Columbo’s Cruise Ship: The Sun Princess / Spirit of London

Video Description

The episode of the Columbo TV mystery film series titled “Troubled Waters,” broadcast in 1975, sees the charming, rumpled-seeming detective solving a murder aboard a cruise ship headed for Mexico. This video is not about that episode, but rather, is the story of the cruise ship on which it was set and filmed. Named the Sun Princess at the time of filming, the ship, built in Italy in 1972, was originally called the Spirit of London, and went through numerous changes, refits, subsequent names and various tribulations throughout her long career. How and where she ended up, long after Columbo went off the air, might surprise you. Sources for this video included, but not limited to: “Episode Review: Columbo Troubled Waters,” The Columbophile Blog, September 29, 2019 (https://columbophile.com/2018/09/29/episode-review-columbo-troubled-waters/); Noel Swann, “Cruising Toward Mexican Waters,” Long Beach Press-Telegram, December 30, 1973, p. 44; Dick O’Connor, “An ocean cruise: The only way to get away from it all,” The Peninsula Times Tribune, December 7, 1974, p.23; “Interview with Susan Damante from Troubled Waters!” (podcast episode), Trench Coat, Cigar, Peugeot: Wandering With Columbo, May 14, 2024 (https://trenchcoatcigar.libsyn.com/interview-with-susan-damante); Jean Kossoff, “Tossing and turning on the high seas,” The News and Observer (Raleigh, NC), May 12, 1991, p.115-119; “Charter Travel Club (1966-1997),” Cruise Ship Odyssey (https://www.cruiseshipodyssey.com/charter-travel-club-1966-1997/); Everado Martines, “Por inseguridad, Acapulco pierde 85% de turistas internacionales en 9 ańos,” El Financiero, April 28, 2016 (https://www.elfinanciero.com.mx/empresas/acapulco-pierde-85-turistas-internacionales-en-anos/). The music used at the beginning and end of the video is “Disco Lucky” by George Kay. Get on the waitlist for my new class, launching Nov. 11: https://seanmunger.com/opt-in-page-origins-of-911 My website: https://www.seanmunger.com My Ko-fi: https://Ko-fi.com/seanmunger My blog: https://gardenofmemory.net/ My latest book, a mystery novel, “Daniel Vanished”: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CYWTRDKF Chapters: 00:00-04:36: Columbo “Troubled Waters” 04:36-14:40: The Early Years 14:40-24:26: The Middle Years 24:26-31:14: The Final Years