List of Columbo episodes
Updated: 5/24/2026, 6:56:55 PM Wikipedia source
The following is an episode list for the crime fiction television series Columbo. After two pilot episodes, the show originally aired on NBC from 1971 to 1978 as one of the rotating programs of The NBC Mystery Movie. Columbo then aired on ABC as part of The ABC Mystery Movie from 1989 to 1990 and less frequently starting in late 1990. The last installment was broadcast in 2003. Because the Columbo episodes from late 1990 to 2003 aired infrequently, different DVD sets have been released around the world. In Region 2 and 4, all episodes have now been released as 10 seasons. Seasons 8–9 reflect the two seasons aired as part of The ABC Mystery Movie, and the 10th season covers the last 14 episodes from "Columbo Goes to College" (1990) to the series finale, "Columbo Likes the Nightlife" (2003). In France and the Netherlands (also Region 2), however, the DVDs were released as 12 seasons. In Region 1, all episodes from season 8 are grouped differently: Those that were originally aired on ABC were released in four volumes under the banner COLUMBO: The Mystery Movie Collection. For the sake of clarity, all episodes in this article are arranged as they appear in the UK release.
Tables
| Season | Episodes | Originally released | |||
| First released | Last released | Network | |||
| Pilots | 2 | February 20, 1968 (1968-02-20) | March 1, 1971 (1971-03-01) | NBC | |
| 1 | 7 | September 15, 1971 (1971-09-15) | February 9, 1972 (1972-02-09) | ||
| 2 | 8 | September 17, 1972 (1972-09-17) | March 25, 1973 (1973-03-25) | ||
| 3 | 8 | September 23, 1973 (1973-09-23) | May 5, 1974 (1974-05-05) | ||
| 4 | 6 | September 15, 1974 (1974-09-15) | April 27, 1975 (1975-04-27) | ||
| 5 | 6 | September 14, 1975 (1975-09-14) | May 2, 1976 (1976-05-02) | ||
| 6 | 3 | October 10, 1976 (1976-10-10) | May 22, 1977 (1977-05-22) | ||
| 7 | 5 | November 21, 1977 (1977-11-21) | May 13, 1978 (1978-05-13) | ||
| 8 | 4 | February 6, 1989 (1989-02-06) | May 1, 1989 (1989-05-01) | ABC | |
| 9 | 6 | November 25, 1989 (1989-11-25) | May 14, 1990 (1990-05-14) | ||
| 10 + Specials | 14 | December 9, 1990 (1990-12-09) | January 30, 2003 (2003-01-30) | ||
| No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Murderer played by | Victim played by | Original air date | Runtime | |
| 1 | "Prescription: Murder" | Richard Irving | Richard Levinson & William Link based on their play | Gene Barry as Ray Flemming | Nina Foch as Carol Flemming | February 20, 1968 (1968-02-20) | 94 min | |
| Dr. Ray Flemming (Gene Barry), a psychiatrist, murders his wife (Nina Foch) and persuades his mistress Joan Hudson (Katherine Justice), who is an actress and one of his patients, to support his alibi by impersonating her aboard his plane flight. Columbo notices that Flemming does not call out to his wife when he gets back. Final clue and twist: Co | ||||||||
| 2 | "Ransom for a Dead Man" | Richard Irving | Story by : Richard Levinson & William Link Teleplay by : Dean Hargrove | Lee Grant as Leslie Williams | Harlan Warde as Paul Williams | March 1, 1971 (1971-03-01) | 92 min | |
| Leslie Williams (Lee Grant), a brilliant and ruthless lawyer, murders her husband Paul (Harlan Warde) to get his money, arranging the act to look as if he had been kidnapped and killed by his captors. Final clue and twist: Margaret (Patricia Mattick), who hates her stepmother Leslie, tells Leslie she will go away if Leslie gives her a lot of money | ||||||||
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Murderer played by | Victim(s) played by | Original release date | Runtime |
