The following is a list of characters from Falcon Crest, an American primetime television soap opera which aired from 1981 to 1990.
Cast timeline Character Actor Seasons123456789 Angela Channing Jane Wyman colspan="9" Chase Gioberti Robert Foxworth colspan="6" colspan="3" Lance Cumson Lorenzo Lamas colspan="9" Cole Gioberti William R. Moses colspan="6" colspan="2" Vickie Gioberti Jamie Rose colspan="2" colspan="1" colspan="6" Dana Sparks colspan="5" colspan="3" colspan="1" Julia Cumson Abby Dalton colspan="4" colspan="2" colspan="3" Maggie Gioberti Susan Sullivan colspan="8" Richard Channing David Selby colspan="1" colspan="8" Melissa Agretti Ana Alicia colspan="7" colspan="1" Phillip Erikson Mel Ferrer colspan="2" colspan="1" colspan="6" Emma Channing Margaret Ladd colspan="2" colspan="7" Terry Hartford Laura Johnson colspan="2" colspan="1" colspan="2" colspan="1" colspan="3" Gustav Riebmann Paul Freeman colspan="3" colspan="1" colspan="5" Pamela Lynch Sarah Douglas colspan="2" colspan="1" colspan="4" Greg Reardon Simon MacCorkindale colspan="3" colspan="2" colspan="4" Christopher Rossini Ken Olin colspan="4" colspan="1" colspan="4" Eric Stavros John Callahan colspan="4" colspan="2" colspan="2" Peter Stavros Cesar Romero colspan="4" colspan="1" colspan="1" colspan="1" Dan Fixx Brett Cullen colspan="5" colspan="2" colspan="2" Chao-Li Chi Chao-Li Chi colspan="6" colspan="3" Pilar Ortega Kristian Alfonso colspan="7" colspan="2" Nick Agretti David Beecroft colspan="7" colspan="1" colspan="1" Frank Agretti Rod Taylor colspan="6" colspan="2" colspan="1" Michael Sharpe Gregory Harrison colspan="8" colspan="1" Lauren Daniels Wendy Phillips colspan="8" colspan="1" Genele Ericson Andrea Thompson colspan="8" colspan="1"
Cast notes
Main characters Angela Channing (née Gioberti), later Erikson, Stavros, Agretti – Jane Wyman (1981–90; 208 episodes) Angela is the tough, tyrannical matriarch of Falcon Crest and a powerful woman in Tuscany Valley, and the principal character of the series. She has two daughters, Julia and Emma, from her first marriage to newspaper owner Douglas Channing, and goes on to marry three more times. Determined to preserve and expand Falcon Crest for her heirs, she ruthlessly combats any challengers, with her nephew Chase and Douglas's illegitimate son Richard proving the most formidable of her opponents. Richard is later revealed to be her long-lost son. During the course of the series, Angela marries her devious lawyer Phillip Erikson, becoming a widow a short time later when he dies in a plane crash. She later marries her old flame, billionaire Peter Stavros, and life-long friend Frank Agretti. Towards the end of the series, Angela is almost killed by Charley St. James, who tries to smother her with a pillow. She is left in a coma for several months before making a full recovery and returning home. Jane Wyman appeared in almost every episode of the series, for eight seasons, plus the first two and last three episodes of the ninth season, for a total of 208 of the 227 episodes of the series, missing 19 episodes (mostly in the final season) due to health problems. Chase Gioberti – Robert Foxworth (1981–1987; 155 episodes) A former commercial airline pilot and Vietnam veteran, Chase moves back to the Tuscany Valley from New York after the death of his father Jason. Having inherited some land from his father, Chase is determined to make a go of running the winery which in turn brings him into conflict with his aunt Angela. The mysterious nature of his father's death eventually makes him half-owner of Falcon Crest, much to Angela's dismay. Throughout the course of the series, Chase is shot twice, has affairs with Connie Giannini and Gabrielle Short, and is later presumed drowned in the waters of the San Francisco Bay while attempting to rescue Melissa and Dan Fixx. His body is never recovered. Lance Cumson – Lorenzo Lamas (1981–90; 227 episodes) Lance is Julia's son, who Angela grooms as her eventual heir. A handsome ladies' man, he enjoys a playboy lifestyle but is often dragged in Angela's schemes. He is also proficient in martial arts, under the mentorship of Chao-Li. During the series, his grandmother forces him to marry Melissa Agretti so she can acquire the adjoining Agretti lands. After Melissa loses their baby and they divorce, Lance marries Richard's stepdaughter Lorraine, who later dies while pregnant with his child. After liaisons with Terry Hartford, singer Apollonia, Dina Wells and Shannon Taylor, a second marriage with Melissa and the death of his unborn child with Diane "Cookie" Nash, Lance eventually marries Pilar Ortega, the mother of his secret daughter Lisa. Lorenzo Lamas is the only actor to appear in all 227 episodes of the series. Cole Hartford Gioberti – William R. Moses (1981–1986, 1987; 140 episodes) Chase and Maggie's son. He supports his father in his new venture running the vineyards, foregoing his dreams of becoming an archaeologist like his grandfather. During the series, he falls in love with Melissa Agretti, and fathers her son Joseph, before marrying Linda Caproni, the baker's daughter. After Linda dies in a plane crash, Cole and Melissa rekindle their relationship and get married. They eventually divorce after Cole fathers a daughter with her cousin, Robin Agretti, who later leaves town with their child, Hope Margaret. In season six, Cole leaves Tuscany Valley to become a partner in a new wine venture in Sydney, Australia, and Joseph is later sent to live with him following Melissa's mental breakdown. They are visited by Melissa and Dan Fixx in season seven, where it is revealed that Cole had married a woman named Kathleen (Deborra-Lee Furness) and was raising Joseph and Kathleen's daughter (from her first marriage) on a sheep farm in the Australian outback. Victoria "Vickie" Gioberti, later Hogan, Stavros – Jamie Rose (1981–1983; 44 episodes), Dana Sparks (1986–1988; 58 episodes) Chase and