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The change in Lt. Columbo from the '70s to the '90s

posted 7 years ago by Richard Blaine (13)
15 replies | jump to latest

In the original 1970s run of Columbo, we came to know and love the character of Lt. Columbo so expertly portrayed by Peter Falk.

But there was a distinct change in the persona and mannerisms of Lt. Columbo between the original run in the '70s and the later run in the '90s.

There are several reasons why the first run episodes are by-and-large superior to the revival episodes. The production values, the caliber of actors, and the stories/scripts were for the most part much better. (There were definitely some dogs in the earlier run, but I'm talking overall.)

But in addition to all that, one of the reasons I enjoy the '70s episodes more is the performance of Peter Falk as Columbo.

In the '70s episodes, Columbo's mannerisms are subtle and understated. He is mumbling, quiet, and sometimes seemingly "half-there". It is a highly nuanced performance.

In the later episodes, he is a different character. Falk's acting is much more overt and broad. He is more animated. In addition to all this he is more sophisticated and polished in his work. (Granted, this last point could be explained by the years of experience he now has behind him.)

What do you think? Are there 2 Columbos? And if so, which do you prefer?

[–] ShogunofYonkers (72089) 7 years ago

Much prefer the early run
Falk seems to have had some personal issues over the years in between and seemed very aged in the last ones
70's ones all the way
Loved the character...

[–] davebuffalo (3027) 7 years ago

I like them both, but I think the earlier Columbo was always more serious, and the newer one a bit more relaxed.

In the early episodes Peter Falk is a natural at Columbo. In the later episodes it's almost like he's trying to act ike the old Columbo. I think with the 12-year gap it didn't come as natural.

[–] ecarle (14979) 6 years ago

It would seem that only a show like Columbo COULD be brought back, because it centered on only that one character.

And yet, pretty clearly, Peter Falk had aged. He seemed less vibrantly INTO the character of Columbo, more detached and not nearly as energetic.

The 70's Columbo was a younger man, with -- dare I say it? -- a certain amount of sex appeal around the edges. Falk was scrappy and smart as young Columbo and though he always swore by his fealty to his unseen Mrs., he seemed well aware of the sexuality of the people he investigated -- he was hip to adulterers and swinging singles. He was a more virile Columbo.

I like two things about the later run of Columbo:

ONE: A chance to see some NEW great actors playing the guest killers: Dabney Coleman and Rip Torn were my two favorites in that regard, I think. And Faye Dunaway -- the "movie-iest" of guest killers.

TWO: A chance to see some of the Guest Killers from the "Old Columbo" come back: Patrick McGoohan, George Hamilton and William Shatner, for three. Though Jack Cassidy was dead by then, the other key Columbo killer, Robert Culp, also came back -- but not as a killer. Rather as the father of one of two Frat boy killers.

Those two killers -- college Frat punks -- were another reason I DIDN'T like the new Columbo as much as the earlier ones. They seemed to occasionally fritter away the "guest killer" roles on non-entities(those two Frat guys, who weren't likeable at all) or "not great choices"(George Wendt, for God's Sake?) or unknown choices(the French painter) or "weak" choices(Robert Foxworth? Where had HE been?) And there was at least one new episode that dispensed with the classic cat-and-mouse entirely.

[–] Wuchak (8149) 5 years ago

Those two killers -- college Frat punks -- were another reason I DIDN'T like the new Columbo as much as the earlier ones.

I thought "Columbo Goes to College" was one of the most memorable segments of the latter-day episodes. Those arrogant frat boys were spoiled rich kids who mocked Columbo and laughed him off. But the detective just bided his time and ultimately humbled their butts big time.

[–] Wuchak (8149) 5 years ago

The debate over original series (1968-1978) vs. revival series (1989-2003) will never end.

I like 'em both.

But each series represents two very different seasons in Lt. Columbo's life so it's kinda useless to compare 'em. In the original run Columbo is relatively young whereas the revival series represents the detective in the last decade of his career. In the first he's more dynamic while in the second he's more laid back and on the verge of retirement, albeit still determined and totally confident that he's going to get the murderer.

I don't get how we should expect Columbo in his late 50s-60s to act like Columbo in his late 30s-40s.

Think about it in terms of John Wayne's Westerns from the 50s/early 60s to those of the late 60s-70s. Wayne plays the same basic character, but one is younger & dynamic whereas the latter is older & more laid back, albeit still very formidable.

