Sun, Jan 5, 1975
A greedy businessman (Morton Tallman) commissions an arson, but his partner Nick threatens to tell the police if it happens. Tallman kills his partner and turns a large bookcase over his body, expecting the fire to cover his tracks. The ME finds a blunt instrument trauma to the head and no soot in Nick's lungs, proving he died before the fire. In spite of a young man's being identified as fleeing from the scene, Kojak is convinced Tallman is involved and sets out to find the evidence. It seems the fire is connected to a larger arson insurance scam, as well as some mob loans to businesses in trouble.
Top-rated
Sun, Jan 19, 1975
When a bank gets robbed by men arriving in an ambulance, one of their masks slips. A young woman who apparently passed a counterfeit bill sees him but fails to pick out his mug shot. She is identified as a gypsy; her family is involved in various scams. She contacts the bank robbers and recruits them to rob six banks in one day. Kojak pretends to see the future in his lollipop while interrogating the gypsy con-artists and takes Marina in for questioning. Meanwhile her ingenious plan goes into operation without her.The men plan to cut her out, but Merina has other ideas-maybe even letting the police in on it IF she receives immunity. She has private reasons that surprise even Kojak.
Sun, Feb 2, 1975
Two men put a cushion over a beautiful blond's mouth and then hang her from the chandelier. The ME thinks it's suicide, but Kojak believes Azure Dee was murdered. Having met her as a young runaway strung out on drugs, Kojak had been proud of her progress. Azure had long since gotten clean from drugs and was now a call girl with a select and moneyed clientèle. To the consternation of his boss, Kojak insists on pursuing it as a homicide, calling attention to the total absence of personal items from her apartment. Her phone bill in the mailbox connects her to the Meadows family; her doorman provides leads regarding the males she entertained (including a judge). At her funeral, a young man shoots at Farley Meadows and is shot running away. Kojak finally puts the pieces together and arranges a confrontation in the Meadows home with all the suspects present.
Sun, Feb 9, 1975
A serial bomber tagged by the papers as the "Good Luck Bomber," gives warning, leaves mocking notes, and constructs devices which the bomb squad is unable to defuse. He seems to have no motive, makes no demands, espouses no causes he's fighting for.....just what is going on? The prime suspect, Joe Milner, has a prior record and is egotistical regarding his explosive expertise. At one point, he helps disable a bomb placed in a hospital; the police are mystified. When a bomb threat is received by a refinery, Milner agrees to help-for a million dollar fee. Kojak sets a trap at the refinery to find out who really set the bomb.
Sun, Feb 16, 1975
Protection racketeers preying upon neighborhood bars fall out of favor with each other, leading to violent enforcement action taken against bar patrons and even an undercover detective posing as a bartender. The crime boss cuts the ties to his loose-cannon right-hand man, who decides to take over the racket and cut out the boss. But even with a wired informant, Kojak can't get the goods on the perps. Ultimately, Detective Crocker is tested when he has to decide whether to trust the loyalty of a friend or the force.
Top-rated
Sun, Mar 2, 1975
Kojak catches a big-time drug dealer with a massive amount of heroin. A call comes offering a trade: the evidence "disappearing" in exchange for Captain McNeil's wife who has been kidnapped. Kojak can't tell anybody and faces a seemingly impossible dilemma. His last hope is that Mrs. McNeil has managed a clue in the letter she left for her husband.
Sun, Sep 14, 1975
When local and federal officers want to catch a loan shark, Kojak persuades a boyhood friend to go undercover as part of a deal to dismiss a case pending against him. Pressure mounts as the Feds renege on providing funds and the loan shark sends muscle. Kojak feels responsible and, when a bombing occurs, sets a trap for the killer.
Sun, Sep 21, 1975
Rick Daly is a young, trigger-happy cop with good intentions to help people. In response to a knife-killing, he is too quick on the trigger and winds up killing a preteen boy. Kojak attempts to shield Daly when the public reacts, demanding revenge, but gets suspicious when cracks appear in Daly's story. Now the tables are turned; the cops feel Kojak is persecuting Daly. When the guy is found who Daly was pursuing, Kojak confronts Daly on the roof where the shooting occurred to nail down the truth.
Sun, Oct 5, 1975
The hijacking of a truckload of plumbing donated to a school results in murder, plus major embarrassment to the NYPD, because Det. Crocker was speaking at the struggling Catholic high school at the time. Kojak pushes his shields to the max, to stop the spiraling crime toll from the caper. Stavros focuses on a strange clue: Why is the Coney Island sand at the heist's fake sewer repair scene, in seed-bags from the Pacific Northwest ?
Sun, Oct 12, 1975
A plastic surgeon is found dead in his car, apparently shot to death. A drug dealer is arrested, but Kojak is forced to let him go when the medical examiner informs him that the surgeon, who was a heavy cocaine addict, was not killed by the bullet but was already dead of natural causes.
Sun, Oct 26, 1975
A psychology professor is killed by one of two of his students who wanted to blackmail him into giving them higher grades. A woman witnesses the student as he throws the professor's body off of a pier. When they find out that the witness works in a high-pressure advertising job and is under severe stress, the two students plan to psychologically manipulate the woman into committing suicide.
Sun, Nov 2, 1975
After a night drinking, an off-duty cop and his friend are attacked by a group of thieves. The friend is killed with the cop's gun. Though ordered to beat duty, the cop, who has battled alcoholism over the years, impedes Kojak's investigation by trying to find those responsible for his friend's death himself.
Top-rated
Sun, Nov 9, 1975
While in a New Jersey town Kojak interferes with a young man's attempt to pick up a girl by fighting her boyfriend. It turns out the young man is Mike Viggers Jr., whose mobster father, well-known to Kojak, effectively runs the town. Humiliated by Kojak, young Viggers is determined to have the detective killed and will not be deterred even by his father's strong objections.
Sun, Nov 23, 1975
A man is killed, apparently by a prostitute and her partner, but Kojak begins to suspect that it is much more than a simple "Murphy job". As he investigates, he finds that federal authorities are hampering his efforts, and apparently protecting the wealthy businessman he suspects of involvement.