Prime Time Preservation: Kolchak: The Night Stalker
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- Опубліковано 9 вер 2024
- After a nine month long hiatus, the channel known as TheArcWielder finally released a new video. A Prime Time video neither long enough to justify the absence nor short enough to denote a lack of time. The topic, Kolchak: The Night Stalker.
Web Sources:
Dawidziak, Mark. “Jeff Rice, creator of 'The Night Stalker,' had an enormous influence on horror entertainment.” Cleveland.com, 11 Jan. 2019. www.cleveland.....
Johnson, Scott. “Johnny Depp to Star in the 'Night Stalker' Movie.” Comicbook, 7 Sept. 2017. comicbook.com/...
Kit, Boris. “Johnny Depp's 'Night Stalker' Movie Enlists 'High Fidelity' Writer.” The Hollywood Reporter, 18 May 2012. www.hollywoodr....
Smith, John L. “Demons haunted 'Night Stalker' creator Jeff Rice.” Las Vegas Review-Journal, 11 July 2015. www.reviewjour....
Viera, Anthony. “Edgar Wright's 'Night Stalker' Reboot with Johnny Depp may be his Next Project.” ScreenRant, 27 May 2014. screenrant.com....
The character of Carl is brilliant and relatable, one of my favorite television personas. Also, one of the best things about this series is when Kolchak pays visits to people he sees semi-regularly in his work (usually to obtain some information), be it a morgue attendant, botanist, or college professor. And these visits often give us fun appearances from veteran character actors.
This series WAS SO MUCH BETTER than "network" CRAP nowadays!
Darren McGavin: I will forever remember him as Carl Kolchak and the dad in Christmas Story.
Kolchak the character as played by Darren McGavin backed up by supporting actor Simon Oakland as his long suffering editor Tony Vincenzo are the saving grace of the monster of the week premise of the show
I sometimes felt the monsters were the backstory and the workplace antics were the real show. The template for "Jaws." Wish McGavin had stuck with it another year.
@@cdorman11 The ratings fell off after about the third episode which I think is the Werewolf on a cruise ship . McGavin was a producer and never got a credit . They basically broke every promise they gave him . Frankly , It should have stayed in the movie of the week format . The two movies were bettwr than 80% of the TV episodes
Kolchak's narration is a great touch
ALWAYS LOVED this show. Was Scarrier than the horror movies today!!!
This was an exceptional show! I loved and feared this show as a kid but could not take my eyes off of it each week and never missed it even though it scared me out of my childhood mind.
Would you say this tv series was better or worse than The Six Million Dollar Man?
Like wise. I still watch it today. I'm a big fan
@@trhansen3244 I like Both.
Forgotten? Hell no! I watch it regularly. Got it on Apple iTunes back when. Not sure it's still on there to purchase, but I still have access. A favorite show! To say, they don't make them like they used to, doesn't do this show justice. It's a gem!
👍
iTunes? Nah, any real fan will have gotten the Blu-ray set. Kolchak in HD, baby!
Fun fact: David Chase while doing an interview for his Sopranos prequel movie mentioned that he wrote many of the scripts for The Night Stalker and gave it as his first big Hollywood writing job. The man who created Tony Soprano gave us some great Night Stalker episodes!
Also Robert Zemeckis, the man who gave us Back to The Future, wrote the episode Chopper
I was a young child when the original tv movies and series aired. I successfully convinced my parents to allow me to watch these. I still love re-watching them. Them eerie open music still gets me to the edge of my seat. When the 2005 re-boot aired, i was hopeful that it would have the chance to succeed. It didn't. However, watch the newer series, i believe in the premiere episode. In the news office, the original Kolchake hat is seen, with shadows of two men arguing in behind the editor-in-chief office. The producers were giving a nod to Mcgavin and Simon Oakland.😎📽
I keep hoping that ABC will reboot the TV movie series with Bryan Cranston as Kolchak .
@@pooddescrewch8718 not good idea I think. The first reboot attempt was such a disaster. Sometimes best to let classics alone.
@@starmnsixty1209 Nah , I think the reboot sucked too but because it tried to be edgey and sexy . If you pay homage to the strengths of the original series it could be a huge success .
I was nine years old and terrfied every week. I thought if enough cops showed up in cars then whatever the problem was would resolve. I would endure till only Kolchak and his antidote of the week vanquished the cryptid or sent it back to where it came from.
I used to watch this way back in the 1970s. Loved it.
Thank you this is very well done love the movies and the tv show never knew the back story.
We miss you, Darren! Very much!!
