Forgotten Heroes: Kolchak The Night Stalker

By Owen Quinn author of the Time Warriors and Zombie Blues

I was recently made aware of just how many movies and television shows the younger generation have never heard of, never mind seen. So to that end, we look back at some characters you really need to see before you kick the bucket.

In 1972 and 1973, ABC aired two television movies, the Night Strangler and the Night Stalker. Starring Darren McGavin, the movies spawned a full season of adventures for Kolchak between 1974 and 1975. Kolchak ran for one season only but it quickly became a cult favorite. It is no secret that Chris Carter was inspired by the show when he created the X Files. Kolchak’s exploits kept viewers glued and sadly he was yet another victim of ratings culture. If the network weren’t happy, the show was gone. I often wonder how the people in charge ever got their jobs. They just seem shortsighted and reluctant to give shows with potential time to expand and breathe.

Kolchak was a news reporter with an eye for the unusual and bizarre. On the Night Stalker case his ideas that a vampire was responsible for several murders was met with derision from the police and other reporters. Even when Kolchak gave clear evidence that the killer was not just a serial killer he was ignored. Indeed he was exiled to another state just so his ideas would not go out. Like a pitbull, once he got into a story he went after it without regard for rules or his own safety.

The character’s origins began in a novel called The Kolchak Papers, written by Jeff Rice. The plot translated to the small screen while the Night Strangler was turned into a novel following the positive feedback on the movies. His first name was Karel which he changed to Carl but everybody called him by his surname. Over a total of twenty episodes Kolchak would face the supernatural and unexplained, seeing things others turned their heads away from.

Some of the episodes here were recycled on The X-Files. Kolchak faced every monster from popular lore you can think of. We had vampires, zombies and werewolves to name but a few. Like Scully just missing seeing the alien or UFO, so Kolchak’s evidence was lost. Whether it be taken from him by the police or the forces he faced were just not photographic. He would always come away with nothing but the evidence of his own eyes. While some knew what he saw was real like the Hindu monster that took the shape of whoever the person loves before killing them, it was kept in the shadows. Each episode ended with a voiceover from Kolchak and it gave the impression that he quickly resigned himself to the fact these beings would stay in legend never to see the light of what we think as normal society.

Kolchak would also visit the realms of sci fi such as invisible aliens, a powerful force from the Earth itself and killer robots. He met lizard people and killer ape men spawned from man’s meddling in genetics. Even the ghosts of Native Americans turned up played by Richard Kiel. The headless horseman was updated as a deadly headless motorcyclist. He fought witches, doubles and even a vampire victim in a sequel to the Night Stalker. Helen of Troy turned up in a tale about immortality. This secret world had brought Kolchak in and he had to know more. His drive often made him the bane of cop’s existence ending in him being escorted out of a crime scene or being banned from press conferences.

Kolchak’s distinctive outfit made him an icon and one that to all audiences was instantly recognisable. With his hat and crumpled jacket and trousers he never went anywhere without his camera or tape recorder. Although he had a girlfriend in the Night Strangler, the authorities made sure she cut all ties with him and he never saw her again. The closest thing to family he had was his boss Tony Vincenzo (Simon Oakland). They were like an old married couple always fighting and bickering but holding a deep respect for each other. Tony knew Kolchak was right on the money but ignored it keeping his stories in reality for print. In many ways Tony was his protector given as he too was exiled along with Kolchak in the Night Strangler.

The series remained close to McGavin’s heart and he appeared in the fifth season of The X-Files as Arthur Dales. Personally I think his role should have been meatier and not the one he was given especially for being the inspiration for Mulder and Scully. Kolchak would appear in some comic book adaptions and McGavin spoke fondly of the show before his death in 2006.

Fifty years down the line Kolchak remains as popular as ever just as it should be.