Whatever Happened to KOLCHAK The NIGHT STALKER?
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About 40 years ago when I was working at Kinko’s. Darren McGavin came in to get some color copies made of his boat that he owned Italy. I was starstruck and didn’t know what to say. But he was quite a nice gentleman and seemed very happy in his life.
That's really cool! I've always liked him. When you watch him on television there's something there. He totally draws all the attention upon him with his incredible charisma and acting abilities.
Did you tell him he has a very poor taste in lamps? Haha
@@BenNitro-my3lf😂😂😂
Appa@@scottstallings5029
Great show my wife liked it so did my older brother james
In Chicago, Kolchak shows every Saturday night at 11;00 pm. In a lineup of Batman, Star Trek, and Lost in Space. A blast from the past. Brings back a lot of great memories. You have a great series, Dan. It's always interesting.
I watch em’ every Saturday!!!
Cool line up. I used to live near Chicago. Is that WGN?
We have it in STL, metv
@@landseer22 StL is my hometown. KPLR used to have reruns regularly. Apparently they are part of the CW now? We always had some decent choices there.
It's METV to the rest of the nation .
Darren McGavin as Kolchak was absolutely magic!
Dan, you described "Night Stalker" to a T! One of my most favorite shows, it pushed the boundaries of television in the '70s.
night stalker's run was far too short. I was a kid then, and it scared the crap out of me every week. i loved it.
I recall reading an interview with Darren McGavin with the subject being why he quit the Night Stalker. I'm paraphrasing here but he said it was because too many people involved were enjoying the studio life on drugs. He said he wound up being the editor, producer, director and actor and not making all that much money for all his work. I vividly remeber when it was cancelled and one of my older sisters annoyingly following me around with the TV Guide chanting in a mocking tone, "Kolchak is cancelled, Kolchac is cancelled, Kolchak is cancelled". And she wondered why her Barbies were found beheaded and in the freezer.
No, he wasn't a fan of the Monster of the Week format. MeTV has a summary of an actual interview that he gave in a 1983 issue of _Fangoria_ magazine:
_"There was a lot of friction between myself and the production entity. We ended up spending so much money on scripts that were totally unproducible. There were scripts we just threw away."_
_By the end of the season, McGavin said that he was the one who proposed the idea to call it quits on the show. He said, "I'd have to give a symposium to explain what happened. I called up the network and said, 'Let's cancel this god-damn thing. You're losing money, we're losing money, and I'm tired and I don't want to do anymore. Why don't we just stop?' Three hours later, they canceled the show."_
_McGavin went into more detail about his issues with the show's plotlines, specifically the recurring "monster of the week," stories. He questioned, "How many monsters can you go through? It's silly. You're gonna do the werewolf, you're gonna do the vampire, and you're gonna do the zombie, and when you run out of those, what other stories are you gonna tell?"_
Kolchak was, in my young mind, THE BRAVEST MAN ALIVE! The man had no fear, going after all those monsters. It was such a good show! At least that's the way I remember it. Haven't seen it since the 70's I guess.
If you haven't seen the series since the 70's, do yourself a favor and re-visit it again. It's gripping stuff that still holds up well today! ✌️
Darren McGavin was excellent. However, I think this should have been a monthly Movie of the Week format. That would have allowed more story development and they wouldn't have run through the monster types so quickly.
You forgot to mention that this was not just a scary show, McGavin put humor into it. Very tongue in cheek. That's what I loved about it.
For the record - Darren McGavin was one hell of an actor!
Absolutely
One of the best of his generation.
Yes. Yes it was. Wish he'd have been in more movies/TV shows.
I agree 100 percent
Charisma, Darren commanded the screen when he was on camera. An actor us older guys really appreciated.
I was ten years old when this show originally aired in the 1970’s. There was nothing else like it on TV and I loved it. The show had a bad time slot, but Friday night was not a school night so us kids could stay up late and watch it. There was that. My favorite episode was Mr. Ring. Thanks for including a still from this one in your video. That robot was so creepy, and the sound it made….