So sad things couldn't have worked out differently. The studios should have been more fair to Rice and it should have become a movie series and maintained higher quality.
I was a teen when this came on. I loved Kolchak!
Me too since it first came out early 70's
I loved this movie and the TV show. I was so disappointed when it was canceled
Apparently, Darren McGavin wasn't happy with the quality of the scripts and quit the show. He was also the Original Mike Hammer in the 1959 tv series.
Kolchak was a brilliant show. It is endlessly re-watchable. The info about how an unpublished book became a TV movie has, until now, baffled me.
If McGavin had been allowed more input or if Dan Curtis had stayed the show would have had a second or even third season.
The remake failed because it was not even close to the original concept.
Great series, great character and great actor.
Loved this show as a kid! Still fun to watch
I loved this series as a kid, very suspenseful.
The last few seconds of the intro with the fan stopping and him switching around still spooks me 40 plus years later!
There had to have been some off track trivia or lampoon on who or "what" Kolchak saw?
My guess...Vincenzo! (lol!)
A candidate not only for top 25 20th century best horror uniquely accented with comedy, but top psychological thriller and theme music as well.
After listening to the eerie theme music of this iconic series, here I am 40 years later, not wanting to amble up any dark attic ( Bad Medicine) or down any dark basement (The Sentry)...anytime soon!
lol!
.alone!
Excellent well researched post. I was impressed by the "Work Cited" credit. I haven't seen that since the college thesis torture days. My advisor was inspired by Yanos Scorzeni. He had to be. The black CIA suit. Nothing to say, only taught night courses, and drained the blood from every draft I turned in. I remember 1972. Barry Diller created that great "Movie of the Week" platform and the trademark musical opening with the announcement of "A World Premiere television movie made especially for ABC." It wasn't classic Dracula . It was worse. The concept of a modern day blood draining vampire in a black IRS suit with no dialogue , just driven demonic instinct...much like the IRS. I can appreciate such an analogy now but the film's impact in my fourth grade class of 72 left us in paralysis on the playground the next day. No capes or bats. Nothing to imitate. So it made us go inward and pause. The teachers raved about it in the lounge. Some taught social studies using Yanos as a Nixon goverment presence analogy stalking and bleeding our resources and rights away. I remember they taught that as part of the Watergate Paranoia days. Cobert's music score was just as derailing and Darren McGavin's erratic eccentrics pushed it over the top. But I had no idea what Jeff Rice endured. Most don't mention the head butting Curtis and McGavin had. That was a big deal then. Writers got little if no respect then except for Mathison.
Thank you, ArcWielder, for giving this film and its making the respectful treatment it deserved.
"Demon in Lace" is one of my top favorites and...to me...the funniest!
Talk about an extreme "age gap" deadly date!
The college age crowd would have loved this show, but Friday at 10:00, no way. Would have loved to have seen "The Night Killers" done as a two-parter.
Oh boy, I really love this movie!
It really delves into how this wonderful T.V. show came about, and was possible to be made, so that all of us could enjoy it, they way it was meant to be!!
This was definitely my favorite T.V. show, during its run on T.V.
I love, love, love it, and always will!! Thanks so much for bringing this T.V. show back for us too enjoy again!!
Still watch this on MeTv 12am on Saturday night.
Same
The Night Stalker TV series Available for the first time on Blu-ray 2K on October 12, 2021. You can Pre-Order it on Amazon.
I was hoping you’d mention that Darrin McGavin did a guest appearance on an episode of ‘The X-Files’.
Im old enough to remember when it was titled The Night Stalker instead of Kolchak: The Night Stalker. Same with Star Wars(Han shot first) instead of Star Wars: A New Hope
You talking about the tv shows or the 2 movies?
@@jobuchner2563 The original made for tv movie was titled The Night Stalker(one of the best made for tv movies EVER). The second made for tv movie and sequel was titled The Night Strangler. ABC then ordered a series which was titled The Night Stalker for a few episodes. The show went away for awhile and when it came back it was was suddenly titled Kolchak: The Night Stalker.
Johnny Depp as Kolchak...That would be interesting. First episode; "The Case of the Batty Ex-wife!".
Something not mentioned alot that I like is the frequent wide shots panning around early 70's Chicago.
Very atmospheric.
I watched it with My father in the 1970s but I still love it today
Back in the day got off work and never missed a episode !!!
Still watch this show every Saturday Nite!!!!!!
One of my childhood favorites. Thank you.
