How to Dial a Murder

On April 15, 1978, Columbo aired one of its nastiest murder methods: a killing carried out at a distance, triggered by a single word, and executed by two impeccably trained Dobermans. If you ever needed proof that Columbo can wander into near‑horror territory without losing its identity, this is the exhibit A.

📺Watch it for free, on Tubi 

Plot in a nutshell

Dr. Eric Mason is a behavioral psychologist who makes a living lecturing on “life control.” His personal life, however, is a mess. Having discovered that his wife was unfaithful with his colleague and friend, Dr. Charlie Hunter, Mason decides on revenge. He trains his two Dobermans—Laurel and Hardy—to attack when they hear a specific code word. Then he engineers the perfect setup: get Hunter to say the word on the phone while the dogs are in the room, and listen as the ‘accident’ unfolds.

And by the way

It seems pretty clear that Mason killed his wife too, even Columbo acknowledges that, but it's too late to investigate that killing. Sort like A Bird in the Hand, Columbo will take the murder he can still prove.

Meet Dr. Mason

Nicol Williamson plays Mason as chilly, precise, and oddly flat—less a flamboyant Columbo villain than a man who’s already checked out of normal human emotions. That’s not necessarily a bad choice: the episode’s horror comes from the method, not the charisma of the murderer. But it does mean the cat‑and‑mouse energy depends heavily on Peter Falk finding ways to needle him, not on Mason sparking fireworks on his own.

On subsequent viewings I’ve become more and more impressed with Williamson’s performance. He really brings depth to a complex and obviously broken character. There are moments where you can see the sadness in him, driven undoubtedly by his wife's infidelity.

“They didn’t like the word ‘death’.”

I’d have been a little concerned if they DID like the word “death”.  I’m not sure that opening scene makes a lot of sense, I don't really buy his whole "What word controls you" schtick. Though on reflection the whole episode is really about words - and specifically the word that activated the dogs on Charlie.

The Harmony Gold Theater

The opening sequence with Dr. Mason lecturing folks on "life control" was filmed at the Harmony Gold Theater on Sunset Blvd. If it looks familiar it's because it was the same theater where Bart Keppel (Robert Culp) showed his motivational films in Double Exposure.

Laurel & Hardy: the real “weapon”

Columbo usually gives us a murder weapon you can hold: a gun, a poison, a piece of industrial equipment. Here the ‘weapon’ is alive—and the episode leans into how unsettling that is. Mason treats the dogs like extensions of his will. The twist is that Columbo approaches them the opposite way: he reads them as dogs first, evidence second.

That contrast sets up one of the episode’s best running jokes: Columbo trying to convince his own basset hound that he could be a fearsome guard dog. It’s funny, but it’s also a thematic mirror—what matters isn’t the animal, it’s the conditioning.

"Laurel" and "Hardy" are the perfect name for a pair of dogs owned by a classic movie enthusiast. I can't help but wonder the writer, Anthony Lawrence, had those names in mind from the very beginning.

This isn’t the first episode where an animal is the murder weapon, by the way, we saw that play out in A Matter of Honor too, where the murder weapon was a bull.

About that code word: “ROSEBUD”

The trigger word is a cute bit of classic‑movie shorthand, and the script can’t resist showing off Mason’s film‑buff side. “Rosebud” immediately calls up Citizen Kane—memory, obsession, and the idea that one small detail can unlock the whole story. That’s Columbo in miniature: a tiny, seemingly insignificant thing that cracks open the case.

Grusome end for Charlie

We get to spend a bit of time with Charlie before he's killed. The character is ably played by Joel Fabiani.

Fabiani made the rounds of the daytime TV soap operas in the 90s including All My Children and As The World turns. He might be best known as Jared Chase from The City.

As of this writing he seems to still be alive, though he has no acting credits since 2015.

How did he know?

When Mason first encounters Columbo he addresses him as "Lieutenant"...but they hadn't met yet. Perhaps one of the other officers told him.

But Columbo already knew...

Did you notice Columbo is already whistling "This Old Man" as he walks away from that first encounter with Mason? 

Not actually that surprising, *IF* Dr. Hunter's death was a homicide Mason was the only plausible suspect. It happened in his house, his dogs. Nobody else could realistically have trained the dogs to kill like that. Unlike an episode where Columbo has to figure out who the murderer is, in this one Columbo has to figure out IF it was a murder, and if so the killer is obvious.

