Paul Henning Movies

Ten years after the cancellation of the cornpone comedy series The Beverly Hillbillies, the property was revived -- mercifully briefly -- in the form of a two-hour movie. Originally titled Solving the Energy Crisis, The Return of the Beverly Hillbillies found Buddy Ebsen, Donna Douglas and Nancy Kulp recreating their sitcom roles as millionaire hillbilly Jed Clampett (who'd moved back to the hills after dividing up his fortune amongst his loved ones), his daughter Elly May (now the owner of a small petting zoo), and bank secretary-turned-government functionary Jane Hathaway. Max Baer Jr. took a pass on the project, thus the role of Jed's nephew Jethro Bodine-now a "sophisticated Hollywood producer"-was played by Ray Young. And with Irene Ryan (Granny) and Raymond Bailey (Milburn Drysdale) having passed on, their replacements were Imogene Coca, and former Hogan's Heroes regular Werner Klemperer as government bureaucrat C. D. Medford, Jane Hathaway's new boss. Also on hand was bluegrass musician Earl Scruggs, who with his late partner Lester Flatt has composed and performed the original Beverly Hillbillies theme song "The Ballad of Jed Clampett"; Shug Fisher and Shad Heller, who'd appeared in several 1969 episodes of the original series; and two veterans from The Beverly Hillbillies' sister series Petticoat Junction, Linda Kaye Henning and Charles Lane. The plot, if anyone cares, finds the Clampetts joining forces with Miss Jane to solve the energy shortage, using Granny's "white lightning" as a fuel substitute. As the film draws to a close, it looks as if Miss Jane and her boss Mr. Medford are about to be hitched in a good ol' Ozark wedding. Originally telecast on October 6, 1981, Return of the Beverly Hillbillies was intended as the pilot for a full-scale revival of the earlier series, but this was not to be. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Still riding high in the ratings after seven years on the air, The Beverly Hillbillies launches its eighth season on CBS. The festivities commence with the series' highly publicized return to its "roots": that is, the cast briefly leaves its Beverly Hills environs for an extended visit to mountain country, filmed on location at Silver Dollar City in the Missouri Ozarks. It is during this story arc that Elly May Clampett (Donna Douglas) falls in love with local boy Matthew Templeton, played by Roger Torrey. Although the romance would end before a march down the altar, actor Roger Torrey would return the following year as another of Elly's ardent suitors -- this one named Mark Templeton! The Clampetts' sojourn to Silver Dollar City also served to introduce a new recurring character: Shorty Kellems, played by Shug Fisher. Inevitably, Shorty would follow the Clampetts back to Beverly Hills, where he teams up with Jethro Bodine (Max Baer Jr.) to live the life of a "gen-u-ine" Hollywood playboy. Ultimately, this storyline segues into another continuity strand in which the Clampetts play matchmaker for Shorty and his homegrown sweetie Elverna Bradshaw (Elvia Allman) -- who just so happens to be the lifelong enemy of Granny (Irene Ryan). Elsewhere, Phil Silvers makes several guest appearances as con artist Shifty Shafer, who in an entertaining story arc lensed in New York City, manages to "sell" Central Park to the gullible Jed Clampett (Buddy Ebsen). And in another memorable multi-episode guest star turn, Soupy Sales shows up as aviator Lance Bradford, the insufferable nephew-in-law of Jed's banker Milburn Drysdale (Raymond Bailey). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Those acerbic TV critics who'd predicted back in 1962 that the phenomenally successful The Beverly Hillbillies would wear out its welcome after three seasons must have been writhing in agony as the series entered its sixth year on the air in the fall of 1967. Although it had dropped from its ratings peak of number one in 1964 to 12th place in the intervening three years, the series still retained its loyal corps of fans, and had even picked up millions of new devotees in recent months. In a move to freshen up the basic format (nouveau riche hillbillies "invading" Beverly Hills), season six opened with a fascinating story arc, largely shot on location, in which millionaire mountaineer Jed Clampett (Buddy