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    Otay! The Billy "Buckwheat" Thomas Story
    Otay! The Billy "Buckwheat" Thomas Story
    Otay! The Billy "Buckwheat" Thomas Story
    Ebook175 pages1 hour

    Otay! The Billy "Buckwheat" Thomas Story

    By William Thomas, Jr.

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    About this ebook

    William Thomas, the man known as "Buckwheat," one of the most beloved characters in the history of the Our Gang and Little Rascals films, rose from obscurity to become an American icon. Billy's heritage grew to be more than the ninety-three comedies in which he appeared as Buckwheat. He was a husband, father, and soldier. Several generations have come to know Buckwheat as if he was a real person, but few knew Billy, the man behind the myth.

    In "Otay!" The Billy "Buckwheat" Thomas Story, William Thomas, Jr., Billy's son, joins with acclaimed author David W. Menefee to brush back the sands of time and unearth the facts beneath the fable. For the first time, the true story is told how producer Hal Roach, Sr. plucked three-year-old Billy from hundreds of children and raised him on a pedestal before an adoring public. For a decade, Billy was the most prominent Black American in motion pictures, but World War Two brought an end to the famous comedy series and a halt to his film career. Billy went on to live a private, nearly normal life, married, fathered an adorable child, and then answered the call to arms and enlisted in the US Army during the Korean War. Years later, imposters attempted to steal his limelight, but Billy forgave the offense with his characteristic, childlike good humor.

    In an era when most Black American actors were struggling to gain a foothold in Hollywood, Billy achieved a lasting legacy. Enjoy the timeless tale of a baby superstar, who once shown brightly on movie screens during Hollywood's "Golden Years" and still fascinates audiences today.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBearManor Media
    Release dateJun 22, 2015
    ISBN9781310289453
    Otay! The Billy "Buckwheat" Thomas Story

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    • 5/5
      I grew up on the Little Rascals and often wonder about the three characters who looked like me, at that time there weren't many shows that provided that. I read the book in one sitting, excellent read..thank you

    Book preview

    Otay! The Billy "Buckwheat" Thomas Story - William Thomas, Jr.

    Introduction

    Childhood lives in the memories of every person as the most wonderful, magical time in their lives. Fantasies and delight color every day in a child’s life, and no recollection of those years was ever more affectionate and humorous than those captured in motion pictures by the Hal Roach Studios. With their Our Gang comedies, which were later known as The Little Rascals, the children never grew up. Their real lives were another story.

    This book celebrates William Thomas, the man known as Buckwheat, one of the most beloved characters in the history of those films. His heritage grew to be more than the ninety-three comedies in which he appeared as Buckwheat. He was a husband, father, soldier, and friend. Several generations have come to know the boy as if he was a real person, but few knew Billy, the man behind the myth.

    In the first years of the twentieth century, motion pictures became popular as entertainment. In every town, nickelodeons sprang up in tiny stores, and new films arrived daily that brought escapism to country yokels who barely knew how to read and to urban immigrants who could barely speak English. Their escape from life’s monotony came from watching the movies. For a nickel, they could watch thrilling melodramas and short comedies. They plunked down millions of coins, and the film industry rushed out as much new product as they could manufacture to quench the public thirst for new stories.

    The nearly year-round sunshine in California attracted film companies to Hollywood, Los Angeles, and the wild suburbs where orange groves and Eucalyptus plants grew taller than a man’s head. In one of these dusty boom towns, a young man named Will Thomas met and married a pretty girl named Mattie.

    Image78

    Hollywood in 1905 before filmmakers invaded the quiet city. The street running horizontally down the center is Hollywood Boulevard, and the home with the oriental cupola still exists today, carefully preserved by the American Society of Cinematographers. Into that valley or orange groves, the grandparents of Billy Thomas arrived.

    Hal Roach (1892-1992), a mule skinner, wrangler, and gold prospector turned truck driver, journeyed to Hollywood looking for an easy way to earn $5 a day. Roach first picked up a job posing in a gambling scene in which nobody knew that the roulette wheel and the ball should go in opposite directions. He set the men straight and was on his way.

    Roach worked as an extra one day, or an assistant the next day. He saw men become directors based on their willingness to be enthusiastic and imaginative when the first rays of the morning sun were just poking through the treetops. In 1913, he met comedian Harold Lloyd. With financing from a small inheritance, Roach began writing, directing, and producing a series of short film comedies starring the actor. Encouraged by success, Roach attracted other stars, and he began producing comedy films with animals and children.

    Image100

    Producer Hal Roach and versatile comedian Harold Lloyd were making films together in the early silent era.

    One day in 1921, Hal Roach looked through the window of his office and watched some kids playing in a nearby lot. They were arguing over a stick as if was the most important thing in the world. Their antics fascinated him and gave birth to the idea for the Our Gang comedy series.

    The series was originally called Hal Roach’s Rascals, and the title of the first film in the series was Our Gang. Children were painstakingly cast to represent a cross section of every neighborhood gang, including a leader and his sidekick, a tag-along toddler, a bully, a pretty girl, and a dog. Children included both African-Americans and females during an era when discrimination against both groups was commonplace. The gang often engaged with snobbish rich kids, bossy adults, and demanding parents. Roach hit gold with the winning formula, and the Our Gang series found immediate success with audiences.

    Image122

    Back in the silent movie era, the kids from the gang were not much different from the later kids. As each child outgrew their roles, replacements were found.

    In March 16, 1926, Hal Roach changed distributors

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