Carl Kolchak(played by Darren McGavin) investigates the horrible murders of elderly residents in the Roosevelt Heights section in Chicago, who were devoured in minutes. Police think it the result of rats, but evidence points to the Hindu owner of a local Indian restaurant, who is in fact hunting a demonic spirit called a Rakshasa, an evil carnivore who attacks victims by hypnotizing them into thinking they are being approached by someone they trust, but this proves to be no safe haven for normally vigilant Carl... Scary episode makes inspired use of the monster, a chilling creation, and amusing guest appearances by both Phil Silvers & Murray Matheson.
16 Reviews
Roosevelt Heights and the Raksasha
bkoganbing16 September 2017
This episode of Kolchak: The Night Stalker has Darren McGavin covering a story in the Roosevelt Heights section of Chicago. It's an old Jewish neighborhood with the old Jews dying off because their kids have moved up and out of it. Only now something is speeding their departures involuntarily.
That something is a Hindu demon called the Raksasha and this demon can gain your confidence by coming for you in the guise of someone you trust. At that point within seconds he can eat more of your flesh than a small piranha school.
Such folks as Phil Silvers, Ned Glasss, Herb Vigran and Benny Rubin play some of the neighborhood folks who if that wasn't enough have to contend with someone painting swastikas in the neighborhood.
But as McGavin researches the swastika for the ancient Hindus was a symbol to ward off demons. Putting them around is the work of Abraham Sofaer an ancient Indian Indian who runs an Indian restaurant in the area. He's also a Raksasha hunter by avocation although he might not get to finish his last assignment.
This was a nicely done story with a great guest cast.
That something is a Hindu demon called the Raksasha and this demon can gain your confidence by coming for you in the guise of someone you trust. At that point within seconds he can eat more of your flesh than a small piranha school.
Such folks as Phil Silvers, Ned Glasss, Herb Vigran and Benny Rubin play some of the neighborhood folks who if that wasn't enough have to contend with someone painting swastikas in the neighborhood.
But as McGavin researches the swastika for the ancient Hindus was a symbol to ward off demons. Putting them around is the work of Abraham Sofaer an ancient Indian Indian who runs an Indian restaurant in the area. He's also a Raksasha hunter by avocation although he might not get to finish his last assignment.
This was a nicely done story with a great guest cast.
Kolchak: "Horror in the Heights"
Wuchakk20 April 2018
PLOT: In the Roosevelt Heights community, residents are caught off guard and savagely assaulted by a flesh-eating Hindu demon called Raksasha, who can mimic a person that the victim knows and trusts.
COMMENTARY: The monster and its abilities are the strength of this episode. Unlike in "The Werewolf" the creature make-up (costume) is very well-done. The way the monster preys on people is effectively creepy for mid-70s TV and explains why this episode is held in such high esteem. In this respect, it's arguably the best segment.
COMMENTARY: The monster and its abilities are the strength of this episode. Unlike in "The Werewolf" the creature make-up (costume) is very well-done. The way the monster preys on people is effectively creepy for mid-70s TV and explains why this episode is held in such high esteem. In this respect, it's arguably the best segment.
Stalking A Carnivorous Evil Spirit
a_l_i_e_n5 July 2006
Warning: Spoilers
Elderly citizens are being feasted upon by an evil spirit capable of assuming the appearance of anyone it's victims know and trust.
Kolchak goes to Roosevelt Heights, a rundown neighbourhood where an elderly security guard is found chewed to pieces- allegedly by rats. When two more residents of the depressed area are discovered dead and partially eaten, Kolchak follows a tip from a nervous resident, Harry Starman, who insists that the owner of a local East Indian restaurant is the killer. Starman bases his charge largely on the fact that the owner has painted swastikas all over the back alleys of this predominantly Jewish neighbourhood.
When Carl sneaks over a fence to have a closer look at the premises, Starman spots what looks like Kolchak coming towards him. Seconds later, the old man's cries bring the real Kolchak back over the fence where he discovers Starman's shredded remains.
Carl later returns to the restaurant where he encounters the elderly East Indian proprietor. Armed with a crossbow, the old man cries out "Rakshasa!" and fires an arrow at the startled reporter who promptly flees.
