Billy Barty Movies
American dwarf actor Billy Barty always claimed to have been born in the early '20s, but the evidence of his somewhat wizened, all-knowing countenance in his film appearances of the 1930s would suggest that he was at least ten years shy of the whole truth. At any rate, Barty made many film appearances from at least 1931 onward, most often cast as bratty children due to his height. He was a peripheral member of an Our Gang rip-off in the Mickey McGuire comedy shorts, portrayed the infant-turned-pig in Alice in Wonderland (1933), he did a turn in blackface as a "shrunken" Eddie Cantor in Roman Scandals (also 1933), and he frequently popped up as a lasciviously leering baby in the risqué musical highlights of Busby Berkeley's Warner Bros. films. One of Barty's most celebrated cinema moments occurred in 1937's Nothing Sacred, in which, playing a small boy, he pops up out of nowhere to bite Fredric March in the leg. Barty was busy but virtually anonymous in films, since he seldom received screen credit. TV audiences began to connect his name with his face in the 1950s when Barty was featured on various variety series hosted by bandleader Spike Jones. Disdainful of certain professional "little people" who rely on size alone to get laughs, Barty was seen at his very best on the Jones programs, dancing, singing, and delivering dead-on impressions: the diminutive actor's takeoff on Liberace was almost unbearably funny. Though he was willing to poke fun at himself on camera, Barty was fiercely opposed to TV and film producers who exploited midgets and dwarves, and as he continued his career into the 1970s and '80s, Barty saw to it that his own roles were devoid of patronization -- in fact, he often secured parts that could have been portrayed by so-called "normal" actors, proof that one's stature has little to do with one's talent. A two-fisted advocate of equitable treatment of short actors, Billy Barty took time away from his many roles in movies (Foul Play [1978], Willow [1988]) and TV to maintain his support organization The Little People of America and the Billy Barty Foundation. Billy Barty died in December 2000 of heart failure. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
This greatest of all Frankenstein movies begins during a raging thunderstorm. Warm and cozy inside their palatial villa, Lord Byron (Gavin Gordon), Percy Shelley (Douglas Walton), and Shelley's wife Mary (Elsa Lanchester) engage in morbidly sparkling conversation. The wicked Byron mockingly chastises Mary for frightening the literary world with her recent novel Frankenstein, but Mary insists that her horror tale preached a valuable moral, that man was not meant to dabble in the works of God. Moreover, Mary adds that her story did not end with the death of Frankenstein's monster, whereupon she tells the enthralled Byron and Shelley what happened next. Surviving the windmill fire that brought the original 1931 Frankenstein to a close, the Monster (Boris Karloff) quickly revives and goes on another rampage of death and destruction. Meanwhile, his ailing creator Henry Frankenstein (Colin Clive) discovers that his former mentor, the demented Doctor Praetorius (Ernst Thesiger), plans to create another life-sized monster -- this time a woman! After a wild and wooly "creation" sequence, the bandages are unwrapped, and the Bride of the Monster (Elsa Lanchester again) emerges. Alas, the Monster's tender efforts to connect with his new Mate are rewarded only by her revulsion and hoarse screams. "She hate me," he growls, "Just like others!" Wonderfully acted and directed, The Bride of Frankenstein is further enhanced by the vivid Franz Waxman musical score; even the film's occasional lapses in logic and continuity (it was trimmed from 90 to 75 minutes after the first preview) are oddly endearing. Director James Whale was memorably embodied by Ian McKellen in the Oscar-winning 1998 biopic Gods and Monsters. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Boris Karloff, Colin Clive, (more)
- 1953
An unofficial remake of The Champ, The Clown concerns Dodo Delwyn (Red Skelton), a down-and-out performer with abundant and obvious talent, but also a self-destructive tendency to overindulge his drinking and gambling habits. Once a Ziegfeld headliner, Dodo is now lucky to get jobs playing a clown at cheap amusement parks and even cheaper burlesque. Dodo's addictions cost him his marriage, but he somehow is able to maintain custody of his son Dink (Tim Considine), whose love for and faith in his father knows no bounds. Dink and Dodo's desperate need for each other is threatened when Dink's mother -- married again and capable of providing him with a better life -- reappears and explains that she wants to take care of the boy herself. Dink goes behind his father's back to locate his old agent, and begs him to help Dodo; but the agent cannot do anything. Dink goes away with his mother, but is miserable and runs back to his father. The agent, meanwhile, has managed to wrangle a TV show for Dodo -- and now that his son is back and needs him, Dodo resolves to find the courage to take up this offer and make a success of it. ~ Craig Butler, Rovi
