Actor. He was one of the most popular of "The Little Rascals". He played Buckwheat in 93 "Our Gang" films, beginning in 1934. Conceived as a replacement for Matthew "Stymie" Beard, Buckwheat was originally an androgynous character with a tangle of braids, but with time he assumed his true gender and standard costume of floppy hat, striped shirt, and tattered pants precariously held up by one suspender. His garbled English---punctuated by his signature exclamation, "Otay!"---belied a craftiness that put him one step ahead of the bigger kids, and he was often paired with the inscrutable Porky as a sort of Greek chorus to the Gang's antics. Buckwheat stayed with "Our Gang" until the series' demise in 1944. Described by his co-stars as easygoing and cooperative, Thomas had seemingly little difficulty adjusting to life outside of show business. After serving in the Army during the Korean War (and obviously not World War II, as noted on his grave marker), he worked for many years as a lab technician at Technicolor and made few attempts to cash in on his fame. When he was given a standing ovation at an "Our Gang" reunion in August of 1980, Thomas was moved to tears. Two months later he died of a heart attack. He was 49. His Buckwheat character was affectionately spoofed by Eddie Murphy during the comedian's stint on TV's "Saturday Night Live" in the early 1980s. Thomas was born in Los Angeles.
Actor. He was one of the most popular of "The Little Rascals". He played Buckwheat in 93 "Our Gang" films, beginning in 1934. Conceived as a replacement for Matthew "Stymie" Beard, Buckwheat was originally an androgynous character with a tangle of braids, but with time he assumed his true gender and standard costume of floppy hat, striped shirt, and tattered pants precariously held up by one suspender. His garbled English---punctuated by his signature exclamation, "Otay!"---belied a craftiness that put him one step ahead of the bigger kids, and he was often paired with the inscrutable Porky as a sort of Greek chorus to the Gang's antics. Buckwheat stayed with "Our Gang" until the series' demise in 1944. Described by his co-stars as easygoing and cooperative, Thomas had seemingly little difficulty adjusting to life outside of show business. After serving in the Army during the Korean War (and obviously not World War II, as noted on his grave marker), he worked for many years as a lab technician at Technicolor and made few attempts to cash in on his fame. When he was given a standing ovation at an "Our Gang" reunion in August of 1980, Thomas was moved to tears. Two months later he died of a heart attack. He was 49. His Buckwheat character was affectionately spoofed by Eddie Murphy during the comedian's stint on TV's "Saturday Night Live" in the early 1980s. Thomas was born in Los Angeles.
Bio by: Bobb Edwards
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