Maggie's daughter. She is an aspiring dancer who struggles with her family's move from New York to Tuscany Valley, and has particular trouble with the men in her life. During the first two seasons, she dates Mario Nuñez, the vineyardist's son, and county supervisor Nick Hogan, who she eventually marries. When Vickie discovers Nick is still involved with his ex-wife and using her for money, she divorces him and moves back to New York. She returns three years later, now played by Dana Sparks, after touring Europe as a ballet dancer, and ending a second marriage to an American soldier stationed in Germany. She dates Dan Fixx, before marrying Angela's stepson Eric Stavros, who is plagued by a gambling addiction and prone to violent outbursts. She leaves the valley for Paris when his father Peter begs her for help after Eric has a nervous breakdown and is institutionalized. Julia Cumson (née Channing) – Abby Dalton (1981–1986; 98 episodes) Angela's eldest daughter, and the chief enologist at the winery. She is the mother of Lance, with ex-husband Tony Cumson, and Christopher, her illegitimate son with vintner Dominic Rossini, who she was told was stillborn. She is continually oppressed by her domineering mother, who succeeded in driving her husband away over a decade ago and exacerbated her drinking problem. During the course of the series, she becomes increasingly unstable, and is eventually revealed as the killer of Carlo Agretti, her lover who she murdered to protect Falcon Crest from falling into his hands. When confronted about the murder at a family gathering, she pulls out a gun and shoots Chase, killing his mother Jacqueline Perrault in the ensuing struggle. Initially sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole, she is deemed unfit and institutionalised in a psychiatric hospital before escaping and going on the run. She plans on killing her mother at her wedding to Phillip, but can't work up the courage, and is later presumed dead after getting trapped in a cabin fire during a confrontation with the police. She emerges alive a few months later, and is sent to a convent in Oregon. Later she is given a retrial and released, returning briefly to the valley before the earthquake hits, where she is injured and suffers from hysterical blindness. She returns to the convent, never seen at Falcon Crest again, although she is mentioned in passing and a pregnant Emma leaves to visit her in a convent in Italy near the end of the series. Maggie Gioberti (née Hartford), later Channing – Susan Sullivan (1981–1989; 207 episodes) Chase's wife and the mother of Cole and Vickie. A freelance writer and journalist from New York, she supports her husband's efforts to build a new life in Tuscany Valley. A warm-hearted but resilient woman, Maggie becomes the sympathetic heroine of the series. During the course of the series, she discovers she is adopted, writes a book based on her life in the valley, and is kidnapped and raped by her press agent Jeff Wainwright. Maggie gives birth to a son, Kevin, initially believing Jeff is the father, however it is eventually revealed to be Chase's. After Chase's death, Maggie falls in love and marries Richard and adopts his son, Michael, and Richard adopts her son Kevin. However their marriage does not run smoothly, and she develops a drinking problem. After appearing in every episode for eight seasons, the character is killed off in the first two episodes of season nine, with Maggie getting her diamond ring caught in the swimming pool drain and drowning. Phillip Erikson – Mel Ferrer (1981–1984; 55 episodes) Angela's unscrupulous lawyer. Phillip made a career out of advancing Angela's reputation and control of the Tuscany Valley, however he wants more. Angela initially rejects his advances, and becomes jealous when he starts dating Amanda Croft (Anne Jeffreys). He eventually becomes Angela's second husband, but dies only a short time later in a plane crash that also kills Dr. Michael Ranson and Linda Gioberti. Emma Channing, later Cabot, St. James – Margaret Ladd (1981–1989; 193 episodes) Angela's younger daughter. She and her lover Turner Bates played a central role in her uncle Jason's accidental death and she has been emotionally fragile ever since. Despite this, Emma is good-hearted and kind-natured, though she eventually learns to resist Angela's constant attempts to control her. Much unlucky in love, her relationships with men always end in heartache or tragedy. During the course of the series, Turner dies in a car accident and she loses his baby, she develops an unrequited crush on Dr. Michael Ranson, and is seduced by Gustav Riebmann and Damon Ross in their schemes against her mother. She eventually finds love with trucker Dwayne Cooley before he dies tragically in the earthquake. She then marries Vince Karlotti, who is revealed to be a conman and polygamist, novelist Daniel Cabot, also known by the pseudonym R.D. Young, and Charley St. James. Emma finally leaves the valley after falling pregnant, and later gives birth to a daughter, Angela, named after her mother. Chao-Li – Chao-Li Chi (1981–90; 213 episodes) Angela's faithful Chinese majordomo and chauffeur. Melissa Agretti, later Cumson, Gioberti – Delores Cantu (1982; 1 episode), Ana Alicia (1982–1988; 178 episodes) A feisty, selfish young heiress who inherits her father's land, the Agretti Vineyards, and agrees to a marriage of convenience with Lance in order to gain control of Falcon Crest. Melissa is the mother of Joseph, following an affair with Cole Gioberti, whom she later marries. Ana Alicia joined the cast later in the first season (replacing Delores Cantu, who played the part for one episode only) and left early in the eighth season when Melissa died in a fire. However, the actress returned for several episodes later in the season to play a Melissa lookalike, Samantha Ross. Richard Channing – David Selby (1982–1990; 209 episodes)