Monster of The Week: The Original "Night Stalker" 2/25 RIP Carl Kolchak

One of my guiltiest of pleasures even now are rerun episodes of the short lived 1974 series. Carl Kolchak was originally introduced to us in a Movie of The Week entitled The Night Stalker, which involved Darren McGavin as a reporter with a nose for the more bizarre of stories. This story involved a Las Vegas serial killer who drained his victims blood and left two small puncture wounds on the neck.

While Kolchak had no problem in dealing with the obvious, the authorities and his editor are less than thrilled with talk of vampires. Naturally, Carl takes it upon himself to hunt and destroy the vampire.

Darren McGavin was inspired as the rumpled reported, with a deapan delivery and Simon Oakland was superb as his no nonsense editor.

[image=http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y5/healerleona/NIghtstalker.jpg]

From this came a second Movie of the Week, The Night Strangler, with Kolchak again on the trail of another serial killer who hid in the underground beneath the streets of Seattle.

Though low budget as MOTW's were, these were noted for Richard Matheson scripts that mixed horror and quirk humor.

From these sprang a short lived series, 20 episodes in all and has been acknowledged by Chris Carter, creator of The X-Files as a major inspiration.

I know, another golden oldie.

 

How sad. But I'll always remember him fondly.

Darren McGavin