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401:. Though offered many film and stage roles, he had no desire to return to Hollywood as an actor: “After the Army, I wasn't really interested in the hassle of performing," he explained shortly before his death in 1980. "Even the big stars had to chase around and audition; it seemed like a
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as a young child, as did Lee, who became Thomas's friend both on the set and off. The "Buckwheat" and "Porky" characters both became known for their collective garbled dialogue, in particular their catchphrase, "O-tay!" originally uttered by Porky, but soon used by both characters.
324:
in 1938. Thomas was the only cast member to appear in all 52 of the MGM-produced entries and was the only holdover from the Hal Roach era to remain in the series until its end in 1944. By 1940, Thomas had grown out of his speech impairment, and with Lee having been replaced by
439:, from July 30 to August 3, 1980, more than 500 fans gathered at the Los Angeles Hilton Hotel. Several days were spent touring famous Hollywood attractions, and then the highlight of the gathering took place in the hotel ballroom. Among those honored on July 31 were fellow
216:" stereotype with bowed pigtails, a large hand-me-down sweater and oversized boots. After Stymie's departure from the series later in 1935, the Buckwheat character slowly morphed into a boy, first referred to definitively as a "he" in 1936's
522:, made it clear that he hated Murphy's imitations: "I didn't care for them a bit. Mr. Murphy did a very poor imitation. He made Buckwheat into a stereotype that he wasn't, at the expense of the people in his family who are still alive."
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William Thomas Jr. the younger went on to graduate from
California State Northridge University in 1975, then in 1992, created the Buckwheat Memorial Scholarship for students at Northridge in his honor. In 2010, he wrote the book
547:, English, who died four years later at the age of 60, refused to retreat from his claim, maintaining that he had originated the role of Buckwheat, with other actors playing the character only after he had left it.
362:, Thomas and the others were "considered saviors in many ways" by the black community as the most popular black stars in the United States during the 1920s and 1930s. Later, during the 1950s and 1960s, the
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833:"Scholarship Keeps Controversial Image in the Spotlight : Education: Despite criticism, the son of the actor who played Buckwheat sees grant as a way to preserve his father's legacy"
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as actors is credited with helping the cause of race relations by playing alongside white children as equals in a desegregated show during the height of the
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acknowledged on-air that
English's claim had been false, and apologized for the interview. The fallout from this incident included the resignation of a
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Despite the change in the
Buckwheat character's sex, Billie Thomas's androgynous costuming was not changed until his appearance in the 1936 film
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However, Thomas still enjoyed the film industry at large, and had a successful decades-long career as a film lab technician with the
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132:(March 12, 1931 – October 10, 1980) was an American child actor best remembered for portraying the character of
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surmises that "Buckwheat's role as slave in search of a master may displease contemporary audiences."
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in 1954 at the age of 23, and was released from active military service in 1956 decorated with a
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as a background player. The "Buckwheat" character was a female at this time, portrayed by
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The character of
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aired a segment featuring a man named Bill
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Scripting the Black
Masculine Body: Identity, Discourse, and Racial Politics
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syndication package taken off the air, settling instead for distributor
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His gang Spanky McFarland remembers his long stint as a `Little Rascal'
607:. Crown Publishing (1977); Three Rivers Press (updated edition, 1992).
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producer and a negligence lawsuit filed by the son of
William Thomas.
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in 1934 through the series' end in 1944. During the first half of his
222:. This is similar to the initial handling of another African-American
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and, subsequently, shoeshine boy Spanky, "You be my master?". In his
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Turner
Classic Movies Presents Leonard Maltin's Classic Movie Guide
230:, who worked in the series during the silent and early sound eras.
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during the 1980s when he was a cast member, but Thomas's co-star
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In 1950, Billie had a son whom he also named
William Thomas, Jr.
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in his Los Angeles home at the age of 49. Thomas is buried at
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from 1934 until the series' end in 1944. He was a native of
815:"Spanky" McFarland discusses Buckwheat in a 1987 appearance
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tenure, Thomas's Buckwheat character was often paired with
346:" stereotype. However, the work of Thomas and the other
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for ten years, appearing in all but one of the shorts,
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933:. Bend, Oregon. Associated Press. December 19, 1991
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1035:The Sons of the Desert Convention/Our Gang Reunion
910:'20/20' Producer Resigns Over Buckwheat Interview.
604:The Little Rascals: The Life and Times of Our Gang
495:. On November 30, 2012, he died at the age of 62.
374:editing the shorts under the NAACP's supervision.
202:Thomas began appearing as "Buckwheat" with 1935's
199:, and by Willie Mae Walton in three other shorts.
747:Our Gang: A Racial History of The Little Rascals
661:. Albany: State University of New York. p.
435:At "Hollywood 80", the second annual meeting of
360:Our Gang: A Racial History of The Little Rascals
1436:United States Army personnel of the Korean War
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506:performed a series of Buckwheat sketches on
927:"Buckwheat actor's son sues ABC over phony"
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792:"Otay!" The Billy "Buckwheat" Thomas Story
493:"Otay!" The Billy "Buckwheat" Thomas Story
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1396:20th-century African-American male actors
1024:Otay!" The Billy "Buckwheat" Thomas Story
164:Billie Thomas first appeared in the 1934
601:; Bann, Richard W. (November 24, 1992).
