Philip Amelio

Philip John Amelio II (November 3, 1977 – April 1, 2005) was an American actor and teacher. At age nine, he played Lucille Ball's grandson on the "Life With Lucy" series. Amelio died from an infection on April 1, 2005 in Boston, Massachusetts.

Philip was born in Sharon, Connecticut and grew up in nearby Pine Plains, New York. Philip's younger sister, Lindsey Cook Amelio, also appeared on television, including three TV-Movies, and as spokesperson for 9 Lives catfood, with Morris the Cat. At one point during their careers, both siblings faces were on every major network in one form or another.

In addition to 1986's "Life With Lucy", Philip Amelio's career included a three year run (1988–1991) on the daytime soap opera, "All My Children", and a long string of commercials. He started acting at age four, when he was cast for a Pepperidge Farm commercial. This led to campaigns for Ford Motors, All laundry detergent, and Shake 'N' Bake bread crumbs. Amelio was the first spokesperson for Jell-O Pudding Snacks.

On All My Children, Amelio played Scott Chandler, the son of Cindy Chandler, who succumbed to AIDS on the show. After his on-screen mother's death, the character of Scott was adopted by his step-father, Stuart Chandler (portrayed by David Canary, who also played his characters twin, Adam Chandler).

Amelio officially retired from show business at age 13 and concentrated on being a "normal teenager" and student.

His love of language and history led Amelio to study to be a teacher. He graduated from the University at Albany and received a Masters Degree in Education at The College of Saint Rose. For the last two years of his life, Amelio was employed at Duanesburg High School in Delanson, New York as a full-time teacher and Modified Baseball Coach.

Phil Sr. recently commented, "The school in which Philip taught is naming an accredited English course after him, incorporating into the curriculum some of his own poetry and short stories -- as well as the literature he liked to read and teach. The school here in Pine Plains dedicated a new flag pole and monument in his name as a 'thank you' for all he did for boys in the area (teaching them the finer art of baseball)."

Phil Sr., his father, attributed his son's sudden death to a misdiagnosis. "Philip was healthy as a horse all of his life. The beginning of March, while he was attending a coaches' clinic at Cooperstown, he had a pain in his back. The doctors thought it was just a herniated disc or sciatica. No one thought to give him a blood test. If they had, they would have discovered the pain was caused by a bacterial infection that had lodged on his heart valve and started to grow. He fought with all his strength, but died on April 1 [2005] ."

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*imdb name|id=0024545|name=Philip Amelio