The headless motorcycle rider was creepy as sh!t
Little did Kolchak know, that he would actually Go Back in Time...to become the World's Greatest Father on Christmas Day.
I was a little kid, and I remember the show scaring the crap out of me.
me too
Night Stalker is easily one scariest TV shows besides Rod Serling's Night Gallery. Still scary today!
I used to be a huge Night Stalker fan. On Halloween night 1972 (7th grade) I had a Tyro football game. After the game I got a ride home from one of the opposing team's coaches. I arrived home before my family and immediately sat down in the living room. You had to get up to turn the TV on as remotes were rare back in those days. I started surfing the channels and every last channel was a scary movie. The last channel I turned to was Darren McGavin in The Night Stalker movie. I started getting creeped out wondering why every station was a scary movie ? Then it hit me that it was Halloween night. I was home alone and wasn't going watch this one by myself because I remembered it was pretty scary. I was still in my dirty grass stained uniform and decided to turn the TV off and go take a shower. I finished my shower, got out and stood in front of the bathroom mirror. Out of the corner of my eye I saw the brass doorknob slowly turning. I thought my family had returned and it was my brother Jimmy trying to scare the hell out of me. I moved away from the door several steps because I thought he was going to fling it open and scream. The knob slowly turned then flung open. There was nobody there and the house was empty. I ran out of the house in my underwear. I fell asleep in the dark on the front steps waiting for my family to return. When they got back they asked what the hell I was doing sleeping on the steps in my underwear ? I told them and my mother believed me because very strange things had been happening in that house since we moved in. On the rare occasion I see anything about Darren McGavin or "NIght Stalker" I always remember that supernatural experience 52 years ago.
McGavin and Colleen Dewherst had recurring roles as the parents of Candace Bergen's Murphy Brown character. The two sparred deliciously and were treat to see working together.
I vaugely recall seeing the series in syndication I was too young to understand it but my older siblings loved it. Years later when I saw an episode about witchcraft here on youtube I was amazed how well resesrched the show was. When Kolchack riffles through a witch's bag there's an amazing amount of accurate witchcraft paraphernalia inside.
I absolutely adored this show. Great ensemble cast and Darrin simply WAS Kolchak. Terrific stories and memorable music had me glued to the TV when it was on. I was SO disappointed when the show ended. The original movie with Barry Atwater as the vampire was amazing!
It was one of my favorites as a young kid. Darren McGavin was a great actor, Simon Oakland was his boss I believe, another great actor.
I watched every episode in 1974 and loved it! The big problem was running the series on Friday night when people are going out to dinner, the movies, parties, etc.
Yea super actor and Friday night was a good time to watch...also fright night Gillette fights was on too..
I bought the DVD's I can watch the series when I want...plus he was on hmmm outer limits ..type of series..as he represented America and one Japanese were to challenge fight one on one great story for TV back then
Fun fact. Darren McGavin played the aged, retired, FBI special agent who first worked on unexplained files on the show The X Files. I believe it was a secretary who put X's on weird files. Scully and Mulder interviewed McGavin concerning a case. Great episode! I'm reading the Jeff Rice books now. Wow, synchronicity!
Probably the best horror show of the 1970s, even surpassing Rod Serling's Night Gallery. They re-ran the shows on various channels clear up into the early 1980s. Darren McGavin was a stellar actor in this role, with a fantastic supporting cast. My favorite one was the "Spanish Moss Murders," where Kolchak goes down into the sewers to kill a huge swamp monster "boogeyman", and nearly gets killed himself. Creepy stuff...
Loved that one too. Although I never liked the sleep study aspect of it. But that guy that plays the scientist is very funny. Very scary show when you are young. A classic no doubt.
Even though they only made a handful of episodes, we watch it every Saturday night. The show was a little ahead of its time. Darren was a very underrated actor.
