Publish or Perish
- Episode aired Jan 18, 1974
- TV-PG
- 1h 13m
IMDb RATING
7.6/10
2.5K
YOUR RATING
A publisher hires a bomb enthusiast to murder a bestselling author of detective novels. Lt. Columbo is on the case.A publisher hires a bomb enthusiast to murder a bestselling author of detective novels. Lt. Columbo is on the case.A publisher hires a bomb enthusiast to murder a bestselling author of detective novels. Lt. Columbo is on the case.
John Davis Chandler
- Eddie Kane
- (as John Chandler)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaColumbo questions Eileen and Neal in Chasen's Restaurant and provides horrified amusement to everyone by ordering chili. Chasen's, which closed in 1995, was renowned for its chili.
- GoofsWhen Columbo opens up Eddie Kane's address book to look at Greenleaf's number, the closeup is the same one as the earlier shot when Greenleaf did the same thing, including Greenleaf's latex gloved finger.
- Quotes
Restaurant Manager: Your check, Lt.
Lieutenant Columbo: Six dollars! Excuse me, err... no I think there's a mistake, I had the chilli and the iced tea.
Restaurant Manager: Oh.
[makes alterations on check]
Lieutenant Columbo: Six seventy-five?
Restaurant Manager: I forgot to add the iced tea.
- ConnectionsReferences Columbo: Candidate for Crime (1973)
Featured review
Compelling Columbo adventure
Jack Cassidy gives an unquestionably energetic and gritty performance in his second Columbo adventure as a murderer, which oddly mirrors the theme of fictional writing that marked his previous appearance in "Murder By the Book."
Cassidy plays Riley Greenleaf, a revengeful publisher who sees his best writer (ironically played by real-life author Mickey Spillane) poached from under his nose. So he hires an unstable bomb specialist, Eddie Kane, to murder him and leave evidence at the scene to give the impression that somebody is trying to frame Greenleaf, whilst the latter goes on a drinking spree to give himself a cast-iron alibi when the murder is committed. Greenleaf then tries to pin the murder on Edddie Kane...
A really clever, expertly written and holding mystery, which slips in some very key evidence (literally) at the end. The script is tightly structured and put together in a very professional fashion, typified by the strength of Greenleaf's alibi which makes things very difficult for Columbo all the way through, coupled with the undoubted composure of Cassidy's character, who is continually plotting in a distinctly unruffled fashion, long after the first murder has been committed.
To my mind, a very high calibre Columbo story; stylish, well-handled and not telegraphed with the predictability that has weakened some potentially top-notch Columbo adventures.
Cassidy plays Riley Greenleaf, a revengeful publisher who sees his best writer (ironically played by real-life author Mickey Spillane) poached from under his nose. So he hires an unstable bomb specialist, Eddie Kane, to murder him and leave evidence at the scene to give the impression that somebody is trying to frame Greenleaf, whilst the latter goes on a drinking spree to give himself a cast-iron alibi when the murder is committed. Greenleaf then tries to pin the murder on Edddie Kane...
A really clever, expertly written and holding mystery, which slips in some very key evidence (literally) at the end. The script is tightly structured and put together in a very professional fashion, typified by the strength of Greenleaf's alibi which makes things very difficult for Columbo all the way through, coupled with the undoubted composure of Cassidy's character, who is continually plotting in a distinctly unruffled fashion, long after the first murder has been committed.
To my mind, a very high calibre Columbo story; stylish, well-handled and not telegraphed with the predictability that has weakened some potentially top-notch Columbo adventures.
helpful•333
- The Welsh Raging Bull
- Aug 10, 2004
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![Mariette Hartley in Publish or Perish (1974)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNWJhNTA2MjgtODFjNC00Y2RmLThkYjYtNzk1YTFjZGNhMWY3XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMzAwNjA2Njg@._V1_QL75_UY133_CR82,0,90,133_.jpg)