Project 120 and the Birth of Columbo

In the early days of telefilms NBC launched a little-known operation called Project 120 to create a programming division for 120-minute-long feature films made exclusively for television. One of those programming ideas gave birth to the character and series called Columbo. From a little telemovie in the mid 1960s, to a pilot film and then a collection of shows that were part of a “wheel” of recurring mysteries, Columbo shuffled and nosed his way into our lives and eventually carved out a place in our hearts. He’d leave the airwaves briefly in the late 1970s only to return a few years later in a host of mystery movies that would run longer than the original show itself. Falk would become defined by the character, even after playing may other characters on TV, film and stage. Columbo and Falk became inseparable. Look back at the iconic series, its star and the Project 120 effort that brought the series to life. Filled with pictures and stories behind the series, it celebrates classic TV and the detective himself.