In a series marked by twists and turns, Columbo Season 2 saved it’s biggest surprise till last, serving up an actual whodunnit with feuding identical twin brothers vying for contention as the Lieutenant’s number one suspect. A Double Shock indeed!
So let’s set our clocks back to March 25th 1973, grab a glass of milk and plate of health cookies and settle in for Double Shock – the season finale. Is it electrifying stuff, or just a shocker? Let’s find out…
Dramatis personae
Lieutenant Columbo: Peter Falk
Dexter and Norman Paris: Martin Landau
Lisa Chambers: Julie Newmar
Mrs Peck: Jeanette Nolan
Michael Hathaway: Tim O’Connor
Clifford Paris: Paul Stewart
Sergeant Murray: Dabney Coleman
Written by: Steven Bochco (from a story by Jackson Gillis, Richard Levinson and William Link)
Directed by: Robert Butler
Score by: Dick De Benedictis / Oliver Nelson
Episode synopsis: Columbo Double Shock
Aged fitness fanatic Clifford Paris is killed by his nephew, celebrity chef Dexter, on the eve of his wedding. The method? Electrocution through a food mixer being flung into the bath he’s relaxing in. That’s quite an eye-opener, eh Clifford?
Sandwiched around a gloved hand switching the house alarm on and off, the incident causes a brief power outage, disrupting fiery housekeeper Mrs Peck’s TV viewing – and her evening goes downhill even faster when Clifford’s youthful, high-energy fiancee, Lisa Chambers, swings excitedly by to pick up her soon-to-be betrothed.
Lisa races upstairs to surprise her true love, only to find the bathroom empty and seemingly unused. Then it twigs! Lisa’s just bought Clifford a new exercise bike for his home gym. He must be using it right now! Lisa doesn’t know how right she is. Racing downstairs, she finds a dead Clifford in a hideous attitude on the exercise bike, his leaden corpse rolling to and fro with the motion of the machine.
A genuinely creepy and disturbing scene greets Lisa Chambers
With Lisa screaming blue murder, it’s not long before the police are swarming around the scene, including Lieutenant Columbo, looking more dishevelled than ever having been forced out of bed to investigate. With it so obviously choreographed to look like a heart attack from a too-strenuous workout, Columbo wonders why he’s there at all.
Addled and not at his best, the Lieutenant’s first run in with Mrs Peck isn’t long in coming. While examining the gymnasium, he absent-mindedly dabs cigar ash on the carpet, cue an explosion of rage from the pint-sized crone. “You must belong in some pigsty,” she snarls – the first of many delicious altercations between the two throughout.
A shaken Columbo tries to make amends only to make matters worse, first rubbing the ash into the carpet before smashing a pitcher. It’s not long before Mrs Peck is braying in horror, and Columbo takes himself upstairs to the bathroom to throw some water in his face.
Columbo hits Mrs Peck where it hurts: questioning her towel-tending skillz
It’s there that the first signs of suspicion arise. Looking for something to dry his face, Columbo notes a towel astray from its rack, which he finds damp in the hamper. In a house run like clockwork by Mrs Peck, he wonders why. He checks the bath. Someone has certainly used it. But why would Clifford have a bath and then exercise? It doesn’t make sense…
Columbo takes these queries to Dexter and Mrs Peck – the latter instantly livid at any insinuations that her towel-tending skills weren’t up to scratch. Certainly things look odd to the detective – particularly when he learns that there was a brief power cut during the evening. Clifford died of a heart attack; he had used the bath; and there was a power outage. That could mean murder by electrocution.
When Columbo’s sidekick Murray (played by a magnificently moustached Dabney Coleman) reveals that a cast of a footprint outside suggests a flat-footed man has been on the scene that evening, Dexter becomes suspect number one. Columbo event attempts to compare his foot arch with Dexter, who admits that he does indeed have flat feet.
Looks like this case could be closed within minutes – until Dexter’s identical twin brother Norman also arrives at the home. He too, has flat feet. And all of a sudden we have a genuine whodunnit on our hands!
Dexter and Norman: not on each other’s Christmas Card lists
There’s no love lost between the brothers, both of whom point the finger at the other. Banker Norman describes Dexter as a ‘low life sponger’ who’s desperate to get his hands on their uncle’s pile of cash. Norman is wealthy in his own right, so has no motive.
We hear a different story from Dexter. After he snares Columbo to appear live on his daytime cookery show, Dexter whisks Columbo off to Las Vegas, where Norman heads every week. A little snooping unveils Norman has gambling debts of $37,000 in one casino alone. Now both brothers have motive.
