365 Days of Columbo: July 31st

Happy Birthday James Read

James Christopher Read, was born on July 31, 1953, in Buffalo, New York. He developed an interest in acting while studying law at the University of Oregon, eventually moving to New York City to pursue his passion.

Columbo fans will recognize him as murderous cuckholded dentist Dr. Wesley Corman in Uneasy Lies the Crown.

Beyond Columbo

Read gained widespread recognition for his portrayal of George Hazard in the popular 1980s miniseries "North and South". He also had notable roles in "Beaches" (1988) and "Eight Men Out" (1988). In addition to his film work, Read appeared in several TV series, including "Remington Steele," "Charmed," and appeared in more than 250 episodes of "Days of Our Lives".

Beyond acting, Read earned a Master's degree in Psychology from Pepperdine University in 1997. He is married to actress Wendy Kilbourne, whom he met while filming "North and South", and they have two children. The family resides in California.

Happy birthday to Patricia Mattick

Patricia Mattick was born July 31, 1951, in Denver, Colorado. She played Margaret Williams, the angry and suspicious stepdaughter of Leslie Williams, in the 1971 pilot Ransom for a Dead Man. Margaret may be abrasive, but she immediately recognizes that something is wrong with Leslie’s account of her father’s disappearance.

Mattick also appeared in The Beguiled, Mannix and Tales of the Unexpected. She died in 2003 at the age of 52.

The Day Columbo Made His Television Debut

July 31st may be the most important date in the entire history of Columbo.

On this date in 1960, television viewers met Lieutenant Columbo for the first time in “Enough Rope,” a live episode of NBC’s anthology series The Chevy Mystery Show. The story featured a psychiatrist who murders his wife and finds himself pursued by an apparently unimpressive but quietly relentless police detective.

Peter Falk was still eight years away from putting on the raincoat. The original television Columbo was played by Bert Freed, opposite Richard Carlson as the murderous Dr. Roy Flemming.

Richard Levinson and William Link later expanded the story into the stage play Prescription: Murder. That version opened in 1962 with Thomas Mitchell as Columbo, before Levinson and Link adapted it again for the celebrated 1968 television movie starring Peter Falk.

So although February 20, 1968, marks Peter Falk’s debut in the role, July 31, 1960, is Columbo’s true television birthday.