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30 Years Ago Today; My Sister Sam star Rebecca Schaeffer murdered by stalker
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rebecca_Schaeffer
Press photo of Schaeffer for My Sister Sam
Rebecca Lucile Schaeffer (November 6, 1967 – July 18, 1989) was an American model and actress. Schaeffer began her career as a teen model before moving on to acting. In 1986, she landed the role of Patricia "Patti" Russell in the CBS sitcom My Sister Sam. After the series was canceled in 1988, Schaeffer appeared in several films, including the black comedy Scenes from the Class Struggle in Beverly Hills, which was released six weeks before she was murdered by a fan who had been stalking her.
Early life and career
Schaeffer was born to a Jewish family in Eugene, Oregon, the only child of Danna (née Wilner), a writer and instructor at Portland Community College, and Dr. Benson Schaeffer, a child psychologist. She was raised in the Jewish religion in Portland, where she attended Lincoln High School. She initially had aspirations to become a rabbi but began modeling during her junior year in high school. Schaeffer appeared in department store catalogs and also appeared in television commercials and as an extra in a television film. In August 1984, Schaeffer's parents allowed her to move to New York City by herself to pursue a modeling career. While working in New York, she attended Professional Children's School. She also had a short-term role on the daytime soap opera Guiding Light.
In late 1984, Schaeffer landed the role of Annie Barnes on ABC's One Life to Live, for a stint that lasted six months. During this time, she attempted to further her modeling prospects. At 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m), she was considered too short for high fashion modeling and struggled to find work. In 1985, Schaeffer moved to Japan in hopes of finding more modeling jobs, but still encountered difficulty due to her height and weight. She returned to New York City and decided to focus on an acting career.
In 1986, Schaeffer won a small role in Woody Allen's comedy Radio Days, but her performance was ultimately edited from the film; only a brief scene featuring her character remains in the film. She continued modeling and also worked as a waitress. After landing the cover of Seventeen magazine, she caught the attention of television producers who were casting for a new sitcom, My Sister Sam, starring Pam Dawber. Schaeffer tested for and won the role of Patricia "Patti" Russell, a teenager who moves from Oregon to San Francisco to live with her 29-year-old sister Samantha "Sam" Russell after the death of their parents. The series was initially a hit, ranking in the top 25, but was canceled halfway through its second season in April 1988 due to falling ratings. After My Sister Sam, Schaeffer had supporting roles in Scenes from the Class Struggle in Beverly Hills, The End of Innocence and the television film Out of Time. She also served as a spokesperson for the children's charity Thursday's Child.
Death
On Tuesday, July 18, 1989, Schaeffer was fatally shot at her West Hollywood residence by Robert John Bardo, a fan who had been stalking her for three years. Bardo had become obsessed with Schaeffer after the previous subject of his preoccupation, child peace activist Samantha Smith, died in a plane crash in 1985. Bardo wrote numerous letters to Schaeffer, one of which was answered by Schaeffer. In 1987, Bardo traveled to Los Angeles hoping to meet with Schaeffer on the set of My Sister Sam, but was turned away by Warner Bros. security. Angry, he returned a month later armed with a knife but security guards again prevented him from gaining unauthorized access to the actress. Bardo returned to his native Tucson and lost focus on Schaeffer for a while, as his obsession shifted toward pop singers Debbie Gibson, Madonna and Tiffany.
In 1989, after watching Schaeffer in the black comedy Scenes from the Class Struggle in Beverly Hills, in which she appeared in bed with a male actor, Bardo, out of apparent jealousy, became enraged by the scene and decided that Schaeffer should be punished for becoming "another Hollywood whore". After learning that Arthur Richard Jackson, a man who stalked and stabbed actress Theresa Saldana (also in West Hollywood) in 1982, had used a private investigator to obtain Saldana's address, Bardo approached a detective agency in Tucson and paid them $250 to find Schaeffer's home address in California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) records. Bardo's brother helped him get a Ruger GP100 .357-caliber handgun because he was underage (Bardo was 19 years old at the time).