The plot thickens further as Columbo visits Lisa Chambers in her apartment. A spiritual and spirited young woman, Lisa swiftly takes umbrage at Columbo’s line of questioning – even asking the Lieutenant to beat it. It’s suspicious behaviour, which Columbo raises with long-time family attorney Michael Hathaway. Could Lisa be in on it with the two brothers? Not likely, says Hathaway. He doesn’t think she even knows them, let alone be in league with them.
As he digests this information, the Lieutenant absently puts out his cigar in an antique silver platter he mistake for an ashtray – earning another rebuke from Mrs Peck. “BUM! You’re a BUM!” she shrieks, before rushing tearfully away. Columbo follows to both apologise and appeal to Mrs Peck’s good side, which leads to an unforgettable temporary truce over milk and health cookies. A truce that lasts as long as it takes for Columbo to break Mrs Peck’s precious TV set as he attempts to fix it…
“Thank you. I’m extremely fond of health cookies.” Said one Lieutenant ever.
Columbo’s questions about Lisa get Hathaway thinking. He stages meetings with Norman and Dexter to let them know that if they did kill Clifford it’s all for nothing, as the old boy willed everything to Lisa. However, there are only two copies of the will. Hathaway has one and Lisa the other. If Norman and Dexter will agree to keep him on as manager of the estate, Hathaway will get the will off Lisa, leaving the brothers free to inherit. The twins agree.
Hathaway arranges to pick up the will from Lisa at her apartment. When he gets there, however, he finds that he’s been double crossed. Lisa is dead, having been pushed off her balcony to a grisly demise. Police are on the scene, apprehending the crooked lawyer as he tries to flee with the will.
“One person wouldn’t have been able to easily get Clifford’s wet and slippery corpse out of the bath.”
With Hathaway now screaming foul play, Columbo racks his brain to get a conviction and finally cracks it. Summoning both the brothers to Clifford’s home, he sets it out for them. He knows two people were in on it, because one person wouldn’t have been able to easily get Clifford’s wet and slippery corpse out of the bath, dried and down to the gym. Someone in the house also had to have switched the alarm on and off to allow the other to enter unnoticed.
The game’s up, boys!
Even more damning, a second person was needed to change the fuse after the power outage. Mrs Peck swears that the power was only out for about 15 seconds. At a trot, Columbo times the distance between the bathroom and basement fuse box to be nearer a minute. And if that stack of circumstantial evidence wasn’t enough, Columbo has more. The brothers claim not to have been on speaking terms for two years, yet phone records reveal they’d spoken 20 times in the past 10 days.
The stunned brothers reactions are poles apart. The more measured Norman comes clean. Dexter screams at him to shut up. As Detective Murray frogmarches the twins upstairs, Columbo hangs back with the distraught Mrs Peck. Taking her by the hand, the Lieutenant gently leads her away as credits roll…
Double Shock‘s best moment: live cookery at its finest
Ask just about any Columbo purist to name their top moments from the entire series and it’s a safe bet that the legendary cookery scene from Double Shock will be right up there.
Weighing in at a little under 8 minutes, the scene was almost entirely ad-libbed by Peter Falk and Martin Landau and it’s an absolute gem. Called up on stage to be a reluctant assistant to Dexter, Columbo is initially abashed and stunned, barely able to string a coherent sentence together – much to the delight of the live studio audience. Yet he warms to the task, making a few wisecracks and milking the audience applause.
“This is probably the single best non-gotcha Columbo moment of them all.”
The nature of the scene made it perfect for ad libbing, and Falk, in particular, absolutely nails it. He’s as warm and charming as we ever see him – just look at his face light up as he and Landau revel in playing off one another. This sense of fun is genuine and contagious. I, for one, find it impossible not to smile along. This is Columbo at his most adorable.
A thing of beauty is a joy forever, and that’s exactly what this scene is. I’d even go as far as to say it’s probably the single best non-gotcha Columbo moment of them all.
My take on Double Shock
If Columbo‘s second season doesn’t quite match the overall brilliance of its first, the creative team at least did a great job in keeping the audience guessing. Despite the show’s established format being cemented in place over 9 episodes between 1968-1972, Season 2 still had the capacity to surprise.
Peter Falk was possibly never better than in Double Shock
In Greenhouse Jungle Columbo appears before the crime for the first time. In Requiem for a Falling Star we’re fooled into thinking the death of Jean was an accident. In The Most Dangerous Match the victim hangs on to life for more than half the episode, ramping up the pressure on the killer.
But Double Shock surpassed them all, delivering an excellent whodunnit in which we’re really not sure which of the Paris brothers committed the killing until the Lieutenant’s final reveal. It’s the biggest Columbo twist of the season, and the best of the bunch by far.
That’s part of what makes Double Shock such a successful addition to the series. But it’s by no means the only reason, or even the strongest reason, because this is 80 minutes of TV absolutely packed with highlights.