As a kid, the Night Stalker was one of my favorite shows. The blend between comedy and horror was perfect. McGavin's offbeat portrayal of Kolchak really made the series. Scariest moment: When Kolchak is to sew up the zombie's lips in the auto graveyard. You KNEW the zombie was going to jolt awake, but it scared the hell out of you when it did. The show about the invisible alien was one of my favorites, too. As was the one with the old people being killed by the doppelgangers.
I loved the interplay between Kolchak, his boss and the news staff. Added some great humor to the show.
So disappointed by the reboot that came later. It missed on every point.
I bought my BIL the series for Christmas one year when it came out on cassette, hoping to watch the series again, but he never would part with it. I found the series online one evening at CBS.com (I believe) and re-watched the entire series in one swell foop, for free.
When they say they don't make'em like that anymore, Kolchak: The Night Stalker is a classic example.
This show, along with "Wild Wild West," was one of my " never-miss" TV shows as a young boy.
That was one of the coolest shows ever on old style TV. Loved it. Then it was just gone.
Went into Journalism (Newspaper writing) ONLY because of this damn show!!! Had a great career but never had an opportunity to wear a seer-sucker suit
and a beat-up hat while chasing vampires!!! Great show!
Thank you Dan! I still watch the show on MeTV in Chicago on Saturday nights.
It was a sad day when he passed. RIP Kolchak
As a kid I used to plan my week around the NIGHT STALKER. Even today if driving at night & ground fog is around, I slip in the whistling theme. R.I.P. Darren, we miss you.
I grew up as a kid in the 70’s and LOVED Kolchak. Kids have no clue what it was like then. I feel lucky to have lived during that time.
Great content! Thanks for the memories.
Kolchak, The Night Stalker along with the two TV movies will forever be my favorite TV shows. They scared the crap out of me when I was a kid, and have enjoyed them over and over again to this day. The music (particularly in the two TV movies) is absolutely chilling. I miss that they don't make movies and TV like that anymore.
My grandfather introduced me to Kolchak in the 70's!! Still love the character!!
I was 8 years old and would watch it on Friday nights and it would scare the bejesus out of me! Loved it.
Nothing and no one can ever replace Darren McGavin as Carl Kolchak. The series can never be replicated.
I agree, some of the shows from 70s and 80s, had that certain magical pizzazz, that no reboot or remake can capture, in this day and age! Although the new Hawaii 5-0, did better than the original Hawaii 5-0 did, in my opinion!
The constant bickering between Kolchak and Vincenzo is top notch and hysterical.
I love this show, I still watch now on direct tv. Makes me feel like a kid again, not bad for a 73 year old .
I loved Kolchak. At school the next week there’d be 2 or 3 of us that would talk about the recent episode we saw. Years later when McGavin was in the x-files, I had to explain to others why this was such a big nod to the Kolchak series. Even though he wasn’t using the name Kolchak everything else fit nicely.
Was my favorite show by far in the 70s as a young kid! Would stay up past my bedtime to watch it. What can you say, some things are way ahead of their time and "The Night Stalker" is the perfect benchmark for TV.
The original "Night Stalker" tv movie is never mentioned in any top vampire movie lists. This really
ticks me off. As far as I'm concerned, this is one of the greatest vampire films ever made, bar none.
It's such a shame it continually gets totally ignored. I mean, c'mon, a vampire loose in modern day Las Vegas??
I know right? Barry Atwater made a terrific vampire 🦇🦇🦇🦇
We loved Kolchak! Soooo disappointed when it didn’t get more than one season. 😢
Loved when Darrin McGavin starred on the X Files. Muldar says that he's seen some strange things. "Son," McGavin told him, "I've seen more."
Hahahaha... yes..the toilet monster in the hurricane
That was a great show, I watched it with my Mom when I was little and my wife watched it with hers.
Darren McGavin was a criminally under-rated supporting actor,imho. Watch his performance in the 60s film "The Man With The Golden Arm". He plays the "pusher" that Frank Sinatra in beholden to.
Never missed one minute. Not to many tv stations back then. I was eleven, watched it with my mom. Great stuff.
