Prescription: Murder, the 1968 pilot for Columbo, had been something of a muddled affair: overlong, unremarkable and, worst of all, a dull characterization of the lieutenant himself. Columbo returned ...

Lieutenant Columbo, played with average Joe charm and unshowy, easy-to-miss dexterity by Peter Falk, is more than meets the eye — to the bad guys, not us, because we know how things will turn out.

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works. It was a classic TV series that launched and defined an entire genre. Its title character is one ...