Columbo: Short Fuse (1972) (TV)

Director:

Edward M. Abroms

Writers:

Jackson Gillis (teleplay)
Lester Pine (story) ...
(more)

Release Date:

19 January 1972 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Mystery | Crime

Plot:

A chemical plant's director gets threats and issues threats, and one of the employees develops and plants a bomb in his car. When the car turns out to be missing, Columbo is called to find out what happened.

Plot Keywords:

Columbo | Detective | Murder | Police | Crime Investigation

Awards:

Nominated for 3 Primetime Emmys.

Cast

Peter Falk	...	Lt. Columbo
Roddy McDowall	...	Roger Stanford
Anne Francis	...	Valerie Bishop
James Gregory	...	David L. Buckner
Ida Lupino	...	Doris Buckner
William Windom	...	Everett Logan
Steve Gravers	...	Sergeant
Lawrence Cook	...	Murphy
Rosalind Miles	...	Nancy
Lew Brown	...	Farrell
Jason Wingreen	...	Policeman
Eddie Quillan	...	Ferguson
Stuart Nisbet	...	Pinstripe
Annette Molen	...	Girl
Jim Neumarker	...	Plainclothesman
George Sawaya	...	Man

Directed by
Edward M. Abroms

Writing credits
Jackson Gillis		(teleplay)
Lester Pine		(story) &
Tina Pine		(story) and
Jackson Gillis		(story)
Richard Levinson		(creator) &
William Link		(creator)

Produced by
Richard Levinson	....	producer
William Link	....	producer
Robert F. O'Neill	....	associate producer
Everett Chambers	....	producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
Gil Melle		(as Gil Mellé)

Cinematography by
Harry L. Wolf		(director of photography) (as Harry Wolf)

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

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

Set Decoration by
Charles S. Thompson

Production Management
Henry Kline	....	unit manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Kevin Donnelly	....	assistant director

Sound Department
Melvin M. Metcalfe Sr.	....	sound

Special Effects by
Albert Whitlock	....	special photographic effects

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Burton Miller	....	costumes

Editorial Department
Richard Belding	....	editorial supervisor

Music Department
Henry Mancini	....	composer: "Mystery Movie" theme

Other crew
Steven Bochco	....	story editor
Wayne Fitzgerald	....	title designer: main titles

Production Companies

• Universal TV

Distributors

• National Broadcasting Company (NBC) (1972) (USA) (TV) (original airing)
• Universal Pictures Benelux (2004) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Universal Pictures Finland Oy (2004) (Finland) (DVD)

Special Effects

• Universal Title (titles & optical effects)

Other Companies

• 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)

Filming Locations:

Palm Springs Aerial Tramway, Palm Springs, California, USA

Company:

Universal TV

Trivia:

The last episode of the first season of "Columbo" to be filmed, though it aired before Columbo: Blueprint for Murder (1972) (TV)

Goofs:

Continuity: In the elevator up the cliff in the last scene. Throughout the scene, the black tape strips on the box disappear and reappear without anyone removing or reapplying them.

Quotes:

Doris Buckner: I called the Commissioner and he said he'd send his very best man.
Roger Stanford: Is that a fact.
Lt. Columbo: My wife says I'm the second-best, she claims there are eighty men tied for first.

Movie Connections:

Followed by Columbo: Columbo and the Murder of a Rock Star (1991) (TV)

Good first-season Colombo

This one has Roddy MacDowell as the chief villain, a conniving and brilliant member of a family that owns some kind of gigantic chemical plant, only two victims away from the presidency. Good support too, from James Gregory (huffing and puffing), Anne Francis, Ida Lupino, and William Windom.

In order to eliminate the two obstacles to his career path, MacDowell blows one of them up with an exploding cigar and frames the other one for fornication and first-degree mopery.

Comic moments include Colombo being forced by circumstances to take a 15-minute ride on a tram suspended from cables, at times half a mile above the earth. Steve Bochco was the story supervisor and he knows his character. Colombo is frozen with fear but never speaks a word, perhaps unable to. He just stands there like a statue, avoiding the windows, while his guide points out all the scenic features.

The climax is good too, however implausible. MacDowell is led to believe that the exploding cigar is now aboard the tram, along with him, Wisdom, and Colombo. As the time passes and the moment of destruction ticks nearer, he becomes more nervous, finally betraying himself by becoming hysterical and ripping the box of cigars out of Colombo's hands.

It's lots of fun.

Curious note: Both Falk and Anne Francis were raised in Ossining, New York, the site of Singsing Prison, born only a few years apart. Falk visited his home town recently on a kind of nostalgic tour. Arriving, he was greeted by an enthusiastic, cheering crowd, raised his hands, smiled gratefully, and announced, "I gotta take a leak."