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{{short description|American model and actress (1967–1989)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2025}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Rebecca Schaeffer
| image = Rebecca Schaeffer 86-88.JPG{{!}}border
| caption = Press photo of Schaeffer {{circa}} 1987
| birth_name = Rebecca Lucile Schaeffer
| birth_date = {{birth date|1967|11|6|mf=yes}}
| birth_place = [[Eugene, Oregon]], U.S.
| death_date = {{death date and age|1989|7|18|1967|11|6|mf=yes}}
| death_place = [[Los Angeles|Los Angeles, California]], U.S.
| death_cause = [[Gunshot wound]] (homicide)
| resting_place = Ahavai Sholom Cemetery,<br />[[Portland, Oregon]], U.S.
| resting_place_coordinates = {{coord| 45.4569|-122.6795}}
| occupation = {{hlist|Actress|model}}
| partner = [[Brad Silberling]] (1987–1989; her death)
| signature = Rebecca ShaefferAutograph.jpg
| years_active = 1984–1989
}}
'''Rebecca Lucile Schaeffer''' (November 6, 1967 – July 18, 1989) was an American actress and model. She 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 comedy ''[[My Sister Sam]]''. The series was canceled in 1988, and she appeared in several films, including the black comedy ''[[Scenes from the Class Struggle in Beverly Hills]].'' At the age of 21, she was shot and killed by [[Robert John Bardo]], a 19-year-old obsessed fan who had been [[stalking]] her. Schaeffer's death helped lead to the passage in California of legislation aimed at preventing stalking.
==Early life==
Schaeffer was born November 6, 1967, in [[Eugene, Oregon]], the only child of Danna (née Wilner), a writer and instructor who taught at [[Willamette University]] and [[Portland Community College]], and Dr. Benson Schaeffer, a child psychologist.<ref>{{cite book|title=Who's who in Frontier Science and Technology, Volume 1|publisher=Marquis Who's Who|year=1984|page=639|isbn=978-0-837-95701-2|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=B687AAAAMAAJ&q=%22SCHAEFFER,+BENSON,+clinical+psychologist%22}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.oregonlive.com/art/2017/09/rebecca_schaeffer_play.html|work=[[The Oregonian]]|date=September 23, 2017|last=Wang|first=Amy|url-status=live|title=In new play, Rebecca Schaeffer's mother works to keep death from defining life|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191212214904/https://www.oregonlive.com/art/2017/09/rebecca_schaeffer_play.html|archive-date=December 12, 2019}}</ref> Schaeffer was raised in [[Portland, Oregon|Portland]], where she attended [[Lincoln High School (Portland, Oregon)|Lincoln High School]]. She was raised [[Judaism|Jewish]] and initially aspired to become a [[rabbi]],<ref>{{cite web|url=https://jewishjournal.com/culture/arts/234391/mother-murdered-actress-pays-tribute-midair/|work=[[Jewish Journal]]|title=Mother of Murdered Actress Pays Tribute with 'You in Midair'|last=Lobell|first=Kylie Ora|date=May 23, 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181208074001/https://jewishjournal.com/culture/arts/234391/mother-murdered-actress-pays-tribute-midair/|archive-date=December 8, 2018}}</ref> but she began modeling during her junior year in high school.<ref name="eugene">{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=-ehVAAAAIBAJ&sjid=oOEDAAAAIBAJ&pg=7004,6110996&dq=rebecca+schaeffer+japan&hl=en|title=Murder suspect seems determined as victim|last=Braun|first=Stephen|author2=Jones, Charrise |date=July 24, 1989|work=Eugene Register-Guard|page=5A|access-date=June 10, 2013}}</ref> She appeared in department store catalogues and television commercials, and as an extra in a television film.<ref name=axthelm>{{cite magazine|url=http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20120867,00.html|title=An Innocent Life, a Heartbreaking Death|last=Axthelm|first=Pete|date=July 31, 1989|magazine=People|access-date=April 20, 2013|archive-date=September 15, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160915014744/http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20120867,00.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> In 1984, when she was 16, she worked a summer in New York City with [[Elite Model Management]] and with her parents' permission stayed in the city to pursue modelling.<ref name=McGovern>{{cite magazine |title=When Devotion Turns Deadly |magazine=[[Who (magazine)|Who]] |date=June 12, 2017 |first=Joe |last=McGovern |url=https://www.pressreader.com/australia/who/20170612/283154313618435 |via=[[PressReader]] }} Also at [https://web.archive.org/web/20210225154001/http://rebeccaschaeffer.ew.com/ True Crime, ''Entertainment Weekly''], archived from [http://rebeccaschaeffer.ew.com/ the original] on February 25, 2021.</ref><ref name=Eagle>{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=Mv8gAAAAIBAJ&sjid=dnMFAAAAIBAJ&pg=6315,880804&dq=rebecca+schaeffer+model&hl=en|title=Rebecca Schaeffer says co-star really like big sister|last=Peterson|first=Bettelou|date=July 5, 1987 |work=The Wichita Eagle |via=The Day|page=B6 }}</ref>
