← Home
Billy Curtis

Billy Curtis

Acting

Born: June 27, 1909Springfield, Massachusetts, USA

Billy Curtis (June 27, 1909 - November 9, 1988) was an American film and television actor. He was a dwarf who had a 50-year career in a variety of roles. He was born on 27 June 1909 in Springfield, Massachusetts, and died November 9, 1988 in Dayton, Nevada, of a heart attack. According to the IMDb site, his birth name was Luigi Curto, and his height was 4 feet 2 inches (1.27 m). The bulk of his work was in the western and science fiction genres. One of his early jobs was as one of the Munchkins in The Wizard of Oz. He also appeared in Adventures of Superman in the 1950s. Most notably, Curtis worked in westerns, including the Clint Eastwood feature, High Plains Drifter in which he featured as Mordecai, a friendly dwarf sympathetic to Eastwood, he also appeared in the 1938 Musical/Western The Terror of Tiny Town. This film is, as far as is known, the world's only Western with an all-dwarf cast. Many of the actors in Tinytown were part of a performing troupe called Singer's Midgets, who also played Munchkins in The Wizard of Oz, released in 1939. He also had a starring role in American International Pictures' 1973 release, Little Cigars, about a gang of "midgets" on a crime spree.

Known For
Filmography
Father Guido Sarducci's Vatican Inquirer: The Pope's Tour

Father Guido Sarducci's Vatican Inquirer: The Pope's Tour

Monsignor Duffy

1986
Head Office

Head Office

Reverend Lynch

1985
It Came Upon the Midnight Clear

It Came Upon the Midnight Clear

Elf #2

1984
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs

Barnaby

1984
Eating Raoul

Eating Raoul

Little Person

1982
Loose Shoes

Loose Shoes

Menchkin

1978
The Wild McCullochs

The Wild McCullochs

Charlie P.

1975
White House Madness

White House Madness

Secret Service Man

1975
Little Cigars

Little Cigars

Slick Bender

1973
High Plains Drifter

High Plains Drifter

Mordecai

1973
Evil Roy Slade

Evil Roy Slade

Toy Cowboy (uncredited)

1972
Aphrodisiac: The Love Secret

Aphrodisiac: The Love Secret

Man on the Street Interviewee

1971
Norwood

Norwood

Edmund B. Ratner

1970
Hello, Dolly!

Hello, Dolly!

Little Person (uncredited)

1969
The Comic

The Comic

Lifeguard in Film (uncredited)

1969
The Legend of Lylah Clare

The Legend of Lylah Clare

Clown (uncredited)

1968
Planet of the Apes

Planet of the Apes

Child Ape (uncredited)

1968
Out of Sight

Out of Sight

The Man From F.L.U.S.H.

1966

Bob Hope Christmas Show

Self

1965
Two on a Guillotine

Two on a Guillotine

Big Mike (uncredited)

1965
Robin and the 7 Hoods

Robin and the 7 Hoods

Newsboy

1964
Backstage Party

Backstage Party

Self

1961
Man of a Thousand Faces

Man of a Thousand Faces

Harry Earles (uncredited)

1957
The Incredible Shrinking Man

The Incredible Shrinking Man

Midget

1957
Friendly Persuasion

Friendly Persuasion

Midget at County Fair (uncredited)

1956
Jungle Moon Men

Jungle Moon Men

Damu

1955
Princess of the Nile

Princess of the Nile

Tut (uncredited)

1954
Limelight

Limelight

Midget in Agent's Office (uncredited)

1952
Superman and the Mole Men

Superman and the Mole Men

Mole-Man (uncredited)

1951
Pygmy Island

Pygmy Island

Makuba

1950
Homicide for Three

Homicide for Three

Circus Performer

1948
April Showers

April Showers

Capt. Rudolph L. Nemo

1948
Buck Privates Come Home

Buck Privates Come Home

1947
The Hard Way

The Hard Way

Vaudeville Midget (Uncredited)

1943
Lucky Legs

Lucky Legs

Newsboy

1942
Saboteur

Saboteur

Midget - Circus Troupe

1942
Don't Lie

Don't Lie

Melinda, the chimp

1942
Tramp, Tramp, Tramp!

Tramp, Tramp, Tramp!

Midget

1942
Hellzapoppin'

Hellzapoppin'

Bodyguard (uncredited)

1941
Ice-Capades

Ice-Capades

George

1941
Emergency Landing

Emergency Landing

Judge

1941
Maisie Was a Lady

Maisie Was a Lady

Midget (Uncredited)

1941
The Wizard of Oz

The Wizard of Oz

Munchkin (uncredited)

1939
Three Texas Steers

Three Texas Steers

Hercules - the Midget

1939
The Terror of Tiny Town

The Terror of Tiny Town

The Hero (Buck Lawson)

1938