Dodo Chichinadze, leading actress at the Kote Marjanishvili Drama Theatre, has died. She was 85.

In a career that goes back to 1945, Dodo Chichinadze played many memorable roles in Georgian films such as “Davit Guramishvili,” “The Suspended Song,” “The Cricket,” “Bashi Achuki” and others. She played the character of Maria in the Hagen Keller written and directed short drama “Djen prischjol” as recently as 2004. The film was nominated for a German Camera Award. A few months ago the municipal government of Tbilisi created a star for her outside the Rustaveli Theatre.

Jyrki Kovaleff, Jan. 2, 1954 – Nov. 3, 2009, Finnish actor of comedy, voice and numerous dramatic roles, has died in Helsinki of prostate cancer. He was 55.

Animators will know Kovaleff as the voice of Riitasointu in the 1992 animated fantasy film known in English as “Quest For a Heart.” Billed as one of the most expensive films ever made in Finland, it was co-produced by British, German, Russian and Finnish studios with over 100 animators working on the project. The effort paid off and it won the Children's Jury Award for Animated Feature Film or Video at last year's Chicago International Children's Film Festival.

He also provided the voice of Sniff of the Japanese-Dutch anime feature film “Cornet in Moominland.”

Jyrki Kovaleff's career encompassed over 30 screen comedies, many appearances in film - often starring with Seppo Laine - on stage and on television. The IMDB database shows no less than 58 entries going back as far as 1968.

Carl Ballantine, Sept. 27, 1917 – Nov. 3, 2009, comedian and entertainer also known as “The Amazing Ballantine,” has died in his sleep. He was 92.

He started his career as a magician and but found more fame as the

“Magician who could never do a trick.”

Billing himself as "Ballantine the Great" or "The Amazing Ballantine," he created a comedy magic act similar to that of British prestidigator Tommy Cooper, where the trick always failed. His act played all over the world with spots on “The Ed Sullivan Show” and “The Steve Allen Show” and became the first magic act to headline in Las Vegas.

In addition to his magic act, he landed numerous acting and voice over roles including a memorable voice of a Claymation character in a California Raisin commercial. In movies, he was most well known for playing Lester Gruber in the 1964 movie “McHale’s Navy” alongside Ernest Borgnine and Tim Conway. He appeared regularly on the TV series “Car 54 Where Are You?” And, on stage, he portrayed slave merchant/procurer Marcus Lycus in the musical “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum” opposite Phil Silvers. In cartoons, he became popular with a recurring role in the series “Garfield and Friends.”

Carl Ballantine is predeceased by his wife, actress Ceil Cabot who died in 2000 and leaves behind his daughter, actress Sara Ballantine.

Jorge Vargas, June 25, 1941 – Nov. 2, 2009, Mexican singer and actor of film and television, has passed away in the National Institute of Cancerología after a long struggle with colon cancer. He was 68.

Vargas’s son, Ernesto D’Alessio said in a statement on Televisa television, “They operated on him Thursday and he reacted well. The problem is that when there is an operation of this kind on the colon and other intestines, it’s very probable that a bacteria could get in and cause such a powerful infection that it ended my dad’s life,

Vargas made his film debut with “The Price of Glory” followed by several others. But he made a successful career on television beginning in the 1960s. He might be best known, however, with his 1997 appearance in the series “Maria Isabel” where he played the role of Don Felix Pereira.

Jorge Vargas leaves behind two sons, Jorge and Ernesto, from his marriage to Lupita D’Alessio.

José Luis López Vázquez de la Torre, March 11, 1922 – Nov. 2, 2009, popular Spanish actor who often worked with director Antonio Mercero , has died. He was 87.

Vázquez and Mercero , together gained considerable fame with the 1972 Emmy award winning short horror “La Cabina” or, in English, “The Telephone Box.” The 35-minute film was co-written by Mercerno and Jose Luis Garci and Vazquez played the leading role as a man that becomes trapped in a telephone booth. Onlookers seem unable to help him. A truck from the telephone company arrives, loads the booth with its trapped occupant onto a truck, and takes it away. When the truck arrives at its destination, the horrified man finds that he has been taken into a large room filled with phone booths, all containing a dead person. The final scenes show the phone company delivering a freshly cleaned and empty phone booth back to the street to await another victim.

“La Cabina” earned Vázquez a Fotogramas de Plata Award for Best TV Performer, and a Premio ACE Award for Best TV Actor. The short also won an International Emmy for Fiction and a Premio ACE for Best TV Scenic Program.

José Luis López Vázquez had a prolific film career starring in more than 200 movies and earning a total of twenty separate awards. His body of work began at the age of 17 and lasted through 2006 in his last production with director Mercero, the movie called “¿Y tú quién eres?”

Alex de la Iglesia, the President de la Academia de Cine stated, "Se va uno de los actores más grandes, una de las patas de la mesa del gran cine español junto con Fernando Fernán Gómez y Pepe Isbert." The quote meaning Vázquez was one the biggest actors and considered a foundation of Spanish film right along with greats such as Fernando Fernán Gómez and Pepe Isbert.

Michelle Triola, Nov. 13, 1933 – Oct. 30, 2009, nightclub singer and minor role actress who fought for palimony against Lee Marvin, has died in Malibu after fighting lung cancer for the last 18 months. She was 75.

She made history in 1976 when the California Supreme Court ruled that she (and others) could sue for property division when a relationship ended. And that is exactly what she did. Three years after the ruling Michelle Triola who changed her last name to Marvin, sued Lee Marvin for half of his 3.6 million dollar estate. She was only awarded $104,000 for what the judge called “rehabilitative purposes.” Appeals court blocked her from collecting the sum but the term “palimony” was coined becoming a dictionary entry as a result of combining the words “pals” and “alimony.” Lawsuits involving numerous other celebrities and their former cohabiting lovers soon followed.

