Any Old Port in a Storm story
Wine connoisseur Adrian Carsini runs a small winery specializing in unprofitable but prized wines. He is about to be named the wine industry's Man-of-the-Year. His half-brother, Rick, only wants to spend money on various hobbies and interests like sports and fast cars and has also been married several times. When Rick gets tired of Adrian's indulgences, he announces his decision to sell the land to mass producers of cheap, profitable wines. Adrian knocks him unconscious and leaves him to die in an airtight wine cellar. He travels to New York to accept the award and attend wine auctions, at the same time establishing his alibi. Upon his return, he concocts a scuba diving accident to explain Rick's death by suffocation. Julie Harris plays Adrian's formidable secretary, who realizes that Columbo suspects Carsini of killing his brother, and has plans of her own for Carsini. Final clue/twist: Columbo realizes Carsini had locked Rick in the airtight wine cellar with the air conditioning turned off, and realizes further that this happened when a heatwave had struck Los Angeles. Columbo steals a very rare bottle of wine (Ferrier Vintage Port 1945) from Carsini’s cellar, and when he treats Carsini and his secretary to dinner, arranges for the restaurant staff to serve it to them. Carsini, upon tasting the wine, explodes in anger and berates the staff for exposing it to very high temperatures. Columbo tells Carsini that reminds him of the recent heatwave. Carsini realizes that all the wine in his cellar would have been spoiled in the heatwave, so that night he sets out to destroy all the bottles. A heart-broken Carsini is caught in the act by Columbo and confesses, expressing relief that at least he does not any more have to deal with his secretary, who had guessed the truth and was pressuring him to marry her. Directed by: Leo Penn. Story by: Larry Cohen, Stanley Ralph Ross.
21 total · 3 choice · 7 major · 11 minor
| Theme | Level | Motivation |
|---|---|---|
| gastronomy | choice | As puntifically alluded to in the title, the plot turns on subtle properties of fine old wines. Lt. Colombo had to learn this craft, to an extent, in order to catch the murderer. |
| how to murder someone and get away with it | choice | Having knocked Rick unconscious in a fit of rage, Adrian quickly improvised the following device for disposing of his troublesome half-brother: He left Rick to die of asphyxiation in an airtight wine cellar, then dressed Rick's corpse in diving gear and dumped in in the ocean so that it would seem like Rick had succumbed to a diving accident. This was carefully timed so that the actual death occurred while Adrian was out of town with an alibi. Alas, the ever-intrepid Lt. Columbo soon put two and two together and proceeded to snare the homicidal oenophile in a fiendish little trap. |
| the desire for prestige | choice | Adrian Carsini was motivated above all, one gathers, by the status that came with being owner of a highly regarded winery. Much was made of Adrian being self-satisfied to named the wine industry's Man-of-the-Year. |
| boss and employee | major | Adrian deliberately kept a professional distance from his longtime secretary, Karen, who had something more than a professional interest in him. |
| brother and brother | major | Adrian was at odds with his half-brother Rick, and ultimately killed Rick to prevent him from selling the family vineyards which Adrian held so dear. |
| fratricide | major | Adrian killed his half-brother Rick to prevent him from selling the family vineyards which Adrian held so dear. |
| greed for riches | major | Losing the vineyard would have undoubtedly deprived Adrian Carsini of his luxurious lifestyle. |
| law enforcement | major | The bumbling but sharp-witted homicide detective Lieutenant Columbo was tasked with solving the following murder mystery: Did Rick Carsini really die in an uncharacteristic diving accident, or was there foul play afoot? |
| pleasure in eating and drinking | major | Adrian was over-the-top passionate about wines. |
| what if I were in a tight spot | major | Adrian, in a sudden burst of rage, knocked Rick unconscious with the butt of a trophy cup. Having thus crossed the line to serious felony, he went all in and left Rick to die of asphyxiation in an airtight wine cellar. |