An Ode to the Late
Lieutenant Columbo &
The Actor, the Late
Peter Falk
Part Two
Not surprisingly, Lt.
Columbo’s proletariat veneer cloaked his very stalwart and uncompromising principles
of truth, justice, law and morality.
“When it comes to murder, there are no extenuating circumstances.” Admittedly, each murderer deserves the
presumption of innocence; but when proven guilty, he or she equally deserves
punishment to the fullest extent of the law.
In many cases, Columbo works many overtime hours and surmounts awkward
obstacles to verify a murderer’s guilt.
He visits his suspects so often that they find relief in their arrests
as they will no longer have to interact with Columbo. These numerous visits actually erode the
mental defenses and psychological security of the suspects. Lt. Columbo steadfastly pursues the truth and
evidence regardless of the temporary personal humiliation he suffers. From his Los Angeles Police Department
superiors to politicians to Hollywood’s social upper echelon in music, acting
and entertainment, Columbo withstands indifference, ridicule and
dismissiveness. A corrupt police
commissioner receives the same thorough scrutiny as that of a demented,
unrequited widow who blames others for her late husband’s prison sentence for
racketeering, extortion and embezzlement.
In approach and practice, Lt. Columbo demonstrates effective means of
persevering in one’s principles.
Mostly, I desire to
cultivate Lt. Columbo’s authenticity and humility which are incalculable
characteristics of mature disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ. His self-acceptance empowers him to live with
integrity in his dealings with all persons regardless of their social strata,
education, residence, pedigree, profession or other distinctions. In several cases, he admits to his suspect a
mutual level of dislike though he does not allow personal animus to impede the
fairness and thoroughness of his investigations. Upon arrest, most criminals actually thank
Columbo for his just treatment as they realize they prejudged him but yet were
the recipients of his fundamental senses of fairness. His example teaches all of us the importance
of humility particularly when a person possesses multiple gifts and
intelligences. He forsakes the easy
temptation to flaunt his abilities.
Knowing his self-worth, he rests securely in his resources knowing he
will employ them as he needs to do so. Rather
than affirming the presumption of limited cognitive abilities and knowledge,
Columbo’s hard veneer veils his meekness, strength under pressure. His self-effacing exterior deceives his
opponents into believing they can discard anything he says. His powerful humility is a reserve of
immeasurable skills and talents which he applies as his years of wisdom and
experience dictates.
Throughout my life, I
have been a diehard van of Lt. Columbo.
Possessing a childhood “Walter Smitty” daydream of mimicking
Encyclopedia Brown about whom I read as much as my school and local libraries had,
I concluded I found a television and adult version of this children’s
literature character in Lt. Columbo. Eagerly,
I watched the movies as their aired originally on NBC. In time, I bought the entire collection of
DVDs to enjoy for the balance of my life as I will continually view these
movies again and again. Most
surprisingly, I serendipitously discovered spiritual lessons embedded in Falk’s
exquisite acting. Lt. Columbo’s wisdom,
discernment, principles, authenticity and humility will challenge me to live
with similar integrity as a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Columbo would end a
conversation with a suspect with the immortal words, “Just one more thing.” Of course, there was not another thing but
several items which enabled him to delve more deeply into the mind of the
criminal. But, I have really have just
one more thing to say about Falk and the incredible fictional detective whom he
played. “Thank you.”
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