“Mrs Peck is undoubtedly Columbo’s most fearsome opponent.”
I’ve written before about how wonderful Peter Falk’s portrayal of Columbo had become by Season 2, but it’s worth repeating. In Season 1 he was still getting to grips with the character. By now he’s mastered every nuance. Falk now is Columbo. He’s not just playing a role. And Double Shock represents him at the zenith of his powers – arguably even more so than his terrific turn in Greenhouse Jungle.
Falk’s prowess is perhaps exemplified best in Columbo’s scenes with Mrs Peck. The Lieutenant is often pitted against genuinely menacing foes: the type that could cause him real trouble if they chose. Yet Columbo is never intimidated by them. With Mrs Peck, however, he’s really met his match. She is undoubtedly his most fearsome opponent.
Peck attack 1: ‘You must belong in some PIGSTY…”
Columbo has to really dig deep just to keep on speaking terms with her. Indeed, his apology to her for his untidiness and his appeal to her to treat him more fairly is probably the most challenging moment he has faced up to now. Talking down a gun-wielding Beth Chadwick in Lady in Waiting was child’s play by comparison!
Falk and Jeanette Nolan must have been having such a good time filming these scenes – not least when she offers him a truce over a glass of milk and a plate of health cookies. How Falk could ever say “Thank you. I’m extremely fond of health cookies” so earnestly while keeping a straight face is a testament to his acting abilities. All kudos to Nolan, too. I consider her to be one of the very best supporting guest stars of all.
Peck attack 2: “BUM! You’re a BUM!”
Their scenes arguably overshadow those between Landau and Falk (the joyous cookery show apart), but the episode doesn’t suffer because of it. Landau tackles the challenge of convincingly playing identical twins with panache. His Norman and Dexter feel suitably different: the dour Norman being an excellent counterweight to the colourful Dexter.
The downside of having twins is that Columbo’s time with his key suspects is effectively halved, and his interactions with them leave some unanswered questions. We never really get to know Norman and Dexter the way we get to know a Ken Franklin, Dale Kingston or Barry Mayfield. We’re not witnesses to their scheming, and we never get to find out why they’re such sworn enemies. It means their motive boils down to money: the lowest common denominator.
“Lisa died a terrifying death at the hands of men she hardly knew to keep her from claiming an inheritance that she never wanted in the first place.”
I have a hunch that Dexter might hate his family because they all seem so down on him. His brother describes him as a ‘low-life’, while the family lawyer claims him to be ‘useless’. This all seems a bit harsh to me. After all, Dexter is a bona fide celebrity TV chef, who drives a Ferrari. Given his niche line of work, he seems to have done pretty well for himself compared to his tedious banker brother, yet he takes all the flack. Families eh? You can’t live with ’em, etc, etc…
Lisa Chambers’ death is a shocking crime
Whatever their motivation, both Dexter and Norman are clearly absolute b*stards. The killing of their uncle is bad enough, but the murder of Lisa Chambers really shows how low they can go. Because Lisa’s death takes place off screen, it lacks the emotional punch it would otherwise have had. But make no mistake: Lisa died a terrifying death at the hands of men she hardly knew to keep her from claiming an inheritance she never wanted in the first place.
Although she only has a few minutes’ screen time, Julie Newmar’s Lisa wins viewers’ hearts – even if she does give Columbo the cold shoulder. Despite that, she’s inherently good and clearly in love with old Clifford. It makes her death one of the most shocking Columbo murders of all.
‘Corrupt much, Hathaway?’ ‘Actually, yes I am!’
Through the killing of Lisa, the brothers also make an enemy in family lawyer Hathaway. I actually quite like this character, who’s nicely portrayed by Tim O’Connor in his first of two Columbo outings. He’s unashamedly corrupt and doesn’t pretend he’s been devastated by Clifford’s demise. He’s done well out of the estate for years and wishes to continue to make money from it through helping the brothers.
His incorrigible nature and knowledge of the law makes him the sort of person you’d think the brothers would keep on side. Sure, throwing Lisa off the balcony to make it look like the lawyer was in cahoots with her all along might deflect some suspicion off them, but framing a lawyer is a high-risk strategy, and one that borders on being far-fetched. He certainly won’t be defending them in court now, will he?
Still, the weaknesses of Double Shock are few and far between. Set against its strengths of a finely-crafted mystery (Steven Bochco wrote the teleplay from a story by Jackson Gillis, William Link and Richard Levinson – a heavyweight quartet indeed); magnificent script; bags of humour and a sprinkling of the finest Columbo scenes ever filmed, and you have a recipe for success.
And best of all? A performance to marvel at from Peter Falk. As such Double Shock is an episode that gets better with every viewing, as we uncover more elements of Falk’s performance to treasure. After 17 episodes, he was more at home in the crumpled mac than ever, but his performances are as fresh as a daisy and he actually seems to be stepping up his game: something that augurs well for the rigours of a third season.