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280:(due to sickness; fellow child actor
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1327:The Little Rascals Christmas Special
718:Siegel, Robert (December 25, 2015).
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416:reels for motion pictures such as
339:, was completed in November 1943.
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1386:20th-century American male actors
1031: (archived February 12, 2010)
1013:Billie "Buckwheat" Thomas
1004:Billie "Buckwheat" Thomas
995:Billie "Buckwheat" Thomas
986:Billie "Buckwheat" Thomas
831:Wallace, Amy (November 8, 1992).
749:. University of Minnesota Press.
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916:. Oct. 12 1990. Part F. Page 25.
745:Lee, Julia (December 30, 2015).
27:American child actor (1931–1980)
1308:The Little Rascals Save the Day
990:American Film Institute Catalog
686:Pilgrim, David (October 2000).
388:National Defense Service Medal
284:filled in for him), made from
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1106:Our Gang / The Little Rascals
193:'s younger sister Carlena in
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653:Jackson, Ronald L. (2006).
563:White House press secretary
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688:"The Picaninny Caricature"
405:to me, with no security."
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694:. Ferris State University
516:, who played "Spanky" in
298:George "Spanky" McFarland
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36:Billie "Buckwheat" Thomas
1411:Hal Roach Studios actors
1260:Our Gang Follies of 1936
886:. Norwalk, Connecticut.
772:The Terrible Catsafterme
770:"Yes, I Met Buckwheat" (
412:corporation, processing
52:Our Gang Follies of 1938
48:Thomas as "Buckwheat" in
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437:The Sons of the Desert
372:King World Productions
302:Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer
228:Allen "Farina" Hoskins
191:Matthew "Stymie" Beard
785:Thomas, William Jr.;
724:All Things Considered
1204:Mama's Little Pirate
1040:Yes, I Met Buckwheat
789:(February 1, 2010).
205:Mama's Little Pirate
1212:Anniversary Trouble
1148:When the Wind Blows
890:. November 25, 1994
509:Saturday Night Live
322:Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
312:Thomas remained in
270:Thomas remained in
260:Classic Movie Guide
1335:The Little Rascals
1300:The Little Rascals
1172:The First Round-Up
795:. Bear Manor Media
566:Karine Jean-Pierre
392:Good Conduct Medal
348:black cast members
294:Eugene "Porky" Lee
175:The First Round-Up
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50:
29:
1381:1980 deaths
1376:1931 births
1338:(1982–1984)
1244:Little Papa
1236:Sprucin' Up
1188:Mike Fright
1118:Filmography
894:February 5,
799:February 5,
429:Logan's Run
410:Technicolor
152:Los Angeles
148:short films
106:Child actor
78:Los Angeles
1370:Categories
1319:Television
1062:1934-1944
572:References
453:Tommy Bond
424:Metrocolor
422:, and for
378:Later life
344:pickaninny
214:pickaninny
130:Thomas Jr.
102:Occupation
70:1931-03-12
1123:Personnel
620:March 12,
477:Inglewood
384:U.S. Army
356:Julia Lee
255:riverboat
134:Buckwheat
1426:Our Gang
1355:Category
1140:Our Gang
1058:Our Gang
1008:AllMovie
883:The Hour
457:Joe Cobb
441:Our Gang
403:rat race
399:Our Gang
331:Our Gang
314:Our Gang
290:Our Gang
272:Our Gang
245:Our Gang
226:member,
224:Our Gang
187:Our Gang
166:Our Gang
159:Our Gang
139:Our Gang
1027:at the
988:at the
937:May 18,
820:YouTube
539:Arizona
168:shorts
136:in the
122:William
1330:(1979)
1311:(2014)
1303:(1994)
1295:(1938)
1287:(1936)
1279:(1936)
1271:(1936)
1263:(1935)
1255:(1935)
1247:(1935)
1239:(1935)
1231:(1935)
1223:(1935)
1215:(1935)
1207:(1934)
1199:(1934)
1191:(1934)
1183:(1934)
1175:(1934)
1167:(1934)
1159:(1934)
1151:(1930)
1143:(1922)
842:May 2,
753:
730:May 2,
698:May 2,
669:
611:
483:Legacy
455:, and
390:and a
333:film,
126:Billie
1132:Films
726:. NPR
556:20/20
552:20/20
534:20/20
463:Death
364:NAACP
210:Topsy
999:IMDb
939:2014
896:2020
844:2018
801:2019
751:ISBN
732:2018
700:2018
667:ISBN
622:2020
609:ISBN
443:ers
419:Jaws
394:.
300:and
241:afro
189:kid
179:and
86:Died
60:Born
1015:at
1006:at
997:at
863:",
818:on
638:at
527:ABC
475:in
320:to
1372::
929:.
912:"
880:.
852:^
835:.
722:.
708:^
690:.
665:.
663:27
580:^
479:.
451:,
447:,
173:,
154:.
146:)
128:"
1097:e
1090:t
1083:v
1022:"
941:.
908:"
898:.
846:.
803:.
759:.
734:.
702:.
675:.
624:.
177:,
142:(
124:"
72:)
68:(
20:)
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