"Charlie's Angels" Actress Farrah Fawcett 2009 Westwood Village Cemetery

Farrah Fawcett (February 2, 1947 – June 25, 2009)[2] was an American actress and artist. A multiple Golden Globe and Emmy Award nominee, Fawcett rose to international fame when she first appeared as private investigator Jill Munroe in the first season of the TV series Charlie's Angels, in 1976. Fawcett later appeared off-Broadway to critical approval and in highly rated and critically acclaimed television movies, in roles often challenging (The Burning Bed, Nazi Hunter: The Beate Klarsfeld Story, Poor Little Rich Girl: The Barbara Hutton Story, Margaret Bourke-White) and sometimes unsympathetic (Small Sacrifices). Fawcett was a sex symbol whose iconic poster, released the same year Charlie's Angels premiered, broke sales records, making her an international pop culture icon. Her hair style was emulated by millions of young women for nearly a decade, beginning in the 1970s and through early 1980s.

Early life

Farrah Leni Fawcett[3][4] was born in Corpus Christi, Texas, the younger of two daughters. Her mother, Pauline Alice (née Evans), was a homemaker, and her father, James William Fawcett, was an oil field contractor.[5] She was of French, English and Choctaw Native American ancestry.[6][7][8] Fawcett once said the name "Farrah" was "made up" by her mother because it went well with their last name.[6][9]

A Roman Catholic,[10] Fawcett's early education was at the parish school of the church her family attended, St. Patrick's Roman Catholic Church in Corpus Christi.[6] She graduated from W. B. Ray High School in Corpus Christi in 1965. From three years, 1965–68, Fawcett attended the University of Texas at Austin,[11] living one semester in Jester Center, and became a sister of Delta Delta Delta Sorority.[9] During her sophomore year, she appeared in a photo of the "Ten Most Beautiful Coeds" from the university, which ran in Cashbox magazine. A Hollywood publicist saw the photo, called Fawcett and over the course of a year urged her to move to Los Angeles, which she did the summer following her junior year, with her parents' permission to "try her luck" in Hollywood over the course of the summer.[6] She was successful enough by summer's end to forgo returning to college for her senior year, where she was an art major.

Career

Early career – TV commercials

In the late 1960s and early 1970s, Fawcett appeared in TV commercials for consumer products, including Noxzema shaving cream, Ultra Brite toothpaste,[12] Wella Balsam shampoo, and the 1975 Mercury Cougar.[13] Beginning in 1978, after achieving TV stardom, she developed her own brand of hair care products, marketed by Fabergé, for which she appeared in a series of commercials and print ads.[13]

Early TV series appearances

Fawcett's first TV series appearance was a guest spot on I Dream of Jeannie in the 1968–1969 season, followed by guest appearances in Owen Marshall: Counselor at Law.[6] She later appeared in The Six Million Dollar Man with Lee Majors, which first aired in 1974,[6] The Dating Game, and several episodes of Harry O alongside David Janssen. In 1976, Pro Arts Inc., pitched the idea of a poster of Fawcett to her agent, and a photo shoot was arranged with photographer Bruce McBroom, who was hired by the poster company. From 40 rolls of film, Farrah herself selected her six favorite pictures, eventually narrowing her choice to the one that made her famous. The resulting poster, of Farrah in a one-piece red bathing suit, was a best-seller; sales estimates ranged from over 5 million[14] to 8 million[6] to as high as 12 million copies.[9] Fawcett, generally acknowledged as a shrewd businesswoman, retained ownership of the image and made millions of dollars on sales of the poster alone.

Charlie's Angels

On March 21, 1976, the first appearance of Fawcett playing the character Jill Munroe in Charlie's Angels was aired as a movie of the week. Fawcett and her husband were frequent tennis partners of producer Aaron Spelling, and he and his producing partner thought of casting Fawcett as the "golden girl" Jill because of his friendship with the couple. The movie starred Kate Jackson, Jaclyn Smith and Fawcett (then billed as Farrah Fawcett-Majors) as private investigators for Townsend Associates, a detective agency run by a reclusive multi-millionaire whom the women had never met. Voiced by John Forsythe, the Charles Townsend character presented cases and dispensed advice via a speakerphone to his core team of three female employees, whom he referred to as "Angels." They were aided in the office and occasionally in the field by two male associates, played by character actors David Doyle and David Ogden Stiers. The program earned a huge Nielsen rating, leading the network to air it a second time and approve production for a series, with the pilot's principal cast except David Ogden Stiers.

The series formally debuted on September 22, 1976. Fawcett emerged as a fan favorite in the show, and the actress won a People's Choice Award for Favorite Performer in a New TV Program.[15][16] In a 1977 interview with TV Guide, she said: "When the show was number three, I thought it was our acting. When we got to be number one, I decided it could only be because none of us wears a bra."[17]

Her appearance in the TV show boosted sales of her poster, and she earned far more in royalties from poster sales than from her salary for appearing in Charlie's Angels.[14] Her hairstyle went on to become an international trend, with women sporting a "Farrah Do" or "Farrah Hair." The hairstyle was even spoofed in various media, including Redd Foxx's variety show on ABC and Dynamite magazine. Iterations of her hair style predominated American women's hair styles well into the 1980s.

Fawcett left the show after only one season and Cheryl Ladd replaced her on the show, portraying Jill's younger sister Kris Munroe. Numerous explanations for Fawcett's precipitous withdrawal from the show were offered over the years. The strain on her marriage due to her long absences most days due to filming, as her then-husband Lee Majors was star of an established TV show himself, was frequently cited, but Fawcett's ambitions to broaden her acting abilities with opportunities in films have also been given. Fawcett never officially signed her series contract with Spelling due to protracted negotiations over royalties from her image's use in peripheral products, which led to an even more protracted lawsuit filed by Spelling and his company when she quit the show.

The show was a major success throughout the world, maintaining its appeal in syndication, spawning a cottage industry of peripheral products, particularly in the show's first three seasons, including several series of bubble gum cards, two sets of fashion dolls, numerous posters, puzzles, and school supplies, novelizations of episodes, toy vans, and a board game, all featuring Fawcett's likeness. The "Angels" also appeared on the covers of magazines around the world, from countless fan magazines to TV Guide (four times) to Time Magazine.

The series ultimately ran for five seasons. As part of a settlement to a lawsuit over her early departure, Fawcett returned for six guest appearances over seasons three and four of the series.