Kolchak on a Friday night was an instant home run! In 1974, on a Friday night, we had not only Kolchak but the Rockford Files. Friday nights never looked so good for tv but alas, Kolchak was in fact cancelled the following year but we did get Saturday Night Live Oct. 11, 1975. In a way, it was a lot more fun when you could only watch these shows on a given night and time. They made for a great conversation piece the following Monday morning at school. 😁
I tried to give you two thumbs-up but the second tried to cancel out the first. I fixed it!
I loved the show. I was 8 years old in 1974. It was on at 9:30pm on Thursday nights in Melbourne, Australia. I got into trouble for staying up late to watch it. Fond memories!!!
The ABC Movie of the Week launched some great shows like The Night Stalker and a lot of those TV movies were better than anything we get today!
ABC had SO many great thriller and horror movies in the early 70's. The Tuesday and Wednesday Movie of the Week had 'Don't Be Afraid of the Dark, Duel, Bad Ronald, Killdozer, The Six Million Dollar Man, Moon of the Wolf and many MANY more.
But CBS did have Gargoyles.
Bermuda Depths....
I used to watch the reruns with my dad. The Night Stalker and Columbo. Those were our big shows together.
I always wondered what happened to that show. My sister and I used to watch it and it would give her nightmares. It didn't help that I would add to her fears. The 60's and 70's were two great decades to grow up in.
I remember when this show was canceled. I was all of 8 years of age and devastated.
Simon Oakland was great as Kolchak's editor. Their exchanges were hilarious.
The dialogue between Carl and Tony were some of my all time favorite TV. 💯
I think that the chemistry between Darren McGavin & Simon Oakland is what made the show so enjoyable for me.
KOLCHAKKKKK!!!!
20 episodes in one season? That's the equivalent of 2 1/2 seasons of any show today. Different times.
My favorite episode was the old underground chicago. It was so fantastically unbelievable that an entire victorian neighborhood was intact with working street lights underground.
what i liked is he was an everyman that found himself in strange situations. He wasnt overly brave but driven to see the project thru.
I don't consider it hyperbole to say that Darren McGavin as Carl Kolchak is one of the most perfect marriages of actor and role ever in film or television. Pair that brilliance with the equal brilliance of the writing, direction, and sheer atmosphere of these two films and twenty episodes and you have a staggering achievement and one that will never die.
“ bless Darren McGavin. He was fantastic as the night stalker well done Darren McGavin may you rest in peace fantastic job.
The show was great. The writing started out great, but some episodes were in need. Wish they had made at least two additional years.
I was about 15 when this came out and it was definitely one of my favorite shows from that period. The episode about the Rakshasa (Terror in the Heights) was my favorite episode.
Horror in the Heights, by far the scariest episode and my favorite.
I was born in 1962 so I was 10 years old when the first movie was aired on ABC. I loved it. I was an instant Kolchak fan. Then we got the second movie and I love it just as good. Then we got the series and I was in heaven lol! I clearly remember watching The Zombie episode. When Kolchak crawled in the back of that old hearse at the junk yard to sew the Zombies lips shut and it opened its eyes! Man! That scared the crap outta me! Wow, that was 50 years ago. Why do the years go by so fast?
Great video. Kolchak would have been fantastic in X-Files, what a shame it never happened.
Yeah, it almost did. But he just didn't feel like doing it. At least he was in it as a different character.
@@MoviesMusicMonsters Thanks for that reminder. He would have been great as Kolchak.
Stumbled onto this channel by accident and it's now my favorite.
As a teenager, there wasn't a whole lot to watch at my house. We could get NBC & CBS but the TV antenna didn't do so well with ABC. Having a home life that sucked, my grand parents would let me stay over on weekends quite often. It normally cost me a grass cutting but maw maw could cook & they always kept a jar of really cheap cookies. They were typically in bed by 9:00 or 9:30 leaving me with the remote & cable TV. This show was just so cool to watch later at night in the dark with a bunch of those cookies. That was livin' the life!😁
I remember watching a Night Stalker episode when I was 8 years old. It had to do with motorcycle riders who came back from the grave, and the only way to stop them was Kolchak had to find the head of the leader & give it back. That night my sister was at ceramics class & brought home her latest project: a skull. I screamed & ran to my room like I was on fire. It is a memory that will stay with me for the rest of my life. Thank you (sincerely) for that trip down memory lane.
