James Farentino, a veteran TV actor whose career fell apart towards the end of his personal life, is dead at age 73.
Farentino managed to to play in nearly 100 TV roles, including recurring appearances in TV series such as “Dynasty”, “Police Story” and the original “Melrose Place”. He also played George Clooney’s character’s estranged father on “ER”. Married four times, Farentino was infamously known for the fallout from a turbulent relationship with Frank Sinatra’s youngest daughter, Tina.
“The Final Countdown” actor’s five-year, on-and-off relationship with Tina Sinatra, ended in 1994 with him pleading no contest to stalking her after being charged with 24 misdemeanor counts of stalking, making harassing phone calls, and violating a restraining order.
“My behavior was appalling — feeling so hurt and rejected that I was the victim when I really wasn’t,” Farentino told The Times in a 2003 interview. “So you inflict your pain on someone else to make them identify with you.”
Farentino’s career suffered after he was sentenced to 36 months probation plus psychological and alcohol counseling. He said some in the industry treated him differently after the incident.
James Farentino died Tuesday at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center after a long undisclosed illness, according to a statement by the family’s spokesman. He is survived by his fourth wife, Stella, whom he married in 1994, and his two sons David and Saverio. Actress Michelle Lee is David’s mother.