Kolchak the Columbo of Horror👍👍
great show loved those 1970's as a kid
Well done! The Mark Dawdizak "Companion" book is well worth owning, although pricey online. A lot of Kolchak related material appeared in the 1990s; fanzines("it couldn't happen here"), one or two model kits, plus other scattered comics, and magazine articles.
Some magazines dating to the 1970s are well worth the search; FANGORIA # 3(1979)
has an episode guide albeit with some errors, for instance. There are some others I could list if people like. Sorry to say Kolchak creator Jeffrey Grant Rice died at 71 in 2015. Actor Jack Grinnage has been the last surviving cast member since that same year 😢.
I can see James Spader as Kolchak and Johnny Depp as the Vampire.
It was the highlight on my night growing up as a boy in Chicago. And that it took place in my hometown of Chicago was the bomb. They had an office they filmed that was visible off the "L" that appeared in the series intro. "INS News", embossed on the window. I use to perk up every time I went by it. The window stayed painted and undisturbed for years and added to a creepy factor when watching the show. Absolutely loved the show, now I think I'll buy the series on DVD.
Fans like me fervently wish for a true Night Stalker television series reboot. It would have to be another Kolchak, perhaps a relative like a nephew. The reboot would follow the original Night Stalker series with its monster-of-the-week premise. As an improvement, there would be no silly episodes like the defrosted apeman, the bipedal alligator, the invisible alien, the amok android. The storylines would be based off old and ancient myths and legends, of which there is an unlimited source to draw upon. Thus, the old episodes from the original series like: Horror In the Heights, Chopper, The Vampire, The Knightly Murders, Jack the Ripper, Demon In Lace, Legacy of Terror, were among the most popular.
If I was the writer, I would base the reboot Night Stalker in southern California, from Santa Barbara all the way south to San Diego, but usually centered in Los Angeles County.
The new Kolchak, a grandnephew named, Ken Kolchak, has the best part's of Karl Kolchak's personality but none of the bad parts. Ken works for an independent Los Angeles weekly periodical that is a composite of expose, investigative journalism, and quasi-tabloid sensation. Ken's penchant for landing the odd, unexplainable, seemingly preternatural cases lands him in the demi-tabloid part of the weekly publication.
There are lots of spooky legends and myths in southern California to occupy Ken's time. Even so, sometimes foreign preternatural incidents enter southern California, from emigrants, perhaps, or even imports of foreign ancient artifacts for display.
Ken Kolchak is a younger more vigorous version of his granduncle, just as often scared yet possessed of more inner courage. Ken is 5'11" to 6'1" and knows some basic self-defense based off Jujutsu he learned during his four year stint in the U.S. Army working in public affairs and journalism as a young Specialist Four then as a sergeant. Ken is unique in that he wrangled training in the Rangers where he learned his hand-to-hand combatives, but after finishing Ranger school, got himself transferred to Public Affairs and journalism in the Army. During high school and college, Ken had been active in Journalism and Photo Journalism. Let it be known that during his time in college journalism and in the U.S. Army Public Affairs journalism, Ken Kolchak had encountered several times incidents and unexplainable things that originated his interest in the unexplainable, odd, bizarre, preternatural aspects of it.
The only believable vampire movie ever made.....Class dismissed
There is only one Kolchak and that's Darren McGavin. Too bad they ran out of monsters.
I love growing up in the era
I dread the idea of Disney doing some mucked up remake of Carl Kolchak
If the STUDIOS WEREN'T TRYING TO CHEAT EVERYONE AND
LISTENED TO DARREN ABOUT THE QUALITY OF THE SHOW WOULD
HAVE LASTED LONGER.
SINCE KIDS LOVE HORROR CHANGING THE TIME TO 10PM ON A WEEK
DAY WAS STUPID. (HIGH SCHOOL 🏫 GAMES PLAYED ON FRIDAY NIGHT'S
🏈🏀⚾⚽🎾 )
THEY HAD A GEM AND SMASHED IT.
SOMETHING TELLS ME KICK BACKS $$$$ 💰 WERE THE REASON
FOR STEALING.
2 AUGUST 2021, MONDAY 🇺🇸
If a show was moved to this time slot then the intention was to kill it off. It’s always been known as the “graveyard slot” during the reign of Nielsen ratings.
Still watch this all the time. Been trying to find a way to watch Kolchak, crackle of death, 2 episodes meshed together.
The two compilation movies are exceptionally hard to find footage of. Fortunately the episodes that they meshed together are available to watch in their entirety, along with the rest of the series, for free on the NBC website!
The DVD Lady sells both of the Kolchak meshed movies that combine those episodes. Not very good. The separate episodes are better.