In 2004, the TV movie Behind the Camera: The Unauthorized Story of Charlie's Angels dramatized the events from the show with supermodel and actress Tricia Helfer portraying Fawcett and Ben Browder portraying Lee Majors, Fawcett's then-husband.[18]

Dramatic roles

Following a series of commercial and critical feature film flops in the years after departure from "Charlie's Angels", in 1983 Fawcett won critical acclaim for her role in the off-Broadway stage production of the controversial play Extremities, written by William Mastrosimone. Replacing Susan Sarandon, she was a would-be rape victim who turns the tables on her attacker.[15][19] She described the role as "the most grueling, the most intense, the most physically demanding and emotionally exhausting" of her career.[19] During one performance, a stalker in the audience disrupted the show by asking Fawcett if she had received the photos and letters he had mailed her. Police removed the man and were able only to issue a summons for disorderly conduct.[20]

The following year, her role as a battered wife in the fact-based TV movie The Burning Bed earned her the first of her four Emmy Award nominations.[19] The project is noted as being the first TV movie to provide a nationwide 800 number that offered help for others in the situation, in this case victims of domestic abuse.[21] It was the highest-rated TV movie of the season.[19]

In 1986 Fawcett appeared in the movie version of Extremities, which was also well-received by critics, and for which she received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama.[15]

She appeared in Jon Avnet's Between Two Women with Colleen Dewhurst, and took several more dramatic roles as infamous or renowned women. She was nominated for Golden Globe awards for roles as Beate Klarsfeld in Nazi Hunter: The Beate Klarsfeld Story and troubled Woolworth heiress Barbara Hutton in Poor Little Rich Girl: The Barbara Hutton Story, and won a CableACE Award for her 1989 portrayal of groundbreaking Life magazine photojournalist Margaret Bourke-White.[15] Her 1989 portrayal of convicted murderer Diane Downs in the miniseries Small Sacrifices earned her a second Emmy nomination and her sixth Golden Globe Award nomination.[22] The miniseries won a Peabody Award for excellence in television, with Fawcett's performance singled out by the organization, which stated "Ms. Fawcett brings a sense of realism rarely seen in television miniseries (to) a drama of unusual power."[23]

Art meets life

Fawcett, who had steadfastly resisted appearing nude in films or magazines throughout the 1970s and 1980s, caused a major stir by posing semi-nude in the December 1995 issue of Playboy, which became the best-selling issue of the 1990s, with over four million copies sold worldwide.[citation needed] At the age of 50, she returned to Playboy with a pictorial for the July 1997 issue, which also became a top seller. The issue and its accompanying video featured Fawcett painting on canvas using her body, which had been an ambition of hers for years.

That same year, Fawcett was chosen by Robert Duvall to play his wife in an independent feature film he was producing, The Apostle. Fawcett received an Independent Spirit Award nomination as Best Actress for the film, which was highly critically acclaimed.

In 2000, she worked with director Robert Altman and an all-star cast in the feature film Dr. T and the Women, playing opposite Richard Gere. Also that year, Fawcett's collaboration with sculptor Keith Edmier was exhibited at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, later traveling to the Andy Warhol Museum. The sculpture was also presented in a series of photographs and a book by Rizzoli.[21]

In November 2003, Fawcett prepared for her return to Broadway in a production of Bobbi Boland, the tragicomic tale of a former Miss Florida. However, the show never officially opened, closing before preview performances. Fawcett was described as "vibrating with frustration" at the producer's extraordinary decision to cancel the production. Only days earlier the same producer closed an off-Broadway show she had been backing.[24][25]

Fawcett continued to work in television, with well-regarded appearances in made for TV movies and on popular television series including Ally McBeal and four episodes each of Spin City and The Guardian, her work on the latter show earning her a third Emmy nomination in 2004.

Personal life

Fawcett was married to Lee Majors, star of TV's The Six Million Dollar Man, from 1973 to 1982, although the couple separated in 1979. During her marriage, she was known and credited in her roles as Farrah Fawcett-Majors.

From 1982[26] until 1997 Fawcett was involved romantically with actor Ryan O'Neal. The relationship produced a son, Redmond James Fawcett O'Neal, born January 1985 in Los Angeles.[27] In April 2009, on probation for driving under the influence, Redmond was arrested for possession of narcotics[28] while Fawcett was in the hospital.[29] On June 22, 2009, The Los Angeles Times and Reuters reported that Ryan O'Neal had said that Fawcett had agreed to marry him as soon as she felt strong enough.[30]

From 1997 to 1998, Fawcett had a relationship with filmmaker James Orr,[31], writer and producer of the Disney feature film in which she co-starred with Chevy Chase, Man of the House. She was also reportedly in a relationship with film producer Mark Burg from 1999 to 2000.

On June 5, 1997, Fawcett received negative commentary after giving a rambling and interview and appearing distracted on Late Show with David Letterman. Months later, she told the host of The Howard Stern Show her behavior was just her way of joking around with the television host, partly in the guise of promoting her Playboy pictoral and video, explaining what appeared to be random looks across the theater was just her looking and reacting to fans in the audience. Though the Letterman appearance spawned speculation and several jokes at her expense, she returned to the show a week later, with success, and several years later, after Joaquin Phoenix's mumbling act[32] on a February 2009 appearance on The Late Show, Letterman wrapped up the interview by saying, "Joaquin, I'm sorry you couldn't be here tonight" and recalled Fawcett's earlier appearance by noting "[w]e owe an apology to Farrah Fawcett."[33]

Fawcett's elder sister, Diane Fawcett Walls, died from lung cancer just before her 63rd birthday, on October 16, 2001.[34] The fifth episode of her 2005 Chasing Farrah series, which was generally panned by critics, followed the actress home to Texas to visit with her father, James, and mother, Pauline.[35] Pauline Fawcett died soon after, on March 4, 2005, at the age of 91.[34]

Cancer

Fawcett was diagnosed with anal cancer in 2006,[36] and began treatment, including chemotherapy and surgery.[37] Four months later, on her 60th birthday, the Associated Press wire service reported that Fawcett was, at that point, cancer free.[38]

Less than four months later, in May 2007, Fawcett brought a small digital video camera to document a doctor's office visit. There, she was told a malignant polyp was found where she had been treated for the initial cancer. Doctors contemplated whether to implant a radiation seeder (which differs from conventional radiation and is used to treat other types of cancer).[39] Fawcett's U.S. doctors told her that she would require a colostomy.[40] Instead, Fawcett traveled to Germany for treatments described variously in the press as "holistic,"[41] "aggressive,"[42] and "alternative."[43] There, Dr. Ursula Jacob prescribed a treatment including surgery to remove the anal tumor, and a course of perfusion and embolization for her liver cancer by Doctors Claus Kiehling and Thomas Vogl in Germany, and chemotherapy back in Fawcett's home town of Los Angeles. Although initially the tumors were regressing, their reappearance a few months later necessitated a new course, this time including laser ablation therapy and chemoembolization.[10] Aided by friend Alana Stewart, Fawcett documented her battle with the disease.[40]

In early April 2009, Fawcett, back in the United States, was rushed to a hospital, reportedly unconscious and in critical condition.[44][45] Subsequent reports, however, indicated that the severity of her condition was not as dire as first reported.[46] On April 6, the Associated Press reported that her cancer had metastasized to her liver. Fawcett had learned of this development in May 2007 and her subsequent treatments in Germany had targeted this as well. The report denied that she was unconscious, and explained that the reason for Fawcett's hospitalization was not her cancer but a painful abdominal hematoma that had been the result of a minor procedure, according to the Los Angeles cancer specialist treating Fawcett, Dr. Lawrence Piro. Her spokesperson emphasized she was not "at death's door", adding "She remains in good spirits with her usual sense of humor ... She's been in great shape her whole life and has an incredible resolve and an incredible resilience."[46] Three days later, on April 9, Fawcett was released from the hospital, picked up by longtime companion O'Neal, and, according to her doctor, was "walking and in great spirits and looking forward to celebrating Easter at home."[47]

A month later, on May 7, Fawcett was reported as critically ill, with Ryan O'Neal quoted as saying she now spends her days at home, on an IV, often asleep.[48] The Los Angeles Times reported Fawcett was in the last stages of her cancer and had the chance to see her son Redmond in April 2009, although shackled and under supervision, as he was then incarcerated, Fawcett seemed not to notice. Her 91-year-old father, James Fawcett, flew out to Los Angeles to visit.

