"Columbo" Forgotten Lady (1975)

User Rating:

7.6/10   

Director:

Harvey Hart

Writers:

William Driskill (writer)
Richard Levinson (creator) ...

TV Series:

"Columbo" (1971)

Original Air Date:

14 September 1975 (Season 5, Episode 1)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

Plot:

A faded dance star of film and stage murders her husband and makes it look like a suicide; Lt. Columbo doubts her seemingly perfect alibi.

Plot Keywords:

Murder | Murderer | Hollywood | Movie Business | Police Detective

Awards:

Nominated for Primetime Emmy.

Cast

Peter Falk	...	Columbo
Janet Leigh	...	Grace Wheeler Willis
Maurice Evans	...	Raymond
Sam Jaffe	...	Dr. Henry Willis
John Payne	...	Ned Diamond
Linda Gaye Scott	...	Alma (as Linda Scott)
Robert F. Simon	...	Dr. Westrum
Francine York	...	Sgt Leftkowitz
Ross Elliott	...	Dr. Landberg
Jerome Guardino	...	Harris
Danny Wells	...	Bookstore Clerk
Harvey Gold	...	Coroner

Runtime:

USA:100 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Norway:11 (DVD) (2007) | Sweden:15 (DVD) (2007) | Denmark:15 (DVD) (2007) | Finland:K-18 (DVD) (2007) (self applied)

Company:

Universal TV

Trivia:

In the third scene of the movie, the excerpts from the vintage musical are taken from Walking My Baby Back Home (1953).

Goofs:

Continuity: In a scene just after the start of the movie Grace walks over to the nightstand next to her husband’s bed to put a sleeping pill in her husband’s milk, which is on a silver serving tray. Grace puts her glass of brandy on the nightstand NEXT to the silver tray. The next shot is a close-up of her putting the pill in the glass of milk. Her brandy is now right next to the milk on the silver tray.

Movie Connections:

References Sunset Blvd. (1950)

Soundtrack:

Speak Low

Ingenious -- my favorite Columbo ever

Janet Leigh is magnificent. She delivers a performance which is superficially simple and actually incredibly complex. The story is one of the most intricately written and surprising Columbo's ever -- and the twists at the end just put me on the floor. I shall say no more about the plot. Just watch this A-plus Columbo and enjoy every delectable second. John Payne, Army Archard, and Sam Jaffe also deliver terrific performances. And, the always great Peter Falk is at the very top of his game as Columbo in an unforgettable episode.