There are so many quality episodes in the latter-day series that's it's silly to complain about the supposed drop in quality, like "Columbo Goes to College," "Columbo Cries Wolf," "Agenda for Murder," "Columbo Likes the Nightlife," "Uneasy Lies the Crown," "Columbo and the Murder of a Rock Star," "Death Hits the Jackpot," "Murder, Smoke and Shadows," "Sex and the Married Detective," "Murder with Too Many Notes," "Grand Deceptions," and several others. Even maligned episodes like "Strange Bedfellows" have a lot to like (e.g. in that episode both Columbo and the Mob wanted justice, so they team-up to attain it, regardless of legal correctness, which would actually have denied justice).

Sure, there are some dubious installments (e.g. "Murder in Malibu" and "Undercover"), but the original run had some dogs as well (e.g. "Dagger of the Mind," "A Matter of Honor," "An Old Fashioned Murder," "Last Salute to the Commodore" and "The Conspirators"). Of course, even the lesser episodes have their worthwhile moments.

[–] Stratego (29278) 5 years ago

I do like the early revival episodes. They're glamourous and the late 80s/early 90s vibe appeals to me. But overall, the first run episodes are better. I also prefer 70s Columbo, 90s Columbo was way too silly at times.

[–] [deleted] 5 years ago

The best I've seen it described is Falk seems to be playing somewhat of a caricature of the 70s Columbo in the '89 onward revival episodes - not unlike if he was playing the character on SNL or similar.

That said, I too am very fond of some of the revival episodes. It gets a mixed reaction, but 'Columbo goes to college' is my favorite Columbo episode.

[–] mattjoes (53) 5 years ago

The best I've seen it described is Falk seems to be playing somewhat of a caricature of the 70s Columbo in the '89 onward revival episodes - not unlike if he was playing the character on SNL or similar.

That change in Falk's performance is not something that can be said to belong exclusively to the revival episodes. In fact, it started happening sometime after season 5 (and in fact, in season 5 itself, if you count the atypical Last Salute to the Commodore-- I don't myself, since the episode is clearly not meant to be taken too seriously, unlike all the others). Anyway, Columbo is already clearly different from his older self in 70s episodes like Murder Under Glass, Make Me a Perfect Murder and Try and Catch Me. More exaggerated accent, more cartoonish, more arrogant, more immediately threatening to the killer.

Likewise, in the nineties/noughties episodes, Columbo is sometimes played in "caricature" style but other times not so much. One good 90s example is Agenda for Murder. He actually gets quite serious at one point, in a scene with Denis Arndt. In Columbo Goes to College, Columbo lets the murderers think they're playing him for a fool but Falk doesn't really play the character as broadly as in other episodes (by the way, unlike an earlier poster, I happen to think the students were memorable murderers-- they're so arrogant one just wants to see them go down). Even in Columbo Likes the Nightlife, he's fairly serious and unaffected in his acting. He is, by contrast, cartoonish in Murder with Too Many Notes.

My impression regarding the change is that Falk started adapting his performance to better match the killer's. Even in Murder Under Glass, while Columbo does act very cartoonishly around Paul Gerard, in a scene in which he is by himself, talking out loud while analyzing what happened to the victim, he is good old Columbo. It's something that is situational. But there are nineties episodes in which he is good old Columbo all the way through.

[–] Martoto (4254) 5 years ago

I think you're right about some of the later seventies episodes definitely being a bit looser in the characterisation stakes around the Lt. Falk was clearly quite cosy in the role, which gave him licence to just "be" a fair bit more and show some more of himself in the core of the character. But it also ushered in oddities like Last Salute To The Commodore and Try And Catch Me, which I can enjoy but have a hard time calling it "true2 Columbo.

I personally preferred the characterisation to be clearly 90% schtick (although it really comes from aspects his own character) and 10% the real man (either when he loses patience with the act or when he's dealing with colleagues and subordinates where the act is redundant).

Nearer the end of the seventies, and definitely in the revived series it's much more nebulous and less nuanced.

[–] mattjoes (53) 5 years ago

I agree he did start to show more of himself in the role. He wasn't pretending so much. While I overall like that characterization as it creates an interesting, jarring tension, quite different from what came before (and it allows Falk to make the most out of his trademark intensity), I find the arrogance in Columbo a bit offputting, so like you, I prefer the "original" Columbo in which he doesn't drop the polite facade until the end.

The change in characterization might also have had to do with Richard Alan Simmons, who became showrunner in season six, I think. He wanted the show to change a little and have Columbo be a more formidable threat to the murderer from the beginning. Certainly that came to fruition.

But my impression is that, once this new characterization was established, Falk stuck to it pretty consistently in the seventies episodes, but not always in the nineties. Another example: with George Hamilton in the 1991 episode (maybe the first episode I ever saw, and an enduring favorite), he came across as less intense, more relaxed than the Columbo of the early seasons --something I like--, but he was still the "polite, benign" Columbo of the first seasons. So I think Falk integrated that aspect into his performance or not depending on the chemistry he hoped to achieve with the actor playing the murderer.

