is
going to be one worth getting to the relationship between
the two warring parties quicker than not. So yeah, rest
by this episode's commitment to the back and forth between
(14:13):
the two of them. I just think it's crazy as
it sounds. I think they could have done more with it.
I don't necessarily mean just more Peter Falk and Magoon hawking,
but push it in a different direction or give it
some other flavor for a little bit longer. Just keep
pushing it and massaging it and seeing what comes out
of it. Because they are. Like I said, they're making
a really great case for this being one of the
(14:35):
best episodes we've seen in the show so far in
terms of the interactions between the main people.
Speaker 1 (14:40):
And it's shot in a very good way as well.
The direction is top match for me on this. I'd
love the setup with the cannon and how we have
the explosion happen. We see a little bit of the explosion,
we cut away right as it happens, and then you
see Magoon in the distance and the camera just move
moves in on him and we get that nice tight
(15:02):
close up of him while people are screaming in terror
because this horrible thing just happened in front of them.
But yet there's no emotion on this face other than
perhaps satisfaction and just this is what this person deserved.
He was going to try to take my academy away
from me. And I don't care what anybody says, this
is my place. There's not going to be any women
(15:25):
at this place. We are not going co ed. We're
not going to become some sort of community college or
institution around that. This is a military institution, God damn it,
and this is my place. You do not come into
my turf and start to put what's the line from
Patrick Games barking me like a junkyard dog, this is
my thing.
Speaker 2 (15:46):
Yeah, the thing is like they don't show it because
it would have been awful, But essentially, a human being
is blown up next to a cannon, blown up while
standing next to a military anti aircraft gun. Really, Patrick
mcgoon essentially loads the shell and makes the shell more
explosive than it needed to be. And this guy's standing
(16:07):
next to it and his explode.
Speaker 1 (16:09):
Yeah, and he shoves that rag down the thing so
it'll backfire on him.
Speaker 2 (16:13):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (16:13):
And even with that, they're like, well, this was an
old cannon was bound to happen, so they could have
tried to just play it off as natural causes. So yeah, no, sorry,
I think at one point they say it was from
World War One, No big deal. Columbo finds that rag
on the ground and I love him there with the
rag and sweeping his foot around the grass and just
(16:34):
you're pulling that through. And then Kirby, Ruce Kirby talking
with the other detective and just what do you want
from me? Look at what I had to deal with,
Look at this guy over here in the fucking grass.
Sweeping his leg around, getting down on all fours and
finding this stuff. I got to deal with this shit.
(16:55):
Everything else is so easy in my life other than
this guy.
Speaker 2 (17:00):
Did you notice on Patrick mcgowin's outfit that he has
the first Infantry division patch, the big red He has
the big red one on one of his shoulder. I
believe it's on his right shoulders. Is that like the
longest serving division in the regular Army is the big
red one, the first Infantry. So the characterization of him
is interesting because, like you mentioned, there is a little
(17:22):
there's a little bit of it that's don't know. What
were they going for, Mike? You tell me, Mike White,
what were they going for with this character who's not married,
who works at a military.
Speaker 1 (17:33):
Academy surrounded by young co eds?
Speaker 2 (17:36):
Yeah? Oh yeah? What were they going for here, Mike White?
Speaker 1 (17:41):
I mean, I think there's even this idea of he's
got a girlfriend, or there's a woman off campus or something.
He's just like the disdain in his voice around women.
Speaker 2 (17:49):
He lives with his roommate.
Speaker 1 (17:51):
Yeah, okay. And McGowan always did a great job when
it came to his physicality as an actor and what
choices he make when it came to not necessarily costuming,
though I imagine he had a hand in it. And
I know we'll talk a little bit about some of
the controversy around this episode as far as who wrote it,
and McGoohan claims that he gave a pass to the script.
(18:13):
But his short blonde hair that he we see him
brushing this it's very particular, and he is sweating so
much of the time, Like when he's doing the stuff
with the bomb at the beginning, he's just completely covered
in sweat, and he's got those little wire rim glasses
that he wears, and he's just so prim and proper
(18:35):
the whole damn time.
Speaker 2 (18:36):
It is great.
