TV series from 1974 starring
Darren McGavin as Carl Kolchak a reporter for a news service in Chicago with a penchant for the bizarre. This series of about 20 episodes covered things such as
Jack the Ripper,
Aliens, the
ghost of a beheaded motor cyclist, an escaped
android, and an
Aztec mummy.
This is credited by Chris Carter as one of his inspirations for The X-Files and in fact Darren McGavin played "Agent Arthur Dales" in a couple of recent episodes ("Travellers" and "Agua Mala"). McGavin also played Frank Black's father Henry in Millenium).
The character first appeared in a couple of TV movies "The Night Stalker" (1972) and "The Night Strangler" (1973). These were written by Richard Matheson and Jeff Rice.
The 20 episodes of the regular series were:
- 1. The Ripper
- 2. The Zombie
- 3. They Have Been, They Are, They Will Be...
- 4. The Vampire
- 6. Fire Fall
- 7. The Devil's Platform
- 8. Bad Medicine
- 9. The Spanish Moss Murders
- 10. The Energy Eater
- 11. Horror in the Heights
- 12. Mr. R.I.N.G.
- 13. Primal Scream
- 14. The Trevi Collection
- 15. Chopper
- 16. Demon in Lace
- 17. Legacy of Terror
- 18. The Knightly Murders
- 19. The Youth Killer
- 20. The Sentry
A couple of movies have been made by editing pairs of the TV episodes together ("Crackle of Death" and "The Demon and the Mummy").