Marvin Minoff, June 26, 1931 – Nov. 11, 2009, film and television producer, has died at his Los Angeles home of undisclosed causes. He was 78 years old.

He worked with David Frost and John Birt to produce the historic 1977 Richard Nixon television interviews, three years after Nixon resigned. Those interviews were subsequently adapted into a Broadway play, then into a 2008 movie. “Frost/Nixon” the movie was directed by Ron Howard, starring Frank Langella, Michael Sheen and Kevin Bacon. Keith MacKechnie played Minoff in the film.

Over the course of his career, Minoff acted as an agent first at William Morris and later with International Famous Artists. He produced telefilms including “Dynasty,” which was based on a James Michener’s novel. And he did two feature films "Dominick and Eugene" in 1988, which starred Tom Hulce and Ray Liotta, for Orion, and the Robin Williams film "Patch Adams," for Universal.

Marvin Minoff leaves behind his wife of 29 years, Bonnie Franklin, a daughter and a son, two granddaughters and a brother.

Simple Kapadia, Aug. 15, 1958 – Nov. 10, 2009, actress and costume designer, has died on her birthday in an Andheri hospital after battling cancer for three years. She was 51.

Born of an acting family, Simple Kapadia is the older sister of super star actress Dimple Kapadia. She began her career at the age of 18 when she was paired opposite her brother-in-law, Rajesh Khanna in “Anurodh.”

Struggling to step out from under her superstar sister’s shadow, Simple Kapadia appeared in about 20 movies turning in  notable performances with “Ahsaas,” “Shaaka,” “Jeevan Dhara” and “Lootmaar.” But it was with costume designing that she gained acclaim particularly with “Shaheed.”

Joe Maross, Feb. 7, 1923 – Nov. 7, 2009, actor who started in television in the 1950s, has died of cardiac arrest in Glendale, Calif. He was 86.

Joe Maross was one of those great supporting actors that show up in a lot of different roles, fitting in seamlessly, instantly recognizable and completely acceptable by the viewing public for whatever character position he was fulfilling. And he did this for over 40 years appearing in television shows such as "The Twilight Zone," "Bonanza," "Alfred Hitchcock Presents," " "The Outer Limits," "The Fugitive," "Gunsmoke," "Hawaii Five O." "Mission Impossible," "Perry Mason," "Mannix," "The Rockford Files," "Charlies Angels," "Quincy," "Dallas" and "Murder She Wrote."

Anselmo Duarte, April  21, 1920 – Nov. 7, 2009,actor turned screenwriter and filmmaker winning the Golden Palm at the Cannes Film Festival, has died in Sao Paulo from complications of a stroke after being in a coma for several days. He was 89.

Anselmo Duarte is known for being the only Brazilian ever to win a Golden Palm in the Cannes Film Festival with his movie “Pagador de Promessas” or, in English, “Keeper of Promises.” The film won against several more well known directors - Luis Buñuel, Michelangelo Antonioni and Robert Bresson – and went on to be nominated for an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film.

Duarte experienced ups and downs in the film industry both as a filmmaker and as an actor. His early success at Cannes unfortunately earned him many detractors but before he died, the Governor of São Paulo, Jose Serra, awarded Duarte the Order of Ipiranga,which is the state’s highest civilian honor.

"I was considered a matinee idol," Duarte stated at that time."That bothered me. It was a put-down. It was my bad luck to be considered a matinee idol. I was shy. I never wanted to become an actor. I wanted to make movies. That’s why I’d call myself, without any arrogance, but with honesty and courage, after 55 years in the film business, a filmmaker. Here and anywhere else in the world. That’s my profession. That’s it."

Nick Counter, March 21, 1940 – Nov. 6, 2009, former President of the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, has died of unspecified causes after being taken to West Hills Hospital earlier this week when he collapsed at his Los Angeles home. He was 69.

He was the negotiator who squared off against the Writers Guild of America when they went on strike in 2008. The strike went on for 100 days bringing numerous television series to a halt until an agreement could be made amidst tough negotiations that still taste bitter to many.

In a statement made by the Writers Guild regarding Nick Counter’s death, “"The Writers Guilds of America, West and East mark the passing of Nick Counter ... and convey their deepest sympathy to his family." Note that the word “mark” was used in place of where “mourn” is usually used in such statements.

Not all were sour however. Directors Guild of America secretary-treasurer Gil Cates and National executive director Jay D. Roth stated, “Although we sat on opposite sides during labor negotiations, Nick was a friend, man of honor, and worthy adversary, doing his best to represent his constituents…We shared the same goal - protecting our industry - yet often held different ideas at times about how to accomplish this. But ultimately Nick would always listen, evaluate, and try to understand where we were coming from and look for a way to find a deal that worked for both parties.’’

Sergio “Gino” Campagnola, March 21, 1940 – Nov. 3, 2009, 50-year studio veteran with Paramount Pictures, has died in Los Angeles after a lengthy illness. Both his wife and his son were with him. He was 76.

In 2001, at his 50^th anniversary with Paramount Pictures, Gino Campagnola was honored with the Humanitarian Award from the Variety Boys & Girls Club of Queens, N.Y.

And who better to receive this award? For years, Sergio Campagnola donated much of his time and efforts to worthy causes such as male breast cancer, lung cancer from second hand smoke and asbestos and the Lupus Foundation. The citation on his Humanitarian Award read, "In the truest sense of the word, Gino Campagnola is one of the motion picture industry's true gentlemen and friends who has earned the respect and admiration of all who know him."

From a humble start in the mailroom of Paramount to his rise as a VP in several departments, Gino Campagnola can be proud to look over a career that spans from Cecil B. DeMille's “The Ten Commandments” to James Cameron's "Titanic."

He is survived by his wife Danielle, and son Justin.

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.