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Goldie 1955
Goldie Wilson
Biographical information
Date of birth1933
Age (1885)not born yet
Age (1955)22
Age (1985)52
Age (2015)82
Physical description
GenderMale
Hair colorBlack
Eye colorBrown
Behind-the-scenes information
Played byDonald Fullilove
  [Source]
"You wait and see, Mr. Caruthers. I will be mayor; I'll be the most powerful man in Hill Valley and I'm gonna' clean up this town!"
— Busboy Goldie Wilson foreshadowing his future success in politics.

Goldie Wilson was the mayor of Hill Valley in 1985, and had been since the late 1970s[1]. His 1985 re-election campaign ads promised more jobs, better education, bigger civic improvements, and lower taxes. The slogan on his printed ads was "Honesty, Decency, Integrity." He had a gold tooth when he was a young man, although there is a disagreement as to whether he still had a gold tooth thirty years later, when he was running for re-election.[2]

Goldiewilsonposter

Poster for Goldie's re-election in 1985.

In 1955, Goldie was a young busboy working at Lou's Cafe. While young Goldie was offering some advice to a teenage George McFly who had moments earlier suffered abuse at the hands of Biff Tannen and Biff's cronies (Match, 3-D, and Skinhead). Goldie that "Someday, I'm going to be somebody!"; Hearing this and recognizing Goldie, Marty McFly, out of excitement and impulse, accidentally told both his father and Goldie that he would be mayor . Goldie seemed inspired, and remarked "Mayor! Now THAT'S a good idea!". His boss, Lou Caruthers, scoffed at the idea that an African-American would ever be elected to public office, saying "A colored mayor! That'll be the day!", which only made Goldie more determined. He followed through with his plans to go to night school, and eventually quit his job at the Cafe to go into politics and was eventually elected mayor, making him "the most powerful man in Hill Valley" just as he had said he would.

Goldie had stated that his mother had worked 40 years and got nothing out of it[3].

Although Goldie might have been a nickname (because of his gold tooth), the name was passed on to his descendants. Sometime between 1955 and 2015, he had a son, Goldie Wilson II. In 2015, his grandson, Goldie Wilson III was a spokesperson for Statler Pontiac, advertising hover conversions for $39,999.95.

Appearances

Goldie1955

Goldie Wilson offers some advice to George McFly.

Behind the scenes

  • The $39,999.95 cost of a hover conversion is most likely a reference to Earl Scheib's television commercials in the 1980s. As the owner of the largest chain of low-cost auto body repair shops in the U.S., his well-known tagline in the 1950s originally stated, "I'll paint any car any color for only $29.99", but by the 1980s his price had increased to $39.99. The extra nines in the price of a hover conversion are a comment on the inflated prices expected in the future, and the marketing tactic of quoting prices just five cents less than a round number.
  • George D. Carroll became Mayor of Richmond, California (population 80,000) in 1964, the first African-American to become mayor of an American city [4]. The first African-American mayor of a major American city was Carl B. Stokes, who was elected mayor of Cleveland, Ohio, in 1967.

Notes and references

  1. BTTF novel p. 94
  2. BTTF novel p. 20
  3. BTTF novel p. 94
  4. "Negro Councilman Elevated to Richmond Mayor's Post", Oakland Tribune, July 7, 1964, p19

Relatives


Mayors of Hill Valley
1885: Hubert - 1931: Jack Thomas - 1955: Red Thomas - 1985: Goldie Wilson - 2015: Goldie Wilson Jr.
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