Looking into the lore of Eastern culture, Carl learns the swastika is also an ancient Hindu symbol meant to ward off evil, and that the "Rakshasa" is a carnivorous entity endowed with the ability to lure victims by assuming the appearance of friends and loved ones.
When Vincenzo refuses to print a story proposing that a Rakshasa is haunting Roosevelt Heights, Kolchak ventures back to the restaurant where he again meets the proprietor. The old man explains that he'd fired an arrow at Carl thinking he was the Rakshasa. Warning the reporter to leave, the ailing senior hands him the crossbow and blessed arrows, and cautions Kolchak not to trust anyone he may run into.
As he leaves the restaurant, Carl spots someone approaching him: Miss Emily, his elderly friend from the newsroom. Miss Emily claims she followed him there to gather information for a book she's writing. When Carl warns her to come no closer, the old woman continues to approach him. Next, with some reluctance, Carl fires an arrow into her. Suddenly Miss Emily disappears and in her place stands the Rakshasa in it's true form: a large, hairy creature with long claws. The beast clutches the shaft of the arrow and lets out a bellowing roar before falling to the ground dead.
In his summation, Kolchak mentions he would have liked to have told Miss Emily that the Rakshasa had appeared to him as her because that meant that he trusted her. But he elects not to, guessing she wouldn't have appreciated hearing he shot an arrow into her.
"Horror In The Heights" contains a fair bit of social commentary about the plight of low income seniors trapped in conditions of urban decay. Kolchak, as usual, is committed to getting his story as well as ridding the world of another monster. At the same time however, he seems genuinely concerned about the residents of this rundown neighbourhood. After a disrespectful young cop says of one of the elderly victims, "the old guy croaked", Carl comments, "you have a nice choice of words; you expect to escape old age?" When the cop advises Carl not to look under the sheet covering the corpse, the big city reporter informs him, "Son, I've seen more dead bodies than you've had TV dinners."
Writer Jimmy Sangster (who penned the screenplays for the British Hammer classics "Horror Of Dracula" and the equally brilliant "Brides Of Dracula") comes up with an especially evil monster in the form of the Rakshasa. Giving it the power to make itself look like anyone an intended victim trusts is a brilliantly sinister touch that leads to one of the best scenes in the entire series when Carl appears to shoot his friend, dear Emily Cowels (played by the delightful Ruth McDevitt). Of course, Kolchak only does this because he had reason to be suspicious, and as it turns out, the Rakshasa was, indeed, concealing itself behind the old lady's sweet countenance. Still, it's rather startling to see Miss Emily punctured by a steel arrow and then turn into a hairy monster that drops dead before an amazed Kolchak.
There's some fine makeup design in this episode, too. Resembling a clawed Sasquatch, the Rakshasa's face reveals just enough human detail to register an effective look of shock when it realizes Carl's seen through it's deception.
Phil Silvers nicely plays the excitable Harry Starman who meets his end when he sees the ersatz Kolchak approaching him. Abraham Soefar is both sympathetic and believable as the dying old Hindu who's come to this rundown neighborhood to track his last Rakshasa.
It's fair to point out that, at times, Michael Caffey's direction is a bit uneven. For example, some shaky hand-held camera work is rather distracting, and in the scene where the false Sgt. Devito approaches a victim, his outstretched hands are held so low that rather than seeming menacing, he looks more like he's trying to show off his manicure. Still, Caffey mostly succeeds in his orchestration of this very scary, unsettling tale.
One puzzling matter: after the climactic scene in the alley, it appears Kolchak has a dead Rakshasa to confirm his story. So with such startling evidence, how come he isn't shown finally getting that long over-due Pulitzer Prize? Still, despite this small loose end, "Horror In The Heights" is an excellent episode that- in addition to it's chills- also reveals a surprisingly warm and caring side to the usually cynical, wisecracking Kolchak.
Kolchak goes to Roosevelt Heights, a rundown neighbourhood where an elderly security guard is found chewed to pieces- allegedly by rats. When two more residents of the depressed area are discovered dead and partially eaten, Kolchak follows a tip from a nervous resident, Harry Starman, who insists that the owner of a local East Indian restaurant is the killer. Starman bases his charge largely on the fact that the owner has painted swastikas all over the back alleys of this predominantly Jewish neighbourhood.
