For fans of Columbo, Fred Draper is a familiar face. Born Frederick Paul Draper II on September 2, 1923, in Chester, Pennsylvania, Draper was a classically trained actor who studied at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York—rubbing shoulders with the likes of Grace Kelly and Anne Bancroft.
Draper retired from acting in the late 1970s and passed away on December 26, 1999, in Rancho Cucamonga, California, at the age of 76.
His Columbo connection came through one of Peter Falk's best friends. Draper shared an apartment with John Cassavetes, and that friendship would shape much of his career.
Draper appeared in several of Cassavetes’ films, including Faces (1968), Husbands (1970), A Woman Under the Influence (1974), and Opening Night (1977), often playing emotionally raw, complex characters.
Between 1971 and 1976, Draper appeared in six episodes of Columbo, each time playing a different character—from a cab driver to a lab technician to a psychiatrist named David Morris in the episode “A Deadly State of Mind” (1975).
Draper appeared in several of Cassavetes’ films, including Faces (1968), Husbands (1970), A Woman Under the Influence (1974), and Opening Night (1977), often playing emotionally raw, complex characters.
Between 1971 and 1976, Draper appeared in six episodes of Columbo, each time playing a different character—from a cab driver to a lab technician to a psychiatrist named David Morris in the episode “A Deadly State of Mind” (1975).
Lady in Waiting
Draper's first appearance was in Season 1's Lady in Waiting. He played the cab driver who brings Mrs. Chadwick to the house after the murder.
Lovely but Lethal
Draper's second appearance was as put-upon old Dr. Murcheson in the season 3 opener, Lovely but Lethal.
Negative Reaction
Draper made his next appearance in a minor role in season 4's Negative Reaction. You'll find him as a lab tech checking out the old farm house where Francis was killed.
A Deadly State of Mind
He was back later in Season 4, in a more substantive role, though he didn't appear until the Gotcha scene, as David Morris, the blind man's brother in A Deadly State of Mind.
Last Salute to the Commodore
Draper came back in perhaps his most substantial, and honestly maybe weakest, role as the murderer Swanny in Last Salute to the Commodore. I'll give his performance a bit of a pass since everybody in that episode was a bit off, and I kinda blame Patrick McGoohan, who directed.
Fade in to Murder
Draper's final Columbo appearance was in the very next episode - the opener of Season 6, Fade in to Murder. In the opening sequence he told Inspector Lucerne that it would be "A treasure to pill" him. That was his last Columbo scene.
Draper retired from acting in the late 1970s and passed away on December 26, 1999, in Rancho Cucamonga, California, at the age of 76.
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