==Career==
While working in New York, Schaeffer attended [[Professional Children's School]]. She also had a short-term role on the daytime soap opera ''[[Guiding Light]]''.<ref name=Eagle/><ref>{{cite news|last=Kim |first=Jae-Ha|title=Patient actress skips soap for bubbly 'Sister Sam' role|work=Chicago Sun-Times|date=December 29, 1986|page=40|url=https://infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/news/document-view?p=AWNB&docref=news/0EB36D3D96FE18FE|access-date=April 19, 2019 |url-access=subscription}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|author=David Austin|title=Actress From Portland Killed in LA|work=Oregonian|date=July 19, 1989|page=A01|url=https://infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/news/document-view?p=AWNB&docref=news/0EB085D5E4CA1E7A|access-date=April 19, 2019 |url-access=subscription}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|first=Randye |last=Hoder|title=Actress Shot to Death by Gunman at Door – Victim Was Featured in 'My Sister Sam'|work=Daily News of Los Angeles|date=July 19, 1989|page=N4|url=https://infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/news/document-view?p=AWNB&docref=news/0EF566A6132ABE44|access-date=April 19, 2019 |url-access=subscription}}</ref>
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 {{height|ft=5|in=7}}, she was considered too short for high-fashion modeling and struggled to find work.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news|url=https://casefilepodcast.com/case-97-rebecca-schaeffer/|title=Case 97: Rebecca Schaeffer – Casefile: True Crime Podcast|date=October 20, 2018|work=Casefile: True Crime Podcast|access-date=November 7, 2018|language=en-US}}</ref> In 1985, she moved to Japan in hopes of finding more modeling jobs, but still encountered difficulty due to her height and weight.<ref name=":0" /> She returned to New York City and decided to focus on an acting career.<ref name="eugene" />
In 1986, Schaeffer won a small role in [[Woody Allen]]'s comedy ''[[Radio Days]]'', but her character was edited out except for one brief scene.<ref name=Eagle/> She continued modeling and also worked as a waitress. She appeared on the cover of ''[[Seventeen (American magazine)|Seventeen]]'' magazine, which caught the attention of television producers who were casting for the comedy ''[[My Sister Sam]]'' starring [[Pam Dawber]].<ref name=":0" /> Schaeffer 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") after the death of their parents.<ref name=axthelm /><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.jewishjournal.com/arts/article/illuminating_moonlight_mile_20020906/|title=Illuminating 'Moonlight Mile'|last=Pfefferman|first=Naomi|date=September 5, 2002|publisher=jewishjournal.com|access-date=November 9, 2008|archive-date=July 30, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090730212227/http://www.jewishjournal.com/arts/article/illuminating_moonlight_mile_20020906|url-status=dead}}</ref> Schaeffer lived with co-star [[Pam Dawber]] during her work on the series.<ref name=Eagle/><ref>{{cite web |first=Anthony |last=Rivas |url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/rebecca-schaeffers-star-sister-sam-devastated-murder/story?id=62284160 |title=Rebecca Schaeffer's co-star on 'My Sister Sam' says she was 'devastated' by her murder |publisher=[[ABC News (United States)|ABC News]] |date=April 12, 2019 |access-date=December 18, 2022 }}</ref> ''My Sister Sam'' was initially a hit, ranking in the top 25, but it was canceled halfway through its second season in April 1988 due to falling ratings.<ref name="eugene" />
After ''My Sister Sam'', Schaeffer had supporting roles in ''[[Scenes from the Class Struggle in Beverly Hills]]'', ''[[Voyage of Terror: The Achille Lauro Affair]]'',<ref name=McGovern/> ''[[The End of Innocence (film)|The End of Innocence]]'', and the television film ''[[Out of Time (1988 film)|Out of Time]]''. She also served as a spokesperson for the children's charity Thursday's Child.<ref name="thursdayschild">{{cite web|url=http://www.thursdayschild.org/html/dedication.htm|title=Thursday's Child|publisher=thursdayschild.org|access-date=May 17, 2017|archive-date=December 1, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171201193902/http://www.thursdayschild.org/html/dedication.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref>