When Carl sneaks over a fence to have a closer look at the premises, Starman spots what looks like Kolchak coming towards him. Seconds later, the old man's cries bring the real Kolchak back over the fence where he discovers Starman's shredded remains.
Carl later returns to the restaurant where he encounters the elderly East Indian proprietor. Armed with a crossbow, the old man cries out "Rakshasa!" and fires an arrow at the startled reporter who promptly flees.
Looking into the lore of Eastern culture, Carl learns the swastika is also an ancient Hindu symbol meant to ward off evil, and that the "Rakshasa" is a carnivorous entity endowed with the ability to lure victims by assuming the appearance of friends and loved ones.
When Vincenzo refuses to print a story proposing that a Rakshasa is haunting Roosevelt Heights, Kolchak ventures back to the restaurant where he again meets the proprietor. The old man explains that he'd fired an arrow at Carl thinking he was the Rakshasa. Warning the reporter to leave, the ailing senior hands him the crossbow and blessed arrows, and cautions Kolchak not to trust anyone he may run into.
As he leaves the restaurant, Carl spots someone approaching him: Miss Emily, his elderly friend from the newsroom. Miss Emily claims she followed him there to gather information for a book she's writing. When Carl warns her to come no closer, the old woman continues to approach him. Next, with some reluctance, Carl fires an arrow into her. Suddenly Miss Emily disappears and in her place stands the Rakshasa in it's true form: a large, hairy creature with long claws. The beast clutches the shaft of the arrow and lets out a bellowing roar before falling to the ground dead.
In his summation, Kolchak mentions he would have liked to have told Miss Emily that the Rakshasa had appeared to him as her because that meant that he trusted her. But he elects not to, guessing she wouldn't have appreciated hearing he shot an arrow into her.
"Horror In The Heights" contains a fair bit of social commentary about the plight of low income seniors trapped in conditions of urban decay. Kolchak, as usual, is committed to getting his story as well as ridding the world of another monster. At the same time however, he seems genuinely concerned about the residents of this rundown neighbourhood. After a disrespectful young cop says of one of the elderly victims, "the old guy croaked", Carl comments, "you have a nice choice of words; you expect to escape old age?" When the cop advises Carl not to look under the sheet covering the corpse, the big city reporter informs him, "Son, I've seen more dead bodies than you've had TV dinners."
Writer Jimmy Sangster (who penned the screenplays for the British Hammer classics "Horror Of Dracula" and the equally brilliant "Brides Of Dracula") comes up with an especially evil monster in the form of the Rakshasa. Giving it the power to make itself look like anyone an intended victim trusts is a brilliantly sinister touch that leads to one of the best scenes in the entire series when Carl appears to shoot his friend, dear Emily Cowels (played by the delightful Ruth McDevitt). Of course, Kolchak only does this because he had reason to be suspicious, and as it turns out, the Rakshasa was, indeed, concealing itself behind the old lady's sweet countenance. Still, it's rather startling to see Miss Emily punctured by a steel arrow and then turn into a hairy monster that drops dead before an amazed Kolchak.
There's some fine makeup design in this episode, too. Resembling a clawed Sasquatch, the Rakshasa's face reveals just enough human detail to register an effective look of shock when it realizes Carl's seen through it's deception.
Phil Silvers nicely plays the excitable Harry Starman who meets his end when he sees the ersatz Kolchak approaching him. Abraham Soefar is both sympathetic and believable as the dying old Hindu who's come to this rundown neighborhood to track his last Rakshasa.
It's fair to point out that, at times, Michael Caffey's direction is a bit uneven. For example, some shaky hand-held camera work is rather distracting, and in the scene where the false Sgt. Devito approaches a victim, his outstretched hands are held so low that rather than seeming menacing, he looks more like he's trying to show off his manicure. Still, Caffey mostly succeeds in his orchestration of this very scary, unsettling tale.
One puzzling matter: after the climactic scene in the alley, it appears Kolchak has a dead Rakshasa to confirm his story. So with such startling evidence, how come he isn't shown finally getting that long over-due Pulitzer Prize? Still, despite this small loose end, "Horror In The Heights" is an excellent episode that- in addition to it's chills- also reveals a surprisingly warm and caring side to the usually cynical, wisecracking Kolchak.
