Kolchak

<p><span style=color: rgba(15 17 17 1)>Before </span><em style=color: rgba(15 17 17 1)>Buffy the Vampire Slayer</em><span style=color: rgba(15 17 17 1)> or </span><em style=color: rgba(15 17 17 1)>The X-Files</em><span style=color: rgba(15 17 17 1)> there was Carl Kolchak a world-weary Chicago newspaper reporter with a cheap seersucker suit and a penchant for uncovering monsters lurking in every corner. Kolchak first appeared on American screens in the 1972 ABC television movie </span><em style=color: rgba(15 17 17 1)>The Night Stalker</em><span style=color: rgba(15 17 17 1)> which was then the most-watched television movie in history. The success of this initial offering led to a sequel </span><em style=color: rgba(15 17 17 1)>The Night Strangler</em><span style=color: rgba(15 17 17 1)> and a television series </span><em style=color: rgba(15 17 17 1)>Kolchak: The Night Stalker</em><span style=color: rgba(15 17 17 1)> that ran from 1974 until 1975. By carefully focusing on the historical and artistic contexts in which it emerged Kendall R. Phillips offers insights into the way the series both reflected contemporary horror narratives and changed them. Ultimately the series proved influential for later television horror shows based not only on what it did right but on the mistakes future creators would learn to avoid. The enduring impact of the series on current television horror continues to draw more and more individuals into its robust fanbase and these fans continue to consume and create new narratives of their favorite monster-hunting reporter even fifty years after he first appeared.</span></p>