==Murder==
On July 18, 1989, 19-year-old fan [[Robert John Bardo]] shot and killed Schaeffer at her home in [[West Hollywood]]. At the time of her death, she had been stalked by Bardo for three years.<ref name=":0" />{{sfn|Meloy|2001|p=27}} He had previously been obsessed with child peace activist [[Samantha Smith]], who died in a [[Bar Harbor Airlines Flight 1808|plane crash in 1985]].{{sfn|Snow|1998|pp=71–72}} He then wrote numerous letters to Schaeffer, one of which she answered.<ref name=":0" /> In 1987, he traveled to Los Angeles hoping to meet with Schaeffer on the set of ''My Sister Sam'', but [[Warner Bros.]] security turned him away. He returned a month later armed with a knife, but security guards again prevented him from gaining access. He returned to his native [[Tucson, Arizona]], and lost focus on Schaeffer for a while as his obsession shifted towards [[Pop music|pop]] singers [[Tiffany Darwish|Tiffany]], [[Debbie Gibson]], and [[Madonna]].{{sfn|Snow|1998|p=73}}
Bardo watched Schaeffer in the black comedy film, ''[[Scenes from the Class Struggle in Beverly Hills]]'' in 1989, in which she appeared in bed with another actor. He became enraged by the scene, apparently out of jealousy, and decided that Schaeffer should be punished for "becoming another Hollywood whore".{{sfn|Snow|1998|pp=73, 74}} Arthur Richard Jackson had stalked and stabbed actress [[Theresa Saldana]] in 1982, and Bardo learned that Jackson had used a private investigator to obtain Saldana's address.<ref name=McGovern/> Bardo then paid a detective agency in Tucson $250 to find Schaeffer's home address in California's Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) records.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.eonline.com/Features/Specials/Stalkers/stalk1b.html |title=Stalker!|publisher=[[E! Online]]|access-date=July 28, 2007 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060427062744/http://www.eonline.com/Features/Specials/Stalkers/stalk1b.html |archive-date = April 27, 2006}} Cache from the [[Internet Archive]].</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.privacytoday.com/Senate041305/Senate041305.htm |date=April 13, 2005 |title=Testimony of Robert Douglas, CEO of Privacy Today, before the United States Senate Judiciary Committee |publisher=Privacy Today |access-date=July 28, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928091350/http://www.privacytoday.com/Senate041305/Senate041305.htm |archive-date=September 28, 2007 }}</ref> With the help of his brother, he acquired a [[Ruger GP100]] .357 revolver.{{sfn|Moffatt|2000|p=95}}
Bardo traveled to Los Angeles a third time and roamed the neighborhood where Schaeffer lived, asking people if she actually lived there.<ref name=":0" /> Once he was certain that the address was correct, he rang the doorbell.{{sfn|Snow|1998|p=74}} Schaeffer was preparing for an audition for ''[[The Godfather Part III]]'' and was expecting a script to be delivered, so she answered the door.{{sfn|Dwyer|Fiorillo|2006|p=83}}{{sfn|Conner|2002|p=267}} Bardo showed her a letter and autograph that she had previously sent him; after a short conversation,<ref>{{cite book|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=t5FrAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA55 |title= Violence Against Women in Kentucky: A History of U.S. and State Legislative Reform|author= Carol E. Jordan|publisher=University of Kentucky Press |year=2014|page= 55|isbn= 9780813144931}}</ref> she asked him not to come to her home again. He went to a diner nearby and had breakfast,<ref name=":0" /> then returned to her apartment an hour later.{{sfn|Snow|1998|p=74}} She answered the door with "a cold look on her face", Bardo later said.{{sfn|Meloy|2001|p=27}} He pulled out the handgun and shot her in the chest at [[point-blank range]] in the doorway of her apartment building; according to Bardo, she collapsed repeating, "Why? Why?".<ref>{{cite news |url=https://people.com/rebecca-schaeffer-death-everything-to-know-11766223 |title=Rebecca Schaeffer Was Preparing to Audition for Francis Ford Coppola When an Obsessed Fan Killed Her. Inside the Chilling Crime |date=July 18, 2025 |website=people.com}}</ref> Schaeffer was rushed to the emergency room of [[Cedars-Sinai Medical Center]], where she was pronounced dead 30 minutes after her arrival.