If there is one I don't see it in the full cast list on the imdb.com site, which includes many of the names of those who had uncredited parts.

David, you've intrigued me. "Mad, Mad World" is one of my most favorite movies, and Peter Falk's cab driver character is hysterical. I love that as the cabby, Falk gets to complain about "moron cops"!

However, I can't think of any other actors or actresses from "Mad" who were in "Columbo". Certainly none of the main stars. The one thing I'm thinking of is from the episode, "Forgotten Lady". Who are the guests on Johnny Carson's Tonight Show? Was Ethel Merman by any chance one of them?

The closest I can get any of the stars of "Mad World" to "Columbo" is Edie Adams who appeared on an episode of "Mrs. Columbo". (And yes, I cheated and looked up this info!)

Who was it, David? Who???

The guest on that particular Carson show was Della Reese who has no connections to Mad World or Columbo.

Hmmm....I recently watched "It's a Mad (etc) World", and the "Columbo" connection didn't strike me at the time. Except for Peter Falk, of course -- he was very funny, and his part was way too short. (I watched the DVD in chunks over the course of about 10 days -- it's a LONG movie.)

Just a guess: Does James Gregory have a cameo in the movie? Like, in the airport control center, or as a cop?

Nope, I can attest that James Gregory is not in the movie. Imdb.com is not always up to date on a lot of things, but on cast listings they usually get it right, even on the unbilled parts and I didn't see any other names that had one Columbo appearance to their credits.

Other cast members work on the degree-of-separation game (like Carl Reiner who created the Dick Van **** Show starring DVD who appeared on Columbo).

Eric, I join in your praise of the IMDb -- it's an invaluable resource. But, its info about "uncredited" actors is dependent on visitor contribution, so there are bound to be gaps -- and, the cast of "It's a Mad...." is notoriously huge.

On a hunch, I jumped around just a bit on the DVD, and I thought I saw James Gregory at the police station -- just in the background at first, then in the foreground in a later appearance (at about 1:39 in my version of the DVD -- I realize that this movie has multiple DVD versions, of different lengths). See what you think.

Here's the guy in "Mad Mad World" who I figure to be James Gregory ("Short Fuse", "The Most Crucial Game").



Remember, this is 9 years befor he was in "Columbo" and 12 years before we got to know him as Inspector Luger in "Barney Miller".

I could be wrong, or he might not be the actor that David was thinking of. Anyhow, that's my best guess.

Gregory was already well-known for his big supporting role in "The Manchurian Candidate" which came out that same year, so I'd be surprised if he took that kind of small part that ended up with no billing. I sort of see the resemblance but it'd be easier to pin it down if he speaks.

Boy that is a tough call, Ted. I am trying to remember if Gregory had a widow's peak like the guy in the photo...and his nose seems a bit off...but as you say, it was an early shot of him.....

That sure does look like James Gregory, Ted. I took a glance over at the Official James Gregory website. "It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World" isn't listed as a movie he appeared in. There are 14 films listed as featuring him prior to 1963, when "Mad World" was made. He wasn't a comic actor, although he was certainly hysterical as Inspector Luger in "Barney Miller". But again, that photo you posted does look like him.

I had been thinking that perhaps Marvin Kaplan (the bulkier gas station owner whose gas station is destroyed in "Mad World") may have had a small role in an episode of "Columbo" or maybe Norman Fell. But neither of them are listed in any credits for "Columbo".

I wonder who it could be.

To me, it looks like him in a couple of scenes -- you sort of have to see him in action too, moving his face and walking with that Inspector Luger swagger.

Here's a James Gregory head-shot of similar or earlier vintage, for comparison to the "Mad World" screenshot:



But, there's another scene closer to the end, with a cop in a grey hat, and if it's the same actor as the grey-hat cop seen earlier, well then this last time I do NOT think he looks like James Gregory.

Eric raises a good point about James Gregory gaining some recognition in "Manchurian Candidate" that same year. Of course a lot of big names did "Mad Mad World" without credit, including Jerry Lewis (who had no lines either), Jack Benny, and others -- but, those were more "featured" cameos than this cop, who is little more than an extra.

I'm curious who David had in mind, and I'm sure he'll tell us.

While I had the DVD out, I ended up checking for other candidates by watching the whole DVD at 32x speed. All I got out if that was a case f the whim-whams.

But, in the huge crowd scene in the town square near the end, standing in row 722 from the front, number 1,035 from the left, the fellow in the white hat....I think it might be Mike Lally.

Yup....definitely Mike Lally!

I appreciate the strong interest in this topic.

The suggestion of James Gregory is interesting. If he really appeared in "It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World," I overlooked it. He was not the actor I had in mind.

According to the Internet Movie Database, Buddy Hackett, one of the main stars of "It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World," appeared in "Walking My Baby Back Home." After reviewing the short clips of the Grace Wheeler film from "Forgotten Lady," I am fairly sure that Buddy Hackett appeared in it for only second or two. Hopefully someone out there can verify this. It would be a lot clearer to me if I had seen "Walking My Baby Back Home" in entiretly. Unfortunately I never have.

Very clever David...Very very clever!
I looked at Forgotten Lady and there is a guy there that could definitely be Buddy Hackett. It is the last scene where Grace stands up in front of the screen while the movie is running behind her. If you look really close you see a glimpse of him playing an upright piano. Then Grace's shadow blocks him. It's quick, but it could definitely be him.