@@bluesnagg Thank you for info.
beware dvd lady is a scam!
@@Alan13448 I ordered both Kolchak telefilms from DVD Lady, and they arrived.
why did kolchak the night stalker got cancelled too soon
Loved this show when I was a kid. My dad wouldn’t beat my mom when it was on.
I watched this as a young kid.I would really be scared, but always watched every episode.
Very nice piece on an all-time great show.
I also have to say that I noticed he (Carl Kolchak) also had this costume/outfit, that Peter Falk in Columbo does, with his trench coat, and cigar, as well as his rattle trap Citroen of a car, and oh yes, and we can't forget his, Columbo's, Basset Hound Doggie!
We have the same kind of appeal in both of these T.V. shows, that made them big hits, and that resonates with people, and they get it, and look forward to taking it in, and enjoying it, for the suspense, mystery and excitement it gives you, and leaves you with!!
It takes you on a mystery ride with Carl Kolchak, to what the heck, we never know where it will lead to, am I right?! You betcha I am!!! I love this show!
Then again, you have the flat tire types, that are clueless, and don't get it at all, and don't care either, no excitement with them! Anyway, Thanks so much for the opportunity to get this out there!!!
Well, they filmed so much at night, he would have disappeared into the shadows in a dark suit, ha!
Great video!
Outstanding show.
Audio was a little too quiet I had to hook up my blue tooth speaker but otherwise, a great video! I enjoyed watching Kolchak as a boy and I had no idea about the drama behind the scenes.
I'm curious if the 1977 Dan Curtis TV movie Curse of the Black Widow had ever been considered for a Kolchak project, since it shares many similarities with The Night Stalker, including music by Robert Cobert, and Tony Franciosa's private detective who seems like a stand in for Kolchak.
I believe it was.
Fun fact: The woman Kolchak is talking to at 10:20 is Katie Browne - Darrin McGavin's wife in real life. She's probably best known for her role as Deela in the Star Trek episode "Wink of an Eye." Here, she plays Lt. Irene Lamont, head of the investigation in "The Sentry." Interesting thing is not only is this the only episode in the series to feature a female protagonist for Kolchak, she treats him very differently - like a naughty little boy - as opposed the male investigators from other episodes who mostly deal with him as a nagging pest.
The Norliss Tapes TV movie was very much like Kolchak and his adventures.
Did not know that Underdog was part of this show or at least the Night Strangler.
Still great series!
As night stockers go, Kojak was one of the best.
Before Buffy and Supernatural, there was Nightstalker!
I don't know how I feel about studios casting a new Kolchak. As much as I want to see more, the casting just has to be right. I feel like they should go with a lesser known actor or even a stage actor, but if they must choose someone with more noteriety then I believe Chris Pine would be an excellent choice. He definitely has the ability to play someone like Kolchak. I would recommend watching the miniseries "I Am the Night". He gives a great performance reminiscent of Kolchak at times.
I had the nightstalker theme song as my alarm on my phone
The Night Stalker was good, but with a little effort it could have been a lot better. I guess the producers really didn't want to invest a lot of money in it.
Would have been great if Kolchak investigated the Zuni Fetish Doll
Forgotten , i doubt that very much
Just an opinion poll ....which episode scared you the most ? For me it was The Zombie for one scene , when Kolchak is set to sew the lips of the Zombie shut and his eyes opened ....holy cow , I cakked meself . I think Horror in The Heights was the best episode but that ZOMBIE scene scarred my dreams
Growing up, the Zombie episode definitely frightened me the most because it was so tense during that entire scene. The Werewolf was a second runner up as a child because they never clearly showed the monster until the very end and you only got glimpses of it until then.
Zombie is it
For me, it was the episode with the UFO aliens where you never see the critter. A close second was the one with the mannequins. I still sometimes get uneasy when passing by one in the store.
@@JedForge That was called The Trevi Affair I believe ....a witch tries to take over a fashion house
"Horror in the Heights" gets my vote. The scenes where we only saw the Rakshasa from behind as it is about to claim another victim(s), along with the growling, scared the bejesus out of me when I first saw them. The episode was very well written, making the whole situation seem very logical, and frightening as a result. The coup de grace - where Kolchak fires the arrow into the false Miss Emily - is always eye-popping, no matter how many times I see it. The directly wisely showed "Miss Emily" with the arrow in her a few seconds after she had been shot, before revealing the Rakshasa. This generated and "Oh my God!" moment when I saw it, and it still has the same power today.
Have you snagged the blu ray of the show?