Her doctor, Lawrence Piro, and Fawcett's friend and Angels co-star Kate Jackson—a breast cancer survivor—appeared together on The Today Show dispelling tabloid-fueled rumors, including suggestions Fawcett had ever been in a coma, had ever reached 86 pounds, and had ever given up her fight against the disease or lost the will to live. Jackson decried such fabrications, saying they "really do hurt a human being and a person like Farrah." Piro recalled when it became necessary for Fawcett to undergo treatments that would cause her to lose her hair, acknowledging "Farrah probably has the most famous hair in the world", but also that it is not a trivial matter for any cancer patient, whose hair "affects [one's] whole sense of who [they] are". Of the documentary, Jackson averred Fawcett "didn't do this to show that 'she' is unique, she did it to show that we are all unique ... (T)his was ... meant to be a gift to others to help and inspire them."[49]

The two-hour documentary Farrah's Story, which was filmed by Fawcett and friend Alana Stewart, aired on NBC on May 15, 2009.[48] The documentary was watched by nearly nine million people at its premiere airing[50], and it was re-aired on the broadcast network's cable stations MSNBC, Bravo and Oxygen. Fawcett earned her fourth Emmy nomination posthumously on July 16, 2009, as producer of Farrah's Story.[51] The winner of the Emmy for Outstanding Nonfiction Special, announced September 12, 2009, was the History Channel production 102 Minutes That Changed America, an eyewitness-video look at the events of September 11, 2001.

Controversy surrounded the aired version of the documentary, with her initial producing partner, who had worked with her on Chasing Farrah, alleging O'Neal's and Stewart's editing of the program was not in keeping with Fawcett's wishes to more thoroughly explore rare types of cancers such as her own and alternative methods of treatment. He was especially critical of scenes showing Fawcett's son visiting her for the last time, in shackles, while she was nearly unconscious in bed. Fawcett had generally kept her son out of the media, and his appearances are minimal in her reality series Chasing Farrah, which was filmed four years earlier.

Death

Fawcett died at approximately 9:28 a.m., PDT[52][53] on June 25, 2009, in the intensive care unit of Saint John's Health Center in Santa Monica, California, with O'Neal and Stewart by her side.[54][55] A private funeral was held in Los Angeles on Tuesday, June 30.[56] Fawcett's son Redmond was permitted to leave his California detention center to attend his mother's funeral, where he gave the first reading.[57]

The night of her death, ABC aired an hour-long special episode of 20/20 featuring clips from several of Barbara Walters' past interviews with Fawcett as well as new interviews with Ryan O'Neal, Jaclyn Smith, Alana Stewart, and Dr. Lawrence Piro.[58] Walters followed up on the story on Friday's episode of 20/20. CNN's Larry King Live planned a show exclusively about Fawcett that evening until the unexpected death of Michael Jackson several hours later caused the program to shift to cover both stories. Cher, a longtime friend of Fawcett's, and Suzanne De Passe, executive producer of Fawcett's Small Sacrifices mini-series, both paid tribute to Fawcett on the program. NBC aired a Dateline NBC special "Farrah Fawcett: The Life and Death of an Angel" the following evening, June 26, preceded by a rebroadcast of Farrah's Story in prime time.[59] That weekend and the following week, television tributes continued. MSNBC aired back-to-back episodes of its Headliners and Legends episodes featuring Fawcett and Jackson. TV Land aired a mini-marathon of Charlie's Angels and Chasing Farrah episodes. E! aired Michael & Farrah: Lost Icons and the Biography Channel aired Bio Remembers: Farrah Fawcett. The documentary Farrah's Story re-aired on the Oxygen Network and MSNBC.[60]

Larry King said of the Fawcett phenomenon,

“TV had much more impact back in the '70s than it does today. Charlie's Angels got huge numbers every week — nothing really dominates the television landscape like that today. Maybe American Idol comes close, but now there are so many channels and so many more shows it's hard for anything to get the audience, or amount of attention, that Charlie's Angels got. Farrah was a major TV star when the medium was clearly dominant."[61]

Playboy founder Hugh Hefner said "Farrah was one of the iconic beauties of our time. Her girl-next-door charm combined with stunning looks made her a star on film, TV and the printed page."[62]

Kate Jackson said,

“She was a selfless person who loved her family and friends with all her heart, and what a big heart it was. Farrah showed immense courage and grace throughout her illness and was an inspiration to those around her... I will remember her kindness, her cutting dry wit and, of course, her beautiful smile...when you think of Farrah, remember her smiling because that is exactly how she wanted to be remembered: smiling.[62] ”

In March 2010, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences caused controversy when Fawcett was excluded from the "In Memoriam" montage at the 82nd Academy Awards ceremony, along with fellow television stars Bea Arthur, Gene Barry and Ed McMahon. In addition to Ryan and Tatum O'Neal, friends and colleagues of Fawcett publicly expressed their outrage at the oversight, including actress Jane Fonda and film critic Roger Ebert.[63] AMPAS executive director Bruce Davis cited Fawcett's recognition at the 61st Primetime Emmy Awards for her "remarkable television work," and said of all the exclusions: "There's nothing you can say to people, particularly to family members, within a day or two of the show that helps at all. They tend to be surprised and hurt, and we understand that and we're sorry for it."[64]

She is buried at the Westwood Village Memorial Park in Los Angeles, California.[65]

 

 

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2.^ "Farrah Fawcett succumbs to cancer at 62". Associated Press via msnbc.com. 2009-06-25.
3.^ Some sources cite "Ferrah" as her original given name, but at least one source, the Accuracy Project, states that "Ferrah" was simply a misspelling on Fawcett's birth certificate.
4.^ Corliss, Richard (2009-06-26). "Farrah Fawcett: The Golden Girl Who Didn't Fade". Time Magazine. http://www.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,1907180,00.html. Retrieved 2009-07-18.
5.^ Farrah Fawcett biography at filmreference.com
6.^ Block, Maxine; Rothe, Anna Herthe; Candee, Marjorie Dent; Moritz, Charles (1978). Current Biography Yearbook. H.W. Wilson. p. 125.
7.^ Laufenberg, Norbert B. (2005). Entertainment Celebrities. Trafford Publishing. p. 219. ISBN 1412053358.
8.^ Linklater, Richard (2001). Dazed and Confused: Teenage Nostalgia. Instant and Cool 70's Memorabilia. St. Martin's Press. p. 72. ISBN 0312094663.
9.^ Hollandsworth, Skip (February 1997). "Vanity Farrah". Texas Monthly.
10.^ Dagostino, Mark; Clark, Champ (2009-05-18). Farrah's Final Fight. 71. People. p. 69.
11.^ "Paydirt: Divorces of the Rich and Famous"
12.^ Williamson, Andy (25 May 2009). "Farrah Fawcett". Examiner.com.
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14.^ Hoffman, Kevin (2005-08-03). "Touched by an Angel." Cleveland Scene.
15.^ Brennan, Patricia (1999-10-17). "The Saga of Farrah Fawcett – Ex-'Angel' Returns to TV as a Bad Girl Seeking Sanctuary". The Washington Post. p. Y7.
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28.^ Sosa, Ninette (2009-04-06). "Son of Ryan O'Neal, Farrah Fawcett Arrested on Drug Charges". CNN.
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"Family Affair" Actor Brian Keith Commits SUICIDE 1997 Westwood Village Cemetery

“In other words...you can't be a misogynist and expect women to appreciate you.”

