Gil Stratton

Gil Stratton Jr. (June 2, 1922 – October 11, 2008) was an actor and sportscaster who was born in Brooklyn, New York. He most recently resided in Toluca Lake, California, until his death from congestive heart failure.

Early life

Stratton was born June 2, 1922, in Brooklyn, N.Y., and attended Poly Prep in Brooklyn. He later attended St. Lawrence University in Canton, N.Y., where he graduated with a bachelor's degree, and starred as goalie of the SLU hockey team.

Stage career

He first became interested in acting as a teenager. He debuted on Broadway at the age of 19 as Bud Hooper in the George Abbott musical Best Foot Forward. The musical ran from October 1, 1941 to July 4, 1942.

Film career

As a result of Stratton's appearance in Best Foot Forward, MGM hired him as a contract player. His first job for MGM was in the film Girl Crazy with Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland, singing "Embraceable You" in a duet with Garland.

After completing Girl Crazy, he had a short film hiatus due to having enlisted in the United States Army Air Corps upon the US entry to World War II. He later noted that he ended up spending much of his service umpiring baseball. During this time he began umpiring for the Pacific Coast League (PCL). While umpiring in the PCL he began using the line, "time to call 'em as I see 'em."