Speaker 1 (18:37):
I love the way that he will change his look
in order to make the best appearance.
Speaker 2 (18:42):
For the character joking about the prisoner. Another thing that
I mean, did he I don't remember. Is there controversy
surrounding him getting involved in that show.
Speaker 1 (18:51):
I don't remember, mostly around the end of it.
Speaker 2 (18:54):
Yeah, that show has its own fucking problems. Those problems
being that show. When a show does any when the
show has four different orders, it can be watched in
and effectively none of the matter because the end of
the show is such a bed shitting moment that it
is up there with Dexter, which has shit in its
own bed twice, and Game of Thrones, which is shit
the bed once. Maybe we'll do it again, who knows. Yeah,
(19:15):
I don't know. The Prisoner. I mean he's the actor
he is for a lot of people, and he's well
known for The Prisoner to a lot of people.
Speaker 1 (19:23):
But even before that, with what was a Danger Man
or Agent danger Man?
Speaker 2 (19:28):
I think so yeah. And then also the Avengers, right
was that someone?
Speaker 1 (19:33):
I think that was Patrick McNee who will be in
next week's or next month's episode.
Speaker 2 (19:37):
We're with just one episode behind. I get yeah, But
I mean in The Prisoner, he's yeah, that's such a
strange show, but he's so good in it, and so
I was. I hadn't seen him in anything else, and
so coming to this, I was like, Oh, is he
gonna bring that level of weirdo ass intensity? Patrick Greegwins
just strikes me as a weird, really intense guy. And
(19:58):
then if you do again, like I mentioned the j
Bond story, I mentioned it when we did it last episode,
that is an intense guy. That is an intense feeling
to have. Because this was not like, oh, I don't
want to play James Bond at the beginning pre Sean Connery.
This is no, I don't want to play James Bond
after I already know what's making a fuck ton of
money here. Pretty sure it was like they approached him
after Connery wanted to leave the role, or it was
(20:22):
early on enough where you're going to be getting on
the gravy trained baby all the way to cog Heaven
and you just don't want to because of your deeply
intringed English Protestant morals. I don't know. That's what it
feels like. Patrick McGowan just really intense, dude.
Speaker 1 (20:38):
He did some interesting things, like he directed this movie
called Catch My Soul with Richie Havens, where it was
a retelling of Othello. He did one called Kings and
Desperate Men, which I covered on the Projection Booth quite
a few years ago, where it's basically terrorist ticking over
a radio station and he's the controversial DJ. Those are
(20:58):
the biggest things I know him from. Of course, he
showed up in the seventies like crazy things like Silver
Streak or Man in the Iron Mask. Playing this role
also reminded me a lot of the warden that he
played in Escape from Alcatraz, who is also just straight shooter.
This is the way that it goes, and if you
don't follow my rules, then you will be punished here
(21:20):
on Alcatraz. And he makes a great bad guy in that.
And then of course Scanners, I think, is the other
thing where I always think of him and that, But yeah,
not otherwise.
Speaker 2 (21:31):
Dad, He's them's Dad, Billy's aim.
Speaker 1 (21:34):
It's weird because after the early eighties, I just don't
remember him and being in much of anything other than
Columbos and where he also directed a bunch of episodes too,
so that this started this whole friendship between Falcon and
Magoin It just is such strange bedfellows to me, and
(21:55):
especially I think really it's that they're such great actors
and can really buy over the craft, which is hilarious
to me because of the way that they're playing these
two characters. And of course Magoon will show up as
different characters throughout this, but just to see this real
Mutton Jeff of these two characters, the tall one who's
(22:15):
all dapper and everything in his uniform and not a
button out of place, clean collar, everything going on with
this guy. And then you've got Colombo, who looks even
more shabby than usual on this episode, and especially after
a day or two at the academy where he's not shaving.
I mean him at the end of this episode, where
(22:36):
it looks like he just got out of bed. He
looks such a mess, and I love it.
Speaker 2 (22:42):
Big shabby energy.
Speaker 1 (22:43):
Oh yeah, yeah, bs.
