Diminutive American actor Billy Curtis avoided the usual onus of freak-show employment as a youth, opting for a mainstream job as a shoe clerk. Encouraged by stock company actress Shirley Booth to take a little person role in a stage production, Curtis soon became a professional actor, with numerous Broadway musical productions to his credit. ...
| # | Fact |
|---|
| 1 | He worked 50 years in the film business before retiring. A year later, he passed away of a heart attack. |
| 2 | One of his most unusual roles was as the smaller version of "The Thing" (replacing James Arness) in the creature's final scene in The Thing from Another World (1951). |
| 3 | The McDonalds character, Mayor McCheese, was played by Billy, from its creation until his death in 1989. McDonalds retired the character when Billy died in 1989. |
| 4 | Had five grandchildren: 1 by his daughter Judy (named Micheal), 4 by his son Tom (Eric Curtis, who lives in Alexandria LA, Allison Curtis, Kala Curtis, and Jeremiah Curtis who all live with their mother, Deborah, in Prior Lake MN). |
| 5 | Had 2 children, Tom Curtis, now living in Colorado, and Judy Curtis, still living in Santa Monica, California. |
| 6 | Billy Curtis was the main reason for Judy Garland's comment that the Munchkins were "little drunks." He made several passes at her during the production, to which she responded "Mother wouldn't approve.". |
| Title | Year | Status | Character |
|---|
| Bloody Wednesday | 1987 | | Teddy (voice) |
| The Twilight Zone | 1986 | TV Series | Creature (segment "Personal Demons") |
| Head Office | 1985 | | Reverend Lynch |
| It Came Upon the Midnight Clear | 1984 | TV Movie | Elf 2 |
| The Night They Saved Christmas | 1984 | TV Movie | Jack |
| Faerie Tale Theatre | 1984 | TV Series | Barnaby |
| Eating Raoul | 1982 | | Little Person |
| Elephant Parts | 1981 | Video | Propositioning inflatable hooker on park bench during the song: 'lucy and ramona and their brother sunset sam' |
| Open All Night | 1981 | TV Series | Scott Davis |
| Buck Rogers in the 25th Century | 1981 | TV Series | General Yoomak |
| Coming Attractions | 1978 | | Menchkin |
| Laverne & Shirley | 1977 | TV Series | Roger Robot |
| Monster Squad | 1976 | TV Series | The Ringmaster |
| White House Madness | 1975 | | Secret Service Man |
| The Wild McCullochs | 1975 | | Charlie P. |
| How to Seduce a Woman | 1974 | | Toulouse |
| Little Cigars | 1973 | | Slick Bender |
| High Plains Drifter | 1973 | | Mordecai |
| Gunsmoke | 1973 | TV Series | Arizona |
| Evil Roy Slade | 1972 | TV Movie | Toy Cowboy (uncredited) |
| Here's Lucy | 1970 | TV Series | Lucy Parker / Ma Parker |
| Bracken's World | 1970 | TV Series | Harry Johnson |
| Norwood | 1970 | | Edmund B. Ratner |
| Hello, Dolly! | 1969 | | Midget (uncredited) |
| The Comic | 1969 | | Lifeguard in Film (uncredited) |
| The Bob Hope Show | 1967-1969 | TV Series | Sketch Performer |
| Julia | 1969 | TV Series | Small Businessman |
| The Legend of Lylah Clare | 1968 | | Clown (uncredited) |
| Planet of the Apes | 1968 | | Child Ape (uncredited) |
| Star Trek | 1967 | TV Series | Small Copper-Skinned Ambassador |
| Bewitched | 1967 | TV Series | Jack O'Lantern |
| Get Smart | 1966-1967 | TV Series | El Lobo-Ito / Tiny Allen |
| The Wild Wild West | 1967 | TV Series | Gypsy |
| The Beverly Hillbillies | 1966 | TV Series | Spaceman #3 |
| The Phyllis Diller Show | 1966 | TV Series | Augie |
| The Monkees | 1966 | TV Series | Midget |
| Out of Sight | 1966 | | The Man From Flush |
| Batman | 1966 | TV Series | Midget |
| I Spy | 1966 | TV Series | Disguised #2 |
| Ben Casey | 1965 | TV Series | |
| Bob Hope Christmas Show | 1965 | TV Movie | Sketch Performer (uncredited) |
| Harlow | 1965/I | | Newsboy (uncredited) |
| My Three Sons | 1965 | TV Series | Sammy |
| John Goldfarb, Please Come Home! | 1965 | | Little Football Player (uncredited) |
| Two on a Guillotine | 1965 | | Big Mike - Owner / Bartender (uncredited) |
