If I asked you to name an influential horror author with the last name Rice, the answer would undoubtedly be Ann Rice. If you were to ask me, my answer would be Jeff Rice. Nothing against Ann, but in my life, Jeff Rice is far more influential.
The Night Stalker was a tv 
movie that aired in 1972. It was the story of a vampire on the loose in Las Vegas. The hero of the movie was a tenacious newspaper reporter named Carl Kolchak. While reporting on a series of related murders, Kolchak soon realizes that the killer isn’t just an ordinary maniac, but is in fact a real vampire. Once he realizes the truth, he’s determined to report it, but faces a wall of opposition from his boss, from the police department, and from the Las Vegas corporate and political machine. The general consensus being that a vampire in Vegas was bad for business.
The Night Stalker was a phenomenon, becoming the most watched show in television history. I was one of the original viewers, and I’ll never forget the experience. I was the ultimate horror fanboy and had spent my youth devouring anything horror related, particularly films. But I’d never seen anything like The Night Stalker and the memory of that first viewing is forever burned into my brain. I consider it one of the greatest vampire films of all time, and it holds up even after all these years. The idea of putting a vampire in modern day Las Vegas remains brilliant and 
Kolchak is one of the most original and enduring characters of all time. Though The Night Stalker has been a major influence on modern pop culture, much like its creator, it’s never gotten the due it deserves.
One of the reasons why Carl Kolchak is such a compelling character is that he’s the ultimate tragic hero, played to perfection by Darren McGavin. I vividly remember loving the movie, but feeling a great sense of sadness about the ending. No spoilers, but Kolchak won the battle but lost the war. He was left completely broken by what he had experienced. Jeff Rice’s life very much mirrored the life of his famous creation.
Here’s a condensed version.
Jeff Rice was an award 
winning journalist working in Las Vegas. In 1970, he wrote a novel called The Kolchak Papers which he finished at midnight on October 31st. He submitted the unpublished novel to the agent of famed writer Richard Matheson. The agent loved the idea so much that he sold the television rights to ABC… without Rice’s permission. Rice sued and ABC settled. Matheson was chosen to write the screenplay and Rice was given a “based on an unpublished story by” credit. It must have been a bitter pill to swallow, particularly when Matheson ultimately won a couple of major writing awards for the screenplay. In interviews, Matheson was gracious and honest enough to admit that he changed very little from the novel. He said, “It was quite a complete novel. The story was all there.”
Rice would be screwed yet again. The original movie spawned a successful sequel called The Night Strangler. Knowing it had a hot property, ABC decided to move forward with a television series, but it did so without securing Rice’s permission. Rice threatened legal action and there was a settlement, with Rice obtaining the literary rights to his character, but not the dramatic rights. Even worse, Rice would ultimately find himself effectively blackballed from Hollywood for his actions. He had dreamed of a writing career in Hollywood and managed to get his foot in the door with his groundbreaking story. That dream was now over.
The Night Stalker is a modern day horror classic. It’s the obvious inspiration for productions like The X Files, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Supernatural, and many others. In addition, the fictional character of Carl Kolchak proved to be an iconic role model. He fearlessly challenged authority in the dogged pursuit of the truth. Many journalists cite Kolchak as their inspiration for entering the profession because he represents what a journalist is supposed to be. Rice created one of the greatest stories of all time. He also created a hero for the ages.
And yet Jeff Rice’s enormous contributions have been largely forgotten, and this is a tragedy. When he died in 2015, there was little mention of his passing, save for a single obituary in Las Vegas and an article written by a friend. I feel a strong kinship with Rice. I’ve been aware of him right from the beginning when the original film was broadcast in January of 1972. When I saw the credits listed at the end of the film, I was curious. I 
already knew who Richard Matheson was. But the actual story itself was “based on an unpublished story by Jeff Rice”. Even as a child, I always wondered, who was Jeff Rice?
I’ve been connected to Las Vegas for most of my life. I’ve lived in Vegas for over twenty years now and consider it my home. My uncle was an important figure on the Vegas entertainment scene way back in the day. He often spoke (cynically) about the true inner workings of Las Vegas beneath all the tits and glitz. That’s probably one reason why The Night Stalker appealed to me. The story was 
about a vampire, yet the story rang completely true. The story served as a metaphor for the real Sin City. There’s far more to Las Vegas than what meets the eye, and the truth is often quite dark indeed.
The Night Stalker can be seen in its entirety on Youtube. If you’ve never seen it, check it out. It’s almost fifty years old, but it still feels fresh and modern. That fact is just another testament to the forgotten genius of Jeff Rice. It’s a scary movie too, with an ending leaving viewers feeling as if they’ve been staked in the heart.
I’ve recently heard rumors that fans of Jeff Rice have started a campaign for a Jeff Rice Scholarship at the University of Las Vegas which he attended. I hope they succeed and I’ll do my part to help. Jeff Rice created a hero for the ages, a hero driven to search for the ultimate holy grail… truth. For that achievement, Rice should never be forgotten.