| 3 | 1 | "Murder by the Book" | Steven Spielberg | Steven Bochco | Jack Cassidy as Ken Franklin | Martin Milner as Jim Ferris and Barbara Colby as Lilly La Sanka | September 15, 1971 (1971-09-15) | 72 min |
| 4 | 2 | "Death Lends a Hand" | Bernard Kowalski | Richard Levinson & William Link | Robert Culp as Investigator Brimmer | Patricia Crowley as Lenore Kennicut | October 6, 1971 (1971-10-06) | 72 min |
| 5 | 3 | "Dead Weight" | Jack Smight | John T. Dugan | Eddie Albert as Martin Hollister | John Kerr as Roger Dutton | October 27, 1971 (1971-10-27) | 72 min |
| 6 | 4 | "Suitable for Framing" | Hy Averback | Jackson Gillis | Ross Martin as Dale Kingston and Rosanna Huffman as Tracy O'Connor | Robert Shayne as Rudy Matthews and Rosanna Huffman as Tracy O'Connor | November 17, 1971 (1971-11-17) | 72 min |
| 7 | 5 | "Lady in Waiting" | Norman Lloyd | Story by : Barney Slater Teleplay by : Steven Bochco | Susan Clark as Beth Chadwick | Richard Anderson as Bryce Chadwick | December 15, 1971 (1971-12-15) | 72 min |
| 8 | 6 | "Short Fuse" | Edward M. Abroms | Story by : Lester Pine & Tina Pine and Jackson Gillis Teleplay by : Jackson Gillis | Roddy McDowall as Roger Stanford | James Gregory as David Buckner and Lawrence Cook as Quincy | January 19, 1972 (1972-01-19) | 72 min |
| 9 | 7 | "Blueprint for Murder" | Peter Falk | Story by : William Kelley Teleplay by : Steven Bochco | Patrick O'Neal as Elliot Markham | Forrest Tucker as Beau Williamson | February 9, 1972 (1972-02-09) | 71 min |
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Murderer played by | Victim(s) played by | Original release date | Runtime |
| 10 | 1 | "Étude in Black" | Nicholas Colasanto | Story by : Richard Levinson & William Link Teleplay by : Steven Bochco | John Cassavetes as Alex Benedict | Anjanette Comer as Jenifer Welles | September 17, 1972 (1972-09-17) | 91 min |
| 11 | 2 | "The Greenhouse Jungle" | Boris Sagal | Jonathan Latimer | Ray Milland as Jarvis Goodland | Bradford Dillman as Tony Goodland | October 15, 1972 (1972-10-15) | 70 min |
| 12 | 3 | "The Most Crucial Game" | Jeremy Kagan | John T. Dugan | Robert Culp as Paul Hanlon | Dean Stockwell as Eric Wagner | November 5, 1972 (1972-11-05) | 70 min |
| 13 | 4 | "Dagger of the Mind" | Richard Quine | Story by : Richard Levinson & William Link Teleplay by : Jackson Gillis | Richard Basehart as Nicholas Frame and Honor Blackman as Lillian Stanhope | John Williams as Sir Roger Haversham and Wilfrid Hyde-White as Tanner | November 26, 1972 (1972-11-26) | 92 min |
| 14 | 5 | "Requiem for a Falling Star" | Richard Quine | Jackson Gillis | Anne Baxter as Nora Chandler | Pippa Scott as Jean Davis and John Colicos as Al Cumberland (photograph) | January 21, 1973 (1973-01-21) | 70 min |
| 15 | 6 | "A Stitch in Crime" | Hy Averback | Shirl Hendryx | Leonard Nimoy as Barry Mayfield | Anne Francis as Sharon Martin and Jared Martin as Harry Alexander | February 11, 1973 (1973-02-11) | 70 min |
| 16 | 7 | "The Most Dangerous Match" | Edward M. Abroms | Story by : Richard Levinson & William Link and Jackson Gillis Teleplay by : Jackson Gillis | Laurence Harvey as Emmett Clayton | Jack Kruschen as Tomlin Dudek | March 4, 1973 (1973-03-04) | 70 min |
| 17 | 8 | "Double Shock" | Robert Butler | Story by : Jackson Gillis and Richard Levinson & William Link Teleplay by : Steven Bochco | Martin Landau in a dual role as Dexter Paris and Norman Paris | Paul Stewart as Clifford Paris and Julie Newmar as Lisa Chambers | March 25, 1973 (1973-03-25) | 70 min |
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Murderer played by | Victim(s) played by | Original release date | Runtime |
| 18 | 1 | "Lovely but Lethal" | Jeannot Szwarc | Story by : Myrna Bercovici Teleplay by : Jackson Gillis | Vera Miles as Viveca Scott | Martin Sheen as Karl Lessing and Sian Barbara Allen as Shirley Blaine | September 23, 1973 (1973-09-23) | 70 min |