- Starring:
- Red Skelton, Tim Considine, (more)
The Day of the Locust is anything but a cheerful, light look at Hollywood in the '30s. It recreates both the town as well as the filmmaking world around which much of the town revolved with devastating accuracy. The movie tells the twin tales of talentless wannabe actress Faye Greener (Karen Black) and Homer Simpson (Donald Sutherland), a lovelorn accountant who couldn't care less about movies. Around this framework, a huge and intricate social network is tellingly revealed, until the film's gruesome and tragic ending. Not for those who prefer to hang onto their illusions about the glory days of Hollywood, The Day of the Locust, based on the novel by Nathanael West, is a must-see for serious film buffs. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi
- Starring:
- Donald Sutherland, Karen Black, (more)
- 1977
- R
When a sex scandal threatens to blow the top off Washington politics, celebrated madame and advice columnist Xaviera Hollander (Joey Heatherton) is drawn into the fray. The hooker at the center of the controversy is a friend, and when the girl conveniently disappears, Xaviera is outraged. Meanwhile, a group of senators attempts to deflect public attention from themselves by holding a series of hearings on sexual excesses in American society. They decide to scapegoat "The Happy Hooker" for her well-publicized exploits, and she is subpoenaed as a hostile witness in their crusade against loose values. Though Xaviera isn't concerned, her attorney (George Hamilton) warns her that vital issues of censorship and personal freedom are at stake. They fly to Washington D.C., where Xaviera's irreverent testimony breathes some life into the stuffy proceedings. She tweaks the sensibilities of the senators (David White, Phil Foster, Jack Carter and Ray Walston) and holds their hypocrisy up to the daylight. Halfway through the hearings, Xaviera is kidnapped by an undercover CIA agent (Billy Barty) and pressed into service for her country. She is secretly sent to Miami to seduce a politically important (and impotent) Arabian sheik (Jerry Fischer), and while doing her duty discovers the missing hooker among his harem. Xaviera returns to Washington and triumphantly discredits the senate sub-committee by exposing its members as perverts and white slavers, thus saving erotic freedom for Americans everywhere. Joe E. Ross, Larry Storch and Rip Taylor are among the celebrities who make cameos in this mild ribaldry. ~ Fred Beldin, Rovi
- Starring:
- Joey Heatherton, George Hamilton, (more)
- 1988
This animated adventure tells of Ralph the talking and motorcycle riding mouse. Episodes include "The Mouse and the Motorcycle" and "Runaway Ralph." ~ Rovi
In this broad comedy, two buddies named Frank, with more ambition than sense, are en route to Hollywood in hopes of breaking into the movie business when they accidentally witness a Mafia execution. Before they know it, they're witnesses in a criminal case the FBI is preparing against the Mob, and the two Franks are suddenly being chased by Mafia hit men. The Franks get the "brilliant" idea of disguising themselves as women and posing as make-up artists at an upcoming beauty pageant to avoid being killed -- not knowing that this event is also controlled by the mob. The Naked Truth features M. Emmet Walsh, Erik Estrada, Shannon Tweed, Little Richard and Billy Barty. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- 1976
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Love him or hate him comedian Paul Lynde - the master of the slow burn, who presided over the "center square" on Hollywood Squares for years and made famous the character of Uncle Arthur on Bewitched - also mounted this all-star Halloween special in late October 1976. The story, adapted from A Christmas Carol, has the comedic actor cast as "Paul Lynde", a more severe and hateful variant of his typically snide and sarcastic on-camera persona, who detests all things associated with Halloween. Three witches then crop up and determine to change his mind, ala Scrooge. The plethora of guest stars includes Tim Conway, Florence Henderson, Donny and Marie Osmond, the glam rock band KISS, Betty White, Roz Kelly, Billy Barty and Margaret Hamilton, from The Wizard of Oz. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi
Bernard (voice of Bob Newhart) and Miss Bianca (voice of Eva Gabor), the intrepid mouse squad from the International Rescue Society of The Rescuers, return to help a little boy from the Australian outback named Cody (voice of Adam Ryen), who has been kidnapped by an evil poacher named McLeach (voice of George C. Scott). Enlisting the air services of Wilbur the Albatross (voice of John Candy), the two mice travel to the wasteland of Australia. McLeach is a dark complexioned exploiter who scours the Outback in a giant hovercraft, intent on capturing endangered species and selling them for a hefty profit. Bernard and Miss Bianca befriend a Paul Hogan-type mouse named Jake (Tristan Rogers), but to battle against the evil McLeach, Bernard's wisdom is required in order to save the day. Disney got its feet wet in computer animation with several impressive flight sequences, which bracket the film. ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi
- Starring:
- Bob Newhart, Eva Gabor, (more)
- 1988
This television documentary chronicles the career of Spike Jones, a talented musical satirist who had audiences of the '50s rolling in the aisles as he and his City Slickers committed inventive forms of musical murder on some of America's most beloved songs. Archival footage from performances during the early '50s, coupled with interviews of former band members and Jones' family, round out the show. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- 1957
Legendary shlockmeister Roger Corman and long-time collaborator Charles B. Griffith attempted to cash in on the popular 1950s surge in Bridey Murphy reincarnation mania with this confusing and throughly weird thriller. It begins with researcher Richard Garland hypnotizing streetwalker Pamela Duncan in an attempt to record her past-life experiences as a condemned witch in the Dark Ages. After numerous silly attempts by Garland to save her -- including regressing himself into the same period, where, by remarkable coincidence, he also lived as a soldier -- Duncan decides not to alter the course of history, and she resigns herself to her fate. Despite the spooky ambience, a cast of Corman regulars (including Mel Welles and Allison Hayes), and some clever plot twists -- including one which finds the tables turned on our meddling scientist -- Griffith's static and talky screenplay is so absurdly crammed with half-baked metaphysical musings that it becomes almost impossible to discern the plot. ~ Cavett Binion, Rovi
- Starring:
- Pamela Duncan, Richard Garland, (more)
- 1972
Olivia (Michael Learned) strongly disapproves when husband John (Ralph Waite) invites four travelling carnival performers (one of them played by legendary "little person" Billy Barty) to stay with the Walton family. The quartet of "carnies" had found themselves stranded after their manager skipped town with the carnival's profits. Ever so gradually, Olivia warms up to these curious but likeable nomads -- and when the four entertainers discover that the Waltons hadn't had enough money to attend their carnival when it first arrived on the Mountain, a very special performance is staged in the family's barn. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1986
- PG
Burt Lancaster and Kirk Douglas team up one last time in Tough Guys. Harry Doyle (Lancaster) and Archie Lang (Douglas) are two old-time train robbers, who held up a train in 1956 and have been incarcerated for thirty years. After serving their time, they are released from jail and have to adjust to a new life of freedom, now as old men. Harry and Archie realize that they still have the pizzazz when, picking up their prison checks at a bank, they foil a robbery attempt. Archie, who spent his prison time pumping himself up, easily picks up a 20-year-old aerobics instructor named Skye (Darlanne Fluegel). Harry, on the other hand, has to waste away his days in a nursing home. They both have festering resentments --Archie for having to endure a humiliating job as a busboy; Harry for having to endure patronizing attitudes toward senior citizens. The two old pals finally go back to what they know best. After successfully robbing an armored car, they decide to rob the same train that they robbed thirty years ago. ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi
- Starring:
- Kirk Douglas, Burt Lancaster, (more)
- 1976
In this mystery, twin gumshoes team up to expose a band of bogus spiritualists involved in murder . ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- 1989
- PG13
