call me Billy."
The stage name of William John Bertanzetti (October 25, 1924 – December 23, 2000), the entertainer, athlete and social activist who founded the Little People of America organization to help little people and their families.
Barty first appeared as an uncredited performer in Busby Berkeley's musicals (typically playing a lascivious kid). He played Mustardseed the fairy in the 1935 film adaptation of A Midsummer Night's Dream. Later he appeared in many Sid and Marty Krofft Productions, most notably Sigmund and the Sea Monsters, and was also the original voice of Epcot mascot Figment. He and Patty Maloney frequently worked together in films and television, as recently as the Batman: Gotham Knights episode "Double Talk". He also appeared in quite a few movies, including the cult classics UHF ("Weird Al" Yankovic being a huge fan of his) and Masters of the Universe. He has a memorable role as a door-to-door Bible salesman who Goldie Hawn mistakes for an assassin in Foul Play.
As noted above, Barty was a prominent activist for little people, and was annoyed that his most famous contemporary, Hervé Villechaize, insisted on continuing to normalize the derogatory term of "midget".
Decades after his death, he remains one of the most famous and influential little people in history.
See also the Official Billy Barty & Friends Web Site
.
TV Tropes filmography for Billy Barty:
- Gold Diggers of 1933 (1933) as Baby (uncredited)
- Footlight Parade (1933) as Mouse/Little Boy (uncredited)
- Bride of Frankenstein (1935) as Baby (deleted role)
- A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935) as Mustard-Seed
- Nothing Sacred (1937) as Boy Biting Wally's Ankle (uncredited)
- The Undead (1957) as the Imp
- The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm (1962) as Court Jester (uncredited)
- The Day of the Locust (1975) as Abe Kusich
- Foul Play (1978) as J.J. MacKuen
- Hardly Working (1980) as Sammy
- Under the Rainbow (1981) as Otto Kriegling
- Legend (1985) as Screwball
- Tough Guys (1986) as Philly
- Masters of the Universe (1987) as Gwildor
- Willow (1988) as High Aldwin
- UHF (1989) as Noodles
- Life Stinks (1991) as Willy
- An Alan Smithee Film: Burn Hollywood Burn (1997) as Himself
- The Extreme Adventures Of Super Dave (2000) as Funeral Eulogist
- Alfred Hitchcock Presents (2 episodes, 1957–64) as George/The Barker
- Peter Gunn (8 episodes, 1958–61) as Babby
- Mr. Lucky (1 episode, 1960) as Tommy the Midget
- Thriller (1 episode, 1961) as Sam
- Rawhide (1 episode, 1961) as Shorty
- My Three Sons (1 episode, 1962) as Billy Longfellow
- The Joey Bishop Show (1 episode, 1963) as Midget
- Julia (1 episode, 1968) as Waiter
- Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In (1 episode, 1968) as Santa Claus (uncredited)
- Get Smart (2 episodes, 1969–70) as Marco/Upper Gemini
- The Bugaloos (1970–71) as Sparky the Firefly
- The Waltons (1 episode, 1972) as Tommy Trimble
- Love, American Style (1 episode, 1973) as Mechanical Elf
- Dusty's Trail (2 episodes, 1973) as Zeno
- Sigmund and the Sea Monsters (1973–74) as Sigmund Ooze
- The Lost Saucer (1 episode, 1975) as Hugo
- Chico and the Man (1 episode, 1976) as Little Hold-Up Man
- Barney Miller (1 episode, 1977) as Mr. Resnick
- Man from Atlantis (1 episode, 1978) as Moxie
- Charlie's Angels (1 episode, 1978) as News Vendor
- The Love Boat (1 episode, 1978) as Ralph Warren
- Supertrain (1 episode, 1979) as Mick
- Fantasy Island (1 episode, 1979) as Alphonse
- CHiPs (1 episode, 1979) as James O'Hara
- Little House on the Prairie (2 episodes, 1979–82) as Owen/Lou Bates
- Hart to Hart (1 episode, 1982) as Big Miller/Aloysius
- Trapper John, M.D. (1 episode, 1984) as Mort Cavanaugh
- The Golden Girls (1 episode, 1985) as Edgar Lindstrom
- Moonlighting (1 episode, 1986) as Himself
- Frasier (1 episode, 1996) as Chris
- LA Heat (1 episode, 1999) as Morty Feinberg
- Filmation's Ghostbusters (1 episode, 1975) as The Rabbit
- The Lord of the Rings (1978) as Character Actor
- Star Fairies (1985) as Troll
- Challenge of the GoBots (1 episode, 1985) as Allorick
- DuckTales (1 episode, 1987) as King Brian
- The Rescuers Down Under (1990) as Baltimouse
- Adventures of the Gummi Bears (1 episode, 1990) as Nemo
- The New Batman Adventures (1 episode, 1997) as Hips McManus
