Joseph Mallozzi's Blog, page 80
August 5, 2023
August 5, 2023: Unusual Deaths!
#UnusualDeaths
Following a 9-day hospital stay for treatment of asthma and emphysema, a resident of Pontiac, Michigan complained of feeling like something was stuck in his throat. He was rushed back to hospital but died. Cause of death: choking on a latex surgical glove. pic.twitter.com/iR2w05NfPD
— Joseph Mallozzi
(@BaronDestructo) July 30, 2023
#UnusualDeaths
In 2005, a children's entertainer was driving down a California highway when the 20 foot balloon elephant in his backseat, Mr. Jumbo, suddenly inflated, causing him to lose control of the vehicle and crash. pic.twitter.com/M8LtUUwC1B
— Joseph Mallozzi
#UnusualDeaths
In November of 1997, a woman in Kompong Speu, Cambodia, decapitated her husband after he snuck up and tried to tickler her while she was chopping firewood. According to the statement she gave police: "I hate being tickled.". pic.twitter.com/trFQ6HmMvW
— Joseph Mallozzi
#UnusualDeaths
In 1998, a 25-year-old Argentinian pushed his wife out of an 8th floor window only to have her fall arrested when her legs became entangled in power lines. In a bid to finish the job, he tried to jump on her, missed, and fell to his death.
She survived.
— Joseph Mallozzi
#UnusualDeaths
In 1998, a man choked to death at a bar in Bremen, Germany after biting off another patron's ear during a dispute. pic.twitter.com/3I3SHoJJI4
— Joseph Mallozzi
The post August 5, 2023: Unusual Deaths! appeared first on Joseph Mallozzi's Weblog.
August 4, 2023
Mrs. Columbo – A Brief History
Shortly after Columbo ended its run on NBC in 1978, executive Fred Silverman decided to produce a spin-off series titled Mrs. Columbo despite the protests of original Columbo creators Richard Levinson and William Link.
Mrs. Columbo, who was never given a first name in the original series, would be named Kate. She would be a news reporter with a penchant for solving crime, just like her husband(!), while raising her young daughter.
In an attempt to make the best of the situation, Levinson and Link made a casting suggestion they felt would be in keeping with the character often referred to – but never seen – in the original series.
They recommended Oscar-nominated actress Maureen Stapleton for the role. NBC balked. So they suggested veteran actress Zohra Lambert. Again, NBC dismissed their request. They wanted someone young for the role. Someone beautiful. They wanted Kate Mulgrew.
Kate was 24 at the time, Peter Falk 52, which would have made it a real May-December romance. If one did the math, that would have made Kate Columbo 16 when she had her daughter and 13 when her husband first mentions her in the Columbo episode Prescription: Murder.
Undaunted, the network forged ahead and the show premiered on February 26, 1979 with the episode “Word Game”, written by Richard Alan Simmons who developed the series on the heels of writing the script for The Island of Dr. Moreau.
Early on, the hints were there to remind audiences of the Columbo connection. The rumpled detective’s familiar Peugeot appears in the opening credits and we get a glimpse of a man who looks kind of like Columbo from behind in the pilot.
The network assumed that all they had to do was slap Columbo in the title and viewers would lap it up but, like a studio rebooting Stargate without the involvement of original creators Brad Wright or Robert Cooper, they were immediately disabused of this quaint notion.
The ratings were abysmal. In an effort to save the show, the decision was made to distance it from the original Columbo series by having Kate change her name to Callahan following a divorce.
Then it was revealed that Kate was never married to the Columbo we all knew and loved. Oh, no. She was married to a completely different detective called Philip Columbo! So it’s easy to see how you could have made that erroneous assumption.
The series title also changed, going from Mrs. Columbo to Kate Columbo to Kate the Detective to Kate Loves a Mystery, all over the course of the show’s ill-fated 2 season 13 episode run.
Finally, NBC cut their losses and cancelled the show. The last episode aired on March 19, 1980 and the credited director was Alan Smithee, a pseudonym used by directors who wanted to distance themselves from a project.
The talented Kate Mulgrew emerged from the fiasco unscathed and went on to forge an impressive career with roles like Star Trek Voyager’s Captain Janeway and Orange is the New Black’s Galina “Red” Reznikov.