Brian Keith (November 14, 1921 – June 24, 1997) was an American film, television, and stage actor, who in his four decade-long career gained recognition for his work in movies such as the 1961 Disney film, The Parent Trap, the 1966 movie, The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming, and the 1975 movie, The Wind and the Lion. On television, two of his best known roles were that of a widowed uncle turned bachelor, Bill Davis, in the 1960s sitcom, Family Affair, and the title character of a tough judge, in the 1980s drama, Hardcastle and McCormick. He also starred in his own sitcom which featured actresses Shelley Fabares and Victoria Young, his real-life ex-wife.

The movies led Keith to his biggest break in 1966, the role of Uncle Bill Davis on CBS's popular television situation comedy Family Affair. This role that earned him three Emmy Award nominations for Best Actor in A Comedy Series. The show made him a household name. It was also the answer to such successful 1960s and 1970s sitcoms that dealt with widowhood and/or many single parent issues such as: The Andy Griffith Show, My Three Sons, The Beverly Hillbillies, Petticoat Junction, Here's Lucy, Julia, The Courtship of Eddie's Father, The Brady Bunch, The Partridge Family and Sanford And Son. When CBS requested that he pose for Christmas publicity shots connected with Family Affair, Keith refused on the basis that this was exploitative of the holiday. During its first season in 1966, the show was an immediate hit, ranking #15 in the Nielsen Ratings, and became an overnight sensation.

Also starring on the show was an already established British character actor, Sebastian Cabot, as Mr. Giles French. The show also brought in several unfamiliar actresses and/or actors (who became Brian Keith lifelong fans): Kathy Garver as older niece Catherine "Cissy" Patterson-Davis, the late Anissa Jones as Ava Elizabeth "Buffy" Paterson-Davis and Johnny Whitaker as Jonathan "Jody" Patterson-Davis. Most of the relative newcomers got along well with the veteran star, esp. Garver, to whom Keith became a "second uncle," both on and off the set.

Keith was offered the role of Deke Thornton in The Wild Bunch also by Sam Peckinpah, but he turned it down because of Family Affair. This led to a dispute between the two friends.

By the end of its 5th season in 1971, Family Affair was still the most popular show, but CBS decided to end the show, after 138 episodes. The reason for the cancellation was because of the infamous rural purge -- which cancelled all Southern shows to make room for adult-oriented sitcoms such as the already #1 sitcom, All in the Family.

Kathy Garver said of the show where it was meant to be an over 40 program where Brian played a bachelor when instead he played the role of bachelor uncle, "But originally, it was supposed to be a grown-up show, and Brian Keith was supposed to be this bachelor with his manny or his valet, at that time, Mr. French, and the shows were supposed to revolve around him on different dates, and the kids were supposed to be on the background." Garver and Keith stayed in touch until Keith's death.

Brian Keith's friendship with Johnny Whitaker's family began in the mid-1960s, when Whitaker was guest-starring in one of Keith's mentor's movies, which eventually led him to a co-starring role on Family Affair. He said, "I had done The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming (1966) with Brian Keith; and he and I got along real well. We never had any scenes together in The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming. But his hotel room was right down the hall from mine, and he would always come right after work, and say, 'Can Johnny Whitaker come out to play?' And so, we did, and at the time he had 1 daughter, 1 on the way and had just adopted another child, I believe, cause he love kids and was feeling homesick and saw me in the play, you know?" Whitaker said of the show Family Affair was supposed to have another child actor that Keith's character had wanted to come to fruition, "So, the original role of Jody was set for a 10-year-old boy. Cissy was supposed to be a 16-year-old girl, and Buffy was a 6-year-old girl. So, Jody was the middle child, and when Brian had suggested that they take a look at this little kid, that he just was on a series with, you know, but, he was sick, and he said 'Oh you're a handful of teams.'" The last thing Johnny said was about Brian being exhausted from all the hard work, coming through an apartment on the set, "Take a look a him, just for a next-door neighbor or something, but he's got a lot of talent and he was cute, and all this, so I went on the set, I was one of the only 6-year-old boys, but they had Anissa and Pamela [voice of Lucy], as I remember and lots of other shows, and a couple of other girls, and they just had me talk and read some lines with them, and then, when Anissa and I got together, the producers said, 'You know what? This is it! Magic for television twins." Years after the show's cancellation, both Keith and Whitaker each had successful careers, but had not kept in touch. The death of Keith's daughter Daisy in 1997 drew both Keith and Whitaker close while Keith was battling cancer. According to a 1997 interview on Entertainment Tonight with Brian Keith, he said Whitaker looked his name up in the phone book and called his home, which questioned Whitaker, which almost led to a misunderstanding with each other, but had enjoyed a wonderful reunion together [over the phone], for the last time, before Keith took his own life.

In 2007, a decade after Keith's passing, Whitaker and co-star Kathy Garver were both invited to the TV Land Awards to pay respects to Keith. Posthumously, Keith was given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, where Garver was one of the presenters.

Keith once again returned to series television in 1983 with, Hardcastle and McCormick, the latter in the role of a cranky retired judge named Milton C. Hardcastle. Familiar actor Daniel Hugh Kelly co-starred as ex-con Mark McCormick in the ABC crime drama with elements of comedy. The chemistry of Keith & Kelly were both a hit in the 1980s. Keith continued playing the role until its cancellation in 1986.

Keith went on to star as the pediatrician Dr. Sean Jamison in the NBC sitcom The Brian Keith Show, filmed in California but set in Hawaii and also known as The Little People. Co-star Shelley Fabares played his daughter, Dr. Anne Jamison. Michael Gray played Ronnie Collins, a student doctor in the first season. Nancy Kulp and Roger Bowen appeared in the second season. Keith's third and last wife, the former Victoria Young, appeared in the role of Nurse Puni.

Keith had lead roles in Archer, and his final TV role, Heartland.

Keith also starred in the role of Steven "The Fox" Halliday in the six-part television miniseries, The Zoo Gang, about a group of former underground freedom fighters from World War II. The show also starred Sir John Mills, Lilli Palmer, and Barry Morse.

Keith spoke fluent Russian, which led to his casting as a Russian in two roles: the Soviet Premier in World War III with Rock Hudson; and as a Soviet scientist in Meteor with Natalie Wood. In The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming, where he played the unexcitable police chief of an island where a Soviet submarine runs aground, however, his character had to have Russian translated to him by Alan Arkin's character. In his last film, Keith played President William McKinley in Rough Riders (1997). Director John Milius dedicated Rough Riders to "Brian Keith, Actor, Marine, Raconteur."

