I’d first heard about Carl Kolchak, the Night Stalker, back in an old issue of FAMOUS MONSTERS OF FILMLAND, back when I was yet too little to be able to pronounce the guy’s name. (Remember those “See Jack run” primers from first grade? Well, I was learning to read comic books and monster magazines at roughly the same time.) I only recently got around to viewing the series, though. Having just finished the run of DARK SHADOWS and hankering for something to fill the void, and knowing that THE NIGHT STALKER was produced by DS creator Dan Curtis, that it was in essence his follow-up, I thought I should give it a try.
The original TV movie, simply called THE NIGHT STALKER, was so successful that it got released overseas as a theatrical, and inspired a sequel, THE NIGHT STRANGLER, as well as a television series. Curtis wasn’t involved in the latter, but that didn’t matter, as I was already sufficiently hooked to keep watching. Scriptwriter Richard Matheson (I AM LEGEND) wasn’t involved, either, and the show lasted only one season, but none of this stopped it from being a lot of fun, as entertaining as the films that spawned it. Alternating between campy and creepy, the series starred Darren McGavin, who will forever be remembered both as Kolchak and as the dad in A CHRISTMAS STORY. Check out the second part of my review of the series to read about some of the creatures Kolchak encountered.