It was no secret that Peter Falk was no fan of the spin-off. Years later, when the original Columbo returned to ABC, it was made clear that he was still very happily married.
And in a later episode, to put the matter to rest, Columbo offers the following: “A woman’s been going round pretending to be my wife, but it isn’t her.”
The post Mrs. Columbo – A Brief History appeared first on Joseph Mallozzi's Weblog.
August 3, 2023
Columbo – A Brief History
Columbo is one of the most beloved crime dramas in television history. It ran from February 1960 to January 2003, spanning 35 years and 69 episodes (including not one but two pilots). It has been broadcast in 44 countries
From 1971 to 1978, the show ran as part of the NBC Mystery Movie (wheel) and then, following an 11 year hiatus, returned as part of the ABC Mystery Movie from 1989 to 2003, its last episode airing as part of ABC Thursday Night at the Movies.
The show was created by writers Richard Levinson and William Link. The (first) series pilot, Prescription: Murder, was based on their stage play of the same name.
Two other actors portrayed Columbo before Peter Falk made the character his own. Bert Freed was the first actor to play the part in a 1960 episode of The Chevy Mystery Show. Two years later, Oscar-winner Thomas Mitchell played Columbo in the stage version of Prescription: Murder.
Eight years later when Levinson and Link were looking to cast the role for the small screen, the first actors considered for the part were Lee J. Cobb (star of The Virginian) and Bing Crosby (who passed because he feared the commitment would interfere with his golf game).
The role eventually went to actor Peter Falk who would go on to win four Emmy Awards for his portrayal of lovable, disarming, rumpled detective.
Falk provided his own wardrobe for the show which included the famed trademark disheveled raincoat he had bought in New York for $15.
Falk was a perfectionist, insisting on repeated takes to ensure the performances were their best. His attitude earned him the respect of his guest stars, and the animosity of studio executives who had to swallow the cost overruns.
Occasionally, Falk would ad-lib during his performances – searching his pockets, becoming distracted – to keep his fellow actors on their toes and, in the case of murder suspects, palpably frustrated.
Unlike the Whodunit, Columbo was a Howdunit, with the murderer revealed in the opening and our Columbo himself not making an appearance until after the first act. It was a format the network initially hated…but grew to love.
The show was an immediate hit and became a worldwide sensation. According to Falk, at one point during the show’s run, he was asked by the State Department to record a reassuring message for Romanian fans who had threatened to riot, suspecting their government was holding back on new episodes.
Early contributors to the show’s success included a young Steven Spielberg who directed seasons 1’s “Murder by the Book” and Hill Street Blues creator Steven Bochco who scripted several episodes including the aforementioned.
Columbo’s catch-phrase, “One more thing…”, is as quintessentially Columbo as his raincoat, but it wasn’t originally scripted.
According to Levinson “we had a scene that was too short, and we had already had Columbo make his exit. We were too lazy to retype the scene, so we had him come back and say, ‘Oh, just one more thing.’ It was never planned.”
Columbo’s first name was never revealed and his wife, who often referenced, was never seen. His dog, a basset hound named Dog, who has the distinction of being the most featured recurring guest star with 23 appearances.
Numerous actors made multiple appearances on the show and a handful returned to play several murderers.
Patrick McGoohan played 5 different murders over the franchise run, Jack Cassidy and Robert Culp 3 a piece, while George Hamilton and William Shatner each played two murderers. Shatner’s killers were especially deliciously devious.
In 2007, Universal shopped just one more Columbo episode to the networks. Titled “Columbo’s Last Case”, it would have been the rumpled detective 70th and final outing. But it never came to be as the networks passed on the 80-year-old Falk’s swan song.
In 2014, Columbo and his dog, Dog, were commemorated with a statue in Budapest, Hungary.
For a deeper dive into Columbo, check out –
Shooting Columbo by David Koenig
The Columbo Phile by Mark Dawidziak
The Columbo Companion by @columbophile
Or visit: https://columbophile.com
A great article on Columbo’s enduring legacy:
https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20210909-why-the-world-still-loves-1970s-detective-show-columbo
Tomorrow: Mrs. Columbo – A Brief History
The post Columbo – A Brief History appeared first on Joseph Mallozzi's Weblog.
August 2, 2023
August 2, 2023: Amazing Covers!
