Lighthouse Fork, the actress who catapulted to fame as a helicopter pilot in the NBC sitcom “Wings”, died at her home in Texas on Friday. She was 54.
Her death was confirmed by her mother, Beverly Talmid, who said in a statement that her daughter had had cancer for several years.
Fork played the alluring pilot Alex Lambert in three seasons of Wings, which aired from 1990 to 1997 and followed the adventures of non-standard characters at a small airport in Nantucket.
Her character’s affections were overcome by Joe and Brian Hackett (Tim Daly and Stephen Weber), brothers who flew an airline with one plane.
On Instagram, Weber described Fork as “everyone as tough, funny, beautiful and grounded as her character Alex in Wings.”
Rachel Fork Lighthouse was born on January 12, 1968 in Corpus Christi, Texas, to Chuck Fork and Beverly (Mendlesky) Fork. She was named after Farah Fawcett, a family friend who was not a well-known actress when Fork was born.
“They just liked the name,” Fork told The Dallas Morning News in 1993.
Fork began his acting career with a role in a Texas production of The Rocky Horror Picture Show. In 1989, she moved to New York, where she studied acting at the Lee Strasberg Theater & Film Institute in Manhattan.
Her acting career began when she joined “Wings” as the smart and brave Alex.
“I don’t mind playing beautiful women,” Fork told The Dallas Morning News. “But I don’t mind playing bimbo. Alex is definitely a sexy woman. But it is also focused and has many qualities that people will admire. “
The show, created by Cheers and Fraser screenwriters David Angel, Peter Casey and David Lee, lasted 172 episodes and has been part of NBC’s program for years. The show also stars Crystal Bernard, Tony Shalub and Thomas Hayden Church.
From 1994 to 1995, Fork had a recurring role as lawyer Mason Drake in ABC’s Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman.
Her other television roles include “Dweebs”, “Mr. Rhodes and the Party of Five. After making her film debut in the Brain Twisters in 1991, she appeared in Barry Levinson’s “Discovery” (1994) and Michael Mann’s “Heat” (1995).
Later in her career, she cast the voice of the Big Bard in the DC Animated Universe television series Batman Beyond and Justice League Unlimited.
Forke had health problems with leaks from her silicone breast implants, which she had implanted in 1989. She removed them in 1993 and then filed a lawsuit a year later against the manufacturer and her doctor for damages, noting that neither implant manufacturers, nor has her doctor properly warned her of possible complications, according to the Associated Press.
In addition to her mother, Forke survived by her twin sons, Chuck and Whit Forke; her second father, Chuck Talmidge; and three sisters, Paige Inglis, Jennifer Sailor and Maggie Talmidge.
Kirsten Neuss contributed to the study.