Mark Ritts

Born on 16th June 1946, Mark Ritts is an American origin actor, fondly recognized as Lester, the rat. He was the son of acclaimed puppeteer Paul Ritts and started gaining recognition under their guidance from a very young age, starring in the highly popular The Pink Panther Show and many others. He was a brainy child and grasped things quickly, which helped him earn a pilot’s license at the budding age of sixteen, funding himself through his earnings from the one-man magic acts. Mark completed his graduation from Harvard University, earning a degree in English Literature. In the 90s, he was the co-writer, the voice-over actor, and performer of the character Kino in the Emmy award-winning PBS series Storytime. He gained the most recognition for Beakman’s World, in which he was initially nominated as the puppeteer but at the last moment portrayed the costumed character of Lester the rat.

He was an esteemed writer and producer, earning fame for the top-rated comic show Barney the Dinosaur. As the president of Mark Ritts Productions Inc., approaching the end of his career, he produced/ wrote/ directed many documentaries, shows, and a few short films. To mention a few, North Mission Road, Cast off for Mexico, Cast off for Catalina were his notable works. He had been felicitated with a gold and silver medal at the New York Click to look into! >> Read More... film and television festival in successive years between 1980-82. Unfortunately, he lost the fight to kidney cancer and died aged 63 on December 7, 2009. He was engaged to singer and actress Teresa Parente and had a daughter with her. He also has two sons with his former wife, Nina Daniel.