Outstanding episode
Woodyanders27 January 2010
Warning: Spoilers
Without a doubt one of the TV series' darkest, most serious, and hence greatest hours, this exceptional episode centers on a cunning and deceitful flesh-eating Hindu demon called the Rakshasa that's preying on the elderly residents in the rundown neighborhood Roosevelt Heights. Naturally, it's up to Carl Kolchak (Darren McGavin in especially bang-up form) to kill this foul thing. Ably directed by Michael Caffey, with an ingenious script by veteran Hammer horror film scribe Jimmy Sangster, plenty of spooky atmosphere, crisp cinematography by Ronald W. Browne, a constant quick pace, a dynamic and exciting shivery score by Greig McRitchie, a truly creepy monster (the creature's ability to take on the form of someone you trust gives it an extra devious and deadly unnerving edge), and a suspenseful conclusion, this particular program downplays the show's trademark dry sardonic wit in favor of spot-on stinging social commentary about the plight of the elderly. It's this latter thoughtful and incisive element which in turn makes this episode so powerful and effective. The stellar acting by the tip-top cast adds substantially to the overall sterling quality, with stand-out work by Simon Oakland as the peppery Tony Vincenzo, Phil Silvers as the testy Harry Starman, Abraham Sofaer as a frail, ailing old Hindu Rakshasa hunter, Jack Grinnage as the timid Ron Updyke, and Murray Matheson as snooty Indian art expert Mr. Lane-Marriot. The always delightful Ruth McDevitt has several lovely scenes as sweet old lady regular character Emily Cowles. One of the show's finest and most impressive artistic achievements.
Best episode.
amhbmh7 September 2019
People have called this episode Lovecraftian. I just call it Kolchakian. Saw it when it originally aired and it terrified me. I recorded these episodes on an audio recorder then play back as a child. Spooky stuff in the dark under the blanket. I wish this series had gotten a season two. Influential. Ahead of it's time but I'm telling you what you already know or else you would not be here. Has a lot in common with the Jim Butcher, Dresden Files, books which it predates by many years. A Kolchak/Dresden files mash-up would be glorious. Please, please, oh, please.
One of the best 'Kolchak' episodes.
Hey_Sweden19 August 2012
Warning: Spoilers
While the ultimate showdown to this episode comes up a little short in the suspense department, the episode still has one of the most intriguing ever set-ups for the series. As scripted by prolific Hammer Studios scribe Jimmy Sangster, it works some serious issues into its mix of horror and comedy with ease, bringing to light the situation facing the poor & elderly in a run down Jewish neighbourhood.
The residents are starting to be devoured by an evil Indian spirit dubbed the Rakshasa, which can make even quicker work of human bodies than the rats to be found in the area. It's up to Kolchak, as usual, to put all the pieces of the puzzle together and vanquish the evil, with the help of a trusty crossbow.
The horror of the title here is especially potent, and the monster particularly ugly, and fortunately, we never see too much of it until the finale. On top of that, we genuinely like the victims and hate to see them buy it so terribly.
The humour is truly hysterical. To utilize two examples, Vincenzo is understandably skeptical of Kolchaks' wild story, and when he totally dismisses it, and in reference to the monsters' somewhat ape-like appearance, he exclaims, "It's bedtime for Bonzo!" Also, when Updyke sees Kolchak retrieving something from the garbage, Kolchak deadpans, "That's where I find all my stories." There's a brilliant non sequitur from Updyke, and even a nice throwaway joke regarding cauliflower.
Ever lovable Miss Emily is especially effective here, and the other guest stars do enjoyable work: energetic comedy legend Phil Silvers as Harry Starman, Murray Matheson as Indian lore / artifacts expert Mr. Lane-Marriott, Abraham Sofaer as the elderly Rakshasa hunter, and Barry Gordon as the young waiter who affects a phony accent for his job.
From start to finish, this episode is great fun, and we enjoy Kolchaks' antics as much as we always do, even learning a little something about him when it comes time for the climax. This is as good as it gets when it comes to this series.
10 out of 10.
The residents are starting to be devoured by an evil Indian spirit dubbed the Rakshasa, which can make even quicker work of human bodies than the rats to be found in the area. It's up to Kolchak, as usual, to put all the pieces of the puzzle together and vanquish the evil, with the help of a trusty crossbow.
