Shark Bytes

The Night Stalker did jump the shark, but I blame the network, ABC. They moved it from ten p.m. Fridays to eight p.m. mid-season in the so-called "family hour" with orders to tone down the scary stuff. As a result, the show lost not only the scary stuff but any suspense as well. I was a huge fan of the show back then but when the season ended we realized that this was not the same Night Stalker we'd been watching back in September. Pity. Too bad Darren McGavin asked out of his contract. Fred Silverman had taken over at ABC by then and might have been receptive to a second year on a different night, but McGavin was too busy bad-mouthing the network and the studio. Few could have foreseen the cult following the show would develop.

I love Kolchak, but - and I realize I'm going out on a limb here - the monsters were by far the least interesting aspect of the show. In fact, their obvious fakeness sometimes messed up a perfectly good episode.

What I loved were the quirky characters, the snappy dialogue, and the chemistry between all the actors. The monster stuff I sat through in order to enjoy the "good stuff."

This show was fantastic! this show
is the reason I became a scream queen
and horror actress because it made me
love all things scary as a tot!
I LOVE CARL KOLCHAK!!!! The show
is on CHILLER CHANNEL each weekday!
Thanks
Kimmy

Never had a chance to jump -- the writing went a bit down hill towards the end, but it remained a great thrill through the entire short-lived run.

K:tNS never was given an opportunity to succeed -- it should have been given another season at the very least to develop an audience. But, the network would never have done that, not for the people involved in this show.

never jumped. great opening, sort of light hearted, then the music would change and build. what keeps this show watchable, even when the creatures were lame, is the interplay between carl and tony.

"Kolchak" was a breath of fresh air when it premeired in 1974 amidst all the detective shows that were prevelant at the time. Despite its extraordinary premise, "Kolchak" was a program that veered to the extremes: when it was good, it was great and when it was bad it was terrible. I always believed that it would be a herculean task to keep coming up with new monsters every week, and after "Horror In The Heights", the quality of the show went somewhat downhill.

Still, there were the 6 classic episodes: "The Ripper" (the Friday the 13th debut), "The Vampire" (sequel to the initial pilot film), "The Spanish Moss Murders", the aforementioned "Horror..." (Hammer vet Jimmy Sangster's sole contribution), "Chopper" (co-written by then-unkown Robert Zemeckis) and "The Knightly Murders".

This program should've been given another season to help find a larger audience; there in fact were two completed unfilmed scripts before the show was cancelled as well as one rough draft script and about four or five additional ideas being bandied about.

Kolchak's cult status demonstrates that this program was a decade ahead of its time; after all, it reputedly inspired "The X-Files" and the macabre short-lived "American Gothic".

Kolchak the Night Stalker was a great bit of fun when I saw it in the 1970's.

Still campy today, but lighthearted and amusing. Better than most of what's on now.

Too Bad Stephen King didn't spot this flaw in Kolchak: what the sam scratch were all those palm trees doing in Chicago? Talk about shooting willing suspension of disbelief all to hell.

Stephen King pointed out the problem in suspending disbelief:with these monsters
coming out of the woodwork, why didn't
any other reporter in Chicago run into
them? The X-Files and Supernatural realized that the protagonists have to
actually be searching for these things
to make it credible.

i was thiking I recalled this show on Thurs at 8,Could never imagine why this show was on at 8 pm..really scared me as a kid..remember and episode where young people would age extremely and die of old age.

made one of scarest shows ever on TV with the ET that you never see. Still have nightmares from this show.

Because DM didn't milk this cow and do a second season it propably NEVER jumped.But please beleive me sports fans they were running out of ghouls towards the end.This show would definately jumped if they chose to ventuere into a second season.My favorite episode was Jack the Ripper.
I still get scared when I see it.
For TV this show was top-notch and ground breaking for its time. I thank you and X-files thanks you.

Nothing with Darren McGavin in it can ever jump the shark. He was perfect for the Nighstalker role, great scene chewing mugging and double-takes and over the top fun. Great show, almost all of it because of Darren.

This one is only a memory, as I have not yet seen the DVD's or any reruns, but I do remember this was the only show that ever scared the crap out me as a kid

To the people who say Kolchak jumped the shark I got two words for ya...YER KRAZY!! If however you are referring to the recent attempt to revive the series I would agree with you. Kolchak was the X-Files of the 70's and scared me when I was a kid. The monsters were believable and Darrin McGavin fit the role of investigative reporter Karl Kolchak like he was the real thing. The show never jumped the shark.