SHORT TAKES : Barty to Pay; Claims Victory

Actor Billy Barty claimed a victory even though a county Small Claims Court judge ordered him to pay one of his former writers $1,328.

Barty said he considered Monday’s decision a win because he didn’t have to award 10% of future syndication profits for his show, “Short Ribbs,” to writer-producer Bill Winckler.

“It went fine, it went very good, I was very pleased at the judge’s decision,” Barty said by phone after he was ordered to pay Winckler $1,300 in disputed salary and $28 in court costs. Laughing about the stir the case caused, Barty added that the publicity hadn’t hurt his career. “This has gotten about as much publicity as Zsa Zsa and I didn’t even slap anybody,” Barty said. “But I wouldn’t slap anybody. I’d hit them in the knee.”

Winckler, who had sued Barty for $2,000, said he was satisfied.

Thirteen episodes of “Short Ribbs,” described as a “Saturday Night Live” for “little people,” aired on Orange County-based cable station KDOC last fall.