The horror of the title here is especially potent, and the monster particularly ugly, and fortunately, we never see too much of it until the finale. On top of that, we genuinely like the victims and hate to see them buy it so terribly.
The humour is truly hysterical. To utilize two examples, Vincenzo is understandably skeptical of Kolchaks' wild story, and when he totally dismisses it, and in reference to the monsters' somewhat ape-like appearance, he exclaims, "It's bedtime for Bonzo!" Also, when Updyke sees Kolchak retrieving something from the garbage, Kolchak deadpans, "That's where I find all my stories." There's a brilliant non sequitur from Updyke, and even a nice throwaway joke regarding cauliflower.
Ever lovable Miss Emily is especially effective here, and the other guest stars do enjoyable work: energetic comedy legend Phil Silvers as Harry Starman, Murray Matheson as Indian lore / artifacts expert Mr. Lane-Marriott, Abraham Sofaer as the elderly Rakshasa hunter, and Barry Gordon as the young waiter who affects a phony accent for his job.
From start to finish, this episode is great fun, and we enjoy Kolchaks' antics as much as we always do, even learning a little something about him when it comes time for the climax. This is as good as it gets when it comes to this series.
10 out of 10.
A different sort of Kolchak
P_Cornelius16 October 2008
Warning: Spoilers
This episode is perhaps the darkest--and least comedic--of all the Kolchak episodes. Correspondingly, it diverts from the established structural device of allowing the creatures in each episode to feast on the young, attractive, and affluent. In "Horror in the Heights", the victims are aged Jews, retired and impoverished. Whereas the victims in earlier episodes in some way or another contributed to their own deaths--through stupidity, lust, avarice, or hubris--the victims in the "Heights" are totally innocent, their greatest crime being participating in a penny ante poker game.
And all this is what makes Kolchack: The Night Stalker such a special TV series. Can you imagine a storyline in the shows offered over today's major networks focusing on the murder of elderly Jews and whose only hope for the salvation of the community comes from an 80 year-old Hindu? The core group of 19 to 35 year-olds today's TV execs cater to would be changing the channel as fast as possible to a reality show or gossipy "teen drama".
And all this is what makes Kolchack: The Night Stalker such a special TV series. Can you imagine a storyline in the shows offered over today's major networks focusing on the murder of elderly Jews and whose only hope for the salvation of the community comes from an 80 year-old Hindu? The core group of 19 to 35 year-olds today's TV execs cater to would be changing the channel as fast as possible to a reality show or gossipy "teen drama".
THE INFLUENCE BEHIND The Movie idea for "IT FOLLOWS"
floridacalisurferboy29 August 2021
This is the famous Night Stalker Episode that Definitely was the influence behind the brilliant 2014 horror masterpiece "IT FOLLOWS".... This episode tells of a "Demon" that can change into the image of someone you recognize, you know and trust... Then once your guard is down, it KILLS YOU... The Demon Spirit in the stunning film of 2014 "IT FOLLOWS" has the exact same ability and the only dofference is that in the movie ONLY ITS NEXT VICTIM can SEE it Coming... No one else can... Great Night Stalker episode.
Strange History Reversal
DKosty1238 August 2017
Warning: Spoilers
The Night Stalker here comes upon a series of murders where the victims literally have their flesh eaten. The tasteful effects of 1974 make it okay to view but disturbing anyhow. Here is a murderer who appears as the person mot trusted in your mind and kills you.
A hallmark in this short lived series is the use of actual history to enhance the story lines. This one journeys back to 1066 and the time of the cross bows. It points out a major irony, that the Nazi Swasticka was used back then to ward off evil spirits. Funny how that changed in the 1930's when it was used to promote the ultimate evil.
Of course Kolchak manages to slay the killer in the end because he does not trust anybody. That is consistent with the entire series too as the stories he follows and the killers who lurk in every show can not be trusted. Especially here, as a most trusted killer makes the rounds killing victim after victim.
Kolchak survives to go on another day, and I almost wonder if he had been assigned to get an impossible story what ones he could saves us from? Could Kolchak have escaped from the Titanic, or even the Alamo? Too bad a real reporter could not escape ABC's dismal ratings in the 1970's.