A few that caught my eye this week…
Scarlet Witch #7 – cover art by Russell Dauterman
Star Wars: Dark Droids #1 – cover art by Giuseppe Camuncoli
X-Men #25 – cover art by Alex Ross
X-Men #25 – cover art by C.F. Villa
Red Sonja #1 – cover art by Jenny Frison
Red Sonja #1 – cover art by Shannon Maer
Batman: One Bad Day – Bane – cover art by Howard Porter
Black Cloak #6 – cover art by Tula Lotay
Robotech: Rick Hunter #1 – cover art by Derrick Chew
A Girl on the Shore – cover art by Inio Asana
So, which were YOUR favorites?
The post August 2, 2023: Amazing Covers! appeared first on Joseph Mallozzi's Weblog.
August 1, 2023
August 1, 2023: Meanwhile, on the home front!
Sampling Ryazhenka…
Sampling coffee milk jelly…
Today’s Yes/No…
Watermelon Frappuccino? Yes/No
Starbucks Japan releases first-ever nationwide watermelon Frappuccino, and it’s a summer stunner https://t.co/kD53p2azkb via @RocketNews24En
— Joseph Mallozzi
Today, I celebrated my sister’s birthday by going to SOMA Chocolates…
P.S. I didn’t eat it all by myself. One of those chocolates was for Akemi.
Happy Birthday, Andria!
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July 31, 2023
Rocket Robin Hood – A Brief History
Rocket Robin Hood was a (barely) animated series focusing on the (somewhat) futuristic adventures of Robin Hood and his Merry Men and their battles again the evil Prince John and the inept Sheriff of N.O.T.T. (National Outer-space Terrestrial Territories).
Despite the fact that it was set on New Sherwood Forest Asteroid, “that futuristic headquarters of that swashbuckling, cosmic highwayman of the 30th Century”, the show’s sci-fi elements were often perfunctory or at odds with its medieval dwellings and dress.
On the one hand, you had the anachronistic medieval castles; but on the other hand you had Robin and his crew flying around with jet-packs, using ray guns and quarterstaffs. Sorry. “Electro-quarterstaffs”.
Three seven-minute segments comprised each half hour episode, ending in a cliffhanger and then resuming with a brief Previously On in case you arrived late or had fallen asleep. Further padding the runtime were brief interstitial segments profiling our crew.
For some reason, each segment of every episode contained its own title and title card. Some of the more inspired entries included: “Monkey Business on the Planet Lucifer”, Planet – Planet- Who’s Got the Planet?”, and “Say Ah…Or Hot Tonsils”.
The show ran for three seasons, from 1966 to 1969. 52 episodes were produced for a rock-bottom price of 18k/episode. But following the show’s first season, animator Ralph Bakshi was brought on board and he trimmed the cost per episode down to 14k.
The second season saw a vast improvement over the first as Bakshi brought in seasoned comic book artists like Gray Morrow, Jim Steranko, and Wally Wood to create layouts for the show. While the show was produced in Toronto, Canada…
A falling out between producers Shamus Culhane and Steve Krantz resulted in Bakshi making a mad dash for the border with some of the show’s production materials, including model sheets. As a result, the show’s third season was produced in New York.
The show’s third season was notable for some of its more psychedelic episodes. According to rumor, LSD trips may have provided inspiration for some of the artists.
These out-there episodes saw Robin and co. encounter the sun-snuffing “Lord of Shadows”, a living planet, and a dimension where thoughts became real.
Krantz recycled animation “From Menace to Menace” and “Dementia Five” for the episodes “Phantom from the Depths of Time” and “Revolt in the Fifth Dimension” of his 1967 Spider-Man series.
They basically just substituted Rocket Robin Hood with Spider-Man on the animated cels and used the same dialogue.
According to legend, the show’s cultural impact is still felt to this day as a suburb outside Toronto boasts streets named after the show’s characters: Robin Hood Drive, Friar Tuck Court, and Maid Marian Place.
Or they could simply be references to the non-space-themed originals, but that’s not as charming.
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July 30, 2023
July 30, 2023: Suji Sunday!
Yozo!
Suji and new friend Frankie
Dad’s muse.
Stashing her treats…
The post July 30, 2023: Suji Sunday! appeared first on Joseph Mallozzi's Weblog.
July 29, 2023
July 29, 2023: Unusual Deaths!