Ebsen) inherits a British castle on the outskirts of London. (Believe it or not, The Beverly Hillbillies was, at the time, one of the United Kingdom's most popular American imports.) This situation permits a whole new slew of comic complications, beginning with Granny's (Irene Ryan) tussle with the customs officials, and impressionable Jethro's (Max Baer Jr.) efforts to emulate the gallant knights of old, with his feisty cousin Elly May (Donna Douglas) reluctantly recruited to be a "damsel in distress." Upon the Clampett's return to Beverly Hills, Jethro persists in playing out his British-bred fantasies by becoming the Robin Hood of Griffith Park, leading to another story arc involving a band of hippies (or at least, the producers' notion of what hippies looked like). In other continuing storylines, Granny (Irene Ryan) thinks that the Civil War has been reignited when she sees a movie company filming a historical epic near the Clampett mansion; Jethro joins the military reserve, wreaking his usual well-meaning havoc, and later opens up a "topless" restaurant (no, it's not what you think); and the Clampetts become embroiled in the peculiar world of women's wrestling! The season ends with "Cousin Roy," featuring country & western singer Roy Clark in what was reportedly designed as the pilot for a Beverly Hillbillies spinoff series. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Latter-day Scrooge Homer Bedloe (Charles Lane) shows up in Hooterville at Christmastime with a noticeable lack of good cheer. Bedloe plans to foil a plan formulated by Kate (Bea Benaderet) to use the Hooterville Cannonball to distribute presents and transports Christmas carolers throughout the Valley. This episode is a virtual word-for-word remake of the Season One effort "A Cannonball Christmas", this time filmed in color with several different cast members; curiously, although "A Cannonball Christmas" was repeated in Season Two, "The Santa Claus Special" aired but once on CBS. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The third of producer Paul Henning's enormously successful "rustic" comedies of the 1960s, Green Acres made its CBS bow on September 15, 1965. Reversing the situation established on Henning's The Beverly Hillbillies, in which a group of yokels was transplanted to luxurious Beverly Hills, Green Acres stars Eddie Albert as prosperous Manhattan attorney Oliver Wendell Douglas, who to fulfill a lifelong dream forsook his sophisticated surroundings to become a farmer in the tiny rural community of Hooterville. Reluctantly going along for the ride was Oliver's sexy Hungarian wife, Lisa (Eva Gabor), who though she eventually resigned herself to farm life still insisted upon wearing expensive clothes and jewelry while milking cows and plowing the North 40. Alas, she never quite learned to cook, and her rock-hard hotcakes would soon become the source of many hearty laughs from the viewers. Unfortunately for Oliver, the farm he purchased was in deplorable condition, and the surrounding 160 acres weren't much better. Our hero had been suckered into this situation by bucolic con artist Mr. Haney (Pat Buttram), who continued to fleece the Douglases by selling them expensive -- and generally useless -- farm implements and creature comforts throughout the series' six-season run.

Mr. Haney was but one of the many eccentric characters who seemed to have been put on earth to make Oliver Douglas' life miserable. Others included county agent Hank Kimball (Alvy Moore), who never made a statement without immediately contradicting himself ("Good morning, Mr. Douglas. Well...it isn't really good because it's gonna rain...and it's after noon, so it's not really morning..." etc., etc., etc.); doltish handyman Ed Dawson (Tom Lester), who looked upon the Douglases as his surrogate parents and constantly prevailed upon them to bail him out of trouble (usually girl trouble); carpenters and twin siblings Alf and Ralph Malone (Sid Melton and Mary Grace Canfield), who never quite managed to finish construction on the Douglases' bedroom; and neighboring farmer Hank Ziffel (Hank Patterson) and his wife, Doris (played first by Barbara Pepper, then by Fran Ryan), owners of a TV-watching pig named Arnold, who regarded himself as a human being -- and who developed into the series' biggest "superstar"!