Speaker 2 (22:46):
Big, big shabby now coming to the ring, big shabby
Peter fully yeah this again. That's the other thing that
I liked about this episode is by setting it at
a place, we get to see Colombo's nighttime routine and
then we get to see mourning Colombo. The Patrick mcgoon
of it all is interesting. You mentioned he just disappears
(23:08):
the Prisoners like the Prisoner is the last thing he
does before this, and then it's Colombo and something called Rafferty,
which he was in thirteen episodes of. But in terms
of the biggest profile thing, it's Colombo, and like you said,
he directed some of it as well. But yeah, Patrick
McGowan just he had his I feel like once he
was in the Prisoner, I don't know, people didn't seem
(23:30):
as interested in being on the Patrick McGowan train, which
is unfortunate because I like him as an actor. I
think the intensity that he has is well used by him,
at least in the roles that I've seen, because it's
not like Number six and The Prisoners a very likable
character at all. He's an asshole in it of his
own right, and memory serves he hits women in that
(23:51):
show as well, and if he doesn't, I wouldn't be
surprised if he's supported it. He seems like that old
school kind of guy. Sean Connery adjacent might would say.
But he was in the episode of The Simpsons playing
Number six, which.
Speaker 1 (24:04):
Is always done. Yeah, I forgot about that where Homers
running way from spot or whatever. They would call it
the white Ball.
Speaker 2 (24:11):
Yeah, the computer wore menace shoes. It's one of the
weirder episodes of the Simpsons, but it does do like
an odd tribute to the Prisoner in the third act
after the third commercial break, and it's again Patrick McGowan
made a big impact with that show. I think just
recently they were releasing toys from the Prisoners like seven remake. Yeah,
(24:33):
we had thought about covering it in tandem when we
did the Prisoner on the one season show, which can
be found over weirdingwaymdia dot com. But we never got
around to it. We never did what you and I
did with Colechek. We never covered it because I think
it was just like by the time we got to
the end of The Prisoner, we were pretty well done
for good reason. So at least this episode has cleared
my palette with Patrick McGowan. When given the opportunity to
(24:56):
be in something that someone else is writing or maybe not,
he is still like quality actors, so his quality isn't
dictated by the quality of the writing as much as
I thought, because he's still good here even though there
is some controversy.
Speaker 1 (25:12):
Yeah, and I remember there being a lot of controversy
around that finale of The Prisoner. I don't know if
this is true, but I heard some of the makers
had to go in hiding afterwards because people were so
upset about it. And it's funny because I watched it
in conjunction with Lost, because I remember people saying, oh,
Loss is very similar to The Prisoner. So I checked
(25:33):
out The Prisoner saw that finale, and which is like, Wow,
what a mess? And then Lost finale came out, and
you want to talk about shitting in the bed.
Speaker 2 (25:42):
There you go.
Speaker 1 (25:43):
That turned me off of a lot of prestige television
where it's just I don't want to be burned again.
I'm not going to even start this show because I
got burned so hard.
Speaker 2 (25:53):
I see you from the creators have lost click. That's
the way that would be. If someone like from the
creators of The Prisoner, I'd be like, oh, yikes, I'm good.
I don't know. Yeah, it's Patrick mcgoon. Also seems like
a Stalloon type. I think I know what's best for
this because I'm an actor. That was when we talked
(26:13):
about Cliffhanger recently. That was the whole question of like
actors interjecting themselves into the script writing process. And look,
there are plenty of times with something as recent as
Long Legs coming out and you hear Osgod Perkins talking
about Nick Cage and I worked on the role and
he was part and parcel to the process. And there
are some actors I wouldn't be surprised to learn that
Patrick McGowin is one of them. Clearly that again, if
(26:36):
you are an actor who has aspirations to be a director,
it would lead me to believe you might also have
aspirations to have some sort of writing ability or you
believe you have writing ability. None of that would surprise me. Again,
given that we are talking about Colombo with Patrick McGowin,
and he directed two episodes, three episodes three.
Speaker 1 (26:55):
And plus start in at least one more. I know
he's three more than ones he directed, and I think
he's in one or two that he didn't direct, like
this one.
Speaker 2 (27:04):
He's clearly someone who and again he's also a theater guys.
