365 Days of Columbo: May 2nd

 Happy Birthday Roscoe Lee Browne

Actor Roscoe Lee Browne was born May 2, 1922, in Woodbury, New Jersey. Columbo fans know him from Rest in Peace, Mrs. Columbo, where he plays Dr. Steadman, the psychiatrist whose professional ethics briefly block Columbo from getting the information he needs. It’s a small role, but Browne gives it exactly the kind of polished authority you’d expect from one of television’s great character actors. 

Browne’s career extended far beyond Columbo. He was an Emmy-winning actor with a commanding voice and a long résumé across stage, film, and television. He passed away in 2007.

Happy birthday to Theodore Bikel

Actor Theodore Bikel was born on May 2, 1924 in Vienna, Austria. Best known to Columbo fans as domineering embezzler Oliver Brandt in The Bye Bye Sky High I.Q. Murder Case where he tickled, tormented, and ultimately shot his business partner Bertie.

Happy Birthday Lance LeGault

Also born on May 2nd was Lance LeGault, who appeared in No Time to Die as the Police Captain. LeGault is one of those actors whose face and voice instantly say “authority figure,” which made him a natural fit for cops, soldiers, sheriffs, and other tough-guy roles. 

Unfortunately his Columbo appearance was in one of the least-liked episodes and his role didn't allow him to be much more than a caricature of a gruff, almost competent, police Captain.

Outside of Columbo, LeGault is probably best remembered as Colonel Decker on The A-Team, and he also turned up in everything from Magnum, P.I. to Knight Rider, Airwolf, MacGyver, and Star Trek: The Next Generation. 

One small note: sources disagree on his birth year. IMDb gives 1935, while his Forest Lawn obituary and some other references give 1937. 

Columbo Goes Undercover

May 2nd is also the anniversary of the ABC premiere of Columbo: Undercover, which aired May 2, 1994. 

This is one of the more controversial later Columbos, partly because it pushes the Lieutenant into unfamiliar territory. Instead of the classic inverted mystery with a brilliant, arrogant murderer waiting to be gently cornered, Undercover sends Columbo into a more conventional crime plot involving dead crooks, missing bank-robbery loot, and puzzle pieces pointing the way to the money. It’s an odd fit for the character, but it certainly gives Peter Falk a chance to play dress-up.

And it's one of the only episodes where Columbo brandishes a gun.