newsmakers

newsmakers

‘Beverly Hillbillies’ star Donna Douglas dies at 81

NEW YORK

Donna Douglas, who played the buxom tomboy Elly May Clampett on the hit 1960s sitcom “The Beverly Hillbillies,” has died.

Her niece says Douglas died Thursday in Baton Rouge, La., near her hometown of Zachary. The cause of death was pancreatic cancer, Charlene Smith said. Douglas was 81.

She was best known for her role in “The Beverly Hillbillies,” the CBS comedy about a backwoods Ozark family who moved to Beverly Hills after striking it rich from oil discovered on their land. The series, which ran from 1962 to 1971, also starred the late Buddy Ebsen and Irene Ryan, as well as Max Baer Jr., who turned 77 in December.

As Elly May, she seemed blissfully unaware of her status as a bumpkin blond bombshell. Typically, she was clad in a snug flannel shirt and tight jeans cinched with a rope belt, and she seemed to prefer her critters to any beau.

Chosen from more than 500 other actresses, Douglas said she felt at ease playing the role because, like her character, she grew up a poor Southern tomboy. Her childhood in Pride, La., came in handy when she was asked during her audition to milk a goat.

“I had milked cows before,” she recalled in a 2009 interview with The Associated Press. “I figured they were equipped the same, so I just went on over and did it.”

The show was not only assailed by critics, but by the network president who put it on the air: “I hated it,” Michael Dann confided much later. “After screening the pilot, I don’t think I ever watched another segment.”

The public, however, felt quite the opposite: It ran for nine seasons, often in the top 10. In their own way, the Clampetts were a forerunner of the ’60s counterculture.

It wasn’t much of a stretch for Douglas to fit into the troupe, said Smith.

“She was always happy, and she really loved animals — just like her character on ‘The Beverly Hillbillies.’ She was a wonderful lady, a very good Christian lady.”

Little Jimmy Dickens, oldest Opry member, dies at 94

NASHVILLE, Tenn.

Little Jimmy Dickens, a diminutive singer-songwriter known for his sense of humor and as the oldest cast member of the Grand Ole Opry, has died. He was 94.

Dickens died Friday at a Nashville-area hospital of cardiac arrest after suffering a stroke on Christmas Day, Opry spokeswoman Jessie Schmidt said.

Dickens, who stood 4-foot-11, had performed on the Opry almost continuously since 1948. His last performance was Dec. 20 as part of his birthday celebration. He sang “Out Behind the Barn” and delivered his trademark comedy. He had turned 94 a day earlier.

“The Grand Ole Opry did not have a better friend than Little Jimmy Dickens,” said Pete Fisher, Opry vice president and general manager. “He loved the audience and his Opry family, and all of us loved him back. He was a one-of-a-kind entertainer and a great soul whose spirit will live on for years to come.”

Associated Press