He's an actor with a capital A.
Speaker 1 (27:09):
You get those other actors who they may not have
the writing chops, but they will pair up with writers.
I know Malcolm McDowell had a playwright that he would
work with. I'm trying to remember the gentleman's name, but
he would bring him in on projects even like Caligula
or Tom Cruise is famous for basically having Robert Town
(27:30):
for a long time would do uncredited rewrites on anything
that Cruise was involved in.
Speaker 2 (27:35):
If you want to have somebody on speed dial, well
in the nineties it was what JJ Abrams and josswed
who were doing a lot of like polish up for people,
just like those were the guys. But yeah, for certain
actors have a guy I think is much more impressive
for me. If you're an actor who thinks that you
can write. There are plenty of actors that do. I
mean to re mention Stallone, he did write the script
for Rocky and he did get nominated.
Speaker 1 (27:57):
Going back to that scene with those two sharing the cigar,
and yeah's talk about.
Speaker 2 (28:01):
The cigar, the phallic cigar between two men.
Speaker 1 (28:05):
And that whole thing too, how like Colombo's do I
chew the end off of this thing? I'm not really sure. Oh,
we'll try this. And I'm like that little moment where
he hands them the little cutter, I was just like,
that's really nice. That's a really nice moment between them.
And then also where he asks Columbo if he's got
a first name. I think one of the few people
(28:26):
that have asked if he has a first name is
just yeah, but only my wife uses it. I'm like, oh, okay,
that's nice.
Speaker 2 (28:33):
She calls me daddy, Daddy Colombo.
Speaker 1 (28:37):
But that whole thing too, where they're talking about the
this is a different scene, but when they're at the
eating scene and he's talking about butter and.
Speaker 2 (28:45):
Yeah, my wife doesn't Margarine.
Speaker 1 (28:47):
Yeah, And Magoon's trying to get information out of him
about why was your talk with that cadet unsatisfactory? And
he's just like, oh, can I have the butter because
this and it tells this whole winding story. And then
finally gets back and he'say, yeah, but what about the contents.
Speaker 2 (29:05):
Columbo's really shagging it up with the dog. He's shaggy
dog in it there. And this is something we probably
haven't really touched on. But in a lot of ways,
if these people hadn't been murderers, I think they probably
would be Columbo's intellectual equals, because again, like the way
all these villains are being positioned is they're smart, but
Columbo's smarter. Again. I don't know if people need to
hear this for their own self satisfaction, but people who
(29:28):
murder people in reality are fucking dumb, because in this
day and age, if you don't have a ring doorbell,
your neighbor probably does and you're fucking hoes should you
be doing anything like that. Just keep that in mind. However,
in the world of fiction, these characters have to be
written in a certain way to be believably nasty and
get out and have to get away with it, which
(29:49):
means they have to be somewhat smart. I wouldn't actually
say any of the villains in Columbo have been dumb.
For the most part. They're like titans of industry or
well off or or in positions of power that they
didn't just get there by accident if they hadn't been
people that were willing to commit murder for power or
money or whatever. The likelihood it does is that they're
(30:09):
Columbo's intellectual equal. They might be someone that Columbo would
want to be around, but because they're willing to commit murder,
Colombo's just a bloodhound on their trail. But because of
the way the show is written, we do get to
see those character moments between the two of them. But yeah,
Miguel Ferrer is the same thing. These guys would be
intellectually stimulating each other. As probably an understatement for the
(30:32):
way it's being written, but you almost feel a level
of melancholy with Colombo having to catch these people because
they'd be lost to their community in a way. Unfortunately,
with Donald Pleasants, he's an amazing winemaker. With Robert Kulp,
he's an amazing psychologist. Their character flaw is their inability
to accept reality, and Colombo is reality bearing down on
them from all directions. But again, if one angle were different,
(30:56):
if it were just five degrees to the left, these
two people would be intellectual engaging in a way that
they would probably both appreciate.
