About This Quiz
With its patented brand of homespun humor, "The Beverly Hillbillies" was one of the most popular and highest-rated sitcoms of the 1960s. This long-running story of a man named Jed first hit the airwaves on CBS in 1962 and ran for nine seasons. Hated by critics and loved by fans, it garnered seven Emmy nominations and remained in the top 20 most-watched shows for all but its final season. It even predated the current entertainment trend of shared universes by more than 40 years, crossing over with two of its creator Paul Henning's other shows, "Petticoat Junction" and "Green Acres."Â
In 1971, viewers would say goodbye to Jed and all his kin for the last time. The show met its fate due to the network's shift to more "sophisticated" fare in what's been called TV's "Great Rural Purge." Nevertheless, Granny, Jed, Jethro and Ellie May would get the last laugh on those city slickers. With 247 episodes and one of the most loyal viewerships in television history, "The Beverly Hillbillies" went on to become a perennial hit.
Now it's time to say "howdy" once again to the Clampetts and their kinfolk with this heapin' helpin' of "Beverly Hillbillies" trivia. Just remember to mind the critters and look out for the cement pond!
In the episode "Elly's First Date," with Thanksgiving coming, the Clampetts make use of the "fancy eatin' table," which unbeknownst to them is actually a billiards table. Jed modifies some of the long-handled "pot passers" (cues) into "meat stabbers" for further convenience.
Granny, famously portrayed by veteran actress Irene Ryan, was not a Clampett despite being referred to as "Granny Clampett" in a number of episodes. Named Daisy Mae Moses, she is Jed's mother-in-law and Elly Mae's grandmother.
"The Ballad of Jed Clampett" was written by show creator Paul Henning and performed by bluegrass duo Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs, who had a number one country hit with the song. However, the opening as heard on the show was sung by Jerry Scroggins with Flatt and Scruggs providing instrumental accompaniment.
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Granny had never encountered a critter quite like a kangaroo, which she mistakes for a giant jackrabbit. As a testament to the show's popularity, or, more likely due to the fact that it followed President Lyndon Johnson first State of the Union Address, this season two episode remains one of the most-watched broadcasts of all time.
Miss Jane Hathaway was an avid birdwatcher. In several episodes, Milburn Drysdale's harried secretary sheds her business tweeds for her scout-inspired birding outfit complete with binoculars, knee socks and campaign hat.
Jed's hound dog Duke figures prominently in several early episodes. In the first season episode, "Duke Becomes a Father," a lovelorn Duke loses his uncanny sense of smell, causing Jed to remark, "There's a dog used to be able to trail a butterfly through a swamp after a rain. Now, he couldn't smell cabbage cookin'."
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In case it wasn't obvious, Max Baer Jr. played both Jethro and his twin sister Jethrine. She appears in 11 episodes of the first season when she and her mother, Pearl, briefly move in with the Clampetts.
Homesick pop singer Pat Boone, a prospective buyer for the Drysdales' home, follows his nose to Granny's simmering pot of collards and fatback. The Clampetts mistake him for a down-on-his-luck country boy, much to Mrs. Drysdale's chagrin.
Elly May and her critters (including a swimming cat) can be seen in many episodes making use of the cement pond. Jethro, ever the idea man, once used the pool to revolutionize the car wash industry – he was the first to think of "dunkin' 'em."
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As an M.D. (Mountain Doctor), Granny was indispensable to her community in the hills, providing "doctorin'" to all in need. Her cure for the common cold was written up in such prestigious medical journals as the "Razorback Hog Breeders Gazette."
Comedic actor Wally Cox, who provided the voice of Underdog, appeared as Professor P. Caspar Biddle in the episodes "The Birdwatchers" and "Granny Tonics a Birdwatcher." Although Miss Jane turns down his marriage proposal, the couple become the foster parents of a baby condor.
Money-obsessed Milburn Drysdale is the president of the Commerce Bank of Beverly Hills. Even before meeting the Clampett clan, he's sure they're his kind of people: loaded.
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In the episode "Elly's First Date," Granny reveals her home state as Tennessee. Granny explains to a curious Elly Mae that when she was a girl back in Tennessee, she "set so many boys hearts on fire that they took to callin' that neck of the woods the Smoky Mountains."
Country musician Roy Clark made several appearances as Cousin Roy. In the 1968 episode "Cousin Roy," Jethro is afraid that country bumpkin Roy will cramp his big-city style. Clark also appears in drag as Cousin Roy's mother, Myrtle.
Sharon Tate, the most famous victim of the Manson Family, had a recurring role as Janet Trego, Miss Jane Hathaway's secretary. With her famous blonde tresses covered with a black wig, she is nearly unrecognizable.
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This episode marked the first of 10 appearances of Larry Pennell as handsome leading man, Dash Riprock. Dash and Elly Mae's on-again/off-again romance gets off to a rocky start as he inadvertently jilts her for Miss Hathaway at the behest of Mr. Drysdale.