Something I don't care too much about is Columbo being clumsy, when it's overdone, at least. It was fine, and funny, in The Greenhouse Jungle, but in Make Me a Perfect Murder, with the accident, he came across as a little too clumsy and absent-minded. Columbo is eccentric, disheveled but not necessarily clumsy.

In the George Hamilton episode he got into a presumably accidental car collision, but at least it helped him discover a crucial clue.

[–] [deleted] 5 years ago

Thanks for your reply. I haven't rewatched the later 70s episodes in a long time so you've made me want to revisit them and examine the changes there. I usually make it to about season 3 when I'm having a "going to marathon Columbo" month. :)

I completely agree about the villains in CGTC. Very memorable - as was Culp's performance as one of the dads.

[–] mattjoes (53) 5 years ago

You're welcome.

That scene with Culp was fantastic. I also like the music at the party when Columbo arrives at the house.

Hope you complete your marathon!

[–] davebuffalo (3027) 2 years ago

I 100% agree with you on both points:

* The later episodes feature Peter Falk playing the "role" of the older Columbo, rather than it just coming naturally. And sometimes he smirks, like he's almost smiling / laughing at his former self, and "former" mannerisms, that no longer come naturally.

* My favorite episode is also Columbo goes to college. Partly because, ironically, it's the first episode I ever saw! I never watched it in the 70's as a child, but I did catch this episode on ABC in 1990. It was only then, that I started looking for it on cable (Hallmark), and started watching the 70's episodes. I then later was given the DVDs for Christmas, and now simply just find it "On Demand" rather than fumbling through DVDs.

[–] avortac4 (3483) 2 years ago

Different decades are like different cultures; their products inevitably show where they came from.

One big difference between the seventies and the eighties is atmosphere, energy, pace, whatever you want to call it. There's this colorful, electric energy in the 1980s stuff, whereas the 1970s tend to be darker, slower, less colorful and more boring.

The over-used OBOE is something I truly hate about the 1970s, and in Columbo episodes especially it makes me want to throw my old CRT television through the window. Whoever the heck ever heard oboe and thought it's a good instrument for TV show background music must've been an escaped mental patient or something. I can't understand it at all.

Just listen to Shakuhachi for comparison, there's no battle; oboe lost before it started. Shakuhachi is full of energy, quirky expressions, possibilities for all kinds of interesting sounds, depth, dynamic changes and a plethora of soul-pleasing sounds and pitches that some character in this show could kill for (being murderers and all)! (Frankly, it's like the difference between 1970s and 1980s)

But oboe.. all I can say is every oboe on the planet should be utterly obliterated, and the remains thrown in the most efficient and powerful wood chipper ever made until the grains of the remaining dust are small enough to be mixed with a ball of glue and then dropped into the deepest sinkhole and then forgotten by history, and hopefully NEVER recreated as an instrument again.

The eighties episodes were more interesting to watch, more entertaining, more dynamic and less plodding, less boring, more energetic, more colorful, and with more modern technology, more multi-layered and immersive. The 1970s episodes have their own charm, and while the performances and stories may be better, and the might make more sense, they are also a bit more boring to sit through, edited less tightly, have more horrible ear torture in place of music..

[–] avortac4 (3483) 2 years ago

... as well as fewer possibilities of expressing exciting technology, like in the 'movie' episode, where Columbo is baffled by TIE Fighters and such.

I like that kind of 'larger than life' stuff that the eighties afforded the show, whereas 1970s are more grounded in a gritty realism that I hate, because frankly, it's not ESCAPISM, which TV shows are supposed to be.

Of course Peter Falk saves us all with his charisma and amazing performances, quirks and other stuff like that, but the eighties really shows us more interesting things than the 1970s made possible. Computers vs. typewriters, for example.

Sure, typewriters do have a charm, and I love their sound - I have used typewriters in the past, and I miss them nowadays. But computers DO offer more possibilities, even in the eighties, you can't really compose music on a typewriter the way you can do on a computer of the 1980s, or make graphics, animations and such.

Typewriters are great for what they are, and I adore them - but a computer will basically beat it on so many levels, it boggles the mind. The 1970s Columbos are like typewriters - unbeatable in their own way, have a special charm, and lots of things to love about them. But they can't compare, entertaining-wise, to te much larger world of the 1980s episodes that also makes the episodes more entertaining and energetic.

I do love both, but if I am a bit tired, I'd rather watch something that energizes me instead of something that puts me into coma.