I remember Darren McGavin being everywhere on TV back in the '70s. You could barely turn the TV on without having him pop up. He was so prolific, and Incredibly popular.
I remember the original movie. It seemed to be cutting edge cool to me, a kid at the time. I still remember the vampire throwing those cops around. 70's TV at its finest.
I LOVED THAT SHOW! I was a child of the 70s and it was one of my favorite shows. It could be very atmospheric and would keep me glued to the TV. I always wondered why Kolchak only had one set of clothes.
It made reshoots, and continuity easier I guess.
Yes, even odder than having one set of clothes was they were basically white in the dark underworld he traveled in so that he stood out like an odd sheep.
@@crosslink1493 Filming night scenes was more difficult then, especially with a low budget. Having him in a light suit helped them.
@@crosslink1493 When the first episode was about to be filmed McGavin showed up on set wearing his famous suit and porky pie hat. There had been little discussion about what he was going to wear so he showed up in his own clothes and said "This is what I'm wearing." They all looked at each other and said "Oh, OK." That's how things got done back in the day. True story.
One of my hobbies is model railroading. I have a small "town" with a road with cars. One of the cars is a yellow Mustang convertible. Naturally, I put a figure in it with a gray suit and a tan hat.
Some of these episodes terrified me as a kid!!
IMHO Darren McGavin was one of the most underrated actors in Hollywood!!
I agree! Outstanding actor
My senior year in high school was when my Dad turned me on to Kolchak The Night Stalker. We spent a number of nights watching Krazy Karl pursue the evil monsters. I miss those times almost as much as I miss my Dad. RIP Karl Kolchak...they broke the mold when they made you.
the sly humor was my favorite part.
I am a big fan of Darren Mcgavin. He was something else!
Great actor i love him.
The Six Million Dollar Man, Kung Fu, Kolchak: The Night Stalker -- best Friday night TV ever!
I was right there with you. I loved all those shows!
Some of the episodes in the show really scared the hell out of me when I was a kid but wanted more and more too watch
Dude. From the ages 8 to 11, I slept VERY poorly because of this show. ESPECIALLY the episode called "The Spanish Moss Murders". One of the greatest influences of my childhood.
🎯 Scared to death many a night. Boy, a trip to the bathroom in the middle of the night after watching his show was like tip toeing through a haunted house.
Also: ABC Movie of the Week
You ended my comment before it started! My exact comment!!!!✊🏽✊🏽✊🏽
What set KOLCHAK: THE NIGHT STALKER apart from so many other attempts at horror was how much HUMOR it had in it, and McGavin's knack for it. This was very novel at the time, and I don't know if it directly influenced shows like BUFFY and films like FROM DUSK TIL DAWN but when it's done right it resonates with me if it stays just this side of horror spoof, a genre that can be excellent (YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN) but most of it gets old quick...
I loved this, thanks! I was a huge Night Stalker fan as a kid, and I thought Darren McGavin was such a fine actor. As you say, he really sold the character, and the way he played it was pitch-perfect. I had no idea the originals had been remastered and released on blu-ray, so I'm off to buy it now. Cheers!
I was a young kid when it aired and it scared the crap out of me! Thank you DM!😎👍
Wow that was great. This TV Series hit me at just the right time. I was about 10 years old, just old enough to be seriously freaked out by the stories, and at the same time, just old enough to want more. As such all of those stories have been kicking around in the back of my head ever since. Ever since then, when ever I'm watching some TV horror stuff, I think "Yup, I remember that from the Night Stalker".
I was about the same age. The show was one of the highlights of my childhood. Good memories.
I remember staying up late on Fridays with my father watching the show in Ft Meade, Maryland. How the time has flown by!