On June 26, 2008, the Hollywood Walk of Fame installed a star in Brian Keith's honor on the world famous sidewalk in California.

Keith married three times, first to Frances Helm; then, in 1955, to Judith Landon; and finally, in 1970, to Hawaiian actress Victoria Young (née Leialoha), who later appeared on The Brian Keith Show (1972–1974) as Nurse Puni. Keith fathered four children but also adopted three others with Judith Landon. Daisy Keith, one of his children with Victoria Young, became an actress and appeared with her father in the short-lived series Heartland in 1989. Keith attended the funeral of longtime friend Michael Landon in 1991.

Malibu Colony Entrance

During the later part of his life, Keith suffered from emphysema and lung cancer despite having quit smoking ten years earlier (he appeared in an endorsement campaign for Camel cigarettes in 1955). He was found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound in Malibu, California on June 24, 1997, two months after his daughter Daisy committed suicide. It was also reported that he had financial problems and suffered from depression throughout his final days. Keith's family were joined by many mourners at a private funeral, including Family Affair co-stars Johnny Whitaker and Kathy Garver, and Hardcastle & McCormick co-star Daniel Hugh Kelly.

His remains are buried next to those of his daughter Daisy at Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles, California.

Following is Brian Keith's formal obituary as it appeared in 1997:

On Tuesday, Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies found Keith's body inside his home at 10:13 a.m., after being alerted to the scene by family members.

"Brian Keith was a generous actor, a kind man and a true friend," said Daniel Hugh Kelly, who costarred with Keith for three seasons on the popular action series Hardcastle & McCormick in the mid-1980s.

Born in November 1921 in Bayonne, New Jersey, Keith's career spanned more than 40 years. In film, he costarred with the likes of Marlon Brando and Liz Taylor (Reflections in a Golden Eye ) and Burt Reynolds ( Sharky's Machine). He was also dad to Hayley Mills (or, at least, one of her twin selves) in the 1961 classic, The Parent Trap.

On TV, from 1966-71, he was Bill Davis, the rock of the orphaned Family Affair clan--which included child actor stand-outs Johnnie Whitaker and Anissa Jones. (Jones died of a drug overdose in 1976 at the age of 18.) Whitaker, now 37, said Tuesday that he spoke with his onetime TV dad on the telephone about five days before his death. "He was not feeling good because he had been going through the chemotherapy for his cancer," Whitaker said."And he'd been having other problems."

Keith's TV work also included the 1972-74 sitcom, The Brian Keith Show , and Hardcastle and McCormick , where Keith played cranky, crabby Judge Milton "Hardcase" Hardcastle. Keith is survived by his wife since 1970, Victoria Young, who played Nurse Puni on The Brian Keith Show.

"Columbo" Actor Peter Falk 2011 Westwood Village Cemetery

Peter Michael Falk (September 16, 1927 – June 23, 2011) was an American actor, best known for his role as Lt. Columbo in the television series Columbo. He appeared in numerous films such as The Princess Bride, The Great Race and Next, and television guest roles. He was nominated for an Academy Award twice (for 1960's Murder, Inc. and 1961's Pocketful of Miracles), and won the Emmy Award on five occasions (four for Columbo) and the Golden Globe award once. Director William Friedkin, when discussing Falk's role in his 1978 film The Brink's Job, said that "Peter has a great range from comedy to drama. He could break your heart or he could make you laugh."[2]

In 1968, he starred with Gene Barry in a ninety-minute television pilot about a highly-skilled, laid-back detective. Columbo eventually became part of an anthology series titled The NBC Mystery Movie, along with McCloud and McMillan & Wife. The detective series stayed on NBC from 1971 to 1978, took a respite, and returned occasionally on ABC from 1989 to 2003. Falk was "everyone's favorite rumpled television detective", wrote historian David Fantle.[3]

In 1996 TV Guide ranked him number 21 on its 50 Greatest TV Stars of All Time list.[4]

Early life

Born in New York City, Falk was the son of Michael Peter Falk, owner of a clothing and dry goods store, and his wife, Madeline (née Hochhauser),[5] an accountant and buyer.[6] Both of his parents were Jewish.[7] His father was of Polish and Russian ancestry,[8] and his mother was of Hungarian and Czech descent.[9][10]

Falk's right eye was surgically removed when he was three because of a retinoblastoma; he wore a glass eye for most of his life.[11] Despite this, Falk participated in team sports, mainly baseball and basketball, as a boy. In a 1997 interview in Cigar Aficionado magazine with Arthur Marx, Falk said, "I remember once in high school the umpire called me out at third base when I was sure I was safe. I got so mad I took out my glass eye, handed it to him and said, 'Try this.' I got such a laugh you wouldn't believe."[12]

Falk's first stage appearance was at the age of 12 in The Pirates of Penzance at Camp High Point[13] in upstate New York, where one of his camp counselors was Ross Martin (they would later act together in The Great Race and the Columbo episode "Suitable For Framing"). Falk attended Ossining High School in Westchester County, New York, where he was a star athlete and president of his senior class. After graduating from high school in 1945, Falk briefly attended Hamilton College in Clinton, New York, and then tried to join the armed services as World War II was drawing to a close. Rejected because of his glass eye, he joined the United States Merchant Marine, and served as a cook and mess boy. "There they don't care if you're blind or not", Falk said in 1997. "The only one on a ship who has to see is the captain. And in the case of the Titanic, he couldn't see very well, either."[12] Falk recalls this period in his autobiography:

"A year on the water was enough for me, so I returned to college. I didn't stay long. Too itchy. What to do next? I signed up to go to Israel to fight in the war with Egypt. ... I just wanted more excitement ... However, the war, to everyone's amazement, was over in the blink of an eye."[14]

After a year and a half in the Merchant Marine, Falk returned to Hamilton College and also attended the University of Wisconsin. He transferred to the New School for Social Research in New York City, which awarded him a bachelor's degree in literature and political science in 1951. He then traveled in Europe and worked on a railroad in Yugoslavia for six months.[15] He returned to New York, enrolling at Syracuse University,[12] but he recalled in his 2006 memoir, Just One More Thing, that he was unsure what he wanted to do with his life for years after leaving high school.[16]

Falk obtained a Master of Public Administration degree at the Maxwell School of Syracuse University in 1953. The program was designed to train civil servants for the federal government, a career that Falk said in his memoir that he had "no interest in and no aptitude for."[17] He applied for a job with the CIA, but was rejected because of his membership in the Marine Cooks and Stewards Union while serving in the Merchant Marine, even though he was required to join and was not active in the union.[18] He then became a management analyst with the Connecticut State Budget Bureau in Hartford.[19] Falk characterized his Hartford job as "efficiency expert". "I was such an efficiency expert that the first morning on the job, I couldn't find the building where I was to report for work", he said in 1997. "Naturally, I was late, which I always was in those days, but ironically it was my tendency never to be on time that got me started as a professional actor."[12]

