Favorite TV Dads, Part 2 of 4: Jed Clampett

Buddy Ebsen as the lovable Jed Clampett

As fathers go, I doubt Jed Clampett would be anyone’s first choice, particularly if being a well-educated, sharp dresser was part of the criteria. But there’s no doubt Jed loved his daughter, Elly May, or that his more sophisticated neighbors were no match when it came to Jed’s practical wit and common sense.

The Beverly Hillbillies ran from 1962-1971 with the patriarch Jed Clampett played by Buddy Ebsen. My family never missed the show, and records tell us few other North Americans did either. For eight of its nine seasons, it ranked among the top 20 most-watched programs on television. Twice, it ranked as the number one series of the year, and 16 of its episodes remain among the 100 most-watched television episodes in history.

Born Christian Ludolf Ebsen Jr. on April 2, 1908, Ebsen’s career spanned seven decades. He might be the only person in history who wanted to become a doctor but whose mother persuaded him to go into show business. If you ever watched any of the Mickey Mouse animation from the 1930s, you’ll find it interesting that Disney animators filmed Buddy Ebsen dancing and used that footage to choreograph Mickey’s steps.

With his lanky body and whimsical dancing, it’s no surprise that Ebsen was cast alongside Judy Garland in The Wizard of Oz (1939). Although originally cast as the scarecrow, before filming began, he traded roles with the tin man. Alas, Ebsen became seriously ill due to the aluminum dust in his makeup. While he recovered in the hospital, producers recast the part and invented a safer method of turning the tin man silver. Since the songs had already been recorded, it is Ebsen’s voice you hear when the tin man sings “We’re Off to See the Wizard.”

Twenty-two years later, the role of Jed Clampett made Ebsen famous. With little formal book-learnin’, the good-natured widowed hillbilly begins his rags-to-riches story when an oil company talks him into selling his swamp with its massive oil pool. He moves to Beverly Hills with his daughter, his mother-in-law, and his nephew Jethro (technically his cousin’s son).

I think my all-time favorite Jed Clampett scene comes from the first episode where he learns he’s suddenly a multi-millionaire. He asks his cousin, Pearl, whether she thinks he ought to move away.

“Jed, how can you even ask?” She says. “Look around you. You’re eight miles from your nearest neighbour. You’re overrun with skunks, possums, coyotes, bobcats. You use kerosene lamps for light, you cook on a wood stove summer and winter, you’re drinkin’ homemade moonshine, washin’ with homemade lye soap. Your bathroom is fifty feet from the house, and you ask should you move?”

To which Jed responds, “Yeah. I reckon you’re right. Man’d be a dang fool to leave all this!”

In another episode, Granny wins dancing lessons from a con man and his wife. Watching them dance, Granny comments, “They ain’t no Vilma and Buddy Ebsen.”

Jed responds, “Who?” (Buddy and his sister Vilma formed a vaudeville song-and-dance act long before the TV show made him a household name.)

Throughout the series, Jed plays the straight man to Granny’s impulsive and cantankerous ways, Elly May’s extensive collection of critters, and Jethro’s pursuits of the best career for meeting pretty girls. Viewers loved Jed for his kind, patient heart and innocence.

After a second long-running TV series as Barnaby Jones, Ebsen retired in 1999. In 2003, he passed away at the age of 95. He once said, “Thanks to The Beverly Hillbillies show, I can walk on any stage in the English-speaking world and say, ‘Well, doggies!’ and I’m home free.”

Perhaps we could all be a little more “home free” if we learned to be as content and kind, whatever our circumstances, as Jed Clampett.