Did you know?
Dabney Coleman (pictured centre as Sergeant Murray) is only one of two actors to play both a police officer and a murderer in Columbo. As well as his turn here, Coleman returned as the chief protagonist Hugh Creighton in 1991’s Columbo and the Murder of a Rock Star. The only other actor to double up in this way was Ed Begley Jr, who appeared as a cop in 1978’s How to Dial a Murder and a killer in Undercover in 1994.
How I rate ’em
I consider Murder by the Book the benchmark to compare all other Columbo episodes against because it was so perfect in so many ways. It’s apparent from the above review that I rate Double Shock highly, but can I justify placing it ahead of Murder by the Book? Well yes, I can – by a whisker.
Landau x 2 still ain’t Jack Cassidy, but so much of Double Shock delights me and I fall for its charms every time. It’s not as important a piece of television as Murder, but for sheer enjoyment it just has the edge for me. Only Suitable for Framing‘s superior gotcha places it higher at this early stage of proceedings.
Here’s my full list so far. Read my other reviews by clicking on the links below.
- Suitable for Framing
- Double Shock
- Murder by the Book
- Death Lends a Hand
- A Stitch in Crime
- Lady in Waiting
- Prescription: Murder
- The Most Crucial Game
- Etude in Black
- Greenhouse Jungle
- Requiem for a Falling Star
- Blueprint for Murder
- Ransom for a Dead Man
- Dead Weight
- The Most Dangerous Match
- Short Fuse
- Dagger of the Mind
As always, I’d welcome your comments on this review and this episode as a whole. Thanks for reading, and I’ll be back with our first foray into Season 3 – Lovely but Lethal – in a few weeks!
You can read my take on the top 5 scenes of Double Shock right here.
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This article is dedicated in memory of Martin Landau, who died on 16 July 2017, aged 89.
RIP – may these great men both be cooking up a storm in Heaven
Confused Elements Mar Otherwise Enjoyable Episode
Entertainment: 4.5 out of 5
Twins in a murder mystery always spell trouble, and this
one is no exception. We are left guessing which brother
is the actual killer, and if one of them is trying to frame the
other. The two try to hoodwink Columbo that the other is
the better suspect, though still implicating the fiance as
their uncle’s killer. But why? No one but her and the lawyer
knew she stood to inherit all of their uncle’s money. Later on,
the brothers include the corrupt lawyer as another scapegoat,
then murder the fiance so that she will not inherit.
I found Mrs. Peck’s tirades annoying at best, and the Columbo
gaffs that fueled them contrived. Making for ten minutes or more
of thoroughly unenjoyable filler. Penalty of 0.5 for the confused
motive and filler, though good performances by Landau helps
past the flaws
Clues Leading to The Killer(s): 2.0 out of 2.5
This one begins well as Columbo first has to prove
homicide. Then prove from the timing, and the physical
exertion involved, that only two persons could have done
it. Columbo then says it wasn’t Dexter who who Mrs.
Peck saw leave, but his brother Norman, which would mean
the two are the killers. But there’s no proof it wasn’t Dexter,
or even that either of them are involved. Only motive.
Final Gotcha: 1.5 out of 2.5
A weak ending. The brothers defence is that they would
never collude in murder as they cannot stand one another’s
presence. Yet they stupidly rack up 10 phone calls to
each other around the time of the first murder. Norman confesses
as this is obviously damning, But the phone calls are neither
deducible or ingenious, as the pop should be.
Final Score: 8 out of 10
My mistake. The brothers did not intend fiance Lisa
being their scapegoat from the start, but only after
the murder became obvious, and they learned
she would inherit all of their uncle’s estate.
adjustment to Final Score: 8.5 out of 10
But that wasn’t the pop. The pop was the fact that one person couldn’t have reached the fuse box and changed the blown fuse in the limited time Mrs. Peck’s TV was out. This established that the murder was a two-person operation — the key that allowed all the other pieces to fall into place.
This isn’t the first time Julie Newmar plays a classic “health nut” character, since she plays one in a movie comedy called FOR LOVE OR MONEY.
And it probably isn’t the first time she plays something like a “New Age” person.
As great as the Columbo / Dexter scene is, and as great as the Columbo / Mrs. Peck scenes are, the moment that always gets to me is his look when Lisa starts talking about the “interspatial life force.”
I may be wrong but it appears that the small bag used to carry the electric whisk by the murderer at the beginning of this episode is the same prop used by Leonard Nimoy’s character to carry the chloroform 2 episodes prior.
Love the website by the way!
