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Billy Barty, a 3'10" actor whose career spanned seven decades and all types of roles, began his acting career early on. By age three, he was already starring in a 1927 Hollywood feature.
In 1957, Barty founded Little People of America, an advocacy group for others with dwarfism. He later created a non-profit foundation to help improve the quality of life for dwarfs, or little people, as he preferred to call them. The official name of the syndrome is called Cartilage Hair Syndrome Hypoplasia.
In October 2000, Barty was awarded the Long Beach Film Festival's Humanitarian of the Year Award. He also was active in George W. Bush's presidential campaign and he served on a disabilities commission for Jack Kemp when Kemp was secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Barty died December 23, 2000, at the age of 76.
Last updated: June 02, 2004.
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