Billy T. James
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Billy T. James, MBE (born William James Taitoko, 1948; died August 7, 1991) was a well known and much-loved entertainer and comedian from New Zealand. He was famous for his black singlet, yellow towel around the neck and a characteristic chuckle that he claimed was inspired by Māori children.
Never a man to take himself seriously, he once said: 'I'm half-Māori and half-Scottish: one half of me wants to get pissed [drunk] and the other half doesn't want to pay for it.' When Maori activist Hana Jackson, lamenting the Māori suicide rate, said that each suicide should each take a white person with them (widely misquoted as "Kill a white") he joked, 'What about a half-caste like me? What do I do, just wound myself?'
According to his daughter Lyn, on one occasion when someone arrived at his farm with a loaded shotgun, he treated it as if it were a game.
In the 1970s, James joined the musical showband, the Māori Volcanics, and toured internationally. While in Australia, he began his solo career and later returned to his native New Zealand. He changed his name due to pronunciation difficulties he apparently confronted in Australia, to "... something the Aussies could pronounce."
In the 1980s, Billy T became a household name through variety show Radio Times and the eponymousThe Billy T. James Show in 1984–6. His film career blossomed around this time, too, with a notable role in Ian Mune's Came a Hot Friday (as the Tainui Kid, a Māori who believes he is a Mexican bandito). In 1985, New Zealanders named him 'Entertainer of the Decade'.
On Television New Zealand, he lampooned many of the sacred cows: the US Entertainment This Week became 'Entertainment That's Weak'.
His other spoofs, well-known amongst New Zealanders of his generation included, ‘Turangi Vice’ (where the ‘Vice Squad’ crack down on illegal trout fishing), ‘Chocky IV’ (an eating competition held in a boxing ring) and a memorable version of the American cop show 'CHiPs'.
In all these, he appeared with his collaborator Peter Rowley. Tony Holden directed the most memorable episodes in 1984.
As an all-round entertainer, James was unequalled. A talented singer and musician he also had a knack for drawing, which was used successfully in his shows.
After the 1985–6 season, his show was not renewed on TVNZ. It had appeared more expensive with location filming, and few of his cabaret-style segments.
He dubbed voices in the feature cartoon Footrot Flats: the Dog's Tale, in 1987.
He also wrote two books of comic strips , Billy T. James' Real Hard-Case Book (volumes 1 and 2), which appeared in the late 1980s.
He wrote and starred in a short-lived sitcom (created with studio exec Tom Parkinson of Isambard Productions), also called The Billy T. James Show, on then-fledgling New Zealand network TV3 in 1989–90. He starred opposite Ilona Rodgers and Mark Hadlow.
His poor health resulted in a heart transplant in 1988, after which he returned in a TV special, Billy T. James: Alive and Gigging, with special guest Sir Howard Morrison, to whom he was related.
James died of a heart attack in 1991 and there was some controversy over where he was to be buried.
William Tupu Awa, kaumatua (elder) of the Ngati Whawhakia hapu of Tainui travelled to the entertainer's residence and removed the body to a marae before its burial on the sacred Taupiri mountain near Turangawaewae marae, Ngaruawahia. This was contrary to the wishes of close relatives who had arranged a church service prior to transport to another marae.
His legacy lives on, not just in the memories of New Zealanders who remember him with great affection, but in events such as the Billy T. Awards where aspiring comedians compete to win the famous yellow towel.
Māori Television revived some of his work in its first few weeks in 2004.
