“Do you realize that 2 billion people can recognize me in the street? »

Archives On the occasion of the release of the film “Wings of Desire”, by Wim Wenders, in which he plays both his own role and that of a fallen angel, the actor Peter Falk (died in 2011) responded to the questions from “New Observer”. His confidences paint the portrait of an endearing man, whose career is far from being limited to his role as Inspector Columbo.

If this guy isn’t an angel, he’s going to need a good alibi. This way of materializing without notice, for example, is fishy. At the appointed time, you wait for him on the porch of his house, 1004 Roxbury Drive in Beverly Hills. Roxbury is a peaceful avenue, lined with small palaces and Cadillacs. His address is not confidential. It appears on all the three-dollar city maps that tourists buy to do the “star tour.” ». Behind your back, it doesn’t stop. Coaches, taxis, air-conditioned minibuses and rental limousines slow down, filled with people craning their heads and taking photos. Your ringing of the doorbell triggers barking but no one comes. It’s nice, the minutes pass, the dogs bark and the vans pass.

You turn your head, he is there, at the wheel of a white Mercedes with a black hood, stopped in front of the garden gate. A moment before, there was nothing, and suddenly, there, this ageless convertible which is not a 403 but almost… It waves at you with its hand. You feel like you left him yesterday. There’s a traffic jam on the avenue. He left the gate open, the gravel crunched. The Mercedes is parked under an awning, next to…