I agree with that.
Of all the "Mystery Movie" characters,
Columbo was my favorite (
Banacek was a close second). That was back when network television was mostly good and entertaining. The producers of the Mystery Movie, Levinson and Link were very good at what they did and that included hiring top talent such as Falk.
From his wikipedia entry:
Falk married Alyce Mayo, whom he met when they were both students at Syracuse University,[30] 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,[31] who guest-starred on the Columbo series on numerous occasions.
Falk was an accomplished artist. For many years he took classes at the Art Students League of New York. Examples of his sketches can be seen on his official website.
Falk was also a chess aficionado. As one example, Falk 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.[32]
At a two day conservatorship trial in Los Angeles in June 2009, one of Falk's personal physicians, Dr. Stephen Read, reported Falk rapidly slipped into dementia after a series of dental operations in 2007.[33] Dr. Read said it was unclear whether Falk's condition 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 and requested the media to respect his privacy.
Falk died at his Beverly Hills home on June 23, 2011. According to his adopted daughter, Catherine Falk, the actor had been suffering from dementia and Alzheimer's disease. [34][35]