I love this one for all the reasons you include in your excellent review, Columbophile. I just want to add that the two soap opera segments are absolutely hilarious. Can’t stop laughing every time I watch them. They could not be hammier.
I don’t think that the holes in the plot, for example, that Mrs. Peck doesn’t hear anything when the body is being carried down the stairs, cancel out all the highlights in this episode.
The other problem in the episode which I find very funny is the Hollandaise sauce.They really should have used a real recipe for this! You have to whisk the egg yolks and lemon juice while it is cooked over a double boiler and then drizzle in melted butter while continuing to whisk. What Dexter and Columbo did would have bombed (not just because it had too much pepper). But I loved the way Landau and Peter joked around in that cooking show.
Thanks for your insightful and often humorous reviews.
Ok how did the door get opened for the fiance the same evening after the alarm is rearmed? We never see Mrs peck disarm it
No, it’s really insane to carry the dead body downstairs with Mrs Peck in the house!
Why didn’t they just leave him in a bathtub?????? Instead of drugging him across whole house????
Yeah and how did super efficient Mrs Peck not hear/notice the twins lugging the corpse from the second floor to basement? That must have been one great big mansion!
I assume to make the heart attack explanation
accepted without question, and the murder by
electrocution less obvious.
Hi , does anybody know the name of the soap opera the housekeeper is watching ?
Thanks
Manuel
It seems to have been made for the show, especially since the same two actors keep showing up.
Your blog is fantastic! I used to enjoy watching Columbo in my younger days; I’ve seen most of them but the two that have always stood out for me are “Double Shock” and “Murder by the Book” – so my tastes coincide with yours and I suspect countless others.
Personally, I loved Double Shock. it’s one of the top ten Columbo episodes in my book — far better, actually, than “Any Old Port,” if perhaps not quite as good as “Murder By the Book.” I understood Lisa being leery of Columbo. As far as Lisa knew, he suspected her of the murder because she was the heir to her fiance’s estate. She hadn’t wanted to be named the new heir, but she was, and that put her under suspicion. She had to be on guard with the detective.
I loved Mrs. Peck and the way she went after Columbo. Her whole world was that family and the home she had made there, the two boys she had raised. Columbo *is* in fact a slob. He’s a dear slob, but he’s a slob just the same. Of course Mrs. Peck was going to go after him about it — and it was hilarious. Also delightful to see how charmingly Columbo tried to make peace with her. So funny about the “health cookies.”
The only thing I might suggest here — to Columbophile — is that it’s not fair to label Mrs. Peck as a “crone.” The word means “a withered old woman.” It’s derogatory. If the Peck character is a crone, then all the older men in the episode are also crones — male crones, except there’s no word for male crone, is there? Right. It’s sexism. The actor, Jeanette Nolan, was only 62 years old in 1973. That’s NOT particularly old — not particularly “withered.” The word is just derogatory. Nolan did a great job portraying Mrs. Peck, and Mrs. Peck in her way was an admirable character. As the attorney said at one point, Mrs. Peck loved the family more than the family loved loved each other.
I agree, Cris, that this ep is wonderfully constructed as a playland for all the actors to chew scenery in fun fashion, including Mrs. Peck. If it perhaps goes back to that jokey well one too many times, the same could be said about Falk’s ad libbing on the TV show. Still worth the ride
There are many definitions of crone, so I won’t be held to just the one you reference. Going back into times of yore, a crone was even a complementary term for a wise, elderly woman. I should think we are meant to believe Mrs Peck was somewhat older than Jeanette Nolan’s 62 years at time of filming. It’s not sexist to call someone a crone if that’s the role they’re playing (as Nolan did superbly) – any more than it is to describe old gents as ‘decrepit’ or even ‘cantankerous old codgers’ as I have done on multiple occasions in the blog’s history.
Sorry, I said it was just a suggestion, an fyi, and I said it because the word genuinely bothers me. To make sure I wasn’t being unfair, I did check both my Oxford dictionary and my Webster’s dictionary before I posted — and both of them show only two definitions, withered old woman and withered old ewe.
The hasty killing of the free-spirited Lisa didn’t really do the script any favors in terms of believeability. It was the lawyer who suggested to get rid of her copy of the will, so the brothers would have to have done some quick thinking right there and then to plan out her murder before the lawyer made it to her apartment. More than that, their timing would have to have been perfect; if she’s thrown off the balcony before he makes it to the building, there’d be a scene in front of the building and he’d then hesitate to enter. So, both brothers would have to be there, with one of them signaling the other to throw her off the balcony the moment the lawyer enters the elevator, possibly calling him from the lobby or something (which in itself would’ve been extremely risky).
While watching the episode, at Lisa’s murder I figured this had been staged by Columbo. But in the episode it wasn’t. Still, couldn’t the original script have had Columbo stage the death of Lisa, and then have been edited for time constraints?