| Robin and the 7 Hoods | 1964 | | Newsboy (uncredited) |
| The Greatest Show on Earth | 1963 | TV Series | Danny (1963-1964) |
| Follow the Sun | 1962 | TV Series | Tiny Tom |
| 77 Sunset Strip | 1961 | TV Series | Monk Carter |
| 87th Precinct | 1961 | TV Series | Willy |
| Tightrope | 1960 | TV Series | The Mascot |
| The Man from Blackhawk | 1960 | TV Series | Colonel Petite |
| The Real McCoys | 1960 | TV Series | Page Boy |
| Adventures in Paradise | 1959 | TV Series | Captain Borcher |
| Make Room for Daddy | 1959 | TV Series | Billy |
| The Angry Red Planet | 1959 | | Martian (uncredited) |
| Rescue 8 | 1959 | TV Series | Volunteer #1 |
| The Jack Benny Program | 1959 | TV Series | Charlie McCarthy Mortimer Snerd |
| Special Agent 7 | 1959 | TV Series | Harry |
| The Adventures of Superpup | 1958 | TV Short | Super Pup / Bark Bent |
| The Red Skelton Hour | 1953-1958 | TV Series | Midget / Giganto the Martian / Supporting Player |
| Shirley Temple's Storybook | 1958 | TV Series | |
| Merry Andrew | 1958 | | Clown (uncredited) |
| Man of a Thousand Faces | 1957 | | Harry Earles - Midget Actor in 'The Unholy Three' (uncredited) |
| Adventures of Superman | 1957 | TV Series | Mr. Zero |
| The Incredible Shrinking Man | 1957 | | Midget |
| Broken Arrow | 1956 | TV Series | Sinbad |
| Friendly Persuasion | 1956 | | Midget at County Fair (uncredited) |
| The Court Jester | 1955 | | One of Hermine's Midgets (uncredited) |
| The Great Gildersleeve | 1955 | TV Series | Mr. Smith |
| Tales of the Texas Rangers | 1955 | TV Series | Count Smorgasbord |
| Jungle Moon Men | 1955 | | Damu |
| 3 Ring Circus | 1954 | | Circus Midget Clown (uncredited) |
| Princess of the Nile | 1954 | | Tut (uncredited) |
| Gog | 1954 | | Gog / Magog operator (uncredited) |
| Gorilla at Large | 1954 | | Slim, Midget Carnival Employee (uncredited) |
| Space Patrol | 1953 | TV Series | Gino |
| Here Come the Girls | 1953 | | Clown (uncredited) |
| The Cisco Kid | 1952 | TV Series | The Laughing Badman |
| Limelight | 1952 | | Midget in Agent's Office (uncredited) |
| Gruen Guild Theater | 1952 | TV Series | |
| Superman and the Mole-Men | 1951 | | Mole-Man (uncredited) |
| Two Tickets to Broadway | 1951 | | Midget in Deli (uncredited) |
| Pygmy Island | 1950 | | Makuba |
| So You Want to Throw a Party | 1950 | Short | W.L. Pipp (uncredited) |
| Jiggs and Maggie in Court | 1948 | | Little Man (uncredited) |
| Homicide for Three | 1948 | | Billy Curtis - Midget |
| Hills of Home | 1948 | | Mighty Mite (uncredited) |
| April Showers | 1948 | | Capt. Rudolph L. Nemo |
| Wedding Belle | 1947 | Short | Tony |
| Blaze of Noon | 1947 | | Midget Barker (uncredited) |
| Buck Privates Come Home | 1947 | | Man (uncredited) |
| Three Wise Fools | 1946 | | Dugan |
| An Angel Comes to Brooklyn | 1945 | | Midget Musician (uncredited) |
| Incendiary Blonde | 1945 | | 'Baby' Joe (uncredited) |
| That's the Spirit | 1945 | | Midget (uncredited) |
| Ghost Catchers | 1944 | | Midget in Nightclub Dinner Gag (uncredited) |
| The Hard Way | 1943 | | Vaudeville Midget (uncredited) |
| Lucky Legs | 1942 | | Newsboy (uncredited) |
| Just Off Broadway | 1942 | | Billy - Midget in Wings (uncredited) |
| Wings for the Eagle | 1942 | | Midget |
| My Gal Sal | 1942 | | Midget Driver (uncredited) |
| Saboteur | 1942 | | Midget - Circus Troupe |
| Don't Lie | 1942 | Short | Melinda, the Chimp |
| Tramp, Tramp, Tramp! | 1942 | | Midget |
| Hellzapoppin' | 1941 | | Bodyguard (uncredited) |
| Outlaws of Cherokee Trail | 1941 | | Papoose (uncredited) |
| Meet John Doe | 1941 | | Midget (uncredited) |
| Emergency Landing | 1941 | | Midget Judge (as Little Billy) |
| Maisie Was a Lady | 1941 | | Midget (uncredited) |
| The Wizard of Oz | 1939 | | Munchkin Father (uncredited) |
| Three Texas Steers | 1939 | | Hercules - the Midget |
| The Terror of Tiny Town | 1938 | | The Hero (Buck Lawson) |
Rachel Newton 
$4 Million
