| William H. West | |
| Birth Name: | William Flynn |
| Birth Date: | 18 June 1853 |
| Birth Place: | Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| Death Place: | Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| Other Names: | Billy West |
| Known For: | Minstrel shows |
| Occupation: | Actor |
| Spouse: | |
| Children: | 1 |
William H. West (born William Flynn, June 18, 1853 - February 15, 1902) was an American blackface performer.
West was born on June 18, 1853, in Syracuse, New York.
He often produced and played minstrel shows with George H. Primrose, first with a minstrel troupe owned by J. H. Haverly, and later in a show known as Primrose and West starring entertainers Milt G. Barlow and George Wilson, under the management of Henry J. Sayers.
Primrose and West had a hit, and they came to be called "The Millionaires of Minstrelsy".[1] He became the sole producer of the supposedly Richest and Costliest Minstrel Organization in Existence: West's Big Minstrel Jubilee, which featured some of the leading performers of the day, always ending with the cast, in blackface, singing songs of the period.
West was married four times. His brides were:
With the exception of Lizette Morris, all of the wives of West appeared on stage with him in various productions throughout the US.
He died on February 15, 1902 in Chicago of cancer.[4] He was buried at Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York. On his grave marker are the words "None Knew Him But To Love Him. None named him save in praise."