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You missed references to The Munsters and Black Sheep Squadron in the first episode of Kolchak
Look for a famous mansion and famed pilot in "The Ripper."
Who knows what you might uncover as a reporter. Chicago journalist Carl Kolchak faced mummies, zombies, werewolves and witches. Following two hit made-for-TV horror movies, The Night Stalker (1972) and The Night Strangler (1973), the character at last got his own supernatural series with Kolchak: The Night Stalker in 1974. The show heavily influenced subsequent favorites like The X-Files.
In the first episode, "The Ripper," Kolchak tracks down a serial killer who just might be the reincarnation of Jack the Ripper. His final showdown with the murderer takes place at a place familiar to any fan of classic monsters. It might be hard to recognize in the shadowy night. The Ripper is hiding out in the Munsters Mansion.
Savvy televisions will know that the Munsters' home was a structure on the Universal Studios lot. You can spot it in lots of unlikely places. Here it is in Leave It to Beaver, for example:
Even in the eerie twilight, you can see the true color of the house — a tannish, mustardy color — on Kolchak: The Night Stalker. Take a look at the porch in "The Ripper" and dressed up on The Munsters.
That color is indeed how it appears in the 1966 film Munster Go Home!
UniversalThis is not the only nifty easter egg you can find in "The Ripper"!
Take a look at this moment from about 20 minutes into the episode, as Kolchak argues with his boss, Tony Vincenzo, played by Simon Oakland.
Check out the picture hanging on the wall. That is a portrait of Maj. Greg "Pappy" Boyington, famed aviator of World War II. They made a TV show about him, Black Sheep Squadron.
In fact, Simon Oakland was a regular cast member of Black Sheep Squadron! He portrayed Brig. Gen. Thomas Moore.
Oakland on 'Black Sheep Squadron'On Kolchak, he acted in front of a hanging photograph of Pappy. On Black Sheep Squadron, he acted with the fake Pappy, Robert Conrad.
See? There are indeed eerie things afoot on The Night Stalker.
21 Comments
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Yeah the hours for your viewing pleasure, maybe not so much. But I'm used to this "overnight" stuff and just DVR things. I can not for the life of me understand why Three Stooges has 2 hours devoted to them, still!
I realized this was the wrong page to place this info. But I thought as long as I was thinking about it, why not mention it. It's no different than those comments about how you can make a lot of $$, or whatever. At least my info. has something to do with television/entertainment.
Simon Oakland not only acted with the fake Pappy -
- he also acted with the real Pappy!
Greg "Pappy" Boyington made a couple of cameo appearances on Black Sheep, playing a Marine general; as memory serves, Oakland was in at least one of the scenes.
Check it out, if you dare ...