365 Days of Columbo: October 11th

Happy birthday to John T. Dugan

Writer John T. Dugan was born October 11th, 1920. Columbo fans have him to thank for two early cases: Dead Weight, featuring Eddie Albert as a murderous Marine general, and The Most Crucial Game, with Robert Culp as football executive Paul Hanlon. Two very different killers, both convinced they can outmaneuver our lieutenant.

Dugan also wrote for Star Trek, Bonanza, Mission: Impossible, and Little House on the Prairie. He passed away on Christmas Eve, 1994, at the age of 74.

Raise a toast to Richard Alan Simmons

Writer and producer Richard Alan Simmons was born October 11th, 1924, in Toronto, Canada. His contributions to Columbo included executive producer duties on the 1989 revival and writing Murder, Smoke and Shadows, the movie-studio mystery that pits the lieutenant against an ambitious young director played by Fisher Stevens.

Simmons passed away November 13th, 2004, at the age of 80.

Happy Birthday Sharon Johansen

Actress Sharon Johansen was born October 11th, 1948, in Norway. Columbo fans may remember her as Miss Dudley in Dagger of the Mind, the lieutenant’s London adventure with Richard Basehart and Honor Blackman.

Outside Columbo, Johansen appeared in Barnaby Jones and Charlie’s Angels, and had a small role in Steve Martin’s The Jerk. She was also Playboy’s Playmate of the Month for October 1972—the same year as her Columbo appearance.

Remembering Paul Shenar

Paul Shenar passed away October 11th, 1989, at the age of 53. In Publish or Perish, he played Sergeant Young, working on the case involving Jack Cassidy’s scheming publisher, Riley Greenleaf.

Movie fans will probably recognize him best as Alejandro Sosa in Scarface. Animation fans may know his voice as Jenner, the dangerous rat in The Secret of NIMH.

Remembering Otis Young

Actor Otis Young passed away October 11th, 2001, at the age of 69. He played Lawrence Melville in Identity Crisis, caught up in the espionage intrigue surrounding Patrick McGoohan’s Nelson Brenner.

Away from Columbo, Young co-starred in the television Western The Outcasts and played “Mule” Mulhall in The Last Detail, alongside Jack Nicholson.

Remembering Patricia Barry

Patricia Barry passed away October 11th, 2016. Columbo fans know her as Francine the Grant Galleries manager in Playback, the 1975 episode featuring Oskar Werner’s elaborate video-assisted murder scheme.