Something like this: When Columbo talked with Lisa she was very aggressive, as though she feared being suspected (this is left in). Also Columbo might have seen that in the victim’s date book, there was a visit to the lawyer with Lisa either very recent or very soon (this deleted?). With this (and the wedding planned) Columbo might have suspected the will had been changed. But then Columbo met the lawyer, and the lawyer didn’t talk about the change in the will (this is left in). So, Columbo could have gone back to see Lisa, and told her that if there was any change in the will, the lawyer didn’t mention it though he should have, so Columbo feared that the lawyer may be plotting something against her (this deleted?). So, when the lawyer called her and told her that the police were coming for her, Lisa knew it was a trick, and could alert Columbo. So later, when the lawyer entered the building, Lisa was hiding downstairs with the police, she could go lie on the pavement while he was going up the elevator (it would be harder to fake a gunshot death for instance). He got up to the apartment, saw the door open, went to the balcony, saw her body seemingly dead downstairs, did the mistake of picking up the will, and then got caught by the police. Perhaps later while he was confessing to what he did, Lisa could reappear and Columbo could explain why he thought he was up to something and staged the scene (this deleted?)
The twins killing Lisa for real doesn’t make sense: There would have to be nothing suspicious downstairs when the lawyer enters the building, but by the time he’s up the elevator, Lisa would have to be dead down there plus the police would have to be already there. Plus the twins have nothing to gain and everything to lose by having that new will discovered.
I watched about half the original NBC run back in 2016 and after Christmas this past year, started similarly. I started getting tired of it after about 22 eps in about 35 days, reading this site after each ep, and I only viewed “Double Shock” again (which I think I’d seen only once or twice EVER) – due its very high ranking here, thinking I’d missed something, because I did not recall thinking that much of it. Seeing it again a few nights ago, I was shocked at how bad it is. “To each is own” IS wisdom, but I hated the scenes with Mrs. Peck (except perhaps the first one) and unsure also what the Newcar character had against Columbo (PLUS – we are not told WHO the F killed her?!) The author here says both Dexter and Norman are developed, but I see it as 80/20 Dexter – and even more than once – unconvincing / poor editing when both of them are in a scene together. I LOVE this show, but this was just too quirky an outing for me. After seeing it again, I have to now rank it among the show’s worst outings, lower 10, maybe even lower 5-7 – honestly, I just hated it. I know I won’t bother with it again. I am grateful for the author’s contributions and I generally agree with him, but this ep is where I am most ‘off’ with the author (I am also off with him on “How to Dial a Murder”, had it at the very top after 2016 (replacing “Suitable For Framing”), but the author’s take on it actually convinced me not to see it again this time around, in full – just a few scenes. I still think it’s WAY better than the author gives it credit for, but yeah – by Season 7, Falk’s over the top antics DID annoy much, and I also had to lower my opinion on “The Conspirators” for the same reason, but it’s still good in many ways). After this ep, now done (or will I find one more, “Lady in Waiting”?) this time around for the next roughly five years – I’d honestly have to say I most enjoyed “Candidate For Crime” the most, but I agree that it is a bit padded as a 2 hour ep. I think it, back to back to back with “Double Exposure” and “Publish or Perish” is the best run of 3 in the entire NBC run, ha ha – for what it’s worth. :Cheers…
100% agree, this is one my least favourite episodes. It just dragged and dragged.
I’m wondering which of the brothers killed Lisa because it would only take one of them to push her to her death.Plus both of them showing up at her place might have been too dangerous because someone might have noticed them.So it would have been easier if just one of them went to her place to kill her while the other one was waiting downstairs in a car or something.Plus i’m wondering if and when Norman and Dexter went to trial they would try to turn on each other because can it really be proven which of them actually killed their uncle.Yes Columbo said it was Norman who drove off in Dexter’s car while Dexter stayed back so that he could turn off the alarm so that he could let Norman in but that’s just speculation.
As a retired prosecutor I wanted to add three reality thoughts to some of the comments. (1) legally it is immaterial which brother did what to the old man. Since they both schemed to kill him and then did something about it, they are both equally guilty of Conspiracy to Murder, which usually carried sentences equal to Murder itself. And beyond scheming and planning this death, they both acted together to pull it off-one throwing the mixer into the bathtub, one replacing the fuse, one driving away pretending to be the other, and both dragging the body out of the tub, dressing him, and lugging him down to the gym-all during the same episode. So, regardless of who threw the mixer into the tub, they both are equally guilty of Murder.(2)Might be the same with the girl’s defenestration. If both planned it, and as somebody said one threw her out and the other drove the getaway, they both could be guilty of her murder. But if that was a quick CYA act of just one brother, all by his lonesome, than maybe only he would be responsible for her death. (3) This season was 1972 and I don’t think the phone company (Ma Bell of old, I believe) then had the technology after the fact to trace or recall local,calls on the only phones the available-landlines. So the cops then probably could not have found out that the brothers had called each other so often. I might be wrong and in the hodgepodge that was (and is) LA they might have been in different area codes, which might have allowed the tracing.