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UHF is the film debut of comedy rock satirist Weird Al Yankovic, who also co-wrote the screenplay. George Newman (Yankovic) and his friend Bob (David Bowe from The Cable Guy) are fired from their jobs at Burger World. So George decides to take over Channel 62, a failing local TV station that his uncle Harvey (Stanley Brock) won in a poker game. George turns it around into an overnight success after letting the janitor, Stanley Spadowski (Michael Richards from Seinfeld), host a kid's show. George then fills the broadcast day with bizarre programming, bringing the ratings up and saving the station. Soon, rival station CEO R.J. Fletcher (Kevin McCarthy) of Channel 8 threatens to sabotage the successful station, and George must come up with a way to save it. Only loosely constructed around this storyline, UHF is mostly a series of TV, movie, and music parodies strung together and played for cheap laughs. UHF also stars Victoria Jackson, Emo Philips, and Fran Drescher. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi
- Starring:
- "Weird Al" Yankovic, Michael Richards, (more)
- 1981
- PG
In this comedy, a hotel becomes a chaotic place during the 1938 filming of The Wizard of Oz, when it is inundated with groups of midgets, secret agents, and Nazi and Japanese spies. ~ Iotis Erlewine, Rovi
- Starring:
- Chevy Chase, Carrie Fisher, (more)
- 1976
- PG
W.C. Fields and Me is the film version of the Fields biography written by the comedian's former mistress Carlotta Monti. W. C. Fields was a great comedian in vaudeville and early talking films, who was noted for his ability to say the most hilariously cutting and mean things in a cheery, bright tone of voice. He had amazing skills in the manipulation of objects, from pieces of paper to crooked cue sticks. Rod Steiger plays Fields, while Valerie Perrine portrays Ms. Monti. Jack Cassidy is also on hand as Fields' close friend and drinking crony John Barrymore. The film is not above sacrificing facts for a good story, notably in its recreation of Fields' celebrated "dentist" routine which. W. C. Fields and Me depicts the great juggler/comedian as a straightforwardly mean-spirited man, whereas he is generally believed to have been more complex than that. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Rod Steiger, Valerie Perrine, (more)
Though Willow was one of director Ron Howard's few box-office disappointments, it definitely deserves a second look. At once an epic celebration and a gentle spoof of the sword-and-sorcery genre, the film concerns the efforts by little person Willow Ufgood (Warwick Davis) to protect a sacred infant from the machinations of a wicked queen (Jean Marsh). One source book has assessed the picture as a combination of The Ten Commandments and Snow White. This is true enough, except that neither one of those properties offered such offbeat casting choices as Billy Barty and Jean Marsh. Executive producer George Lucas has (through the conduit of screenwriter Bob Dolman) added elements of his own Star Wars saga to the stew. The results are generally satisfactory, though the film is sometimes weighed down by too much plot, and the action sequences may not be suitable for very young children. Incidentally, this is the film where co-star Val Kilmer met his future wife Joanne Whalley. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Val Kilmer, Joanne Whalley, (more)
- 1992
- NC17
Poor Michael Moore is one messed-up screenwriter who is more depressed than usual when his girl friend abruptly dumps him. His life forever changes when he saves a diminutive old man from street thugs. The little man has magical powers and as a reward for Michael's kindness gives him a notepad. This is no ordinary pad for anything Michael writes upon it will come true. This comedy-adventure follows what happens when the writer begins to use it. First he scrawls his wish that the lovely bank teller Diane Jacobs will enter his life. Unfortunately, he should have been clearer for they meet after they are both abducted by bank robbers. Fortunately, Mike has his trusty pad and they get out of the situation. Next he makes the mistake of telling his avaricious sister Jody about the magic pad. Wanting all of the family fortune for herself, she promptly plans on getting him declared insane. A trip to the courtroom ensues. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- 1976
- PG
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This spoof makes fun of a certain famous German shepherd movie star from the 1920s. The mayhem begins when the head honcho of a financially struggling studio turns a lost dog into a legend. The story features a number of old stars making cameo appearances. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Bruce Dern, Madeline Kahn, (more)
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