A hallmark in this short lived series is the use of actual history to enhance the story lines. This one journeys back to 1066 and the time of the cross bows. It points out a major irony, that the Nazi Swasticka was used back then to ward off evil spirits. Funny how that changed in the 1930's when it was used to promote the ultimate evil.
Of course Kolchak manages to slay the killer in the end because he does not trust anybody. That is consistent with the entire series too as the stories he follows and the killers who lurk in every show can not be trusted. Especially here, as a most trusted killer makes the rounds killing victim after victim.
Kolchak survives to go on another day, and I almost wonder if he had been assigned to get an impossible story what ones he could saves us from? Could Kolchak have escaped from the Titanic, or even the Alamo? Too bad a real reporter could not escape ABC's dismal ratings in the 1970's.
Kolchak and the Indian Raksasha hunter Ali Lakshmi !!!
elo-equipamentos14 July 2020
Kolchak already gave us many weird monsters from everywhere, this turn an Indian spirit who attacks a Jewish neighborhood at Roosevelt Heights's Chicago area, this creature called Raksasha used to eat his victims in matter of minutes, not before it appears with friendly appearance from someone which the victim trust, Carl makes a research as usually at Indian restaurant which the owner put his business there on purpose, due the evil creature has been attacked there, soon the sassy Kolchak quest in the basement where several nazi flags are all around, in fact this odd symbol makes part of the ancient Indian background to beat off Raksasha at India, sudden appears an old man Ali Lakshmi (Abraham Sofaer) trying hits Kolchak with poisoned darts, although later they introduces themselves, actually Ali is a monster hunter, meanwhile he is already too old to carry on his assignment, the final showdown is coming, glad to see the funny Phil Silvers on the cast!!
Resume:
First watch: 2020 / How many: 1 / Source: DVD / Rating: 7.5
Resume:
First watch: 2020 / How many: 1 / Source: DVD / Rating: 7.5
Wonderful
BandSAboutMovies20 July 2023
Warning: Spoilers
In a Jewish senior citizens center in Roosevelt Heights - a section of Chicago that could charitably be called lower income - numerous people have died, stripped of their skin by rodents. Harry Starman (Phil Silvers), a resident, believes that the owner of a local Indian Restaurant is actually a Nazi and has painted swastika graffiti all over the Heights.
The truth is that the swastikas are Hindu symbols used to ward of evil and that the restaurant owner has been battling the flesh-eating demon Rakshasa for sixty years and keeping it from returning to our world. He shares with Kolchak how to destroy the demon - steel bolts fired from a crossbow - but warns him that the demon can come in the form of someone he knows.
Directed by Michael Caffey (who directed everything from The Dukes of Hazzard and Trapper John M. D. to The Adventures of Brisco Ciunty Jr.) and written by Jimmy Sangster (The Curse of Frankenstein; Jack the Ripper; Scream, Pretty Peggy), this is an episode in which Kolchak reminds us that the demon could be anyone, even advice columnist Miss Emily.
If you ever battled a Rakshasa in a game of Dungeons & Dragons, this episode of Kolchak: The Night Stalker is why. E. Gary Gygax has written about watching it and being inspired to add the demon to the Monster Manual.
The truth is that the swastikas are Hindu symbols used to ward of evil and that the restaurant owner has been battling the flesh-eating demon Rakshasa for sixty years and keeping it from returning to our world. He shares with Kolchak how to destroy the demon - steel bolts fired from a crossbow - but warns him that the demon can come in the form of someone he knows.
Directed by Michael Caffey (who directed everything from The Dukes of Hazzard and Trapper John M. D. to The Adventures of Brisco Ciunty Jr.) and written by Jimmy Sangster (The Curse of Frankenstein; Jack the Ripper; Scream, Pretty Peggy), this is an episode in which Kolchak reminds us that the demon could be anyone, even advice columnist Miss Emily.
If you ever battled a Rakshasa in a game of Dungeons & Dragons, this episode of Kolchak: The Night Stalker is why. E. Gary Gygax has written about watching it and being inspired to add the demon to the Monster Manual.