Those (probable) realities and any other critiques aside, I thought it was a fun and great episode.
Jim, there’s an informative and well-researched blog post from Feb 2021 about the use of phone records in Columbo crime-busting. The short answer to this one is that if the bros were far enough apart, then phone records could have indeed established their conversations. That doesn’t excuse the fact that using phone records is really a cop-out Gotcha that doesn’t prove much beyond mere conversation.
Regarding the girl’s death, it could be hard to prove which brother pushed her off the balcony.So if i was the DA i would go after the brothers for their uncle’s death because that might be an easier case to win because even if the police could find a witness that could say he or she saw one of the brothers at the girl’s apartment can he or she really say which brother it was.
Just finished this one. Loved the cooking scene. But Miss Peck truly is scary. Also that houses is amazing . Would love to know if it’s still around. Gorgeous arches
I noticed at the cooking scene when Columbo rolled up his left sleeve it cuts to Landau and then we see Columbo roll up his same sleeve again.
House has gone, sadly. A zillionaire bought it and then bulldozed it all…
I enjoyed this episode a lot. Mostly for Mrs Peck, not so much the cooking scene.
But I do think there’s a distinct lack of actual proof at the end. This is one episode where I think the court would throw the case out in a second.
I’m late to comment on this one, but I’ve already noted in the comments on other episodes that, like many of the bloggers, this is one of the few episodes where we disagree sharply on an episode. Clearly, one big reason is that you love two of the side dishes – Mrs. Peck’s tantrums (which I found grating and way overboard, as they use 5 such scenes instead of one or two), and the TV show scene (which you were gaga about, and which I found similarly to be way too long and exaggerated). I also found the ending a huge disappointment, because instead of combining a long list of circumstantial clues to make a powerful case, the proof that they were both involved is extremely weak. Yes, clearly, they were both involved due to the phone calls, but how do we know who killed him, or that Norman was in the house and involved in the murder. We also never know who killed Lisa. Finally, there are lots of flaws and holes. Here are just a few: a) They combine on a murder that relies on each bringing proof to blame the other. Being identical twins, this surely placed each one at great risk of being the sole fall guy. b) If the main clue is that easily obtainable phone records prove their conspiracy, they are pretty dumb murderers for a Columbo episode. c) Why would they plan a murder w/o thinking beforehand that the old fool in love might have left his new toy his inheritance? d) Why would they try to get rid of their competition by choosing the extremely risky murder of throwing her out of a window in a very public area? And wouldn’t this make a DA far less likely to think that the lawyer did it?
You really must’ve loved it for it to be #2. I wasn’t nearly as crazy about it but I always like seeing Tim O’Connor. He did a memorable Wonder Woman turn as Andros.
Do we know which twin killed Lisa? Or did they both push her? Was it ever specified?
Julie “Julio” Newmar, Martin Landau, Jeanette Nolan (especially!), Gum-Chompin’ Dabney Coleman, and, sadly, even Peter Falk all chewed the hell out of the scenery in this very mediocre episode, in which, as usual, Columbo—why, again, was Homicide called-in??!—*immediately* Houdini’s onto the killer.
And I think, here, we continue being provided with evidence that Columbo isn’t brilliantly pretending to be a classless slovenly semi-weirdo in order to psychologically manipulate suspects, but rather that that’s who and what he is! How amateurish and disappointing.
That’s the thing, Columbo *is* a weird person, *and* he sometimes plays it up to screw with suspects. I don’t see how that’s “disappointing”.
I see “I can’t think in this coat” from Now You See Him as confirmation that he is definitely genuinely neurodivergent. That also happens when no suspects could possibly be present.
Watching this episode for a second time, I was struck by the casting of so many actors of such high caliber. Martin Landau playing two characters is a sign of great talent—actors have enough challenge playing a single character. Paul Stewart obviously has a short part, which is a shame, he was a veteran character actor whose first screen role was in Citizen Kane and was a frequent fixture in various films noir like The Window and Kiss Me Deadly. Jeanette Nolan’s first film had her playing Lady Macbeth opposite Orson Welles. Julie Newmar, always a welcome presence, she doesn’t get much screen time for flaky 70s LA oddball but she puts as much into the role as she can. Note her entrance, skipping up the stairs. And then there’s even an early role for Dabney Coleman, no slouch either. It’s a remarkable number of great actors for a TV show.
