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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Mel O&#039;Drama" data-source="post: 275853" data-attributes="member: 23">Short Fuse / Blueprint For Murder <img src="https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNmIxYjNmNTMtYTRhNy00MTMyLTk1M2EtYzlkN2FjYzM2YjczXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNDM1MzYzMzc@._V1_.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="width: 519px" /><img src="https://iv1.lisimg.com/image/9315863/600full-columbo%3A-short-fuse-screenshot.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="width: 538px" /> <img src="https://i2.wp.com/columbophile.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/blueprint-opening-titles.jpg?resize=610%2C459&ssl=1" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="width: 527px" /><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EeKZmqw9GGU/U8YObbdK1eI/AAAAAAAO0QI/cAb4Qs_y_Y8/s1600/Columbo-Blueprint_For_Murder-1972-CSS-499.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="width: 529px" />For whatever reason reason I was convinced that Roddy McDowall was one of those recurring Columbo murderers who appeared in three or four episodes over the years. On closer inspection it seems Short Fuse is his sole outing in the series. Perhaps my false memory is coming from the fact that this performance is such a memorable one. Certainly, of all the first season episodes this is the one that felt most familiar as I rewatched. As this series goes, McDowall’s performance as Roger Stanford seems rather out there. I don’t know whether this is an extreme characterisation or a reflection of McDowall himself. Dare I say there was a hint of the Jim Carrey to him at times. Even Roger’s mode of murder seems a little cartoony on paper: a bomb hidden in a box of cigars that blew a Lincoln Limousine sky high. All that's missing is Road Runner. Still, it’s a creative choice and meant that the killer could be elsewhere when the murder took place. And in the context of the murderer being a chemist and the family business involving knowledge of chemicals it all feels logical enough. Besides this episode I know Roddy best from his turn as The Bookworm in the Adam West Batman series. There are shades of that here. Certainly, the characters share an eccentricity and obsessive personality. Actually though, in Batman ’66 terms his performance here feels quite close to that of Frank Gorshin’s Riddler, who always felt frighteningly on the edge, with a manic insanity just below the surface that suggested a personality disorder or psychopathy of some kind. I get the sense that McDowall doesn't so much ad lib as invoke each line with new meaning because of his delivery. It's always fresh and energetic, and I suspect you'd have to be a real pro to keep up with him due to the unpredictable choices he makes. There's a fair bit of business with silly string, evidently something very few people had heard of at the time (judging by the excited reactions of the characters). In one scene, Lt. Columbo inspects the aerosol and ends up covered in the stuff. McDowall spends the rest of the scene carefully - almost tenderly - picking the string out of Columbo's hair as their dialogue continues. It's unforgettable. It may be quite a broad performance on the surface, but it also felt truthful and intense. This is not a character with whom I’d feel comfortable spending any length of time alone. continued...</blockquote>

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