Inasmuch as Green Acres was the sister series to Paul Henning's Petticoat Junction -- also set in the mythical village of Hooterville -- there were a number of crossover episodes between the two programs. Also, Frank Cady appeared as storekeeper Sam Drucker on both shows, while one of Petticoat Junction's main characters, Uncle Joe Bradley (Edgar Buchanan), dropped in from time to time. One of the series' most endearing trademarks was its strain of surrealistic humor. This manifested itself in many ways, but none quite as memorable as the method in which the opening credit titles were presented. In several installments, a confused Lisa Douglas would comment upon "those little names" that appeared in front of her on the screen; and in at least one instance, the directorial credit showed up on a newly laid egg! Although it is not generally known, Green Acres was based on a radio series titled Granby's Green Acres, which like its TV counterpart was created by Jay Sommers and written by Dick Chevillat. All but one of the TV series' episodes was directed by Richard L. Bare, a past master at depicting comic frustration, as could be seen in his wonderful "Joe McDoakes" theatrical shorts of the 1940s and '50s. Green Acres might well have run forever had CBS not decided during the 1970-1971 season to purge itself of all its "rural" comedies; thus, the series came to an end on September 7, 1971, still as popular and hilarious as ever. ~ All Movie Guide

The Clampetts call the Beverly Caterers to help them prepare a tasty meal, consisting mainly of jackrabbit stew. Meanwhile, Mr. Drysdale receives a kangaroo as a practical joke from an Australian banker. Anyone who's ever seen one of the Warner Bros. "Hippity Hopper" cartoons will be able to guess what happens next. Originally telecast January 8, 1964, "The Giant Jackrabbit" received a 44 percent ratings share, making history as the highest-rated half-hour program since 1960. Over 40 years later, it remains one of the 20 top-rated TV episodes of all time. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In the conclusion of a two-part story, C&F.W. railroad troubleshooter Homer Bedloe (Charles Lane) is determined to put the ancient Hooterville Cannonball out of business, despite the fervent appeals (mostly in song) by the three daughters of Kate Bradley (Bea Benadaret), owner of the Shady Rest Hotel. With the bumbling assistance of her shiftless Uncle Joe (Edgar Buchanan), Kate tries to outwit Bedloe by diverting his attention from the Cannonball. This she does by arranging for the seven-and-a-half-ton engine to be hidden from view! The image of the determined Bedloe strenuously pumping a handcar down the railroad tracks has become one of the icons of early-1960s TV situation comedy. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The first episode of Petticoat Junction (NOT the pilot film, since no pilot was ever made!) finds C & F.W Railroad president Norman Curtis (Roy Roberts) dispatching his vice-president Homer Bedloe (Charles Lane) to the tiny community of Hooterville, there to find out why one of the railroad's branch lines doesn't connect with the Main Line. Upon arrival, Bedloe shows up at the Shady Rest, a little hotel run by widow Kate Bradley (Bea Benadaret) with the help of her lazy Uncle Joe (Edgar Buchanan) and her three toothsome daughters Billie Jo (Jeannine Riley), Bobbie Jo (Pat Woodell) and Betty Jo (Linda Kaye). After encountering numerous frustrations at the Shady Rest--beginning with an ornate elevator that had never worked!--Bedloe is shocked to find that the C&FW is represented by the Hooterville Cannonball, an 1890s-vintage steam engine than runs whenever its engineers feel like it. The outraged Bedloe vows to fire the engineers and put the Cannonball out of business--but crafty Kate isn't about to let that happen! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

America's top-rated TV series The Beverly Hillbillies retained its Number One status as it entered its second season on CBS in the fall of 1963. By this time, newly-rich mountaineer Jed Clampett (Buddy Ebsen) and his family have become accustomed to their swank new Beverly Hills surroundings, but the Clampett clan's limitless wealth has not caused them to abandon their simple, basic down-home values. In other words, they may not be as bright or as well-spoken as their sophisticated neighbors, but they are essentially better and more lovable people, and will remain so as long as the series stays on the air. Although former regular Bea Benaderet had left The Beverly Hillbillies to star in her own sitcom, Petticoat Junction, the rest of the cast remains intact: the aforementioned Buddy Ebsen as Jed; Donna Douglas as Jed's wide-eyed, curvaceous, "critter"-loving daughter Elly May; Max Baer Jr. as Jed's doltish, highly impressionable nephew Jethro; Irene Ryan as Jed's nonegenarian mother-in-law Granny, still stirring up her special moonshine -- er, "rheumatizz medicine" -- and concocting mysterious mountain potions to cure all ills; Raymond Bailey as banker Milburn Drysdale, the delightfully avaricious executor of Jed's fortune; and Nancy Kulp as Drysdale's loyal secretary Miss Jane Hathaway, whose fondness for the Hillbillies in general, and Jethro in particular, is the primary motivation for her tireless efforts to help the mountaineers blend into "proper" Southern California society.