I also love the spoof of soap operas. The two soaps Mrs Peck watches have the same two actors reeling off some hilariously terrible dialogue that Stephen Bochco must have had a lot of fun writing. Peter Falk and Martin Landau’s scene of the cooking show, you can tell they were thoroughly enjoying themselves. I think Falk repeats the “Um” exactly the same way four times.
Falk also puts in some subtle character exposition into this episode than usual. Watch how he expertly gives Coleman instructions on how to cover the crime scene, it’s a display of his professionalism. I also like the scene when he asserts himself to Mrs Peck. It’s different from his usual effusive apologizing, which he recognizes was not helping him so he comes from a different tack, by calling attention to his ultimate goal of catching the killer of the man to whom she had such a lengthy connection.
Yeah, sure, the plot has some weaknesses but it’s a delight just to watch a group of top notch actors at work.
Great points about this very enjoyable episode! I couldn’t agree more!
Wasn’t one of the actors in the soap opera , Marc Singer? I think it was him well before he starred in V, one of my favorites.
Playing two characters isn’t a sign of great talent! Playing two characters WELL is a sign of at least SOME talent. But for Landau, portraying two variants of bad people wasn’t much of a stretch.
It’s a good thing Dexter is inheriting all that money, because his Sauce Hollandaise recipe is a disaster.
Yep, I noticed that about the holamdaise-the butter was t hot and wasn’t dripped into the blender.
I also think this was the best ep from Season 2. Sure the plot machinations fall apart under scrutiny — but this was a plain old fun ride from start to finish. Knowing how awful several of Gillis’ scripts are, I’ll give Bochco all the credit for punching up the story.
The pacing is phenomenal and helps distract from the few silly aspects. Landau is terrific (so great to get back to charming baddies after the dour personalities of Nimoy and Harvey). Apologetic Falk is great. Newmar is gorgeous. The lawyer-cum-blackmailer throws a delightful twist into the stew. The first murder is grisly; the second murder shocking. There is at least a hint of mystery on the culprit (even if not a true whodunnit), and the humor is solid throughout.
Double Shock will almost surely crack my personal top 10 overall. Bring on Season 3!
The music heard when we see the gloved hands trafficking the food mixer in the very first moments of the episode has to be my favorite 60s – 70s suspense/crime ambiance theme! I wonder if it officially exists in a Columbo soundtrack
I was wondering about this music too. It sounded familiar.
Omg…I love that piece of music too…I call it the “Emmett Clayton Theme”. That clavi sound is the best. Can’t get any more 70s Mystery Movie than that…Also right up there is Billy Goldenberg’s Stitch in Crime Heidemann “OR” piece which is partially reused in the opening of The Most Dangerous Match, which had a lot of strange instruments in it (mostly medical sounding) but sounded great for the Columbo mysteries they were tied in to.
I just watched “Double Shock” again (my second time seeing it), and I agree with many of the comments here that it is overrated. One of the biggest things I find too unrealistic to believe is that a beautiful woman like Julie Newmar, at her age, would be sincerely interested in marrying a man who was old enough to be her grandfather, and have NO INTEREST whatsoever in any of the monetary gains that his will had provisioned for her upon his untimely death. Call me a cynic, but I just don’t believe this part of the story.
You are a cynic!
Yeah, I mean I’m sure Uncle Cliff was a nice guy and all (not very fond of appliances…no one’s perfect!) but he was 25 years her senior (assuming the characters more or less match their actor’s ages.) Are we to believe there are NO nice, vibrant dudes in Los Angeles that caught Lisa’s eye that were close to her age?
A TV show can have whatever rules it wants. In the Columboverse we just have to accept that smoking and eating and touching things around a crime scene never compromises the evidence. That’s just how it is. But in terms of human nature? I can’t accept that Julie Newmar would act so disinterested in cold, hard cash.
After all, she claims to be devastated by the death of Cliff…and her mourning last all the way until the next day or so when she’s cheerfully doing her exercises on the balcony with nary a tissue to be seen. Now that’s a fast emotional recovery!
In addition to that, Julie Newmar isn’t charming at all here. She has ‘dead face’ — devoid of expressiveness. She does not have the talent+skills to deliver the nuanced expressions and body language that is a requirement to be an outstanding movie/TV actress. In the context of high-drama acting by other gueses on Columbo, it really stands out.
Her previous role as Catwoman required none of that; She had the shapely body and pretty face to match the comic books. Her job on the Batman series was more or less that of carbonating the hormones of millions of teenage boys with every appearance.
Since I criticise, I should also balance with a nice comment: Newmar’s accomplishments outside of acting appear to indicate an admirably enterpreneurial woman… It is said that she invented three legged pantyhose, to slip into a fresh leg when one of them gets a run. That is very creative thinking!