"Columbo" Lady in Waiting (1971)

Director:

Norman Lloyd

Writers:

Steven Bochco (teleplay)
Barney Slater (story)

TV Series:

"Columbo" (1971)

Original Air Date:

15 December 1971 (Season 1, Episode 5)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

Plot:

A mousy heiress murders her brother, pretending she thought he was a burglar. Lt. Columbo unravels her alibi.

Plot Keywords:

Murder | Police | Family Business | Fratricide | Crime Solving

Cast

Peter Falk	...	Columbo
Susan Clark	...	Beth Chadwick
Jessie Royce Landis	...	Mrs. Chadwick
Richard Anderson	...	Bryce Chadwick
Leslie Nielsen	...	Peter Hamilton
Joel Fluellen	...	Charles
Richard Bull	...	2nd Detective
Garry Walberg	...	1st Detective
Barbara Rhoades	...	Hostess
Jon Lormer	...	Hearing Officer
Frank Baxter	...	Fred
Susan Barrister	...	Waitress

Runtime:

72 min | Italy:68 min (cut version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Finland:K-7 (2004) | Australia:PG

Company:

Universal TV

Trivia:

Last film of Jessie Royce Landis.

Goofs:

Continuity: Beth's sitting on her bed, waiting for Bryce to come home. She opens a box of chocolates and reaches in for a piece. There are no wrappers on the bed at this point but as she puts the piece of candy in her mouth, the bed is suddenly littered with candy wrappers.

Soundtrack:

Love Theme from 'Red Sky At Morning'

Includes a serious Leslie Nielsen

This is one of the less witty episodes. Susan Clark plays the murderer, and according to the script she has to act like a completely out-of-the-world woman who doesn't realize that she is not the only person in the world. I mean, she's a murderer trying to hush up what she did. Also the film lacks suspense because – unlike in other episodes – it's too obvious which evidence Columbo is going to use to convict the murderer in the end. There are no susepcts this time, everybody knows that she did it and everybody except Columbo believes her that it was an accident because she thought he's a burglar. Does that sound plausible?

Leslie Nielsen gives an early TV performance here. It's strange to see him when he's serious. His face permanently seems to be prepared to be funny and so his dialogues seem unconvincing somehow. Probably I'm doing him wrong.