Told he could never make it as an actor, Peter Falk became a star....who will still shine long after his death today

Told he could never make it as an actor, Peter Falk became a star....who will still shine long after his death today

Peter Falk, Rumpled and Crafty Actor on ‘Columbo,’ Dies at 83Sleuth

Peter Falk as Lt. Frank Columbo.

Peter Falk worked many times in Las Vegas, on 'Columbo', other TV roles and on films, so many Nevada SAG members have worked with him. 

At a time when it would be considered a major disability, Falk survived cancer and built a career ad a character using his lack of sight in one eye.

A family spokesman confirmed to CBS News that actor Peter Falk died at his home in Beverly Hills, Calif., Thursday night. He was 83. (from CBS TV, click here for entire story and links).

Pictures: Peter Falk 1927-2011

The "Columbo" star won four Emmy Awards for his portrayal of the cigar-chomping detective who always looked as if he'd just rolled out of bed. Falk played Columbo on television regularly from 1971 to 1978 and then sporadically from 1989 until 2003. He won his first Emmy in 1962 for outstanding single performance by an actor in a leading role for an episode of "The Dick Powell Theatre" (1961).

Falk also had starring roles in his friend John Cassavetes' films "Husbands" and "A Woman Under the Influence" and starred with Cassavetes in Elaine May's 1976 film "Mikey and Nicky." He was nominated twice for the best supporting actor Oscar, for "Murder, Inc." and "Pocketful of Miracles."

In a court document filed in December 2008, Falk's daughter Catherine Falk said her father was suffering from Alzheimer's disease.

"Columbo" began its history in 1971 as part of the NBC Sunday Mystery Movie series, appearing every third week. The show became by far the most popular of the three mysteries, the others being "McCloud" and "McMillan and Wife."

Falk was reportedly paid $250,000 a movie and could have made much more if he had accepted an offer to convert "Columbo" into a weekly series. He declined, reasoning that carrying a weekly detective series would be too great a burden.

Columbo -- he never had a first name -- presented a contrast to other TV detectives. "He looks like a flood victim," Falk once said. "You feel sorry for him. He appears to be seeing nothing, but he's seeing everything. Underneath his dishevelment, a good mind is at work."

NBC canceled the three series in 1977. In 1989 ABC offered "Columbo" in a two-hour format usually appearing once or twice a season. The movies continued into the 21st century. "Columbo" appeared in 26 foreign countries and was a particular favorite in France and Iran.

Columbo's trademark was an ancient raincoat Falk had once bought for himself. After 25 years on television, the coat became so tattered it had to be replaced.

Peter Michael Falk was born Sept. 16, 1927, in New York City and grew up in Ossining, N.Y., where his parents ran a clothing store. At 3 he had one eye removed because of cancer. "When something like that happens early," he said in a 1963 Associated Press interview, "you learn to live with it. It became the joke of the neighborhood. If the umpire ruled me out on a bad call, I'd take the fake eye out and hand it to him."

When Falk was starting as an actor in New York, an agent told him, "Of course, you won't be able to work in movies or TV because of your eye." 

Read more: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-31749_162-20074112-10391698.html#ixzz1QDriME4w

Read more: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-31749_162-20074112-10391698.html#ixzz1QDqnDNm0

By BRUCE WEBER

Published: June 24, 2011

New York Times

Peter Falk, who marshaled actorly tics, prop room appurtenances and his own physical idiosyncrasies to personify Columbo, one of the most famous and beloved fictional detectives in television history, died on Thursday night at his home in Beverly Hills, Calif. He was 83.

His family announced his death in a statement, The Associated Press reported. He had been treated for Alzheimer’s disease in recent years.

Click here for the complete New York Times obituary...