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Six years ago Rebecca Schaeffer was fatally shot|url=https://ew.com/article/1995/07/14/six-years-ago-rebecca-schaeffer-was-fatally-shot/|access-date=June 4, 2020|website=EW.com|language=EN}}</ref> She was buried at Ahavai Sholom Cemetery in [[Portland, Oregon]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Schaeffer remembered as 'amazing young lady'|url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1989/07/23/Schaeffer-remembered-as-amazing-young-lady/1562617169600/|date=July 23, 1989|access-date=June 4, 2020|website=UPI|language=en}}</ref>
== Aftermath ==
<!---NOTE: Do not list every TV show and special and article and media appearance of Schaeffer's story. Media recaps are not "aftermath" or "legacy"; they're just retellings of the story. --->
Tucson Police Chief Peter Ronstadt arrested Bardo the next day after motorists reported a man running through traffic on [[Interstate 10 in Arizona|Interstate 10]]. He immediately confessed to the murder.<ref name="Franks">{{cite web |url=http://www.franksreelreviews.com/shorttakes/shaeffer/shaeffer.htm |title=The Stalking Death that Changed the Law: Rebecca Schaeffer Never Lived to Realize Her Success |work=Reel Reviews - Official Site |publisher=frankseelreviews.com |access-date=July 28, 2007 |last1=Wilkins |first1=Frank }}</ref> [[Marcia Clark]], later known for her role as lead prosecutor in the [[O. J. Simpson murder case]], prosecuted the case against him. Bardo was convicted of first-degree aggravated murder in a [[bench trial]] and was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of [[parole]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://ew.com/article/1995/07/14/six-years-ago-rebecca-schaeffer-was-fatally-shot/|title=A Fan's Fatal Obsession|last=Johnson|first=Beth|date=July 14, 1995|publisher=[[Entertainment Weekly]]|access-date=November 9, 2008|archive-date=February 1, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140201200507/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,297902,00.html|url-status=live}}</ref> As a result of this incident, federal law regarding the release of personal information through the DMV was changed. The [[Driver's Privacy Protection Act]], which prevents the DMV from releasing private addresses, was enacted in 1994.{{sfn|Dwyer|Fiorillo|2006|p=92}}{{sfn|Klosek|2000|pp=140–141}} Schaeffer's death also helped prompt the 1990 passing of America's first anti-stalking laws, including California Penal Code 646.9.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/actress-murder-led-tougher-anti-718274|title=Actress' Murder Led to Tougher Anti-Stalking Laws|date=July 14, 2014|work=[[The Hollywood Reporter]]|access-date=July 16, 2019|agency=The Associated Press|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/rebecca-schaeffers-star-sister-sam-devastated-murder/story?id=62284160|title=Co-star of young actress killed says she was 'devastated' by her murder|last=Rivas|first=Anthony|date=April 12, 2019|website=ABC News|language=en|access-date=July 16, 2019}}</ref>
At the time of her death, Schaeffer was dating director [[Brad Silberling]]. Her death influenced his film ''[[Moonlight Mile (film)|Moonlight Mile]]'' (2002){{sfn|Dwyer|Fiorillo|2006|p=92}} about a man's grief after his fiancée is murdered. Shortly after Schaeffer's death, [[Pam Dawber]] and her ''My Sister Sam'' co-stars [[Joel Brooks]], [[David Naughton]], and [[Jenny O'Hara]] reunited and filmed a public service announcement for the [[Brady Campaign|Center to Prevent Handgun Violence]] in her honor.<ref>{{cite news|title='Sister Sam' cast honors slain co-star|first=Tom|last=Green|date=August 16, 1989|work=USA Today|page=1D}}</ref>
==Filmography==
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Year
! Title
! Role
! class="unsortable" | Notes
! class="unsortable" | {{Tooltip|Ref.|Reference(s)}}
|-
|1985
|''[[Guiding Light]]''
|Mandy Sue Lewiston
|
|
|-
| 1985
| ''[[One Life to Live]]''
| Annie Barnes
| Unknown episodes
|
|-
| 1986
| ''[[Amazing Stories (1985 TV series)|Amazing Stories]]''
| Miss Crowningshield
| Episode: "[[Amazing Stories (1985 TV series)#Season 2 (1986–87)|Miscalculation]]"
