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William Jayne (born April 10, 1969, in Flushing, Queens, New York City), known professionally as Billy Jayne and previously as Billy Jacoby, is an American actor and director best known for his recurring role as Mikey Randall in the Fox sitcom Parker Lewis Can't Lose (1990-1993) and his childhood performance in Just One of the Guys (1985).1 He contributed to the Ghostbusters franchise as a guest voice actor on Extreme Ghostbusters.2
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Billy Jayne was born into an acting family. He is the grandson of veteran character actor Lou Jacobi3, and his half-brother Scott Jacoby is an Emmy Award-winning actor.4 His siblings Robert Jayne, Susan Jayne, and Laura Jacoby also pursued acting careers.1
Jayne began his professional career at the age of three, when he visited half-brother Scott on the set of the 1972 ABC television film That Certain Summer. The production needed someone to portray young Scott Jacoby in flashback scenes, and Jayne was cast on the spot, launching his career before he had reached school age.1
He adopted the stage name Billy Jacoby early in his career, in part to benefit from his half-brother's established reputation. At the age of seventeen he changed his professional name to Billy Jayne, aligning it with his birth surname.1
Jayne built a substantial child and teen acting career across the late 1970s and 1980s. He starred as Rudi Stein in the CBS sitcom The Bad News Bears (1979-1980)5, a short-lived television adaptation of the 1976 film. In 1983 he appeared in the Stephen King horror adaptation Cujo1, and he earned a Young Artist Award nomination for his performance as Buddy Griffith, the younger brother at the center of the gender-swap comedy Just One of the Guys (1985).6
Television guest credits during this period included The A-Team, Highway to Heaven, The Golden Girls, and 21 Jump Street. He received multiple Young Artist Award nominations and wins throughout the 1980s, including Best Young Actor in a New Television Series (nomination, 1984) and Best Young Actor in a Television Comedy Series (win, 1985), both for the sitcom It's Not Easy7, and an Exceptional Performance nomination (1986) for Just One of the Guys.6 Guest-starring awards followed for appearances on The Golden Girls (1986)8 and 21 Jump Street (1987).9
He returned to a high-profile television role with Parker Lewis Can't Lose (Fox, 1990-1993)1, a youth comedy that ran for three seasons. Jayne played Mikey Randall, the quirky younger sidekick to Corin Nemec's lead character. The series developed a devoted following and helped define the early Fox network's identity.
Later film credits included The 'Burbs (1989), the Tom Hanks suburban horror-comedy, and The Crew (2000).1 In addition to his on-camera work, Jayne has worked as a music video director, with credits for the rock band Buckcherry and Josh Todd and The Conflict.1
Billy Jayne appeared as a guest voice actor on Extreme Ghostbusters, the 1997 animated continuation of the Ghostbusters franchise. He was cast in the episode Bird of Prey (Production #120, Episode 19, aired October 2, 1997).2 The episode centers on the Harasvelg, an ancient rain spirit summoned by a drought-stricken village, which subsequently unleashes extreme weather on New York City and must be stopped by the Extreme Ghostbusters team. The specific character Jayne voiced in the episode is not documented in available sources.
Some content on this page was researched using the Ghostbusters Wiki on Fandom.
"William Jacoby (actor)," Wikipedia, accessed 2026-06-13, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Jacoby_(actor) ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8
Spook Central, "Extreme Ghostbusters: Bird of Prey" (accessed 2026-06-13), https://www.spookcentral.us/sclib/extreme-ghostbusters-bird-of-prey ↩ ↩2
"Jayne, Billy 1969 to present (Billy Jacoby, William Jayne)," Encyclopedia.com, accessed 2026-06-13, https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/jayne-billy-1969-billy-jacoby-william-jayne ↩
"Scott Jacoby (actor)," Wikipedia, accessed 2026-06-13, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scott_Jacoby_(actor) ↩
"The Bad News Bears (TV series)," Wikipedia, accessed 2026-06-13, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Bad_News_Bears_(TV_series) ↩
"7th Youth in Film Awards," Wikipedia, accessed 2026-06-13, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/7th_Youth_in_Film_Awards ↩ ↩2
"6th Youth in Film Awards," Wikipedia, accessed 2026-06-13, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/6th_Youth_in_Film_Awards ↩
"8th Youth in Film Awards," Wikipedia, accessed 2026-06-13, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/8th_Youth_in_Film_Awards ↩
"9th Youth in Film Awards," Wikipedia, accessed 2026-06-13, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/9th_Youth_in_Film_Awards ↩
