{"id":6557,"date":"2026-02-16T10:57:08","date_gmt":"2026-02-16T10:57:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/viraltales.us\/?p=6557"},"modified":"2026-02-16T10:57:10","modified_gmt":"2026-02-16T10:57:10","slug":"tarzan-star-ron-elys-tragic-final-years-after-son-stabbed-wife-valerie-to-death","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/viraltales.us\/?p=6557","title":{"rendered":"Tarzan star Ron Ely\u2019s tragic final years after son stabbed wife Valerie to death"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The former flight attendant was fatally stabbed by their son, Cameron Ely, in the family\u2019s home in Santa Barbara, at the age of 62.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cameron was fatally shot at the scene by authorities with the Santa Barbara County Sheriff\u2019s Office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ron, who retired from acting in 2001 (apart from a brief appearance in TV movie Expecting Amish in 2014), and his wife Valerie were married for 35 years before her death.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The couple had three children together, Kirsten, Kaitland, and Cameron.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ron Ely\u2019s wife was Valerie Lundeen, a devoted mother who once worked as a flight attendant and won Miss Airline International, a beauty pageant for flight attendants, in 1980.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A year later, Valerie was crowned Miss\u00a0\u00a0in a beauty pageant in 1981, and she would later compete for the title of Miss USA.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her future husband, Ron, also had associations with the world of pageants, having hosted the Miss America competition for two years in a row in 1980 and 1981.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ron and Valerie got married in 1984 and had three children. The couple became grandparents for the first time in 2018 when their daughter Kaitland gave birth to her first child, a little boy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Valerie was 62 years old when she was killed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Valerie was killed on October 15, 2019, when she was stabbed to death by her son, Cameron Ely, at the family home in California.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Officers who were called to the scene in Santa Barbara reported that they found Valerie dead after having suffered \u2018multiple stab wounds\u2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They found Cameron, who was 30 at the time, outside the home. He was deemed a threat after deputies were unable to \u2018gain verbal control of the suspect\u2019 and officers fired shots at him, fatally wounding Cameron and killing him at the scene.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A statement on the tragic incident from the Santa Barbara County Sheriff said: \u2018The Santa Barbara County Sheriff\u2019s Office responded to a 911 call at the home of actor Ron Ely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018Upon arrival, deputies contacted Ron Ely and discovered his wife, Valerie Lundeen Ely, 62, deceased with multiple stab wounds inside the home. While on scene, deputies identified the suspect as the Ely\u2019s son, 30-year-old Cameron Ely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018Deputies searched the residence and surrounding area for Cameron Ely. During the search, the suspect was located outside the home. He posed a threat and in response four deputies fired their service weapons at the suspect, fatally wounding him. No deputies were injured during the confrontation with the suspect.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018The Santa Barbara County Sheriff\u2019s Office is conducting criminal, coroner\u2019s, and administrative investigations of this incident. Autopsies of both the victim and the suspect are pending. The names of the involved deputies will be released at a later date.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In October 2020, Ron Ely filed a federal wrongful death lawsuit against the Santa Barbara County Sheriff\u2019s Office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In court documents obtained by\u00a0 the lawsuit claimed that Cameron was surrendering before police shot him more than 20 times.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The former flight attendant was fatally stabbed by their son, Cameron Ely, in the family\u2019s home in Santa Barbara, at the age of 62. 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