‘Just One More Thing’ Explores Falk’s Life and Work

Peter Falk insists his “Just One More Thing” is NOT an autobiography. It’s rather a collection of amusing short stories from his life, and who am I to argue with Columbo? No matter how you categorize the book, it is amusing, entertaining, insightful, and very easy to read. It’ll make you want to see his earlier works. (Please note, this article contains affiliate links. If you order the item from one of these links, I make a little bit of money, and it doesn’t cost you anything extra.)

Falk’s Early Hollywood Work

If you’re like me, you probably know Peter Falk best as the grandfather in “The Princess Bride” and the detective “Columbo,” but he’s much more than those two roles. His life story in “Just One More Thing” focuses on his curiosity, which took him to Yugoslavia, Havana, and Russia at politically inopportune times. The stories explore his movie career where he garnered two Oscar nominations for his first two films: “Murder. Inc.” and “Pocketful of Miracles.” Most importantly, they revel in the humor and surprise of Falk’s life. These short vignettes are sure to charm and help you understand how Falk, with one glass eye, became a Hollywood icon.

Robin and the 7 Hoods

In one of the stories, Falk talks about working with Frank Sinatra in “Robin and the 7 Hoods.” Falk didn’t want to get type cast as a mafioso and was up for the part of a doctor, so he turned Sinatra down. Sinatra understood and said the part would remain open for him until the film began shooting. Falk didn’t get the doctor role, had his agent call up Sinatra on Friday, and was on the set on Monday. There were some lines that Falk didn’t like. He wasn’t sure ho to bring it up to Sinatra. When he finally did, Sinatra interrupted him: “There are lines you don’t like. Fine. Just say what you want to say.” It was just that easy.