"Columbo" Murder by the Book (1971)

Director:

Steven Spielberg

Writers:

Steven Bochco (written by)
Richard Levinson (creator) ...
(more)

TV Series:

"Columbo" (1971)

Original Air Date:

15 September 1971 (Season 1, Episode 1)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

Plot:

Ken Franklin is a rich socialite living in a luxurious coastal mansion bought from his years of writing crime and mystery books...

Plot Keywords:

Murder | Book | Police Lieutenant | Police | Insurance Policy

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Peter Falk	...	Columbo
Jack Cassidy	...	Ken Franklin
Rosemary Forsyth	...	Joanna Ferris
Martin Milner	...	Jim Ferris
Barbara Colby	...	Lilly La Sanka
Lynette Mettey	...	Gloria Jr. (as Lynnette Mettey)
Bernie Kuby	...	Mike Tucker
Hoke Howell	...	Sergeant
Marcia Wallace	...	Woman (credit only)
Haven Earle Haley	...	2nd Reporter
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Anitra Ford	...	Woman at Theater (uncredited)

Directed by
Steven Spielberg

Writing credits
Steven Bochco		(written by)
Richard Levinson		(creator) &
William Link		(creator)

Produced by
Richard Levinson	....	producer
William Link	....	producer
Robert F. O'Neill	....	associate producer

Original Music by
Billy Goldenberg

Cinematography by
Russell Metty		(director of photography) (as Russell L. Metty)

Film Editing by
John Kaufman		(as John Kaufman, Jr.)

Art Direction by
Archie J. Bacon		(as Arch Bacon)

Set Decoration by
Richard Friedman

Production Management
Henry Kline	....	unit manager
Henry Kline	....	production manager (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Ralph Ferrin	....	assistant director

Sound Department
David H. Moriarty	....	sound

Stunts
Hubie Kerns Jr.	....	stunts (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Burton Miller	....	costumes

Editorial Department
Richard Belding	....	editorial supervisor
Steve Johnson	....	colorist (uncredited)

Music Department
Henry Mancini	....	composer: theme
James D. Young	....	music editor (uncredited)

Other crew
Steven Bochco	....	story editor
Attila De Lado	....	main title design (as Attila de Lado)

Production Companies

• Universal TV

Distributors

• DeAgostini Japan (2007) (Japan) (DVD)
• National Broadcasting Company (NBC) (1971) (USA) (TV) (original airing)
• TV2 (2005) (Hungary) (TV)
• Universal Pictures Benelux (2004) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Universal Pictures Finland Oy (2004) (Finland) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Universal City Studios  copyright 1971 (as Universal City Studios, Inc.)
• Universal Title  titles & optical effects

Runtime:

73 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Finland:K-7 (2004) | Denmark:11 (2004) | Sweden:15 (2004) | Norway:15 (2004)

Filming Locations:

9000 West Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, California, USA

Company:

Universal TV

Trivia:

The inscribed mystery novel that Ken Franklin gives to Miss LaSanka is titled "Prescription: Murder", the same title as the first Columbo movie, Prescription: Murder (1968) (TV).

Goofs:

Continuity: Position of Ken Franklin's hands and arms whilst being interviewed by the female reporter at his home.

Quotes:

[first lines]
[Jim works in his office]
Jim Ferris: [knock on the door] Who is it?
[another knock on the door]
Jim Ferris: [He opens the door - Ken is aiming a gun at his face. Jim laughs]
Ken Franklin: Oh, you're not intimidated.
Jim Ferris: Oh, come on, Ken. You're forgetting that I'm one-half of the world's greatest mystery-writing team? You, ah, don't have gloves on, your finger's not on the trigger, and there are no bullets in the cylinder.
Ken Franklin: [smiling] You're right. I'm a lousy practical joker.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Jeopardy!: (#22.52)" (2005)

Soundtrack:

Love Theme from 'Red Sky At Morning'

Not prime Columbo.

While I do enjoy a lot of the Columbo episodes I have seen, I find this early one to be a poor entry and probably the worst one of the entire series. It wasn't that the series needed to adjust itself; the first Columbo, 1967s "Prescription Murder," is one of the best. In "Murder By the Book," the story is slow, terribly predictable, and the damning piece of evidence that proves the killer's guilt is a clue thrown in at the last minute, as if the writers couldn't figure out how to finish the episode. In addition, young Steven Speilberg's rookie directing here tries to create a sort of suspenseful intensity throughout Columbo's entire investigation, instead of building intensity as the episode goes. "Prescription Murder" builds intensity wonderfully. Also, here the killer works annoying close with Columbo, making it obvious to anyone that he is guilty. A poor entry.