ok...let me try one..

what do all these episodes have in common...

make me a perfect murder...try and catch me...now you see him...forgotten lady...playback...mind over mayhem...the most dangerous match...etude in black

and these...

lovely but lethal..by dawn's early light...a deadly state of mind..identity crisis..last salute to the commodore...make me a perfect murder

and these...

any old port in a storm...candidate for crime..swan song...negative reaction...identity crisis

and for a real toughie...

the most crucial game...blueprint for murder...identity crisis

just a quick hint....the same common thing applies for each of these groups.

oh i hope i did this ok!!

Let's see ... they all star Peter Falk in the role of Lt. Columbo.

excellent mark!!! you got it right!!!! yay!!

but really...um..is it too vague?...i'll give a hint, but i'm not very good at giving hints because i usually am not very helpful or i wind up giving it all away....but let me see..i'll try a hint...

as i said, the same common thing applies for each of the groups.....and um...(this is where i am going to screw it up.. )...um...it has to do with the cast...

I will try to Kirby my enthusiasm for this clever quiz.

Uh....they all have men in them that Cass adores?

oh freddie!!

lee..thank you for your 'headachesque' type of answer...if i read you correctly, you got the answer to the second one right!

Nice moose.

I think #3 is Vito Scotti...but are those the only episodes he appeared in? I thought he was in a lot more, but maybe he is so memorable it just seems like he was in a lot more!

I appreciate the compliment, knowing your feelings for Headache! I will just have to work like a Dog to get another answer.

yes E you are right..those episodes all had appearances by vito scotti...and i think those were the only ones he was in...i could be wrong..but keep in mind that i don't know the newer episodes.

and lee! you done it again...yes Dog is the answer for the first one. and as far as my feelings for headache goes........he is my mentor and my sage!!

very, very difficult, cassa. i got vito scotti, but i never thought of Dog!!!!

I just found the answer to the last one, but I didn't get it honestly, so I won't post it. I was just too curious!

i thought of you when i was making up this quiz, laura!
i said to myself..'laura has the columbo phile book and she is going to get all the answers right'

actually i found it on this site....

I have a guess...

Were Elliot's secretary, the lady answering the phone at the Wagner house, and the picture lady at the carnival the same person?

i looked it up and those three roles were played by different actresses.
what i'm looking for is the same thing as the other answers...
the same person appears in each of these 3 episodes.

well...the last one was a toughie so i'll just give the answer...






it was cliff carnell who appeared as the photo shop guy in identity crisis, the plainclothes policeman in most crucial game, and the motorcycle cop in that very tense scene in blueprint for murder where elliot gets a flat tire while transporting beau's body in his trunk.