Is #3 something about pride bringing them down? Rumford so much needs to get the cider culprit that he incriminates himself, and Gen'l Hollister does the same thing by not getting rid of the gun?

Very good guesses, but not what I am thinking of.

Is it too early for some hints?

#1 William Shatner is wearing a wig and the 2 ladies, Joyce Van Patten and Susan Clark LOOK like they're wearing wigs!!

um...no E, it is definitely not too early for some hints!!

Very funny, Cass!

OK, here are some hints:

#1 The connection is not plot-related. There is an item that either appears or is mentioned in all three episodes.

#2-4 The connections are related to trivia, and some slightly unusual coincidences considering the similar themes/aspects. If you can get the answer to #3, you could probably figure out #2 and #4, so if you're stuck, focus on #3.

Have some fun and don't think too hard! Some of these observations may seem a little silly!

wearing bathrobes?

in both #1 and #3, we see the all the murderers in robes.

and aren't they all just exquisite specimens.

i think i'm going insane!!
my brain is on overload!

Again, good guesses, but not what my zany mind is focusing on.

To help things along, I will now post the ANSWER to #3 which may help everybody along with #2 and #4. So, if you don't want the answer yet, stop reading now!





ANSWER TO #3:

"Dead Weight" and "By Dawn's Early Light" share the same original air date (although different years). "Dead Weight" originally aired on October 27, 1971. "By Dawn's Early Light" originally aired on October 27, 1974. Isn't it slightly unusual that two episodes with a similar theme also happened to air on the same date? Especially when you consider that only a handful of new episodes aired during a season.

I think this is fascinating...you might think I'm nuts. But #2 and #4 have a similar type of coincidence...nothing outrageous, but interesting (to me anyway!).

Well, I guess this quiz was a flop.

I'll give out another hint on #1, and then tomorrow I will post all the answers.

HINT FOR #1:

"Lady in Waiting": the item appears and is used
"Fade in to Murder": the item is mentioned but does not appear
"Old-Fashioned Murder": the item appears but is not used

i am stumped.

how about a cheeseburger!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Cass, that's it!!! Cheeseburgers!

They appear and are eaten by Columbo and Peter in "Lady in Waiting."

They are mentioned in "Fade in to Murder," but do not appear because Claire decides to get a sandwich instead.

It appears in "Old-Fashioned Murder" when Columbo brings Janie a cheeseburger when she is in jail, but she throws it on the floor without eating it when she gets mad at Columbo.

A slight deviation from Columbo's usual hot dog! Can anyone think of any other cheeseburger appearances or references in other episodes?

Good job, Cass!

Here are the answers to 2 and 4:

#2 All the episodes involving Columbo out of the country were all the fourth episode to air during their original seasons.

#4 The first three McGoohan episodes were all the third episode to air during their original seasons. (The fourth McGoohan episode, "Ashes to Ashes," aired as a special, not part of a season.)

That's it...I hope it was a little fun!

yay!!

i can't think of another episode right now with a cheeseburger involved...but i'll ponder it....

i never would have gotten the answers to the other 2 questions...not in a million years.

i had fun with this quiz...dang it! it was hard but it was fun trying to rack my brain at bit...

wow....i honestly thought cassa was joking! then i thought about it, and i realized cheeseburgers did work for "lady in waiting" and "fade into murder," but then i ruled it out again as just coincidence, because i couldn't remember any cheeseburgers in "old fashioned murder." well, it turns out my copy is from BRAVO, which EDITED OUT THE CHEESEBURGER!!!!


lol great question, E, and congratulations, cassa. you both obviously have very strange and wonderful minds.

Thanks, Laura and Cass!

Hopefully when season 6 arrives on DVD, the great cheeseburger scene in "Old-Fashioned Murder" will be restored! It always bothered me when Janie threw it on the floor...why waste a good cheeseburger?

And some more trivia...I believe Janie states that she prefers cheeseburgers without onions. I happen to love onions on my cheeseburgers!

the only thing i can say about janie...is that she freaks me out when she finds the bodies and she comes up to her aunt ruth and you think she is going to attack her or something and then she sticks her fingers in her mouth and........oh!!! that scene just freaks me out!!!

but E, as you pointed out to me once, her birthday is december 27th...and i will celebrate it this year with gusto!!

If you invite Janie over, try not to have any dead bodies or onions lying around...Janie is not known for her calm reactions under stress! In fact, I don't think I would even say "happy birthday" to her too loud!

Why do these symbols make me think of Key West???