Shera Danese
| Shera Danese | |
|---|---|
| Born |
October 9, 1949 Hartsdale, New York, U.S. |
| Years active | 1970s–present |
| Spouse(s) | Peter Falk (1977–2011; his death) |
Shera Danese (born October 9, 1949) is an American actress and the widow of actor Peter Falk.
Biography
Life and career
Danese was born in Hartsdale, New York. Her acting career began in 1976 with a part in one episode of One Day at a Time. Her other television credits include roles on Serpico, Baretta, Three's Company, Kojak, Family, Hart to Hart, Starsky and Hutch and Charlie's Angels. In one of her few roles on the big screen, she played a prostitute named Vicky in Risky Business, the 1983 film starring Tom Cruise and Rebecca De Mornay.
Danese had a major role in three of the six Columbo episodes in which she appeared. These include the 1976 Columbo movie Fade in to Murder, 1978's Murder Under Glass, 1989's Murder, a Self Portrait, 1991's Columbo and the Murder of a Rock Star, 1994's Columbo: Undercover and, lastly in 1997, Columbo: A Trace of Murder. [1]She was never the killer, but she helped plan the murder in the episode A Trace of Murder - 25th Anniversary Movie. She has the distinction of having acted in more episodes of Columbo than any other actress (but not actor).
Personal Life
Shera met star Peter Falk on the TV series Columbo and became his second wife on December 7, 1977. They were married for nearly 34 years. Peter, previously diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease, died on the evening of June 23, 2011, peacefully, at his home in Beverly Hills, California. He had been suffering from pneumonia. He was age 83.
Shera had a strained relationship with Catherine, Falk's stepdaughter that he adopted while married to first wife, Alyce Mayo. Radar Online once reported that "the actor had been estranged from Catherine for some time, and suspected that she would challenge the will -- so a clause is present to ensure she loses all of her inheritance, if she in any way contests his instructions.
"Peter's daughter Catherine had a very strained relationship with her stepmother, Shera, for years, and tried to get conservatorship of Peter several years ago," the source adds. But it was proven that Shera was giving her husband "excellent care" so that Shera continued to be the main caregiver of Peter and had control of his multimillion dollar estate. Peter left his estate including his collection of artwork to Shera, his estate reported to be worth about five million. He also left millions to both Catherine and Jackie, his adopted daughters.[2]
Quotes About the Marriage of Shera and Peter Falk: "Unlike the uxorious Lieutenant Columbo, Falk's relationship with his second wife, the actress Sheralyn Danese, remained unpredictable. So frequent were their numerous break ups and reconciliations that they were known in Hollywood as the 'Fighting Falks'. 'She makes me laugh,' Falk said of his 23-year-old wife, 'but if I had to say what we had in common I guess it would be that we both like the colour blue."[3]