Speaker 1 (31:03):
I love Colombo too. We've talked about this so many times,
the fake humility that feels like genuine humility when he's
asking questions and Magoon and he's, Oh, that's because of
this and this. Don't worry, lieutenant, there's no reason why
you should know this information. It's really obscure. And then
Columbus just like, oh, I'm so sorry. It's it's it's
(31:26):
not me, it's my mind. I'm very slow, he says,
I have to pin everything down. And then McGowan it's
just like I can totally understand. I'm like, ah, yeah,
I'm amazing, thank you, so superior. And there's Columbo's just
already running circles around you.
Speaker 2 (31:45):
Yeah. Now, And this episode is again we get to
see the full cat. This is a cat and mouse
big time. This episode, the back and forth, and it's
again every frame that Patrick McGowan is in after the
initial murder is just Colombo is bearing down on him,
either literally or off screen just here he comes walking in,
(32:06):
stumbling and fumbling in oh.
Speaker 1 (32:08):
Yeah, and we do some classic Columba things like there's
a great walk and talk between those guys, and at
one point mcgoons, okay, i'll see you later or whatever,
and he starts to walk away, and then Columba does
the whole hand up thing, Oh wait a minute, sir,
just one more thing, and then has to start asking
those questions and just basically everything you just told me
(32:29):
is full of shit. I know it, and I'm about
to call you out on it right here until you
can come up with another bullshit excuse that I will
then pull apart in about five minutes.
Speaker 2 (32:40):
I'm surprised neither one of us have mentioned. I think
the most on the nose set piece in the entire episode,
possibly in the entire show, is Patrick mcgoin and Peter
falk walking around on a giant chessboard, a giant chess board.
Did so on the fucking nose. It's great, I get
it show. Somebody was like, and then they're on a
giant check your chessboard. Set get it, and I get it.
(33:05):
I think it works, but it is a little on
the nose. But that's Okay, it's primetime television in the seventies.
Fuck it, let's we have a great practical set, a
real location. Let's use it. But it's not lost on
us what you're getting at show. We get it.
Speaker 1 (33:20):
Yeah, that they used this location that they were able
to get. I'm trying to remember which school it was,
because I want to say it was over in South Carolina.
Speaker 2 (33:29):
It was Citizen A La South Carolina.
Speaker 1 (33:31):
Yea, they were able to film there. That they moved
all of their equipment across the country or like hired
equipment down in South Carolina to shoot this. I'm trying
to think if we've had the London episode and this
season feels like they're going to start to branch out
a little bit more with some of those things. We
both talked about how the London episode was a waste,
(33:51):
and you just get that one sequence of him running
around with the camera and everything, and the rest of
it's just all southern California. Oh wow, Mary old englad
and looks a lot like southern California. Yeah, or the
back clod at Universal and that either it looks fantastic.
Some of these shots of the two wings of the
(34:12):
school with that big chessboard pattern that you're talking about,
and I love that it's like a red and gray
pattern that you have as they're walking around on there.
I was thinking of either Agnes Varda's The Creatures or
even the earlier episode with oh, the main cheering candidate,
the one that was all focused.
Speaker 2 (34:31):
On chest the most Dangerous match, thank.
Speaker 1 (34:34):
You, because I always get that mixed up with the
football one with Dean Stockwell.
Speaker 2 (34:39):
The one that's the same season.
Speaker 1 (34:40):
Yeah, this water isn't chlorinated.
Speaker 2 (34:44):
I think it was that, so that's the most crucial game,
and then the other one is the most dangerous match close.
Speaker 1 (34:50):
Yeah, Whereas with this one, I love that you've got
the play of by Dawn's early light. For both seeing
that liquor as well as it being right there from
the national anthem. I thought it was wonderful.
Speaker 2 (35:05):
I play Revel a bunch of times too in this episode, Oh.
Speaker 1 (35:07):
Yeah, to hear all the music that's going on, And
you'll get a lot of that in the next episode too,
where there's a band and they're on a ship. And
I only know that because I came in the other
day and Andreo's watching the next episode and I said, oh,
that's funny. We're going to be talking about that next month.
We're talking about the one with Mago in this month,
and she goes, oh, I just watched that because they
(35:28):
were doing a Marasol nice. Like, sorry, honey, you're going
to watch it again.
Speaker 2 (35:33):
On next episode of Colombo. Is there going to be
a werewolf on this boat?