Career

Stage career

While working in Hartford, Falk joined a community theater group called the Mark Twain Masquers, where he performed in plays that included The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial, The Crucible, and The Country Girl by Clifford Odets. Falk also studied with Eva Le Gallienne, who was giving an acting class at the White Barn Theatre in Westport, Connecticut. Falk later recalled that he had "lied his way" into the class, which was for professional actors. He drove down to Westport from Hartford every Wednesday, when the classes were held, and was usually late.[12]

In his 1997 interview with Arthur Marx in Cigar Aficionado magazine, Falk said "One evening when I arrived late, she looked at me and asked, 'Young man, why are you always late?' and I said, 'I have to drive down from Hartford.'" She looked down her nose and said, "What do you do in Hartford? There's no theater there. How do you make a living acting?" Falk confessed he wasn't a professional actor. According to Falk, she looked at him sternly and said, "Well, you should be." He drove back to Hartford and quit his job.[12]

Falk stayed with the Le Gallienne group for a few months more, and obtained a letter of recommendation from Le Galliene to an agent at the William Morris Agency in New York.[12] In 1956, he left his job with the Budget Bureau and moved to Greenwich Village to pursue an acting career.

His first New York stage role was in an Off-Broadway production of Molière's Dom Juan at the Fourth Street Theatre that closed after its only performance on January 3, 1956. Falk played the second lead, Sganarelle.[20] His next theater role proved far better for his career. In May, he appeared at Circle in the Square in a revival of The Iceman Cometh with Jason Robards playing the bartender.[19][21]

Falk made his Broadway debut also in 1956, appearing in Alexander Ostrovsky's Diary of a Scoundrel. As the year came to an end, he appeared again on Broadway as an English soldier in Shaw's Saint Joan, with Siobhán McKenna.[22] In 1972, he appeared in Broadway's The Prisoner of Second Avenue. According to film historian Ephraim Katz, "His characters derive added authenticity from his squinty gaze, the result of the loss of an eye ..."[23]

Early films

Despite his stage success, a theatrical agent advised Falk not to expect much film acting work because of his glass eye.[19] He failed a screen test at Columbia Pictures and was told by studio boss Harry Cohn that "for the same price I can get an actor with two eyes." He also failed to get a role in the film Marjorie Morningstar, despite a promising interview for the second lead.[24] His first film performances were in small roles in Wind Across the Everglades (1958), The Bloody Brood (1959) and Pretty Boy Floyd (1960).[25]

Falk's performance in Murder, Inc. (1960) was a turning point in his career. He was cast in the supporting role of killer Abe Reles, in a film based on the real-life murder gang of that name, that had terrorized New York in the 1930s. The New York Times film critic Bosley Crowther, while dismissing the movie as "an average gangster film," singled out Falk's "amusingly vicious performance."[26]

Crowther wrote:[26]

"Mr. Falk, moving as if weary, looking at people out of the corners of his eyes and talking as if he had borrowed Marlon Brando's chewing gum, seems a travesty of a killer, until the water suddenly freezes in his eyes and he whips an icepick from his pocket and starts punching holes in someone's ribs. Then viciousness pours out of him and you get a sense of a felon who is hopelessly cracked and corrupt."

The film turned out to be Falk's breakout role. In his autobiography, Just One More Thing (2006), Falk said that his selection for the film from thousands of other Off-Broadway actors was a "miracle" that "made my career" and that without it, he would not have gotten the other significant movie roles that he later played.[27] Falk, who played Reles again in the 1960 TV series The Witness,[25] was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Academy Award for his performance in the film.

In 1961, multiple Academy Award-winning director Frank Capra cast Falk in the comedy Pocketful of Miracles. The film was Capra's last feature, and although it was not the commercial success he hoped it would be, he "gushed about Falk's performance."[3] Falk was nominated for an Oscar for his role. In his autobiography Capra writes about Falk:

"The entire production was agony ... except for Peter Falk. He was my joy, my anchor to reality. Introducing that remarkable talent to the techniques of comedy made me forget pains, tired blood, and maniacal hankerings to murder Glenn Ford (the film's star). Thank you Peter Falk."[28]:480

For his part, Falk says that he "never worked with a director who showed greater enjoyment of actors and the acting craft." Falk says, "There is nothing more important to an actor than to know that the one person who represents the audience to you, the director, is responding well to what you are trying to do." Falk recalled one time that Capra reshot a scene even though he yelled "Cut and Print," indicating the scene was finalized. When Falk asked him why he wanted it reshot, "he laughed and said that he loved the scene so much he just wanted to see us do it again. How's that for support!"[3]

For the remainder of the 1960s, Falk had mainly small movie roles and TV guest-starring appearances. Falk turned in a gem of a performance as one of two cabbies who falls victim to greed in the epic 1963 star-studded comedy It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, even though he appears only in the last fifth of the movie. Other roles included a comical crook in the 1964 Rat Pack film, Robin and the 7 Hoods, and the 1965 spoof The Great Race, with Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis.

Early television roles

Falk first appeared on television in 1957, in the dramatic anthology programs that later became known as the "Golden Age of Television." In 1957, he appeared in one episode of Robert Montgomery Presents. He was also cast in Studio One, Kraft Television Theater, New York Confidential, Naked City, Have Gun–Will Travel, The Islanders, and Decoy, with Beverly Garland cast as the first female police officer in a series lead.[25] On The Twilight Zone he portrayed a Castro-type revolutionary complete with beard who, intoxicated with power, kept seeing his assassins in a newly-acquired mirror.

In 1961, Falk was nominated for an Emmy Award[29] for his performance in the episode "Cold Turkey" of James Whitmore's short-lived series The Law and Mr. Jones on ABC. On September 29, 1961, Falk and Walter Matthau guest-starred in the premiere episode, "The Million Dollar Dump," of ABC's crime drama Target: The Corruptors, with Stephen McNally and Robert Harland. He won an Emmy for The Price of Tomatoes, a drama carried in 1962 on The Dick Powell Show.[25]

In 1963, Falk and Tommy Sands appear as brothers who disagree on the route for a railroad in "The Gus Morgan Story" on ABC's Wagon Train. Falk plays the title role of "Gus", and Sands is the younger brother, Ethan Morgan. Ethan accidentally shoots wagonmaster Chris Hale, played by John McIntire, while the brothers are in the mountains looking at possible route options. Gus makes the decision to leave Hale behind, even choking him and believing that Hale is dead. Ethan has been overcome with oxygen deprivation and needs Gus' assistance to reach safety down the mountain. Unknowing to the Morgans, Hale crawls down the mountain through snow determined to obtain revenge against Gus. In time, though, Hale comes to understand the Hobson's choice made by Morgan, and the brothers reconcile their own differences. This episode is remembered for its examination of how far a man will persist amid adversity to preserve his own life and that of his brother.[30]

Falk's first television series was in the title role of the drama The Trials of O'Brien, in which he played a lawyer. The show ran in 1965 and 1966 and was cancelled after 22 episodes.[25]

In 1971, Pierre Cossette produced the first Grammy Awards show on television with some help from Falk. Cossette writes in his autobiography, "What meant the most to me, though, is the fact that Peter Falk saved my ass. I love show business, and I love Peter Falk."[31]

