In "Agenda for Murder" Columbo remarks to O. Finch about Ted Bundy being convicted and executed on the strength of bite-mark evidence. Offhand I can't recall Columbo referring to a "real-life" event like that. Even though that reference seems out of character for the Columbo series, "Agenda" is one of my favorite episodes ever for some reason.

I can't either, but those are post-1979 anomalies. I mean, by 1990, it was conveying a different message.

In fact, Season 5 is as far as I go, and even that one has an ep (or two) I can do without.

Seems to me that also in "Agenda For Murder" (or was it "Identity Crisis"), there's mention of a country dropping out of the Olympics, which sounded like it was supposed to be a topical reference. But I don't remember whether that was a "real"-life event, or just something that happened in Columbo-World.

That country was China and it is from Identity Crisis. But Agenda For Murder happens to be one of my favorite episodes too. Patrick McGoohan does a great job of playing Oscar Finch.

I agree with anyone who didn't go for the Ted Bundy reference. You don't have to be touchy about true murder stories to feel that they don't belong anywhere in a Columbo episode.