Carl Ballantine - "McHale's Navy" Actor

Carl Ballantine, who played the role of Lester Gruber on the 1960's comedy hit "McHale's Navy" died on November 3, 2009 at his home in Hollywood Hills, CA. He died in his sleep of natural causes according to his daughter.

"McHale's Navy", starring Ernest Borgnine and Tim Conway, ran from 1962-1966. He was also a magician who appeared on the "Ed Sullivan Show" under the headline of "The Amazing Ballantine". He achieved notoriety in the 1940's for combining magic and comedy. In 2007, he was presented a Lifetime Achievement Award from Steve Martin at the Magic Castle in Hollywood. Magician David Copperfield was also a huge fan of Mr. Ballantine.

He was born as Meyer Kessler in Chicago and started to perform magic tricks when he was 9. He was exempted from service in World War 2 because of back problems and entertained troops in England. His last magic performance as a magician was last year when he appeared at the Kodak Theatre. He appeared in numerous films including "Mr. Saturday Night" and the "Shakiest Gun in the West".

He did hundreds of voice overs for commercials and cartoons. His biggest role was for the "California Raisins" where he voiced a Claymation character that resembled him.

Lou Filippo - Boxer & Referee Appeared in "Rocky"

Lou Filippo was a former boxer who became a referee and ring judge, but achieved a legacy by appearing in all five "Rocky" movies. He is best remembered for counting out Sylvester Stallone's rival Apollo Creed in "Rocky 2".

Mr. Filippo died on November 2, 2009 at a hospital in Los Angeles after suffering a stroke. He was 83.

He fought 250 bouts as an amateur and had a 23-9-3 record as a professional. He later became a boxing referee and judge. He officiated at 85 world championship fights, including the controversial split-decision win by Sugar Ray Leonard over Marvin Hagler in 1987. He scored the fight in Hagler's favor. He also judged Shane Mosley's split-decision over Oscar De La Hoya in 2000.

His reputation for integrity as a judge and referee attracted the attention of Stallone who cast him in the referee role in all five of his "Rocky" films.