Columbo

Although Falk appeared in numerous other television roles in the 1960s and 1970s, he is best known as the star of the TV series Columbo, "everyone's favorite rumpled television detective", writes historian David Fantle. His character was a shabby and ostensibly absent-minded police detective lieutenant, who had first appeared in the 1968 film Prescription: Murder. Falk described his role to Fantle:

Columbo has a genuine mistiness about him. It seems to hang in the air ... [and] he's capable of being distracted ... Columbo is an ass-backwards Sherlock Holmes. Holmes had a long neck, Columbo has no neck; Holmes smoked a pipe, Columbo chews up six cigars a day."[3]

Television critic Ben Falk adds that Falk "created an iconic cop ... who always got his man (or woman) after a tortuous cat-and-mouse investigation." He notes also that the idea for the character was "apparently inspired by Dostoyevsky's dogged police inspector, Porfiry Petrovich, in the novel Crime and Punishment.[32]

Falk tries to analyze the character and notes the correlation between his own personality and Columbo's:

I'm a Virgo Jew, and that means I have an obsessive thoroughness. It's not enough to get most of the details, it's necessary to get them all. I've been accused of perfectionism. When Lew Wasserman (head of Universal Studios) said that Falk is a perfectionist, I don't know whether it was out of affection or because he felt I was a monumental pain in the ass."[3]

With "general amazement," Falk notes that "the show is all over the world". He added, "I've been to little villages in Africa with maybe one TV set, and little kids will run up to me shouting, 'Columbo, Columbo!'"[3] Singer Johnny Cash recalled acting in one episode, and although he was not an experienced actor, he writes in his autobiography, "Peter Falk was good to me. I wasn't at all confident about handling a dramatic role, and every day he helped me in all kinds of little ways."[33]

The debut episode in 1971 was directed by 25-year-old Steven Spielberg in one of his earliest directing roles. Falk recalled the episode to Spielberg biographer Joseph McBride:

"Let's face it, we had some good fortune at the beginning. Our debut episode, in 1971, was directed by this young kid named Steven Spielberg. I told the producers, Link and Levinson: 'This guy is too good for Columbo' ... Steven was shooting me with a long lens from across the street. That wasn't common twenty years ago. The comfort level it gave me as an actor, besides its great look artistically — well, it told you that this wasn't any ordinary director."[34]

The character of Columbo had previously been played by Bert Freed in a single television episode and by Thomas Mitchell on Broadway. Falk first played Columbo in Prescription: Murder, a 1968 TV-movie, and from 1971 to 1978 Columbo aired regularly on NBC as part of the umbrella series NBC Mystery Movie. All episodes were of TV-movie length, in a 90 or 120 minutes slot including commercials. The show returned on ABC in the form of a less frequent series of TV-movies, still starring Falk, from 1989 until 2003.[25] Falk won four Emmys for his role in Columbo.[35]

Columbo was so popular that co-creator William Link wrote a series of short stories published as The Columbo Collection (Crippen and Landru, 2010) which includes a drawing by Falk of himself as Columbo, and the cover features a caricature of Falk/Columbo by Al Hirschfeld.

Later career

Falk was a close friend of independent film director John Cassavetes and appeared in Cassavetes' films Husbands, A Woman Under the Influence, and, in a cameo, at the end of Opening Night. He also co-starred with Cassavetes in Mikey and Nicky. Cassavetes, in turn, guest-starred in the Columbo episode "Étude in Black" in 1972. Falk describes his experiences working with Cassavetes, and specifically remembers his directing strategies such as "shooting an actor when he might be unaware the camera was running."

You never knew when the camera might be going. And it was never: 'Stop. Cut. Start again.' John would walk in the middle of a scene and talk, and though you didn't realize it, the camera kept going. So I never knew what the hell he was doing. [Laughs] But he ultimately made me, and I think every actor, less self-conscious, less aware of the camera than anybody I've ever worked with."[36]

In 1978, he appeared on the comedy TV show The Dean Martin Celebrity Roast, with Frank Sinatra the evening's victim.

Falk continued to work in films, including his performance as a questionable ex-CIA agent of dubious sanity in the comedy The In-Laws. Director Arthur Hiller said during an interview that the "film started out because Alan Arkin and Peter Falk wanted to work together. They went to Warner's and said, 'We'd like to do a picture,' and Warner's said fine ... and out came The In-laws ... of all the films I've done, The In-laws is the one I get the most comments on."[2]:290 Movie critic Roger Ebert compared the film with a later remake:

Peter Falk and Alan Arkin in the earlier film, versus Michael Douglas and Albert Brooks this time ... yet the chemistry is better in the earlier film. Falk goes into his deadpan lecturer mode, slowly and patiently explaining things that sound like utter nonsense. Arkin develops good reasons for suspecting he is in the hands of a madman."[37]

He also appeared in The Great Muppet Caper, The Princess Bride, Murder By Death, The Cheap Detective, Vibes, Made, and (as himself) in Wim Wenders' 1987 film Wings of Desire and its 1993 sequel, Faraway, So Close!. In 1998, Falk returned to the New York stage to star in an Off-Broadway production of Arthur Miller's Mr. Peters' Connections. His previous stage work included shady real estate salesman Shelley "the Machine" Levine in a Boston/Los Angeles production of David Mamet's prizewinning Glengarry Glen Ross.

Falk also starred in a trilogy of holiday television movies – A Town Without Christmas (2001), Finding John Christmas (2003), and When Angels Come to Town (2004) – in which he portrayed Max, a quirky guardian angel who uses disguises and subterfuge to steer his charges onto the right path.. In 2005, he starred in The Thing About My Folks. Although movie critic Roger Ebert was not impressed with most of the other actors, he writes in his review, " ... we discover once again what a warm and engaging actor Peter Falk is. I can't recommend the movie, but I can be grateful that I saw it, for Falk."[38] In 2007, Falk appeared with Nicolas Cage in the thriller Next.

Personal life

Falk married Alyce Mayo, whom he had met when they were both students at Syracuse University,[39] on April 17, 1960. They adopted two daughters, Catherine (who is a private investigator) and Jackie. They divorced in 1976. On December 7, 1977, Falk married actress Shera Danese,[40] who guest-starred on the Columbo series on numerous occasions.

Falk was an accomplished artist, and in October 2006 he had an exhibition of his artwork at the Butler Institute of American Art.[41] He took classes at the Art Students League of New York for many years.[42][43] Examples of his sketches can be seen on his official website.

Falk was also a chess aficionado and was a spectator at the American Open in Santa Monica, California, in November 1972, and at the U.S. Open in Pasadena, California, in August 1983.[44]

His memoir, Just One More Thing (ISBN 978-0786717958) was published by Carroll and Graf on August 23, 2006.