| 19 | 2 | "Any Old Port in a Storm" | Leo Penn | Story by : Larry Cohen Teleplay by : Stanley Ralph Ross | Donald Pleasence as Adrian Carsini | Gary Conway as Rick Carsini | October 7, 1973 (1973-10-07) | 91 min |
| 20 | 3 | "Candidate for Crime" | Boris Sagal | Story by : Larry Cohen Teleplay by : Irving Pearlberg and Alvin R. Friedman and Roland Kibbee & Dean Hargrove | Jackie Cooper as Nelson Hayward | Ken Swofford as Harry Stone | November 4, 1973 (1973-11-04) | 94 min |
| 21 | 4 | "Double Exposure" | Richard Quine | Stephen J. Cannell | Robert Culp as Bart Keppel | Robert Middleton as Vic Norris and Chuck McCann as Roger White | December 16, 1973 (1973-12-16) | 70 min |
| 22 | 5 | "Publish or Perish" | Robert Butler | Peter S. Fischer | Jack Cassidy as Riley Greenleaf and John Chandler as Eddie Kane | Mickey Spillane as Alan Mallory and John Chandler as Eddie Kane | January 13, 1974 (1974-01-13) | 71 min |
| 23 | 6 | "Mind Over Mayhem" | Alf Kjellin | Story by : Robert Specht Teleplay by : Steven Bochco and Dean Hargrove & Roland Kibbee | José Ferrer as Marshall Cahill | Lew Ayres as Howard Nicholson | February 10, 1974 (1974-02-10) | 70 min |
| 24 | 7 | "Swan Song" | Nicholas Colasanto | Story by : Stanley Ralph Ross Teleplay by : David Rayfiel | Johnny Cash as Tommy Brown | Ida Lupino as Edna Brown and Bonnie Van Dyke as Maryann Cobb | March 3, 1974 (1974-03-03) | 94 min |
| 25 | 8 | "A Friend in Deed" | Ben Gazzara | Peter S. Fischer | Richard Kiley as Mark Halperin and Michael McGuire as Hugh Caldwell | Rosemary Murphy as Margaret Halperin and an uncredited actress as Janice Caldwell | May 5, 1974 (1974-05-05) | 94 min |
References
- Amazon UKhttps://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B002L7O7Q8
- "Columbo, saison 12 Fr"https://www.amazon.fr/dp/B000X9EJZA
- "COLUMBO US DVD release at Universal Studio"https://web.archive.org/web/20150315055132/http://www.universalstudiosentertainment.com/columbo-mystery-movie-collection-1989/
- The villainous stage : crime plays on Broadway and in the West Endhttps://search.worldcat.org/oclc/903807427
- Ironically, Colby was a murder victim in 1975.
- Columbohttps://www.newspapers.com/article/the-los-angeles-times-los-angeles-times/158610032/
- NBC Sunday Mystery Movie: Columbohttps://www.newspapers.com/article/the-los-angeles-times-los-angeles-times/158610286/
- NBC Sunday Mystery Movie: Columbohttps://www.newspapers.com/article/the-los-angeles-times-los-angeles-times/158610626/
- NBC Sunday Mystery Movie: Columbohttps://www.newspapers.com/article/the-los-angeles-times-los-angeles-times/158610928/
- NBC Sunday Mystery Movie: Columbohttps://www.newspapers.com/article/the-los-angeles-times-los-angeles-times/158611092/
- NBC Sunday Mystery Movie: Columbohttps://www.newspapers.com/article/the-los-angeles-times-los-angeles-times/158611308/
- NBC Sunday Mystery Movie: Columbohttps://www.newspapers.com/article/the-los-angeles-times-los-angeles-times/158611418/
- NBC Sunday Mystery Movie: Columbohttps://www.newspapers.com/article/the-los-angeles-times-los-angeles-times/158611546/
- Columbohttps://www.newspapers.com/article/the-los-angeles-times-los-angeles-times/158612008/
- Columbohttps://www.newspapers.com/article/the-los-angeles-times-los-angeles-times/158612899/
- Columbohttps://www.newspapers.com/article/the-los-angeles-times-los-angeles-times/158613203/
- Columbohttps://www.newspapers.com/article/the-los-angeles-times-los-angeles-times/158613450/
- Columbohttps://www.newspapers.com/article/the-los-angeles-times-los-angeles-times/158613637/
- Columbohttps://www.newspapers.com/article/the-los-angeles-times-los-angeles-times/158613756/