Kolchak The Night Stalker TV Series

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S E A R C H D V D B e a v e r

Created by Jeffrey Grant Rice
USA 1974-75

NOTE: This DVD of Kolchak: The Night Stalker is compared to the Blu-ray HERE

Before X-Files was even a glimmer in Chris Carter's eye, he was a loyal viewer of this cult giant of classical 70's TV. The ABC network's made-for-television movie THE NIGHT STALKER, was based on the novel by Jeff Rice. It was adapted for the tube by legendary Richard Matheson and was a monster (no pun intended) hit which followed with another success - THE NIGHT STRANGLER TV-movie pushing for the eventual birth of the much-beloved series "Kolchak: The Night Stalker".

Each week, INS (Independent News Service) reporter, Carl Kolchak (played with energetic panache, in a role he seemed born to exude, by Darren McGavin - who found his vehicle of most associated fame) would venture out on a usually 'unofficial' assignment that invariably led to an abrupt encounter with the supernatural. Kolchak's editor/boss Tony Vincenzo (Simon Oakland) created a rather more-ish foil as the brow beating, disbelieving, authority-hounded counter-piece to Carl's prying pen. It was perfect - why only 2 seasons you say? The creative well of supernatural combatants seemed to run dry leaving a legacy of some of TV's absolute best and groundbreaking of this unique self-made genre. It was never given the opportunity to deteriorate too rapidly and we are left with something rather unforgettable, sprinkled with moments of sheer adventurous delight and eerie mystery charm.

Gary W. Tooze

The Episodes

Broadcast Premiere: September 13th, 1974

Reviews DVD Reviews

DVD Review: Universal - Region 1 - NTSC

DVD Box Cover		CLICK to order from:
Distribution	Universal - Region 1 - NTSC
Runtime	20 episodes X 50:00 = approx. 16.5 hours
Video	1.33:1 Original Aspect Ratio Average Bitrate: 5.15 mb/s NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s
	NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate:
Audio	English (Dolby Digital 2.0)
Subtitles	English (HoH), Spanish, None
Features	Release Information: Studio: Universal Studios Aspect Ratio: Original Aspect Ratio 1.33:1 Edition Details: Episode 1: "The Ripper" Episode 2: "The Zombie" Episode 3: "They Have Been, They Are, They Will Be..." Episode 4: "The Vampire" Episode 5: "The Werewolf" Episode 6: "Firefall" Episode 8: "Bad Medicine" Episode 9: "The Spanish Moss Murders" Episode 10: "The Energy Eater" Episode 11: "Horror In the Heights" Episode 12: "Mr. R.I.N.G." Episode 14: "The Trevi Collection" Episode 16: "Demon in Lace" Episode 17: "Legacy of Terror" Episode 18: "The Knightly Murders" Episode 19: "The Youth Killer" Episode 20: "The Sentry" DVD Release Date: October 6th, 2005 3 X slim transparent keep case inside cardboard box Chapters: 4 X 20 episodes

Comments:

NOTE: This DVD of Kolchak: The Night Stalker is compared to the Blu-ray HERE

3 dual-sided DVDs with 4 episodes a side (one side - the 6th - is blank).

Perhaps not as shiny a gem, and a little more obvious, than my youth would remember, this is still packed with fun and edge-of-seat suspense. The image looks fine - some episodes a shade sharper or brighter than others - but as consistent as I expected. The 2.0 channel audio has no flaws that I could detect. I'm a big fan of removable subtitles and these have Universal's excellent standard. No extras but if you start analyzing what you are getting here - its about $1.30 an episode - and to have this long sought series digitally at your finger tips makes it even more of a steal. How can we not recommend?