Michelle Triola met Dick Van Dyke in the 1970s springing up a romance in 1976. Though they never married, they lived together for thirty years.

Besides Van Dyke, Marvin is survived by her sister, Diane Triola Johnson of Los Angeles; a niece and a nephew.

Anton Turner, expedition guide for a BBC children’s program, has been killed in Tanzania by a charging elephant. He was 38.

“Serious Explorers: Livingstone” was supposed to be an 11-part series executive produced by Gillian Scothern and due to air on CBBC in 2010. The show retraces the footsteps of the great 19th century explorer David Livingstone by following eight young adventurers as they journey through the heart of Africa, on a month-long adventure of a lifetime, living together, and learning from each other. Turner, who was assisting the show with the filming was escorting the television crew through a remote mountainous region of the African country in a non-elephant area when he was charged.

A spokeswoman for CBBC Serious Explorers said former the Army officer was an experienced expedition safari and wildlife ranger who had worked with the BBC in the past.

“We understand at this stage that he was charged by an elephant and was mortally injured." The spokeswoman also explained that a doctor was travelling with the expedition and treated Mr. Turner, a British citizen, at the scene but it was understood he died shortly after the incident. Of the three children that were with the filming party at the time of the accident, she said that all were safe.

"Their safety remains a priority, and all the children have been airlifted from the area. We are also consulting their parents and production of the program has ceased. Four other children who were also in Tanzania in connection with the program will also return home.” She also said, “We would like to extend our deepest sympathy to Anton's family and friends."

Turner’s best friend Ryan Wienand, who co-founded the wildlife reserve with him in Tanzania, described Turner as, “an incredible person, who took conservation to the fore and put people first. He really looked after the community and had a passion for Africa.”

Wienand described Turner’s experience with elephants, explaining, “Anton was the most experienced person I have ever known when it comes to elephants, he had an expert knowledge of their behavior. So for him to die in this way is a complete freak event. He will be sorely missed by everyone who knew him."

Anton Turner leaves behind his fiancée, who is pregnant with their first child.

August Coppola, Feb. 16, 1934 – Oct. 27, 2009, flamboyant literature professor who was the father of actor Nicolas Cage and brother of Francis Ford Coppola, has died after suffering a heart attack. He was 75.

Coppola taught comparative literature at Cal State Long Beach throughout the 1960s and '70s and served as a trustee of the California State University system until he moved to San Francisco State in 1984. There, he became the dean of the School of Creative Arts where he also taught cinema until 1992.

Nicolas Cage described his father in a 1996 interview with Playboy Magazine saying, "He was one of the most remarkable characters anybody's going to meet…When I was a kid, the other kids were seeing Disney, and he was showing us movies like Fellini's 'Juliet of the Spirits.' This was before video, so he would take us to the art-house cinemas. I saw 'Citizen Kane,' and that's when I discovered Max Schreck and Nosferatu and Dr. Caligari, which gave me nightmares."

Francis Coppola, director of "The Godfather" trilogy and "Apocalypse Now" described his brother as someone who “always looked out for me.” In an interview with the cinema journal Film Comment, he said, "…in addition, he did very well in school and received many awards for writing and other things, and he was like the star of the family and I did most of what I did to imitate him."

August Coppola is survived by his brother, a sister, Talia Shire; three sons, Christopher Coppola, Marc Coppola and Nicolas Cage; six grandchildren and his companion, Lorrie Tennant.

Adoor Bhavani, 1927 – Oct. 25, 2009, Indian actress whose roles spanned mother, sister, grandmother and mother-in-law, has passed away at her son’s home. She had been in deteriorating health after being bedridden due to a broken bone injury suffered a year ago. She was 82.

She acted in more than 500 Films

Yes, now we know why Adoor Bhavani was known as the ‘Grand Old Lady of the Malayalam Silver Screen.’ Few actors or actresses can brag on such an impressive volume of work. She stopped acting only six years ago, at the age of 76, after falling ill. Her last film was `Oru CBI diary kurippu.’

Adoor Bhavani’s best-known appearance was in the national award winning film “Chemmeen” along with `Kadalpaalam’, `Kalli Chellamma’, `Anubhavangal Paalichakal’ and Vazhveymayom.’

In 1969, she won the Kerala State Film Award for Best Supporting actress. She was also awarded the Chalachithra Saparya Lifetime Achievement award in 2002. In 2008, Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Academy honoured Adoor Bhavani and her sister, also an actress, for their overall contributions to theatre and drama.

She is predeceased by her husband, Janardhanan Nair, who passed away in 1997. She is survived by a son, Rajeevkumar.

Gerhard Knoop, Nov. 3, 1920 – Oct. 25, 2009, Norwegian actor turned stage director and producer, has died. He was 88.

Gerhard Knoop first gained employment in the entertainment industry in 1949 working as an actor at the Rogaland Theater. It wasn’t long, however, before he turned to stage production, producing regularly throughout the 1950s and 60s. In 1964, he landed the position as head of the Norwegian National Academy of Theaters holding that role until 1970.

Among his productions were adaptations of Samuel Beckett’s play “Waiting for Godot” and a comedy titled “Uncle Vanya.” He also produced numerous plays for one of Norway’s most famous playwrights, Henrik Johan Ibsen.  They included “Hedda Gabler” which was produced for the Pitlochry Festival Theater in Scotland in 1963, “Rosmershom,” “Ghosts,” and “The Wild Duck.”