Of death, he once said, "It is just the gateway."[45]

Death

Rumors of Falk's dementia plagued the actor in the final years of his life and exacerbated when, in late April 2008, Falk was photographed by paparazzi looking disheveled and acting animated in the streets of Beverly Hills. Although the actor said his behavior resulted from his frustration over being unable to remember where he had parked his car, the images of his erratic appearance and behavior were published by the media, and Falk was seldom seen in public after the incident.[46]

At a two-day conservatorship trial in Los Angeles in June 2009, one of Falk's personal physicians, Dr. Stephen Read, reported that Falk had rapidly slipped into dementia after a series of dental operations in 2007.[47] Dr. Read said it was unclear whether Falk's condition had worsened as a result of anesthesia or some other reaction to the operations. He went on to add that Falk's condition was so bad he could no longer remember the character of Columbo. Shera Danese Falk was appointed as her husband's conservator.[48]

The 83-year-old Falk died at his longtime Roxbury Drive Beverly Hills home on the evening of June 23, 2011.[49][50] The cause of death was later revealed as cardiorespiratory arrest, with pneumonia and Alzheimer's disease as underlying causes.[51] Falk was survived by his wife and two daughters.[52] His daughters said they would remember his "wisdom and humor".[53] Falk is buried at Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles, California.[54]

Falk's death was greeted with tributes from many film celebrities.[55][56] Steven Spielberg said, "I learned more about acting from him at that early stage of my career than I had from anyone else."[57] Stephen Fry tweeted that Columbo was "TV’s greatest ever detective."[58] Rob Reiner said, "He was a completely unique actor," and went on to say that Falk's work with Alan Arkin in The In-Laws was "one of the most brilliant comedy pairings we've seen on screen."[59]

References

1.^ [1]
2.^ Emery, Robert J. (2002). The Directors: Take Two. Allworth Press. p. 263.
3.^ Fantle, David, and Johnson, Tom. Twenty-five Years of Celebrity Interviews, Badger Books (2004) pp. 216-217
4.^ TV Guide Guide to TV. Barnes and Noble. 2004. p. 596. ISBN 0-7607-5634-1.
5.^ "Jerry Tallmer: Just 79 more things". Nycplus.com. September 16, 1927. 
6.^ "Peter Falk Biography (1927–) at". Filmreference.com. Retrieved October 18, 2010.
7.^ Peter Falk, TV’s Rumpled ‘Columbo’ for More Than Three Decades, Dies at 83 Bloomberg
8.^ "Michael Falk 1910 census record". Familysearch.org. 
9.^ "United States Census, 1920 for Madeline Hochhauser". Familysearch.org. 
10.^ "Peter Falk "
11.^ "Peter Falk". Bio. (UK). Retrieved January 30, 2009.
12.^ Marx, Arthur (November/December1997). "Talk with Falk". Cigar Aficionado. 
13.^ "Camp High Point Famous Alumni". Camphighpoint.com. 
14.^ Falk, Peter (2006). Just One More Thing. Carrolland Graf Publishers. p. 20.
15.^ Falk, Peter (2006). Just One More Thing: Stories From My Life. New York: Carroll and Graf Publishers. p. 26. ISBN 0-7867-1795-5. 
16.^ Just One More Thing, p. 17
17.^ Just One More Thing, p. 29
18.^ Just One More Thing, p. 32
19.^ "Peter Falk Biography". Peter Falk official website. 
20.^ Just One More Thing, p. 42
21.^ "Peter Falk". Lortel Archives, Lucille Lortel Foundation, Internet Off Broadway Database. Retrieved January 31, 2009.
22.^ Peter Falk at the Internet Broadway Database
23.^ Katz, Ephraim. The Film Encyclopedia, HarperCollins (1998) p. 436
24.^ Just One More Thing, pp. 51–55, Free preview at Amazon.com
25.^ aPeter Falk at the Internet Movie Database
26.^ Crowther, Bosley (June 29, 1960). "Screen: 'Murder, Inc.':Story of Brooklyn Mob Retold at the Victoria". The New York Times. Retrieved January 31, 2009.
27.^ Just One More Thing. p. 76. 
28.^ Capra, Frank. The Name Above the Title: an Autobiography, Macmillan (1971)
29.^ Peter Falk Emmy Award Nomination
30.^ "The Gus Morgan Story". avclub.com. 
31.^ Cossette, Pierre. Another Day in Showbiz, ECW Press (2002) p. 182
32.^ Falk, Ben. Television's Strangest Moments, Chrysalis Books (2005) p. 103
33.^ Cash, Johnny. Cash: the Autobiograhy, HarperCollins (1997) p. 197
34.^ McBride, Joseph. Steven Spielberg: A Biography, Simon and Schuster (1997) p. 191
35.^ "Actor Peter Falk dies at 83". Xinhua. June 25, 2011. 
36.^ Carney, Raymond. The Films of John Cassavetes, Cambridge Univ. Press (1994) p. 296
37.^ Ebert, Roger. Roger Ebert's Movie Yearbook 2006, Andrews McMeel Publ. (2006) p. 325
38.^ Ebert, Roger. Roger Ebert's Movie Yearbook 2009, Andrews McMeel Publ. (2009) p. 676
39.^ Just One More Thing, p. 30 40.^ Kim, Victoria (May 28, 2009). "Relatives Fight For Control of 'Columbo' Star Peter Falk". Los Angeles Times. 
41.^ Pinchot, Joe. "Joe Pinchot, The Herald, October 2006, ''It’s all about the pose: actor Peter Falk keeps his drawings simple''". Sharonherald.com. 
42.^ Steven Litt, The Plain Dealer (October 10, 2006). "Steven Litt, the Plain Dealer, ''My Interview with Peter Falk,'' October 10, 2006 reprinted June 24, 2011". Cleveland.com. 
43.^ "Former Prominent Students, The Art Students League of New York". Theartstudentsleague.org. 
44.^ "Peter Falk, American Open, Santa Monica, November 1972, and United States Open, Pasadena, California, August 1983".
45.^ etidbids. "Peter Falk Died: TV’s ‘Columbo’ On Death – "It’s Just The Gateway"". 
46.^ Guardian 21 December 2008 "Daughter in fight over Columbo star's Alzheimer's"
47.^ Anthony McCartney (June 1, 2009). "'Columbo' Actor Peter Falk Placed In Conservatorship". The Huffington Post. Associated Press. Retrieved October 18, 2010.
48.^ "'Columbo' Star Peter Falk Dead at 83" The Baltimore Sun.
49.^ Bruce Weber (June 24, 2011). "Peter Falk, Rumpled and Crafty Actor In Television's 'Columbo,' Dies at 83". The New York Times.
50.^ "Peter Falk" The Daily Telegraph.
51.^ "Peter Falk's Official Cause Of Death Revealed". PerezHilton.com. November 7, 2011. 
52.^ "Columbo star Peter Falk dies aged 83". BBC. June 24, 2011. 
53.^ ""Columbo" actor Peter Falk dead at 83". Reuters. June 24, 2011. 
54.^ Falk, Peter. "Peter Falk's Final Resting Place". Peter Falk. Find-A-Grave. 
55.^ "Tweets of the Week: Peter Falk Edition". Wall Street Journal. June 24, 2011. 
56.^ "Celebrities mourn Peter Falk on Twitter". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved June 27, 2011.
57.^ "Peter Falk's friends and co-stars pay tribute to the late actor". Entertainment Weekly.
58.^ "Tweets of the Week: Peter Falk Edition". Wall Street Journal. June 24, 2011. 
59.^ "Remembering TV's rumpled Columbo". The Daily News Egypt.