Peter Falk, best known for playing TV's Columbo, died Thursday night at the age of 83. A family spokesman confirmed the actor's death with CBS News.
Falk, who won four Emmy Awards for his Columbo portrayal, last played the rumpled detective in the 2003 TV movie Columbo Likes the Nightlife. He also received Oscar nominations for his roles in Murder, Inc. and Frank Capra's Pocketful of Miracles. In 1961 he became the first actor to be nominated for an Oscar and an Emmy in the same year.
Falk suffered from Alzheimer's disease and in 2009 was placed in conservatorship. He's survived by Shera, his wife of 34 years, and two daughters.
For those keeping an eye on the celebrity-deaths-come-in-three rule, Falk is the third celebrity to pass away recently (the other two being Ryan Dunn and Bruce Springsteen's saxophone player Clarence Clemons).
Posted 06.24.11 by reelz