Kolchak: The Night Stalker -- Horror in the Heights
Scarecrow-885 January 2014
Warning: Spoilers
While I seem to always find something to enjoy from each episode of Kolchak, I can also see why the show didn't really make it past its lone season
there are some of these sci-fi/horror stories that are a bit silly. Still, using the different kinds of "monsters of the week" approach offer a unique group of menaces for our heroic reporter to encounter and defeat. Like always, this episode features a fun bunch of supporting actors and a nice use of Ruth McDevitt's Emily Cowles (she's helping with the elderly advice column, seeking Kolchak's advice even in one entertaining sequence; this even contributes to Emily getting a date!). The plot has one of those monster costumed stuntmen (looks like the abominable snowman, giving it a campy appearance) appearing to Jewish elderly in their district of Chicago (sadly, a poor district fallen prey to a rat problem that city sanitation has not addressed efficiently) as people they knew. The creature gains their trust and seizes upon them once each victim is in its grasp, chewing them to shreds! Seems this creature could be the Rakshasa from Hindu legend. Kolchak, believing this is a piece on the plight of the elderly in the city part they live in number, stumbles into a far more dangerous story. Obviously, Kolchak comes to Vincenzo (Simon Oakland, carrying the usual prongs of annoyance that comes with his seemingly difficult job of producing a paper that actually turns a profit and dealing with a reporter who just can't bring him stories worthy of print that won't get him in trouble) with this Rakshasa story and is mocked and disregarded. Darren McGavin opposite Phil Silvers (as one of the Jewish elderly folks that falls victim to the monster) in scenes together at crime scenes is part of this episode's charm as is this wonderfully rich scene where Kolchak irritates a fey Indian art seller/connoisseur/historian, Mr. Lane-Marriot (Murray Matheson) into providing him back story on Rakshasa (the result, Lane-Marriot losing customers thanks to the gory details!). Abraham Sofaer (I know him from the third season, Lost in Space episode "The Flaming Planet") guest stars briefly in spots as a dying Indian Rakshasa hunter, and there's a cool factoid regarding the history of the swastika. The uniqueness of how the monster tricks victims is played to hilarious effect when it takes the shape of Emily in an attempt to fool Kolchak at the end.
The best one
stones7819 May 2014
I have to say that this episode from this influential series is probably the best, and I seriously doubt that I'm alone in that opinion. Kolchak(Darren McGavin)is on the hunt for a creature called the "rakshasa", a monster that appears as a person the victim trusts, and prepares to hug them before squeezing the life out of them. A cool shot is when the victim sees the person, we(audience)see the back of the "person", which is the hairy monster about to kill. The writing is also terrific, as we meet an interesting cast of characters, including Abraham Sofaer, who plays an elderly hunter for this mythical creature; the scenes he shares with Kolchak are both creepy and fun. This was Sofaer's last acting appearance as well, but it was memorable. Look for a very familiar face in Phil Silvers, as he plays it both funny and straight. The seedy atmosphere is great, as is the chemistry between the actors. Since no show is perfect, and I must be an honest reviewer, my only qualm is how composed Kolchak is when he sees the person he "trusts", even though he knows the person is actually the creature in disguise. I expected him to act a little more scared than he did, although he was equipped with a blessed weapon. Lest I forget, let me mention a few more familiar faces in Barry Gordon and Murray Matheson to round out a fine cast. This episode is a winner all around.
Good Actors, so so plot
zboston325 November 2007
Other reviewers have given the plot already which is a tad weak in the buildup to Kolchak's confrontation with the monster - it is however a creepy idea - don't trust anyone, especially if they want to hug you.
What puts this episode a little higher is that like a few others it has a number of older professional character actors in it, such as Phil Silvers, Ned Glass, and others. When these people are in an episode it seems to spur the regulars, McGavin, Oakland, etc to up their game as well, and some of the scenes are little gems to watch.
It also is noteworthy for the social commentary it injects - the plight of the elderly poor, decades before that matter really starts to impact on American society.
What puts this episode a little higher is that like a few others it has a number of older professional character actors in it, such as Phil Silvers, Ned Glass, and others. When these people are in an episode it seems to spur the regulars, McGavin, Oakland, etc to up their game as well, and some of the scenes are little gems to watch.
It also is noteworthy for the social commentary it injects - the plight of the elderly poor, decades before that matter really starts to impact on American society.
Not a review, but a question....
tonygbach29 August 2021
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