Willie Best

Highest Rated: 100% At the Circus (1939)

Lowest Rated: 81% Cabin in the Sky (1943)

Birthday: May 27, 1913

Birthplace: Not Available

African American actor Willie Best made his screen debut in Harold Lloyd's Feet First (1930). When Best, a veteran of a travelling show, came to Hollywood, he immediately fell prey to the stereotyping of the era. Promoted as a "new Stepin Fetchit," Best was transformed into a shuffling, "Yassuh boss" character billed as "Sleep 'N' Eat." Studio press releases of the 1930s made outrageous claims that not only did Best enjoy humiliating himself in "darkie" roles, but that the only compensation he wanted for his screen work was three square meals a day and a warm place to sleep. Despite the demeaning nature of his roles, Best performed them with consummate skill and razor sharp comic timing. Bob Hope, who worked with Best in The Ghost Breakers (1940) and Nothing But the Truth (1941), once referred to Willie as "the finest actor I knew." In the 1950s, Willie Best was a fixture at the Hal Roach Studios, playing supporting roles in such Roach-produced TV series as My Little Margie, The Stu Erwin Show and Mark Saber.

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Highest Rated Movies

Filmography

MOVIES

RATING	TITLE	CREDIT	BOX OFFICE	YEAR
No Score Yet	South of Caliente	Willie	—	1951
No Score Yet	Smart Woman	Porter	—	1948
No Score Yet	The Red Stallion	Jackson	—	1947
No Score Yet	Dangerous Money	Chattanooga	—	1946
No Score Yet	The Bride Wore Boots	Joe	—	1946
No Score Yet	The Face of Marble	Shadrach	—	1946
No Score Yet	She Wouldn't Say Yes	Porter	—	1945
No Score Yet	Pillow to Post	Lucille	—	1945
No Score Yet	The Adventures of Mark Twain	George	—	1944
No Score Yet	Home in Indiana	Mo' Bum	—	1944
No Score Yet	Thank Your Lucky Stars	Soldier	—	1943
No Score Yet	The Kansan,(Wagon Wheels)	Bones	—	1943
81%	Cabin in the Sky	Second Idea Man	—	1943
No Score Yet	The Hidden Hand	Eustis the Chauffeur	—	1942
No Score Yet	A-Haunting We Will Go	Waiter	—	1942
No Score Yet	Juke Girl	Jo-Mo	—	1942
No Score Yet	Nothing But the Truth	Samuel	—	1941
No Score Yet	Kisses for Breakfast	Arnold	—	1941
No Score Yet	Road Show	Willie	—	1941
No Score Yet	Flight from Destiny	George	—	1941
92%	High Sierra	Algernon	—	1941
No Score Yet	The Body Disappears	William 'Willie'	—	1941
No Score Yet	Who Killed Aunt Maggie?	Andrew	—	1940
86%	The Ghost Breakers	Alex	—	1940
No Score Yet	Blondie on a Budget	Black Boy	—	1940
No Score Yet	I Take This Woman	Sambo	—	1940
No Score Yet	Slightly Honorable	Art, the Elevator Operator	—	1940
No Score Yet	Blondie	Porter	—	1939
No Score Yet	Mr. Moto Takes a Vacation	Driver	—	1939
No Score Yet	Nancy Drew, Trouble Shooter	Apollo Johnson	—	1939
100%	At the Circus	Actor	—	1939
No Score Yet	The Saint Strikes Back	Algernon	—	1939
100%	Vivacious Lady	Porter	—	1938
No Score Yet	Merrily We Live	George W. Jones	—	1938
No Score Yet	Gold Is Where You Find It	Helper	—	1938
No Score Yet	Saturday's Heroes	Sam	—	1937
No Score Yet	Super-Sleuth	Warts	—	1937
No Score Yet	General Spanky	Henry	—	1936
No Score Yet	Thank You, Jeeves	Drowsy	—	1936
No Score Yet	The Bride Walks Out	Smokie	—	1936
No Score Yet	Murder on a Bridle Path	High Pockets	—	1936
No Score Yet	The Lady Consents	Sam	—	1936
89%	The Littlest Rebel	James Henry	—	1935
No Score Yet	The Nitwits	Sleepy	—	1935
No Score Yet	Murder on a Honeymoon	Willie, Porter	—	1935
No Score Yet	Kentucky Kernels	Buckshot	—	1934
100%	Little Miss Marker	Dizzy Memphis	—	1934
No Score Yet	The Monster Walks	Exodus	—	1932
No Score Yet	Up Pops the Devil	Actor	—	1931
No Score Yet	Feet First	Janitor	—	1930

Quotes from Willie Best's Characters

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