Peter Falk, the star character actor who became a worldwide name as television detective Columbo, has died of the effects of Alzheimers, it has been announced today. The short, wry-faced performer improved many a film as well, as he began in TV but also made movies, starting out in low budget affairs such as Pretty Boy Floyd and Murder Inc.
By the sixties he was making waves, turning up in memorable support in hit features such as Pocket Full of Miracles, It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World and The Great Race, beginning to alternate popular fare with artier efforts like Castle Keep and a fruitful collaboration with John Cassavetes: they made Husbands, A Woman Under the Influence and acted together in Mikey and Nicky. At this time Falk was appearing in comedy (Murder By Death, The In-Laws) and drama with equal skill, and while Columbo continued (it ended in 2003) he regularly delighted audiences until his retirement in films like All The Marbles, Wings of Desire, where he played a retired angel, and The Princess Bride.
