Veteran Film Character Actor Leon Belasco, 85
Leon Belasco, a Russian immigrant whose comedic skills and talent for foreign accents landed him character roles in scores of movies ranging from “Topper Takes a Trip” in 1939 to more recent roles in “Superdad” and “The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming,” has died in Orange at the age of 85.
Belasco, born Leonid Simeonovich Berladsky, began his career as a violinist and orchestra leader, working with the Andrews Sisters for a period in 1936.
He dabbled in acting beginning in 1926, when he was in a silent movie, “The Best People.” In 1939, his career took off when he won roles in several films.
Belasco, born in Odessa, Russia, in 1902, specialized in portraying eccentric or befuddled European and ethnic characters. Some of his movies included “Broadway Serenade” (1939), “Holiday Inn” (1942), “Casablanca” (1942), “Yolanda and the Thief” (1945), “Adventures of Don Juan” (1949), “Call Me Madam” (1953) and “The Art of Love” (1965).
Family members said he died June 1. No funeral services were planned.
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