Bardo traveled to Los Angeles a third time and, after locating Schaeffer's apartment, roamed the neighborhood asking passersby if Schaeffer actually lived there. Certain that the address was correct, he approached the porch and rang the doorbell. Schaeffer, who was preparing for an audition for a role in The Godfather Part III and expecting a script to be delivered, answered the door. Bardo showed Schaeffer a letter and autograph she had previously sent him and, after a short conversation, Schaeffer asked Bardo not to come back to her home again. He then went to a diner nearby and had breakfast. An hour later, Bardo returned to Schaeffer's apartment for a second time. Schaeffer answered the door again with "a cold look on her face," Bardo later said. Bardo pulled out a gun from a brown paper bag and shot her in the chest at point-blank range in the doorway of her apartment building. Schaeffer screamed and collapsed in her doorway bleeding as Bardo fled. A neighbor phoned paramedics, who arrived to transport her to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Schaeffer was pronounced dead 30 minutes after her arrival. She was 21 years old.[citation needed]
Aftermath
The day after the murder, Bardo was arrested by Tucson Police Chief Peter Ronstadt (brother of Linda Ronstadt) after motorists reported a man running through traffic on Interstate 10. He immediately confessed to the murder. Bardo was tried by prosecutor Marcia Clark, who later became known for her role in the O. J. Simpson murder case. Convicted of capital murder in a bench trial, Bardo was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Following Saldana's assault and Schaeffer's murder, Californian laws regarding the release of personal information through the DMV were drastically changed. The Driver's Privacy Protection Act was enacted in 1994, which prevents the DMV from releasing private addresses. Schaeffer's death also helped prompt the 1990 passage of America's first anti-stalking laws, in California.
At the time of her death, Schaeffer was dating director Brad Silberling. Her death influenced Silberling's film Moonlight Mile (2002), a story about the grief of a man whose fiancée was murdered that bore little resemblance to the actual relationship between Schaeffer and Silberling. Shortly after Schaeffer's death, Pam Dawber and her My Sister Sam co-stars Joel Brooks, David Naughton and Jenny O'Hara reunited to film a public service announcement for the Center to Prevent Handgun Violence in Schaeffer's honor. The website of the charity Thursday's Child, for which Schaeffer worked as a spokesperson, bears a dedication to her.
Schaeffer's life and death became the topic of the first E! True Hollywood Story episode, which originally aired on March 29, 1996. Her death and a brief overview were also highlighted in the E! television special 20 Most Horrifying Hollywood Murders, and in a 2017 episode of the Investigation Discovery (ID) channel series, The 1980s: The Deadliest Decade. Schaeffer's case was also covered in an episode of Casefile True Crime Podcast, as well as a 2019 episode of the ABC news program 20/20.
</snip>
Press photo of Schaeffer for My Sister Sam
Rebecca Lucile Schaeffer (November 6, 1967 – July 18, 1989) was an American model and actress. Schaeffer began her career as a teen model before moving on to acting. In 1986, she landed the role of Patricia "Patti" Russell in the CBS sitcom My Sister Sam. After the series was canceled in 1988, Schaeffer appeared in several films, including the black comedy Scenes from the Class Struggle in Beverly Hills, which was released six weeks before she was murdered by a fan who had been stalking her.
Early life and career
Schaeffer was born to a Jewish family in Eugene, Oregon, the only child of Danna (née Wilner), a writer and instructor at Portland Community College, and Dr. Benson Schaeffer, a child psychologist. She was raised in the Jewish religion in Portland, where she attended Lincoln High School. She initially had aspirations to become a rabbi but began modeling during her junior year in high school. Schaeffer appeared in department store catalogs and also appeared in television commercials and as an extra in a television film. In August 1984, Schaeffer's parents allowed her to move to New York City by herself to pursue a modeling career. While working in New York, she attended Professional Children's School. She also had a short-term role on the daytime soap opera Guiding Light.
In late 1984, Schaeffer landed the role of Annie Barnes on ABC's One Life to Live, for a stint that lasted six months. During this time, she attempted to further her modeling prospects. At 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m), she was considered too short for high fashion modeling and struggled to find work. In 1985, Schaeffer moved to Japan in hopes of finding more modeling jobs, but still encountered difficulty due to her height and weight. She returned to New York City and decided to focus on an acting career.
In 1986, Schaeffer won a small role in Woody Allen's comedy Radio Days, but her performance was ultimately edited from the film; only a brief scene featuring her character remains in the film. She continued modeling and also worked as a waitress. After landing the cover of Seventeen magazine, she caught the attention of television producers who were casting for a new sitcom, My Sister Sam, starring Pam Dawber. Schaeffer tested for and won the role of Patricia "Patti" Russell, a teenager who moves from Oregon to San Francisco to live with her 29-year-old sister Samantha "Sam" Russell after the death of their parents. The series was initially a hit, ranking in the top 25, but was canceled halfway through its second season in April 1988 due to falling ratings. After My Sister Sam, Schaeffer had supporting roles in Scenes from the Class Struggle in Beverly Hills, The End of Innocence and the television film Out of Time. She also served as a spokesperson for the children's charity Thursday's Child.
Death
On Tuesday, July 18, 1989, Schaeffer was fatally shot at her West Hollywood residence by Robert John Bardo, a fan who had been stalking her for three years. Bardo had become obsessed with Schaeffer after the previous subject of his preoccupation, child peace activist Samantha Smith, died in a plane crash in 1985. Bardo wrote numerous letters to Schaeffer, one of which was answered by Schaeffer. In 1987, Bardo traveled to Los Angeles hoping to meet with Schaeffer on the set of My Sister Sam, but was turned away by Warner Bros. security. Angry, he returned a month later armed with a knife but security guards again prevented him from gaining unauthorized access to the actress. Bardo returned to his native Tucson and lost focus on Schaeffer for a while, as his obsession shifted toward pop singers Debbie Gibson, Madonna and Tiffany.
In 1989, after watching Schaeffer in the black comedy Scenes from the Class Struggle in Beverly Hills, in which she appeared in bed with a male actor, Bardo, out of apparent jealousy, became enraged by the scene and decided that Schaeffer should be punished for becoming "another Hollywood whore". After learning that Arthur Richard Jackson, a man who stalked and stabbed actress Theresa Saldana (also in West Hollywood) in 1982, had used a private investigator to obtain Saldana's address, Bardo approached a detective agency in Tucson and paid them $250 to find Schaeffer's home address in California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) records. Bardo's brother helped him get a Ruger GP100 .357-caliber handgun because he was underage (Bardo was 19 years old at the time).
Bardo traveled to Los Angeles a third time and, after locating Schaeffer's apartment, roamed the neighborhood asking passersby if Schaeffer actually lived there. Certain that the address was correct, he approached the porch and rang the doorbell. Schaeffer, who was preparing for an audition for a role in The Godfather Part III and expecting a script to be delivered, answered the door. Bardo showed Schaeffer a letter and autograph she had previously sent him and, after a short conversation, Schaeffer asked Bardo not to come back to her home again. He then went to a diner nearby and had breakfast. An hour later, Bardo returned to Schaeffer's apartment for a second time. Schaeffer answered the door again with "a cold look on her face," Bardo later said. Bardo pulled out a gun from a brown paper bag and shot her in the chest at point-blank range in the doorway of her apartment building. Schaeffer screamed and collapsed in her doorway bleeding as Bardo fled. A neighbor phoned paramedics, who arrived to transport her to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Schaeffer was pronounced dead 30 minutes after her arrival. She was 21 years old.[citation needed]
Aftermath
The day after the murder, Bardo was arrested by Tucson Police Chief Peter Ronstadt (brother of Linda Ronstadt) after motorists reported a man running through traffic on Interstate 10. He immediately confessed to the murder. Bardo was tried by prosecutor Marcia Clark, who later became known for her role in the O. J. Simpson murder case. Convicted of capital murder in a bench trial, Bardo was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Following Saldana's assault and Schaeffer's murder, Californian laws regarding the release of personal information through the DMV were drastically changed. The Driver's Privacy Protection Act was enacted in 1994, which prevents the DMV from releasing private addresses. Schaeffer's death also helped prompt the 1990 passage of America's first anti-stalking laws, in California.
At the time of her death, Schaeffer was dating director Brad Silberling. Her death influenced Silberling's film Moonlight Mile (2002), a story about the grief of a man whose fiancée was murdered that bore little resemblance to the actual relationship between Schaeffer and Silberling. Shortly after Schaeffer's death, Pam Dawber and her My Sister Sam co-stars Joel Brooks, David Naughton and Jenny O'Hara reunited to film a public service announcement for the Center to Prevent Handgun Violence in Schaeffer's honor. The website of the charity Thursday's Child, for which Schaeffer worked as a spokesperson, bears a dedication to her.
Schaeffer's life and death became the topic of the first E! True Hollywood Story episode, which originally aired on March 29, 1996. Her death and a brief overview were also highlighted in the E! television special 20 Most Horrifying Hollywood Murders, and in a 2017 episode of the Investigation Discovery (ID) channel series, The 1980s: The Deadliest Decade. Schaeffer's case was also covered in an episode of Casefile True Crime Podcast, as well as a 2019 episode of the ABC news program 20/20.
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8 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
= new reply since forum marked as read
so tragic, she was her parents' only child
I still remember a scene where Sam is trying to learn the piano....Patty says, here, let me show you, then proceeds to play like an expert.....Sam gets so frustrated she pushes Patty off the piano bench 
