Étude in Black

Episode aired Sep 17, 1972
Not Rated
1h 38m

IMDb RATING

7.7/10

3.9K

YOUR RATING

Peter Falk, John Cassavetes, Blythe Danner, Myrna Loy, Anjanette Comer, and James Olson in Étude in Black (1972)

Cop Drama Police Procedural Crime Drama Mystery Thriller

A ruthless conductor murders the gifted pianist with whom he is having an affair. Lt. Columbo is on the case.A ruthless conductor murders the gifted pianist with whom he is having an affair. Lt. Columbo is on the case.A ruthless conductor murders the gifted pianist with whom he is having an affair. Lt. Columbo is on the case.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

7.7/10

3.9K

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Trivia
This is the debut of Dog, Columbo's pet basset hound.

Goofs
Just before she accompanies Columbo and Alex into the screening room to watch the incriminating video, Janice Benedict's hair is swept up in a bun behind her head. When she enters the room, her hair is in a long ponytail.

Quotes
Lieutenant Columbo: [presenting his car to Mike the mechanic] What do you think of this?
Mike Alexander: Have you ever thought of getting a new car?
Lieutenant Columbo: No, you see, I already have two cars. Of course, my wife's car is nothing special. That's just for transportation. You understand.
Mike Alexander: I only work on foreign cars.
Lieutenant Columbo: Oh, it's a foreign car.
Mike Alexander: Oh, I know, but... there are limits, mate, you know?

Alternate versions
This 90 min episode is out of sequence and is seen as S2E2 on Tubi in 2024.

Connections
Featured in The 25th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards (1973)

Soundtracks
6th Symphony, 4th Movement
(uncredited)
Composed by Ludwig van Beethoven

User reviews48

Review

Featured review

7/10

Great acting in this one

ETUDE IN BLACK is one of the strongest of the early COLUMBO episodes, where it seemed the writers could do no wrong. It benefits from the fine acting of guest villain John Cassavetes, who really gets into the nitty gritty, egotistical mindset of one of the world's top conductors, who's forced into bumping off his mistress in order to keep his life perfect.

The story is a relatively complex one, offering few clues for Columbo to get his teeth into, but he does eventually start picking the story apart. Blythe Danner has a nice role as Cassavetes's ice-cold wife, and there's welcome comic relief from the detective's dog, who appears for the first time in the series. Altogether, the production values are very strong, the pacing is decent, and the sense of time and place is exemplary.