| <ref name="PhillipsGarcia2014">{{cite book |last1=Phillips |first1=Mark |last2=Garcia |first2=Frank |title=Science Fiction Television Series: Episode Guides, Histories, and Casts and Credits for 62 Prime-Time Shows, 1959 through 1989 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qXeNAwAAQBAJ&pg=PT51 |access-date=July 16, 2018 |date=May 12, 2014 |publisher=McFarland |isbn=9781476610306 |page=51 }}</ref>
|-
| 1986–1988
| ''[[My Sister Sam]]''
| Patti Russell
| 44 episodes
|
|-
| 1987
| ''[[Radio Days]]''
| Communist's Daughter
|
|
|-
| 1988
| ''[[Out of Time (1988 film)|Out of Time]]''
| Pam Wallace
| Television movie
| <ref name=McGovern/>
|-
| 1989
| ''[[Scenes from the Class Struggle in Beverly Hills]]''
| Zandra Lipkin
|
|<ref name=McGovern/>
|-
| 1990
| ''[[Voyage of Terror: The Achille Lauro Affair]]''
| Cheryl
| Television movie; released posthumously
| <ref name=McGovern/>
|-
| 1990
| ''[[The End of Innocence (film)|The End of Innocence]]''
| Stephanie (18–25 years old)
| Released posthumously
|
|}
{{Portal|1980s}}
==References==
===Footnotes===
{{reflist|30em}}
===Sources===
* {{cite book|last=Conner|first=Floyd|title=Hollywood's Most Wanted: The Top 10 Book of Lucky Breaks, Prima Donnas, Box Office Bombs, and Other Oddities|publisher=Brassey's|year=2002|isbn=1-57488-480-8|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/hollywoodsmostwa0000conn}}
* {{cite book|last1=Dwyer|first1=Kevin|last2=Fiorillo|first2=June|title=True Stories of Law & Order: The Real Crimes Behind the Best Episodes of the Hit TV Show|publisher=[[Berkley Books]]|year=2006|isbn=0-425-21190-8|url=https://archive.org/details/truestoriesoflaw00dwye_0}}
* {{cite book|last=Klosek|first=Jacqueline|title=Data Privacy in the Information Age|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|year=2000|isbn=0-12-490561-7|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/psychologyofstal0000unse}}
* {{cite book|last=Meloy|first=J. Reid|title=The Psychology of Stalking: Clinical and Forensic Perspectives|publisher=Academic Press|year=2001|isbn=0-12-490561-7|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/psychologyofstal0000unse}}
* {{cite book|last=Moffatt|first=Gregory K.|title=Blind-Sided: Homicide Where it is Least Expected|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|year=2000|isbn=0-275-96929-0|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/blindsidedhomici0000moff}}
* {{cite book|last=Snow|first=Robert L.|title=Stopping a Stalker: A Cop's Guide to Making the System Work for You|publisher=Da Capo Press|year=1998|isbn=0-306-45785-7|url=https://archive.org/details/stoppingstalkerc0000snow}}
==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* [http://rebeccaschaeffer.net/index%20mobile.htm The Rebecca Schaeffer Website - In Memoriam]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20071223054013/http://www.poeforward.com/deadgirls/schaeffer.html PoeForward Historical Dead Girls - Starlets - Rebecca Schaeffer]
* {{IMDb name|769726}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20041121184942/http://www.stalkingalert.com/helpusrhonda.htm Stalking: Legal Aspects of Stalking by Rhonda Saunders, JD]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20060519083659/http://www.stalkingalert.com/stalkingthestars.htm Rhonda Saunders, Deputy District Attorney with the Los Angeles County Stalking and Threat Assessment Team]
* {{Find a Grave|1486}}
* [https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/sitcom-actress-murdered-death-prompts-anti-stalking-legislation Sitcom Actress Murdered - death prompts anti-stalking legislation]
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Schaeffer, Rebecca}}
[[Category:1967 births]]
[[Category:1989 deaths]]
[[Category:1989 murders in the United States]]
[[Category:People murdered in 1989]]
[[Category:20th-century American actresses]]
[[Category:Actresses from Eugene, Oregon]]
[[Category:Jews from Oregon]]
[[Category:American child actresses]]
[[Category:American soap opera actresses]]
[[Category:American child models]]
[[Category:American female models]]
[[Category:American film actresses]]
[[Category:American television actresses]]
[[Category:Jewish American actresses]]
[[Category:Deaths by firearm in California]]
[[Category:Lincoln High School (Portland, Oregon) alumni]]
[[Category:Murdered American Jews]]
[[Category:People murdered in Los Angeles]]
[[Category:American murder victims]]
[[Category:Female murder victims in the United States]]
[[Category:20th-century American Jews]]
[[Category:Murdered actors]]
[[Category:Violence against women in California]]
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