Charles Budderick "Buddy" Cole is a fictional character created and portrayed by Canadian actor-comedian Scott Thompson. He is an effeminate, gay socialite, made famous on The Kids in the Hall, a popular Canadian sketch comedy series starring the troupe of the same name. The character also had a recurring role on The Colbert Report. He was loosely based on one of Thompson's romantic partners.

Fictional biography

According to the book Buddy Babylon, Cole was the youngest of 23 children born to pig farmers in Saint-Hubert-sur-le-Lac, Quebec. His hard-partying lifestyle once led him into a brief lavender marriage with a Hollywood actress named Tandy; from that marriage, he is stepfather to conjoined twins named Suzanne and Pleshette. Buddy has been one of many characters revived for The Kids in the Hall reunion tours; he did not, however, appear in the troupe's 1996 film Kids in the Hall: Brain Candy or their 2010 reunion miniseries The Kids in the Hall: Death Comes to Town. He did appear in a sketch in the 2022 Amazon Prime revival of The Kids in the Hall, reminiscing about the changes in the gay village over the years as he walks down the street with a friend, before they unexpectedly come across the last remaining glory hole.

In 1994, Thompson appeared in character as Buddy Cole in Bruce LaBruce's film Super 8½.

In 1998, Thompson and Paul Bellini co-authored the book Buddy Babylon: The Autobiography of Buddy Cole.

In early 2006, Breakthrough Entertainment, the producers of the series Atomic Betty and Paradise Falls, announced that an animated comedy series based on the character was in development. Buddy's was expected to air on CBC Television and the American LGBT channel Here!. and released a new reprint of Buddy Babylon.

In 2022, he appeared Netflix's LGBTQ+ comedy special hosted by Billy Eichner Stand Out: An LGBTQ+ Celebration along with Bob the Drag Queen, Mae Martin, Margaret Cho, Trixie Mattel, Joel Kim Booster, Sam Jay, Tig Notaro, Gina Yashere, Matteo Lane, Eddie Izzard, Marsha Warfield, Patti Harrison, Guy Branum, Solomon Georgio, Judy Gold, Wanda Sykes, Lily Tomlin, and Sandra Bernhard.

Reception

Thompson has described Buddy as a "butch queen" and an "alpha fag", pointing out that while extremely effeminate, Buddy is also very forceful and strong willed. Thompson, who is openly gay, has always directly confronted charges that Buddy is a homophobic stereotype. "The whole idea of Buddy Cole being considered a terrible stereotype and a terrible throwback is, I think, just tragic," he told Orlando Weekly in 2000. "I mean, most gay men are more Buddy than Sly."

References

  • Buddy's blog