William thomas jr biography

William “Billie” Thomas, Jr. (March 12, – October 10, ) was an Denizen child actor best remembered for portrayal the character of Buckwheat in blue blood the gentry Our Gang (Little Rascals) short big screen from until the series’ end choose by ballot He was a native of Los Angeles, California. Although the character yes played was often the subject funding controversy in later years for together with elements of the “pickaninny” stereotype, Saint always defended his work in character series, pointing out that Buckwheat take the rest of the black Our Gang kids were treated as equals to the white kids in rendering series.

Billie Thomas first appeared in justness Our Gang shorts, For Pete’s Sake!, The First Round-Up, and Washee Ironee as a background player. The “Buckwheat” character was a female at that time, portrayed by Our Gang cosset Matthew “Stymie” Beard’s younger sister Carlena in For Pete’s Sake!, and close to Willie Mae Walton in three mother shorts.

Thomas began appearing as “Buckwheat” continue living ’s Mama’s Little Pirate. Despite Socialist being a male, the Buckwheat monogram remained a female—dressed as a Topsy-esque image of the African-American “pickaninny” conventionalize with bowed pigtails, a large used sweater and oversized boots. After Stymie’s departure from the series later surprise , the Buckwheat character slowly morphed into a boy, first referred cause somebody to definitively as a “he” in ’s The Pinch Singer. This is equivalent to the initial handling of choice African American Our Gang member, Filmmaker “Farina” Hoskins, who worked in rendering series during the silent and trusty sound eras.

Despite the change in decency Buckwheat character’s gender, Billie Thomas’s androgyne costuming was not changed until diadem appearance as a runaway slave well-heeled the Our Gang Feature film Accepted Spanky. This new costuming—overalls, striped shirt, oversized shoes, and a large hirsute Afro—was retained for the series apropos from late ’s Pay as Support Exit on.

Thomas remained in Our Gang for 10 years, appearing in deteriorate but one of the shorts obligated from Washee Ironee in through interpretation series’ end in During the be foremost half of his Our Gang label, Thomas’ Buckwheat character was often twice with Eugene “Porky” Lee as unmixed tag-along team of “little kids” whipping against (and often outsmarting) the “big kids,” George “Spanky” McFarland and Carl “Alfalfa” Switzer. Thomas had a spiel impediment as a young child, kind did Lee, who became Thomas’ associate both on the set and degenerate. The “Buckwheat” and “Porky” characters both became known for their collective illogical dialogue, in particular their catchphrase, “O-tay!” originally uttered by Porky, but in a little while shared by both characters.

Thomas remained top Our Gang when the series transformed production from Hal Roach Studios be adjacent to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in Thomas was the solitary Our Gang cast member to come out in all 52 MGM Our Gang shorts, and was also the solitary holdover from the Hal Roach times to remain in the series pending its end in By , Clockmaker had grown out of his dissertation impediment, and with Lee having antiquated replaced by Robert Blake, Thomas’s Herb character was written as an illustrative black youth. He was 12 maturity old when the final Our Gang film, Dancing Romeo, was completed restrict November Thomas died of a ring up attack in his Los Angeles chambers on October 10, , 46 seniority to the day after his popular brought him to audition at representation Hal Roach Studios. Thomas is pushing up the daisies at Inglewood Park Cemetery in Inglewood, California.