Kolchak: The Night Stalker poster

Kolchak: The Night Stalker

★ 8.4 7K votes 1974–1975 1 season · 20 episodes Ended ABC
EpisodicSelf-contained episodes you can watch in almost any order.This show: 9/10Monster horrorCreatures and slashers, fear made physical.This show: 8/10SupernaturalGhosts, demons and powers beyond nature in our own world.This show: 8/10ProceduralA case or problem of the week, solved by a formula that works.This show: 7/10
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Starring
Darren McGavinSimon OaklandJack GrinnageRuth McDevittCraig R. BaxleyJohn Fiedler
Written by
Jeffrey Grant Rice
Starring
Darren McGavinSimon OaklandJack GrinnageRuth McDevittCraig R. BaxleyJohn Fiedler
Written by
Jeffrey Grant Rice
Ratings per Episode
246810
Votes per Episode
03006009001k

Kolchak: The Night Stalker Episode Ratings Heatmap

AvgE1E2E3E4E5E6E7E8E9E10E11E12E13E14E15E16E17E18E19E20
S17.67.97.87.17.97.77.57.67.47.97.38.47.27.27.77.47.87.57.77.37.4

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About

"The wisecracking reporter who saw the monsters first"

Carl Kolchak is a rumpled, wisecracking Chicago newspaper reporter who keeps stumbling onto genuine monsters, cults, and things that shouldn't exist, only to have his editor and the authorities dismiss him as a crank. Each episode is a self-contained horror mystery: Kolchak chases a lead, gets in over his head, and files a story nobody will ever run. The tone is pulpy and often funny, powered almost entirely by Darren McGavin's rapid-fire, exasperated performance. Production values are modest 1970s TV, but the writing's wit and the show's genuine influence on later monster-of-the-week series make it worth the trip.

Watch it for

Darren McGavin's grumpy, quick-witted lead performance that basically invented the skeptical-reporter-meets-monster template.

Maybe skip if

you need slick effects, since the budget and creature work show their age badly.

Written by our AI editor to help you decide, spoiler-free by design.

All Seasons

▼
Season 11974
7.613K2017h 2m
Carl Kolchak was a reporter for Chicago's Independent News Service, and a trouble magnet for situations involving the supernatural. Kolchak turned his investigative skills to vampires, werewolves, zombies and all manner of legendary creatures, but in the end he always failed to convince his skeptical editor, Tony Vincenzo, that the stories weren't products of Kolchak's own overworked imagination.
EpTitleRatingYoursVotesRuntime
▶1The Ripper7.9
1K52 min
▶2The Zombie7.8
85251 min
▶3They Have Been, They Are, They Will Be...7.1
74252 min
▶4The Vampire7.9
79852 min
▶5The Werewolf7.7
77851 min
▶6Firefall7.5
63751 min
▶7The Devil's Platform7.6
63452 min
▶8Bad Medicine7.4
62652 min
▶9The Spanish Moss Murders7.9
67152 min
▶10The Energy Eater7.3
63952 min
▶11Horror in the Heights8.4
74451 min
▶12Mr. R.I.N.G.7.2
56251 min
▶13Primal Scream7.2
53550 min
▶14The Trevi Collection7.7
60150 min
▶15Chopper7.4
58251 min
▶16Demon in Lace7.8
55151 min
▶17Legacy of Terror7.5
53950 min
▶18The Knightly Murders7.7
53050 min
▶19The Youth Killer7.3
51151 min
▶20The Sentry7.4
51550 min

Full Cast & Crew

Cast

Darren McGavin Carl Kolchak
Simon Oakland Tony Vincenzo
Jack Grinnage Ron Updyke
Ruth McDevitt Emily Cowles, Edith Cowels, Elderly Woman
Craig R. Baxley Mr. R.I.N.G., Robert Gurney, Staff Sgt. Rolf Anderson
John Fiedler Gordon Spangler, Gordy, Gordy Spangler
Carol Ann Susi Monique Marmelstein
Don Mantooth Policeman, Sleep Subject, Tim Brennan
Dennis McCarthy Ballistics Man, Guard, The Figure
Keith Walker 1st Reporter, TV Reporter

Crew

Jeffrey Grant Rice

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