Daughter claims Columbo star has Alzheimer’s

COLUMBO actor Peter Falk suffers from Alzheimer’s disease and dementia and is no longer competent to run his own life, his daughter said in papers filed with a Los Angeles court.

Catherine Falk said her Oscar-nominated father “requires full-time custodial care for his health and safety” as she started the legal process of asking for a conservatorship — a type of legal guardianship — at the Los Angeles County Superior Court.

She said the 81-year-old Hollywood legend “can easily be deceived into transferring away property” and added that a conservatorship would protect him from “fraud or undue influence”.

According to the documents, Falk “forgets events that have occurred and remembers events that did not occur”.

The daughter added that her father also sustained a head injury six months ago as a result of a car accident where he “lost control” while driving and claimed he can no longer “recognise familiar people, places and things”.

Falk, who is best known for his role as Columbo, received two Oscar nominations during his long career — for the 1961 film Murder, Inc, and the 1962 film Pocketful of Miracles.

A hearing on the issue is expected next month.