Billy Eugene Hughes, Jr. (November 28, 1948 – December 20, 2005) was an American

actor An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...

best known for various

television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

and

film A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...

roles he played during the 1960s. His Hollywood lineage included both his father (Bill Hughes) and uncle (Whitey Hughes), who were both stuntmen and film producers. While in

Alma, Arkansas Alma is a city in Crawford County, in far western Arkansas, United States. It is located within the Arkansas River Valley at the edge of the Ozark Mountains; the city is the sixth largest in the Fort Smith metropolitan area. The population wa ...

, in 2005, aged 57, he apparently died while in his sleep.

Television roles

Between 1960 and 1964 Hughes appeared in over a dozen television programs, beginning with ''

Robert Taylor's Detectives ''The Detectives'' (also known as ''The Detectives Starring Robert Taylor'', ''Captain of Detectives'', and ''Robert Taylor's Detectives'') is an American crime drama series which ran on ABC during its first two seasons (sponsored by Procter & Gam ...

'', where he played the role of Bobby Marx in the episode "The Little Witness". Other TV work included ''

The Shirley Temple Show ''Shirley Temple's Storybook'' is a 1958–61 American children's anthology series hosted and narrated by actress Shirley Temple. The series features adaptations of fairy tales like Mother Goose and other family-oriented stories performed by wel ...

'', ''

Leave It to Beaver ''Leave It to Beaver'' is an American television sitcom that follows the misadventures of a suburban boy, his family and his friends. It starred Barbara Billingsley, Hugh Beaumont, Tony Dow and Jerry Mathers. CBS first broadcast the show ...

'', ''

Gunsmoke ''Gunsmoke'' is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman Macdonnell and writer John Meston. It centered on Dodge City, Kansas, in the 1870s, during the settlement of the American West. The central charact ...

'', ''

The Twilight Zone ''The Twilight Zone'' is an American media franchise based on the anthology series, anthology television series created by Rod Serling in which characters find themselves dealing with often disturbing or unusual events, an experience described ...

'', ''

Dr. Kildare Dr. James Kildare is a fictional American medical doctor, originally created in the 1930s by the author Frederick Schiller Faust under the pen name Max Brand. Shortly after the character's first appearance in a magazine story, Paramount Pictur ...

'', ''

Wagon Train ''Wagon Train'' is an American Western television series that aired for eight seasons, first on the NBC television network (1957–1962) and then on ABC (1962–1965). ''Wagon Train'' debuted on September 18, 1957, and reached the top of the ...

'', and ''

Lassie Lassie is a fictional female Rough Collie dog and is featured in a 1938 short story by Eric Knight that was later expanded to a 1940 full-length novel, '' Lassie Come-Home''. Knight's portrayal of Lassie bears some features in common with anot ...

''. Hughes appeared in three different episodes of ''Gunsmoke'' between 1961 and '62, playing the roles of Joey Glover (in "Millie"), Timmy (in "Us Haggens"), which introduced

Ken Curtis Ken Curtis (born Curtis Wain Gates; July 2, 1916 – April 28, 1991) was an American actor and singer best known for his role as Festus Haggen on the Western television series ''Gunsmoke''. Early years Born the youngest of three boys in ...

in the role of Festus, and Tommy. From 1961 to 1964 he also had three appearances on ''Wagon Train'' (playing Adam Bancroft as a Boy, Mark Basham, and Matt). Two of his three appearances on ''Lassie'' were in the role of Billy Joe (in the 1961 episodes "Cracker Jack" and "Yochim's Christmas"), while in 1964 he played Ricky Sutton in the episode "Climb the Mountain Slowly". Hughes also appeared in three episodes of ''

The Rifleman ''The Rifleman'' is an American Western television series starring Chuck Connors as rancher Lucas McCain and Johnny Crawford as his son Mark McCain. It was set in the 1880s in the fictional town of North Fork, New Mexico Territory. The show ...

'': "Long Gun From Tucson", "Day of Reckoning", and "Sidewinder". In "Sidewinder", he had a lead role playing 13-year-old Gridley Maule Jr., a young gunman seeking vengeance for his father's death. Filmed while he was still only thirteen years old, Hughes displayed remarkable talent at handling a Colt revolver. According to a close friend of Hughes, this was one of his favorite roles.

Television appearances

Filmography

*'' Ole Rex'' (1961) - The runaway boy *''

Posse from Hell ''Posse from Hell'' is a 1961 American Western film directed by Herbert Coleman and starring Audie Murphy and John Saxon. Plot In 1880 four escapees from death row, Crip, Leo, Chunk, and Hash ride into the town of Paradise and enter the Rosebu ...

'' (1961) - Jackie Hutchins (uncredited role) *'' Stakeout!'' (1962) - Joey Dasco, Jr. *'' My Six Loves'' (1963) - Leo *''

Smoke in the Wind ''Smoke in the Wind'' is a 1975 American Western film directed by Andy Brennan and Joseph Kane. It marked Walter Brennan's final film role as he died over six months before the film's release. Plot In 1865, the American Civil War has just ended ...

'' (1975) - Till Mondier (as Billy Hughes, Jr.) Billy Hughes also had an uncredited stunt role in the 1969 film ''

The Wild Bunch ''The Wild Bunch'' is a 1969 American epic revisionist Western film directed by Sam Peckinpah and starring William Holden, Ernest Borgnine, Robert Ryan, Edmond O'Brien, Ben Johnson and Warren Oates. The plot concerns an aging outlaw gang ...

''. He is sometimes mistakenly credited with a role in ''

Gone with the West ''Gone with the West'' is a 1975 American Western film starring James Caan and Stefanie Powers, directed by Bernard Girard. The film is also known as ''Little Moon & Jud McGraw'' in Australia and ''Little Moon and Jud McGraw'' (American reissue ...

'' (1975) but this was likely a token appearance by his father Billy Hughes Sr.

References

External links

*
Billy Hughes Memorial on A Minor Consideration Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hughes, Billy American male child actors American male film actors 1948 births 2005 deaths 20th-century American male actors