They had very good episodes 1of the top scary shows , of course rod sterling &his writings r the foundation of all horror or twisted movies or shows
I Watch the Movies Night Stalker I & II Every Halloween Like Christmas Movies.
Just got in the frist 2 movies and the series
They only did 2 movies and only 1 season of the tv series, unfortunately.
THIS IS AWESOME INFORMATION BUT YOU NEED BETTER VOLUME FOR YOU VOICE. SORRY.
The Ripper...
Forgotten? Really? Don't think so Chum.
I loved the show but the premise was ridiculous . Every week a preofessional news man neglects his assignment , defeats a ,onster , stays employed ecen after reporting on how " A mpnster dunnit " and avoiding jaol time for beong on the scenes with unexplanable corpses about ...lol ...Chicago had a new monster nearly once every week ....
The X Files corrected the problem by having an overarching story line mixed in a with a monster of the week. Having a monster of the week every week gets stale quick.
@@TDL-xg5nn I actually found the " monster of the week " episodes of The X-Files to be more enjoyable than the story arc episodes that sometimes went nowhere. Also enjoyed the Smoking Gun episodes.
I BELIEVE A SECOND REMAKE MORE IN LINE WITH THE ORIGINAL SERIES SHOULD BE DONE. HOWEVER , IT SHOULD HAVE MORE THAN ONE SEASON. IT IS IMPORTANT PEOPLE ARE MORE AWARE OF THE REAL EVIL IN THIS WORLD THAT TAKES MANY GUISES . THIS IS WHAT I LIKED ABOUT THE SERIES. IT SHOWED THAT THERE IS REAL EVIL HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT. IT IS EVIDENT THAT THIS WORLD IS BEING USED BY PEOPLE IN HIGH PLACES PRACTISING WICKEDNESS. THERE ARE PEOPLE IN HOLLYWOOD DOING REAL EVIL THAT I'M SURE. KOLCHAK SERIES SHOWED THIS TO BE THE CASE AND YEAR'S LATER TO MY HORROR , THERE WERE TWIN BROTHER'S IN MY CLASS THAT COMMITTED THE MOST HEINOUS CRIME AND I WOULD DISCOVER IT BY SMELL AND SENSE. MIND YOU, I NEVER TRUSTED THESE BROTHER'S, BECAUSE I ALWAYS SENSED DARKNESS AROUND THEM. SO, WHEN IT WAS PROVEN THAT THEY KILLED SOMEBODY THAT IT SHOOK ME UP LIKE THE JANITOR THAT I SAW ENCLOSED IN DARKNESS. IT TURNED OUT HE WAS SENDING BOMB THREATS TO THE SCHOOL AND I EVEN SENSED WHERE HE PLANTED THE BOMB. STRANGE, THOSE TWO THING'S HAPPENED AT MY SCHOOL AND LIKE IN KOLCHAK- EVIL WAS HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT IN UNEXPECTED PLACES.
I HAVE TO SAY THAT IT WAS SCARY, BUT I LEARNED A VALUABLE LESSON THAT EVIL CAN BE TOO CLOSE FOR COMFORT. THE THIRD EVIL THAT I DIDN'T SEE COMING AND WAS VERY CLOSE TO ME WAS MY NOW EX-HUSBAND FROM MY FIRST MARRIAGE. I REALLY CAME CLOSE TO BEING KILLED BY FIRST AND SECOND ONE. THANKFULLY, I GOT TO LEARN WHAT TO LOOK OUT FOR IN PEOPLE. I THINK THAT EPHESIANS 6:12 IS WORTH REMEMBERING AND KEEPING CLOSE IN OUR HEART'S. KEEPING OUR LOVE AND FAITH IN YAHUSHUA HA'MOSHIACH ELOHIYM IS IMPORTANT AND LOVING AND FORGIVING.
The creator got robbed
Depp would not be right to play Kolchak.
Unfortunately, there is still no Hollywood interest in any kind of Kolchak the Night Stalker reboot. The 2005 reboot was terrible. It was boring, monotonous, and hard to follow, and more, totally unentertaining. The studio relied on the old schtick of the mysterious, moody, brooding, young man with too many tragic secrets behind him which leaves him dour, uncommunicative and largely unsympathetic. Some unlikeable, ambitious reporter latches on to him without his consent and off the two go, traveling the highways, verbally sparring with each other and keeping secrets from one another. There was absolutely no chemistry. It was no, Route 66 there. Small wonder the show televised only six out of its ten, created episodes. I lasted the first two episodes before giving up on the lousy reboot.