#UnusualDeaths
In June of 1994, a man died while using a live cable to electrocute fish in a Moscow pond. While his shock tactics proved successful, he forgot to disconnect the cable before collecting his catch. pic.twitter.com/7c6ZrrmuDX
— Joseph Mallozzi
#UnusualDeaths
In February of 1994, a farmer in Christchurch, New Zealand was killed by a 280lb pumpkin that rolled off the back of a lorry. pic.twitter.com/wP18hsTqQh
— Joseph Mallozzi
#UnusualDeaths
A 76 year old farmer in Kota Baru who trained a monkey to climb coconut trees and pluck the fruit for him was killed on January 17, 1995, after being hit by a coconut thrown by his simian protege. pic.twitter.com/IO7Ir2Lsa7
— Joseph Mallozzi
#UnusualDeaths
In September of 1996, an Egyptian farm worker accidentally swallowed some ants while drinking water. Out of an abundance of caution, she went home and swallowed some insecticide – with predictably lethal results. pic.twitter.com/K1RdQvSS6q
— Joseph Mallozzi
#UnusualDeaths
In March of 1997, a Brazilian man fishing in the Maguari river choked to death on a fish that leapt into his mouth while he was yawning. pic.twitter.com/RBgZuLEjsZ
— Joseph Mallozzi
And today’s Yes/No…
Butter Manju? Yes/No
What is a Butter Manju? We try one from this mega popular Tokyo dessert shop https://t.co/6eMijgaLra via @RocketNews24En
— Joseph Mallozzi
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July 28, 2023
July 28, 2023: The weekend cometh!
Tomorrow at 1:00 p.m. EST, I’ll be guesting on the Galactic Gals podcast.
https://t.co/G2Nwvs3Y0k Join us tomorrow for an exciting Galactic Gals podcast! We are thrilled to have Joseph Mallozzi, showrunner, executive producer, &writer of Dark Matter, Stargate SG-1, Stargate: Atlantis, as our guest! #DarkMatter #StargateSG1 #scifi [@BaronDestructo]
— BluebonnetWhovian (@Andilaine3) July 28, 2023
Drop on in!
Now if I can only get my Blue Yeti mic to work…
Who is the greatest television detective of all time? Cast your vote!
Who is the greatest t.v. detective of all time?
(US version)
— Joseph Mallozzi
I’m Team Columbo.
So, weekend plans? Akemi and I have our usual Saturday early morning farmer’s market trip. I have the podcast at 1:00 and then, later in the afternoon, we’re dog-sitting our neighbor’s king charles spaniel, Sophie, while they attend a wedding. Sometime between then and Sunday night, I should get some work done on fleshing out the story for my new pilot I’ll be co-writing with my old friend Alexander Ruemelin. I have most of the story and most of the twists. Now I need to find the act breaks. And, once that’s done, it’s smoooooooth sailing!
Today’s Yes/No…
Tomahawk Tonkatsu at Japanese restaurant becomes a hot topic online https://t.co/v1k2zYE5A3 via @RocketNews24En
— Joseph Mallozzi
The post July 28, 2023: The weekend cometh! appeared first on Joseph Mallozzi's Weblog.
July 27, 2023
July 27, 2023: News of Note!
With the success of the Barbie movie, looks like studios have set their sights on other classic toy-themed movies…
Looking forward to this!#Scorsese #LiteBrite pic.twitter.com/AbV9XMmzq5
— Joseph Mallozzi
Heard this one was in development or a while. pic.twitter.com/DxrqhOKEhU
— Joseph Mallozzi
We are truly living in the golden age of cinema.#Slinky pic.twitter.com/xhiswgTMyw
— Joseph Mallozzi
Meanwhile, in political news…
— Joseph Mallozzi
So much in the news lately that you can be forgiven for missing the fact that aliens have apparently been visiting Earth for quite a while, and authorities have known all about it – and covered it up.
Is this true? Well, I suppose only time – or a full-scale invasion will tell.
Speaking of news, got the call today that the next round of digital SG-1 transfers (Good to Be King and Revisions) are ready for pick up. I’ll get them hopefully early next week and will be turning around a new set of outtakes in no time!
The post July 27, 2023: News of Note! appeared first on Joseph Mallozzi's Weblog.
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