Billy House (May 7, 1889 – September 23, 1961) was an American vaudevillian, Broadway performer and feature film actor. After devoting most of his career to live performance, he moved to Hollywood where he became a supporting actor during the 1940s and 1950s. According to admirer Orson Welles, the name "Billy House" was likely an invention for use in burlesque theatres.
He was repeatedly used by Walt Disney animators as a live-action model for their cartoon characters. He was filmed dancing and his movements were studied to create the actions of "Doc" in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937). He was also the model for the fat pirate on Captain Hook's ship in Disney's Peter Pan (1953).
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Father of Billy House Jr..
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Once weighed nearly 300 pounds. While performing as a clown for the Gentry Brothers Circus he entered a fat-man contest in Texas and easily won.
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Started out as a trumpet player in Mankato, Minnesota, went on to perform in minstrel shows, circuses, vaudeville, Broadway, motion pictures, radio and television.
Actor
Title
Year
Status
Character
Naked Gun
1956
Judge Cole
Outlaw Women
1952
Uncle Barney
Aladdin and His Lamp
1952
Kafan
Silver City
1951
Tim Malone - Saloon Owner (uncredited)
People Will Talk
1951
Coonan (uncredited)
Santa Fe
1951
Luke Plummer
Where Danger Lives
1950
Mr. Bogardus
Rogues of Sherwood Forest
1950
Friar Tuck
Inner Sanctum
1948
McFee
The Wistful Widow of Wagon Gap
1947
Shotgun Rider (voice, uncredited)
Joe Palooka in the Knockout
1947
Sam Wheeler
The Egg and I
1947
Billy Reed
Trail Street
1947
Carmody
The Stranger
1946
Mr. Potter
Bedlam
1946
Lord Mortimer
Thrill of a Romance
1945
Dr. Tovve
Merry-Go-Round of 1938
1937
Billy
A Tale of Two Cities
1935
Border Guard (uncredited)
Expensive Women
1931
George Allison (as William House)
The Reckless Hour
1931
Seymour Jennison (as William House)
Smart Money
1931
Irontown Salesman (as William House)
God's Gift to Women
1931
Mons. Cesare
Imitation of Life
1959
Fat Man on Beach
The Californians
1959
TV Series
Papa Kelly
Colgate Theatre
1958
TV Series
The Fountain of Youth
1958
TV Short
Albert Morgan
Touch of Evil
1958
Construction Site Foreman (uncredited)
Soundtrack
Title
Year
Status
Character
Merry-Go-Round of 1938
1937
performer: "Six of One and a Half-Dozen of the Other"
$14 Million
