Synopsis
When an Italian bureau chief commits suicide because he's being blackmailed, Kelly and Scotty are assigned the task of destroying the blackmailer.
[Location: Italy]
French title: Le maître-chanteur de Rome
Guest Stars
Nehemiah Persoff (Coly Collisis), Alf Kjellin (Dean Sherman), Ulla Stromstedt (Tilde), Elisha Cook (Erick Magnuson), Sam Reese (Sam Drake), David Mauro (Butler), Valerie Starrett (Mrs. Sherman), Lisa Donzell (Penelope), Carlo Delle Paine (The Stranger)
Written by
Tim Ballinger, Morton Fine & David Friedkin
Directed by
Alf Kjellin
Original Airdate
28 December 1966
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Currently available on DVD
(UPC: 14381983227)
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Review
In Rome, Italian bureau chief Dean Sherman becomes the target of a classic blackmail scheme engineered by the ruthless Coly and involving the beautiful Tilde -- and some compromising photos. When Sherman commits suicide by jumping out the window of Kelly and Scotty's hotel room, the guys are assigned to "deactivate" Coly. They create some job openings in Coly's entourage by taking out his bodyguards. And when Coly has Tilde killed -- he doesn't like loose ends -- they take him out, too, by framing him for the woman's murder.
An interesting episode that has the look of being hastily filmed, with a few blatant goofs, and not up to veteran director Alf Kjellin's usual high standards. Maybe that's because Kjellin, quite an accomplished actor in his own right, does double duty, playing the role of the doomed Dean Sherman. We see just how ruthless our guys can be -- Kelly gets information out of Tilde by threatening to drown her, and his scheme to get Coly to turn on her backfires, resulting in Tilde's death. Culp and Cosby are consistently on their game, presenting us with two agents who can be glib and fun-loving one minute and dangerous pros the next. Their framing of Coly is an efficient piece of work. Veteran character actors Nehemiah Persoff and Elisha Cook are, as usual, true assets. The best scene is the last one, in which Scott gets a date and Robinson, uncharacteristically, strikes out trying to get one of his own.
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