Remembering the Beverly Hillbillies

bobcat

bobcat

Well-known Member
Location
Northern Calif
Perhaps one of the things I liked about the series is that having a lot of money really didn't change them that much. True, they were a fish out of water story, which created endless comedic situations as the two worlds collided.

Jed and Granny pretty much did things the way they always did because it always worked in the past, so no sense in changing it, and meanwhile, Ellie May was busy with her animals, and Jethro was brainstorming how to fit into society and reinvent himself despite his 6th grade education. He was always trying on new careers like secret agent, movie producer, playboy, and a host of others. All were a mismatch from who he really was, so destined for a dead end. Misguided though he was, he was still lovable, as was Ellie May caring for all her critters.

The series was ranked #1 for the first two seasons and remained in the top 20 for its 9-year run.
 

JustDave said:
I've never seen so much serious analytical discussion on this topic before.
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I think in some ways it was, in a comedic fashion, shining a light on some of the ridiculous and pretentious ways that society embraces when affluency trumps common sense. The contrast of common folk reasoning and lifestyles of the rich and famous helps one to sort out what is nonsense and what has merit.

Anyway, it's not for everyone, but I often found it humorous. Maybe growing up in the country messed with my humor antennae. Stereotypes are everywhere, and this series played heavily on that IMO.
 
Didn't Granny call the door bell the ghost or the demon in the wall? I know the pool was the cement pond. I remember Don Drysdale making an appearance, did Sandy Koufax also do a guest shot? Haven't seen it since it was originally on.
 
I wasn't aware of it at the time, but Buddy Ebsen was really an exceptional dancer. He had originally gone to college to study medicine, but never finished his degree due to the financial hardship of the depression. Still he was an educated and intelligent man who was clearly playing against his real persona. I don't know much about the background of the others on the series.
 
Flarbalard said:
Didn't Granny call the door bell the ghost or the demon in the wall? I know the pool was the cement pond. I remember Don Drysdale making an appearance, did Sandy Koufax also do a guest shot? Haven't seen it since it was originally on.
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I think she called it the music box on the wall (Or something like that). Also the billiards table was their "fancy eatin' table", and Granny's homemade boiling tonic concoctions and elixirs could cure anything. Meanwhile Jed's deadpan common-sense wisdom was applied to all the complex problems of carving out their life in BH. They had total indifference to money.
 
Buddy Ebsen was an Orlando hometown boy, having moved here in 1920 at the age of 12. His father became the first professional dance teacher in Orlando and opened a dance studio, where Buddy and his sisters learned to dance. He graduated from Orlando High School and went to college, intending on becoming a doctor. Family finances put an end to that and he left for the lights of New York when he was 19 or 20, where he struggled for success.

The rest is history.
 
Ellie Mae lived in a small town north of Baton Rouge, La. in her retirementā€¦. She came into the business where I worked at times, and the guys fell all over her.
She was gorgeous, and continued to look the Movie Star.
 

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