One Helluva Reporter: My Love Of Kolchak.

Darren McGavin as Carl Kolchak

Hello again friends! This time out I'll be writing about something that most of you have never heard of. It's forty-four years old, it has less merchandising than almost anything else I'm a fan of, and yet it remains one of the highest rated television movies of all times, has fanatical fans ranging from Stephen King to my mother, stars an actor almost all of you love come Christmas time and was the inspiration for the X-Files.

I'm talking about Kolchak: The Night Stalker. Based on a book by Jeff Rice, The Night Stalker was a made for television movie from 1972 that starred Darren McGavin as down on his luck reporter Carl Kolchak. Based in 1970's mob run Las Vegas, the film tells the tale of a string of murders in sin city that are being covered up by the local authorities. See, then as now, Las Vegas depends on tourist dollars and the bodies of women turning up completely drained of blood isn't good for business.

Kolchak digs into the case and quickly turns up evidence that the murderer must think he's a vampire. Trying to get a story like that printed though proves wildly unpopular with everyone from his editor Tony Vincenzo to the District Attorney.

The next generation?

When the suspect is identified as Janos Skorzeny, a man with a bloody past who manages to be unaffected by multiple gunshots, Carl quickly realizes the impossible must be true. Janos Skorzeny is a real life vampire.

Without spoiling any more, the film was smart, witty and fresh. At the time it needs to be remembered that vampires on film were usually of the Bela Lugosi type. To bring a vampire into the modern world, in an urban setting, and a non glamorous vampire at that was practically unheard of. The hero of the film was equally unusual. Darren McGavin most famously remembered now as the father in the classic, A Christmas Story, was a middle aged reporter in a painfully out of date seersucker suit and straw porkpie hat. Kolchak was a brash and world weary guy who had been kicked out of every big city paper in the country. It soon becomes apparent why. Carl Kolchak doesn't trust authority and believes in uncovering the truth no matter who it embarrasses. In a classic scene from the movie, While arguing with Kolchak about the story, editor Vincenzo shouts for him to get out. The follow exchange takes place as the reporter yells,

"What is this out, out, get out game we play? This nut THINKS he's a vampire! He has killed four, maybe five women! He has drained EVERY drop of blood from EVERY one of them. Now that is NEWS Vincenzo! NEWS! We are a NEWS paper! We are supposed to print NEWS not SUPPRESS it!!"

Uncovering the hard truths...

That exchange tells you all you need to know about Carl Kolchak. He believes in the truth, in the power of the press, and that the truth will out, no matter who wants to keep it hidden. He ends up on a collision course with his destiny. If no one else will stop this monster he'll go on killing forever. Carl Kolchak is not always a brave man, in fact he's usually not. He may not be a well-liked man. He often rubs people the wrong way. He wants nothing more than to land a big enough story to get his way back to a nice big city paper. Success often comes with playing ball with people you don't like. Keeping your mouth shut at times. These are two things that Kolchak just can't seem to abide.

Darren McGavin plays one of the most believable, flawed and interesting heroes I have ever seen put on film. Carl Kolchak would call you a fool for even using the word hero, but in truth it's what he is. His flaws are many, and viewers of the film, and there were many, cheer his climactic victory and sat stunned at his final defeat. The rating were massive at the time and remained unchallenged for years.

So popular was the movie, that screenwriter Richard Matheson was tasked to pen a sequel. He did. The Night Strangler debuted the following year. This time Carl wound up in Seattle trying to get anyone to listen to his vampire story. Eventually former editor Tony Vincenzo takes pity on him and gives him a job at the paper he now works at. Kolchak settles down to go back to run of the mill crime reporting, but when women start turning up dead with puncture marks on their necks, he feels himself drawn into the case of an impossibly old killer stalking Seattle.

Two vintage TV magazines in my collection.

Another big hit, The Night Strangler was a solidly enjoyable follow-up. A year later Kolchak ended up in Chicago. Again with Vincenzo. Again with a crazy story. This time it wasn't a movie. It was a television series. Kolchak: The Night Stalker follows the life of the reporter that just won't quit, who reluctantly becomes the supernaturals greatest pain in the ass. For one season, Carl stumbles across everything from werewolves to Jack The Ripper. 

After one season that had some fantastic episodes written by Hammer Horror alumni Jimmy Sangster, Soprano's creator David Chase and Back To The Future director Robert Zemekis and a few turkeys to be sure, the series ended. That was the end....but much like Carl Kolchak himself, the character just kept popping up. 

My Mom introduced me to the character she loved in the early 80's and I couldn't get enough. The first bit of merchandise I ever bought was a 20th anniversary book about the series and films. Then a new original novel, "Grave Secrets". Years later Moonstone books began publishing a Kolchak comic book and graphic novel series and later short story collections and more novels. 

The first Kolchak item I purchased back in 1992, and the revised edition 1997.

Chris Carter, creator of the X-Files openly credits his love of the series as the inspiration for his own creation. They even wanted to bring Darren McGavin onto the series as Kolchak, but legal rights prevented it. Eventually McGavin did make two appearances as Arthur Dales, the man who started the X-Files. 

In recent years, books and comics continue to find an audience, and Johnny Depp has secured the rights and apparently intends to bring Carl back as a film. 

One of my biggest Kolchak joys was researching the series and films meticulously to identify everything from the type of cameras, recorders and press I.D. he used to the kind of watch he wore. I then created the most accurate costume I could. I wore it proudly at Halloween and at several horror and pop culture conventions. Most of younger folks have no idea who I am, but when someone does I get a great feeling. Not because of the accuracy of my costume, but because people recognize one of my favorite fictional heroes. Maybe even my favorite hero. That makes me happy to know the character who means so much to me means something to other people too. 

Accessories make the man!

Once McGavin was asked about the longevity of A Christmas Story. He smiled and said it would live on. That is true, but apparently so will Carl Kolchak. Like many of the monsters he faced, he refuses to die. Sadly the same couldn't be said for the great Darren McGavin. The actor who brought joy to so many over the years, especially at Christmas time passed away in 2006. He is missed.

This blog post is dedicated to Darren McGavin, to Simon Oakland who played long suffering Tony Vincenzo and to my Mom, who introduced me to my hero that I probably share the most in common with. I remember fondly discovering the series on late night reruns in the mid 1980's. Dad would come home from work about 12:30 a.m. with pizza and we'd stay up late watching together, while recording each episode with our VCR. Cherished memories indeed.

- Paul D. Poole
1/29/2016

"So, when you have finished this bizarre account, judge for yourself its believability, and then try to tell yourself, wherever you may be, it couldn't happen here."