The wife of Tarzan actor Ron Ely was stabbed to death by their son, who was later shot dead by officers, police said today.
Valerie Lundeen Ely, 62, was found dead with "multiple stab wounds" after officers were called to the couple's Santa Barbara home in California on Tuesday.
Authorities said police cornered the couple’s son 30-year-old Cameron Ely outside the home, deemed him a threat and shot him dead.
Officers said Ron Ely, 81, star of the 1960s Tarzan TV series, was at home at the time of the incident but was not hurt.
An audio recording later emerged of Cameron ringing the emergency services claiming his “father tried to attack the mother”.
He sounded “out of breath, unintelligible and crying”, according to the operator who took the call.
Ron Ely, 81, played the title character on the NBC series Tarzan, which ran from 1966 to 1968.
He was host of the Miss America pageant in 1980 and 1981 and later married Valerie Ely, a former Miss Florida.
They had been married for 35 years and have three children together..
A Santa Barbara police spokesman said: "During the search, the suspect was located outside the home.
"He posed a threat and in response four deputies fired their service weapons at the suspect, fatally wounding him.
"No deputies were injured during the confrontation with the suspect."
The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office is conducting criminal, coroner’s and administrative investigations into the incident, it said.
Autopsies of both the victim and the suspect are yet to take place.