It was just up to Columbo to prove they were trained to kill and didn't just "Revert to the wolf." Columbo even tries to give Mason the common out of "Maybe you were the intended victim" (just as he did with Tommy Brown in Swan Song, and Colonel Rumford in By Dawn's Early Light) but Mason didn't take the bait.

Film geekery: props, posters, and ego

Mason’s house is a museum of old‑Hollywood bric‑a‑brac. It’s not just decoration; it’s character. He’s a man who believes he can script reality the way movies script emotion. And like so many Columbo killers, he can’t resist showing his ‘special knowledge’—which is exactly how the Lieutenant gets his hooks in.

And from a production standpoint all that memorabilia is relatively easy for a movie studio to provide for the filming.

"I'll tell Mr. Welles..."

Mason makes a quip about passing along Mrs. Columbo's enthusiasm for Citizen Kane to Orson Welles. This episode aired in 1978 and Welles didn't pass away until 1985. It's possible that Mason did actually know him.

Meet Ed Begley Jr.

Animal control officer Stein is played by Ed Begley Jr., fairly early in his career. 

If you like him, stick around. He's the killer, Irving Crutch, 16 years later in Undercover.

 

Begley has had a tremendous career, more than 360 acting credits to his name (and as of this writing, he's still working). Recently he had a recurring role on Young Sheldon. He probably came to most people's attention as a regular on St. Elsewhere in the 1980s.

Chocolate is bad for doggos

Mason shows up at the animal control center and has a rather dark conversation with the dogs. The suspicion is that he was going to poison them...but then he takes a bite of the chocolate himself.

However...chocolate is very bad for dogs. A large enough dose could be fatally toxic. It's likely that Dr. Mason knew that.

Training the dogs

The lovely lady dog trainer is played by Tricia O'Neal. 

It's not entirely clear why she merits a "Special Guest Star" credit this early in her career. Later she did a lot of work in the Star Trek franchise, including as the first female captain of the U.S.S. Enterprise.

As of this writing she does appear to still be alive, though her most recent credit is from 2001.

Guest cast notes

Kim Cattrall appears early in her career as Joanne Nicholls, the troubled student living on Mason’s property. She brings a jittery vulnerability that gives the story someone to worry about besides the obvious victim.

She's got much better known later in her a career, of course, for playing Samantha in Sex in the City and for her roles in Star Trek.

The storm winds...

The scene at around 42 minutes where Joanne is looking out the window at the storm winds is pretty symbolic...of the storm going on inside her. Deciding what to do under difficult circumstances. It's nicely done.

The magical pool table

In the Gotcha scene Columbo rolls a tennis ball to Mason and Mason tosses it into one of the pockets of the pool table. Shortly after that Columbo hits a pool ball into that same pocket, then Mason reaches in and pulls a piece of fabric out of that pocket. There's no sign of the TWO balls that would have been on top of that fabric.

Moments later Columbo hits a pool ball into another pocket and Mason reaches in and pulls out a pristine photo. Again, no sign of the ball Columbo just hit in there.

One more time...Columbo hits a ball into the side pocket, then walks around and removes the EKG paper without any sign of that ball.

Where did all the balls go?

An exclusive club

Dr. Mason tries to set the dogs on Columbo at the end, joining that exclusive club of just half a dozen killers who tried to kill Columbo.

Columbo cleverly manipulates Mason into trying to have the dogs kill him by insulting him and playing against Mason's pride and arrogance. Mason recognizes that at the end, which is why he pays Columbo the compliment about how well he "takes control".

One small problem...

To this point the dogs had been trained to attack the person who said "Rosebud".  Mason even trained the dogs by putting the speaker in the hanging dummy. But in the final scene, Mason says "Rosebud" while pointing at Columbo. 

Seems like if the dogs were trained to attack whomever said Rosebud they should have gone after Mason in that final scene.

Just a few more things…

• The title is a sly riff on “Dial M for Murder,” but the episode’s real hook is less phone‑tech and more behavioral science.
  
  
• Season 7 really loved its unusual murder methods —this one might be the most visceral of the lot.
  
  
• There's a small continuity goof in the scene where Mason is lecturing on life control. He draws squares and circles around the Xs on the chalkboard, but moments later, they're gone or different.
  
  
• Columbo + dogs is always a winning combo. Even when the plot is grim, Falk finds a way to give the hour a little warmth.