Among the subplots wending their way through the action of season two are Elly May's misadventures as the unrefined tomboy prepares for her society debut; the Clampetts' brief fling in the world of high fashion when their "Hillybilly Look" becomes all the rage amongst the wealthy Beverly Hills matrons; the "invasion" of the family's former hillbilly neighbor Lafe Crick (Peter Whitney), who shows up at the mansion for a brief visit and then refuses to leave; and of course, the never-ending efforts by Mr. Drysdale's snooty wife Margaret (Harriet MacGibbon) to oust the Clampetts from her ritzy neighborhood. According to the A.C. Nielsen Company, eight of the highest-rated TV episodes of all time were seen on The Beverly Hillbillies -- with all of these, notably the record-breaking "The Giant Jackrabbit," premiering during the series' second season. It has been theorized that the viewing public, traumatized by the then-recent assassination of John F. Kennedy, embraced The Beverly Hillbillies as an antidote for their collective grief. True or not, the fact remains that the series reached its peak popularity during its second year on the air -- much to the dismay of certain pundits who were convinced that The Beverly Hillbillies represented the end of civilization as we know it! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Originally telecast on September 26, 1962, "Hillbillies of Beverly Hills" was of course the pilot episode of the immensely popular sitcom The Beverly Hillbillies. As everyone in the universe must know by now, it all begins when Ozark mountaineer Jed Clampett accidentally strikes oil on his property while "shootin' fer some food." Oil company executive Brewster (Frank Wilcox) offers to buy Jed's property for 25 of those "new kind of dollars" -- million dollars, that is. At the urging of his social-climbing cousin Pearl, Jed arranges to move his family to Beverly Hills, CA. His daughter Elly May and Pearl's boy Jethro are excited about the move -- but Jed's stubborn ol' Granny "ain't a-goin." Fans of the series will note that both Buddy Ebsen (Jed) and Irene Ryan (Granny) are wearing an excess of "old age" makeup; in the series proper, both actors were allowed to appear a tad younger. This episode is also known as "The Clampetts Strike Oil." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The citizens of Mayberry are duly impressed when an FBI man and a press photographer arrive in town to celebrate Sheriff Andy for making Mayberry the most crime-free city in the county. Andy is likewise impressed-until he notices that the FBI agent allows himself to be photographed. Sure enough, the two strangers turn out to be crooks, who have breezed into town to rob the local bank. Best bit: Barney making a great show of locking up that "mad killer" Otis Campbell. Scripted by a pre-Beverly Hillbillies Paul Henning, "Crime-free Mayberry" originally aired on November 20, 1961. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Still on NBC after moving from CBS a year earlier, Love That Bob (originally The Bob Cummings Show) enters its fifth and final season in first-run prime time. Bob Cummings returns in his signature role as professional photographer and self-styled ladies' man Bob Collins, with Ann B. Davis as Bob's faithful assistant Schultzy, Rosemary de Camp as Bob's widowed sister Margaret, and Dwayne Hickman as Margaret's son Chuck, now a college sophomore. With the series' ratings in a slump, Love That Bob producer Paul Henning tries to freshen up the proceedings with a gimmick or two. First off, there are more guest stars this season than ever before, including Steve Allen, George Burns, Art Linkletter, Peter Lawford, Anna Maria Alberghetti, and, most memorably, Mamie van Doren, here hiding her considerable assets under a frizzy wig, an outsized pair of glasses, and a dumpy outfit. (It is explained that van Doren is "preparing" for a movie character role!) Secondly, a belated effort is made to "domesticate" the rakish Bob Collins by introducing child actress Tammy Marihugh in the role of six-year-old Tammi Johnson. Attracted to Tammi's widowed mother, Bob suddenly (and uncharacteristically) finds himself working overtime to win the little tyke's affection and respect, at one point hiring actor George Montgomery, then starring on the TV Western Cimarron City, to teach him how to be a "real cowboy"! Though Love That Bob would conclude its nighttime run at the end of its fifth season, the series' episodes were rebroadcast on ABC's daytime schedule from 1959 through 1961. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide