six hours after the shooting. Columbo's death was ruled an accident and Brown was exonerated from blame. His funeral Mass was attended by numerous Hollywood actors, including Bing Crosby and Carole Lombard, who was to have had dinner with Columbo the evening of the accident and who was romantically involved with him. Columbo's mother was hospitalized in serious condition from a heart attack at the time of the accident; the news was withheld from her by his brothers and sisters for the remaining ten years of her life. Owing to her previous heart condition, it was feared that the news would prove fatal to her (she died in 1944). They used all manner of subterfuge to give the impression that Columbo was still alive, including faked letters from him and records used to simulate his radio program. Columbo is interred in Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California. Actress Virginia Brissac was serving as Columbo's private secretary at the time of his death and was later called upon by the Los Angeles County Coroner's Office to testify and identify Columbo's remains at the subsequent inquest. In popular culture In 1958, singer Jerry Vale recorded a tribute album titled I Remember Russ. In 1995, 61 years after Columbo's death, singer Tiny Tim released an album in tribute to Columbo, titled Prisoner of Love (A Tribute to Russ Columbo), which he recorded with the group Clang. Columbo is one of the historical figures named in the Neil Diamond composition "Done Too Soon". Columbo is one of the three famous crooners named in the 1932 Looney Tunes cartoon Crosby, Columbo, and Vallee. Further reading Toran, Tony. A Prisoner of Love - The Definitive Story of Russ Columbo. Bear Manor Media, 2006, Lanza, Joseph and Dennis Penna. Russ Columbo and the Crooner Mystique. Feral House, 2002. Miano, Lou, Russ Columbo: The Amazing Life and Mysterious Death of a Hollywood Singing Legend. Silver Tone Publications, 2001. Kaye, Lenny. You Call It Madness : The Sensuous Song of the Croon. Villard, 2004. Time Capsule 1944; a History of the Year Condensed from the Pages of Time. Time-Life Books, 1967. Adam, Beverly. Two Lovers: the love story of Carole Lombard and Russ Columbo. Createspace, 2016, 2022 edition. International ed: https://www.fantasticfiction.com/a/beverly-adam/two-lovers.htm References External links Good introduction to Columbo--some basic facts implemented into this article Some reviews of a Russ Columbo book from Feral House Russ Columbo, from Survey