As a kid I LOVED this show!!! I had to beg my parents to let me watch it. I got lucky 1/2 the time.
I was a kid and can barely remember Kolchak on TV, but what I do remember is that the show absolutely creeped me out.
I still remember the jump scare I got when a vampire woman suddenly appeared when Kolchak was investigating inside an abandoned building.
When the "Night Stalker" discovered the underground Seattle area I was fascinated with it. It wasn't until the birth of the internet that I was able to 'tour' it and realize it was real. Thank you Kolchek!
I had the honor of working with Darren McGavin on the Laurel Entertainment TV show 'MONSTERS' on an episode titled "Portrait of the Artist". I worked on that episode alongside special effects legend John Dods (of 'Return of the Aliens: Deadly Spawn' fame). It was a blast for me to work with him as a kid inspired by the Kolchack role when I was maybe 6 or 7 years old when that show was on the air. Darren was a bit "testy" while working on that job, but as a fan and knowing how first impressions can be terribly misleading, I'll never judge him by that experience alone. It was a low budget show, despite Laurel Ent also having produced 'Tales from the Dark Side'.
I was born at exactly the right time to fall in love with all the classic shows, movies and music your channel is clearly aimed at and I'm proud to say I got to play a role in that industry and got to meet and work with so many people I regard as my heroes. 'The Night Stalker' was a show I watched as a kid, long before I had any idea I would ever be part of that industry as an artist designing and creating practical special effects.
I grew up with Kolchak & loved it. Unlike Scooby Doo where the monsters were all fake, these monsters were all real!
The Night Stalker was an underrated show. It always kept your attention which you couldn't say for most 70's shows. Columbo did also and it came on Friday night too.
The night stalker should have just stayed as a series of tv movies. such great stories and Darrin McGavin was perfect for the role.
Loved his wrinkly suit
Chris Carter took notes from Kolchak and mixed it with what he learned from David Lynch. What resulted was X-Files. I've got Grandpa Simpsonesque taste in metaphysical horror.
I loved it 50 years ago and still watch it on youtube today. . . thank God!! This is a real classic.
Matheson wrote some of the best Twilight Zone episodes, along with Rod Serling.
Kolchak was the only truly scary show on tv at the time
I remember KOLCHAK! You have a great voice & a fun presentation style. And yes, it would have blown my mind if Kolchak had popped up on X-FILES.
Kolchak was my favorite TV program.
The reason this commentary is so successful is BECAUSE the commentator is really well-spoken and talks about actual interesting stuff. Stays on point and doesn't try to be cute like 90% of the rest. My first time watching and I love that show! Subscribed.
I used to watch this show in reruns when I was a kid. Friday night on the local CBS affiliate. Perfect way to start the weekend for a kid into sci-fi/horror/suspense.
MeTV shows reruns of Kolchak the Night Stalker on Saturday nights.
He even made an appearnce on "The XFiles".😮😅😊😊
Way to make me feel my age. I was 11 when it was advertised, my mother would not let me watch it. The TV guide said it would play at 9, and again at half past 11, after the news, when my mother was asleep. I fiegned sleep and read comics under the covers until it was nearly time, creot out past my mothers room where she slept, turned on the TV at a tiny volume, sitting cross legged on the floor right on top of the set so I could keep the volume way down.
All of which amplified the experience in 72.
One of the good shows we’ll never see again like Columbo,Kojack and many others of that era.
I am 50 years old.
I can recall a lot of shows that most people can't.
This is the first time I have heard of this show in my life.
I'm sure i will now hear it mentioned ten times in the next week.
I'm 53 and in almost the same boat, though I have heard it mentioned once or twice in recent years. When the show first aired, it would have been passed my bedtime, and living in rural Canada in the 80s, I can't recall seeing it in syndication.
My Mom, my brother, and I would sit on the couch, cover up with a blanket, and watch this show. I loved it back then, even if some of them creeped me out. Great stuff! Thanks for the walk down memory lane.
Hey there :-) you're so lucky to have those wonderful memories. Thanks for sharing :-)