The deputies arrived and found that the home belonged to 1960's actor, Ron Ely. His wife Vanessa lay dead, from multiple stab wounds: but Ely himself (at 81 years old) was invalided and suffering from Aphasia. The broken old man managed to communicate that his only son, Cameron Ely, had killed his wife and fled the scene. The police tracked down Cameron Ely after a 90-minute manhunt. Ely rather stupidly decided to shoot it out with the Sheriff's men---with predictable results. Four deputies opened fire at once and left Cameron Ely's mortal remains for the Haz-Mat Team to clean up; while his immortal aspect hurled itself into Tartarus.
It must be especially difficult for Ron Ely now. Ely is a product of the era when Hollywood actually had some social relevance and celebrities were people who were actually worth looking up to. Ron Ely was raised around Amarillo, Texas and brought those values of the Western Hero to Hollywood with him. He mostly played heroic parts: a co-star in the 1960's TV series, The Aquanauts; and the lead role in the mid-60's series, Tarzan. The latter was his most famous series, even spawning several comic books.
Ely did his own stunts for the series and was occasionally sidelined due to injuries, including two broken shoulders and being bitten by a lion. In 1975, he starred in the film The Man of Bronze where he played pulp-action hero Doc Savage. In the early 1980s, he substituted as host of the Miss America Pageant and walked away with a prize of his own: his future wife, Miss Florida Vanessa Lundeen. The couple had three children and stayed married for 35 years until Vanessa's murder last week.
Ely more or less retired from acting after his marriage; by his own admission, to become close to his family. His daughter Kiki even posted several blog articles dedicated to things she learned from her dad. "My dad is wise." she says in the taglines, "And every girl deserves some solid daddy advice." In the 1990s, Ely published two crime novels and intended to be a series. True to his character, he dropped the project after the Media Cartels tried to cheat him out his royalties. His last major public appearance before his recent illness was at the 2012 Comic-Con in San Diego, which marked the centennial of the Tarzan Series.
His son Cameron was sent to one of the best private schools in the country and went to graduate from and play football for Harvard University. After Cameron Ely's graduation, he falls completely off the radar-screen: to the point where even the meticulous Heavy.com had difficulty finding their standard 'Five Facts' about him. At the age of 30, he was still living at home; and apparently hadn't had a place of his own since leaving Harvard. He never held a steady job and only briefly worked as a security guard and an Uber driver: not exactly positions corresponding to his qualifications. It's also rather telling that no news story that I've seen so far mentions friends, girlfriends, or any other associates who knew Cameron Ely. The man was a nobody and died like one.
In a way, it seems like the contrast between father and son is a metaphor for what Hollywood once was and what it's become. One was substance that become a symbol; and the other all symbol and no substance.
At any rate, keep Ron Ely in your thoughts. He's a tough guy; but it's got to be hard to see your woman slain and be unable to fight for her because of disability---and worse that your only son committed the crime and died in this disgraceful fashion. Ron Ely's made a lot of comebacks in his life---let's hope he can overcome this challenge.
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