Speaker 1 (35:37):
There's no werewolf, though I know you really wish that
there was.
Speaker 2 (35:43):
Yeah, especially if it was played by Eric Brayden, then,
oh you baby.
Speaker 1 (35:47):
Braiden would be a really good villain for Columbus.
Speaker 2 (35:51):
I'm surprised to learn that he wasn't in this show.
Speaker 1 (35:53):
I think he would be better because not spoilers for
two months from now, but the episode with Oscar Werner
as Harold von Wick, I think that Brayden would have
played it better. But we'll talk about it.
Speaker 2 (36:08):
I can't wait. I'm on a boat. I'm on a
boat and I've got a glass eye, and I'm annoying
people with my questions. And yeah, at all Colombo. And
the next one is not a mgoon one. We don't
see mcgooon again for quite some time. I don't think.
Speaker 1 (36:26):
Yeah, I can't remember when that next one is where
it's the return of Leslie.
Speaker 2 (36:30):
Nielsen, Frank Drebin, everybody.
Speaker 1 (36:33):
Yeah, so he's back and he has a I believe
a bigger role of memory serves. I want to say
it's next season where it's McGowen and Nielsen and McGowen directing.
Speaker 2 (36:45):
Yeah, that would be the third episode of the fifth
season Identity Crisis to do with Superman and Batman.
Speaker 1 (36:52):
No, nothing to do with those two. Nobody's named Martha
in that.
Speaker 2 (36:55):
Episode, were so why would you say that name?
Speaker 1 (36:58):
Yeah? I thought that they used the location beautifully, even
just using the little dorm rooms and everything was nice,
and Colombo being so impressed by the size of the
dorm rooms and just how different it is. Because I
do like too. He talks about his military experience a
lot in this episode, and yeah, that's great that you're
doing this, but I was in the real military and
(37:20):
it's not this way.
Speaker 2 (37:22):
It's not like this though.
Speaker 1 (37:24):
Yeah, we played grab ass and knew when it was
time to fair respects and everything. Can you imagine Colombo
and the military, like he was probably peeling fucking potatoes,
knew more than all the generals combined.
Speaker 2 (37:38):
I'm just I guess the other thing I was disappointed
by in this episode is Patrick would going at no
points at baising you? That was the fucking thing from
the prisoner, wasn't it basing? As they would always say
to each other, is that one number five or number
three would say?
Speaker 1 (37:54):
Or I just remember that who is number one? You
are number four? And yeah he's number one.
Speaker 2 (38:00):
Yeah, it's a monkey and it's a mask the monkey.
That actually is Patrick going in a monkey misk. God, wow,
none of that on Colombo, thank Christ. Yeah the Lord.
Speaker 1 (38:11):
At the very end of this episode, he runs away
from Colombo, jumps on a bus and you never see
him again.
Speaker 2 (38:18):
At the end, he just goes to the island. And
it's just anything with Patrick mcgoon is just in fact
number six getting away in the be number six. We've
got you back once again. That was always the joke
with David d'coveny. I'd be like, it's just Fox Molder,
he just lost his mind and everything that is and
just Jillian Anderson walks in at the end, Molder, what
are you doing? And the show is a writer in
(38:38):
California named Hey Mody, are you doing? Undercover? For seven seasons?
Speaker 1 (38:43):
You lost me on that one.
Speaker 2 (38:45):
Californi occasion that's like the only other show David to
Copany's been ever Keiven an opportunity to lead for more
than like a season or two.
Speaker 1 (38:51):
Unfortunately, or David to Cony.
Speaker 2 (38:53):
But Patrick mcgoan, I just imagine he's always number six
because he always tries to get away in that show
and he never does.
Speaker 1 (39:00):
Love Columbo, Colin, Captain Loomis, Loomis is a great such
a great name, McCall. Captain Loomis up in the middle
of the night. The payphone becomes such a big thing
in this episode. Between that and then later on it's
Loomis calls up mcgowon and it's just, oh, hey, we
found the found more about this apple cider. Hurry up,
(39:20):
then let's go, and just that whole finale, the reveal
at the end and confronting him with everything, and I
just love how everybody's coming down and mcgoon's just hurry up,
get down here. And then Colombo steps in and just
does again with the hand thing, hold on delay that
(39:40):
order basically, and I'm just like, oh, this is the
mutiny moment right here, when Colombo is going to stop
mcgoon's order and then just starts to lay it all
out for him classic reveal, which is wonderful. And I
just like I said, I really liked this episode. I
just find it very solid.
