Art LaFleur, ‘The Sandlot’ and ‘Field of Dreams’ Actor, Dies at 78

Art LaFleur, best-known for playing Babe Ruth in The Sandlot, died Wednesday following a 10-year battle with Parkinson’s Disease. He was 78.

The actor’s wife, Shelly LaFleur, announced his death in a Facebook post on November 18. “He brought laughter to so many people … He was a generous and selfless man which carried over to his acting but more importantly it was who he was for his family and friends,” she wrote. “I was so very lucky to have had a 43 year relationship with a man who cherished me and who I adored. Art was larger than life and mean the world to us.”

In his iconic The Sandlot role, he plays the ghost of Babe Ruth, who appears to give some advice to main character Benny Rodriguez. “Remember kid, there’s heroes and there’s legends. Heroes get remembered but legends never die, follow your heart, kid, and you’ll never go wrong,” he says in one of the film’s most iconic lines.

LaFleur’s Hollywood career began in his 30s, when he first moved to L.A. to pursue acting. Apart from The Sandlot, he’s best known for playing Black Sox leader Chick Gandil in Field of Dreams and the Tooth Fairy in The Santa Clause 2 and 3.

The actor also appeared in a number of iconic TV shows over the course of his career, including M*A*S*H, Malcolm in the Middle, Baywatch, ER, Lou Grant, Soap, Webster, The A-Team, Hill Street Blues, Home Improvement, Northern Exposure, Doogie Howser, Coach, House, and The Mentalist.