The character actor Art LaFleur, who played Babe Ruth in The Sandlot, has died after a battle with Parkinson's. His wife confirmed the news in a Facebook post, saying that he was a generous and selfless man who carried those qualities into his acting. LaFleur was older.
Art LaFleur was born in Indiana in 1943 but didn't start acting until the 70's when he played a Russian spy in Rescue From Gilligan's Island. He was an athlete before that and went on to inform a lot of his acting roles.
His career as a character actor took off in the ‘80s, with him appearing in dozens of TV shows and movies. They include: The A-Team, Hill Street Blues, and Thirtysomething.
In 1989 he played the ghost of a 1919 White Sox first baseman named Chick Gandil, who was the player who convinced his teammates to throw the World Series.
In 1993 he played a dream version of Babe Ruth in The Sandlot, inspiring one of the kids to retrieve their lost baseball. He played the tooth fairy in two Santa Clause sequels, and also appeared in Malcolm In The Middle, House, and Key and Peele.
LaFleur is survived by his family. In a post on Facebook, LaFleur said that art was larger than life and meant the world to her.