Speaker 2 (40:00):
I'm with you. It's a well written episode, a well
directed and yeah, the fact that it's on location I
think helps it stand out. And again the fact that
it's really the first Bottle episode we've had in a
lot of ways. Also, I think great performance, great location,
great writing, a little fuzzy from time to time in
terms of the how catchum really being anything other than
(40:20):
just it's fine, But the interactions between Magoon and Folk
are so good that it just makes up for everything
I think is probably underselling it.
Speaker 1 (40:30):
So mcgoon won an Emmy for Outstanding Guest Actor in
the Drama Series, and he also won again for another
Columbo episode called Agenda for Murder, which I can't remember
what season that's in, but yeah, so we'll see more
of him. It's probably not going to win an Emmy
for the one from season five. We'll talk about that
(40:52):
once we get there, but until then next month we'll
come back and talk about one that is directed by
falks ol friend Ben Gazzara is a back behind the camera.
I'm trying to remember if he was in front of
the camera at all, on the chauffeur was always just
behind it. I think it was just behind it at
least to this point. I think you're right yeah, And
that one is yes. As you said, Columbo on a boat,
(41:16):
on an MF.
Speaker 2 (41:16):
A boat, Patrick Meey, you were right yeah.
Speaker 1 (41:20):
And the return of Dean stockwell as well as the
return of Bernard Fox aka Doctor Bombay from Bewitched, who
is back from England and now he's on a cruise ship.
And our friend Robert Vaughan, who I don't think I
think this was his only villain. No, he comes back
in the Commodore one. He comes back in one of
the worst episodes of Columbo. But we will give Oh yeah,
(41:44):
I could really use someone to polish my chrome r
What does he say? I need someone to help sand
the floors, a lay some carpet. So good, until then, Chris,
what are you up to these days?
Speaker 2 (42:00):
What I'm up to professionally can be found at weirdingwaymedia
dot com, where everything that I work on is all
the audio diversions that I work on, either producing or
being a part of, can be found other than ranking
on Bond, which can be found at Patreon dot com,
slash or Injection Booth and Slash Culture cast at a
ten dollars level or higher. Once a month you get
(42:21):
to hear Richard HadAM of Richard Adam's paranormal Bookshelf, Mike
White and I talk about James Bond and right now
we just released an episode about on Her Majesty's Secret Service?
Is that right? Is correct? About Honor majesty Secret Service?
And we were joined by Richard Adam's wife, Susan Lambert
HadAM and her co host Sharon Johnson from eighties TV Ladies.
So if that's the thing you should be into, which
(42:41):
it is, you know where to find it. What about you?
Mike White?
Speaker 1 (42:45):
Yeah, pretty much the same thing all the way down
to the ranking on Bond. So come on by Wordingwaymedia
dot com and hear more of me talking about movies.
Barney Miller, I just released a bonus episode of our
old colt Check tape show is out there talking with
a writer Paul Terry, who recently wrote a short story
(43:07):
collection of col check stories all for Moonstone Press. Remember
how we tried to talk to somebody from Moonstone couldn't
get anybody? Well, he finally did though I think Moonstone
is going away and whatever. But yeah, this is a
great book and Paul was really fun to talk with.
So I hope you enjoy that. Find that at Wheredoma
Media dot com or Colchaktapes.
Speaker 2 (43:27):
Dot com Coljacktapes, The Podcast that Never Dies.
Speaker 1 (43:31):
I want to thank John Walker for our opening theme
and Colin Gallagher for our closing theme, and I don't
want to thank you the listeners for supporting us and
continuing to listen to us. Jo On about Colombo. One
of my favorite shows and I imagine it's one of
yours as well. Otherwise, why are you listening.
Speaker 2 (44:00):
An a gay bow, a gay boun
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