Western icon John Wayne makes a cameo appearance at the end of the season five episode "The Indians Are Coming." When asked by the show's producers how he would like to be paid, the cowboy legend answered, "Give me a fifth of bourbon – that'll square it.
Granny's lifelong rival, Elverna Bradshaw, appears in 13 episodes. Often mentioned and appearing briefly in the 1963 episode "Jed Rescues Pearl," Elverna, portrayed by Elvia Allman, returns to play a prominent role in the show's later seasons.
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Max Baer was boxing's 13th World Heavyweight Champion from 1934 to 1935. He actively discouraged the younger Baer from entering the sport. He passed away at age 50, never seeing his son's success in show business.
Bessie, wearing her trademark frilly dress, can be seen on Elly's hip in many episodes. A frequent foil for Jethro, on whom she had a crush, Bessie was also the usual test subject for Granny's Spring Tonic.
In season 8, the Clampetts return to the hills to find Elly Mae a husband. In a rare bit of location filming, the production shot fives episodes at Branson, Missouri's 1880s theme park, Silver Dollar City.
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One of the most expensive homes in the United States, the Chartwell Mansion, located at 750 Bel Air Road in Los Angeles, was used in exterior shots for the Clampetts' Beverly Hills house. Built in 1933, it was designed by architect Sumner Spaulding.
Max Baer Jr. refused to reprise Jethro for the 1981 TV movie "Return of the Beverly Hillbillies." The part was recast with character actor Ray Young. Baer had grown resentful of the role he felt had hindered his acting career (he has since mellowed toward the part that made him famous).
In the episode "Double Naught Jethro," inspired by the onscreen exploits of 007, Jethro gives up his dream of being a brain surgeon to pursue a life of espionage as a "double naught spy." Impressed with the deadly headgear of the Bond villain OddJob, Jethro constructs his own iron hat to be "flung" at his enemies.
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Before "The Beverly Hillbillies" Donna Douglas appeared in the"Twilight Zone" episode "The Eye of the Beholder." Starring as a woman who has undergone a lifetime of plastic surgery, Douglas' beauty is revealed at the show's end to be an anomaly in a world populated by grotesque, porcine humanoids.
Linda Kaye Henning, the daughter of "Beverly Hillbillies" creator Paul Henning, was the voice behind Max Baer's Jethrine. She's best known for her role as Betty Jo Bradley on "Petticoat Junction," also a Paul Henning production.
Beginning in season four, Donna Douglas provided a voiceover in character as Elly Mae for the Filmways logo. Having an actor voice the sign-off was something of a trademark for Filmways shows. In some episodes, Max Baer as Jethro can be heard saying "Aww shut up, Elly Mae!" after the announcement.
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Bea Benaderet, who portrayed Jethro's mother, Pearl Bodine, initially wanted to play the part of Granny. Friend and show creator Paul Henning felt that she didn't physically meet his vision of the character and instead cast Irene Ryan in the iconic role.
In this episode, Jethro manages to get into the cash-strapped Frisby Business College, a secretarial school, with the help of the Clampett fortune. Jed, proud of him for being the first member of the family to go to college, gives him a fountain pen which Jethro immediately empties on his shirt.
At the end of the first episode, the Clampetts, having just arrived in Beverly Hills, roll up to their new home thinking the imposing mansion is a prison. Law-abiding folk, Jed, Jethro, Granny and Elly May hold the groundskeepers at gunpoint convinced that they're escapees.
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Buddy Ebsen was originally cast as the Scarecrow. He was replaced by Ray Bolger, who was known for his scarecrow dance in vaudeville. Ebsen was moved into the part of the Tin Man, but lost the role when he was hospitalized after his lungs were coated with the aluminum dust used in the makeup.
Season four marked the show's transition to color film in 1965. The first color episode was titled "Admiral Jed Clampett," which saw the Clampetts take to the seas when they mistook a battleship for Mr. Drysdale's yacht.
That was an easy one. As we all know from "The Beverly Hillbillies" famous opening sequence, Jed made his fortune while "shootin' at some food when up from the ground came a bubblin' crude. Oil, that is."
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Although Chrysler provided vehicles for the show, the Clampetts' truck was designed by legendary custom car guru George Barris. Barris, best known for creating the 1966 Batmobile, used a 1920s Oldsmobile Roadster as the core of the truck's design.
Margaret Drysdale's poodle, Claude, figures prominently in several episodes and loses his potential "bride" to the Clampetts' hound dog, Duke. Mrs. Drysdale insists on referring to Milburn as Claude's "daddy," much to the banker's chagrin.
Charlie Ruggles played Milburn Drysdale's gambler father-in-law, Lowell Redlings Farquhar. Granny becomes enamored with Farquhar, assuming that he's going ask her for her hand in marriage when his actual motive is to have her fund a gambling trip to Las Vegas.
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In the episode "Elly's Animals," Elly Mae teaches her striped tomcat Rusty to swim in the cement pond. The lesson seems to be little more than a pep talk in which Elly tells the cat, "There ain't no reason cats can't swim just as good as dogs."
Granny creates a dance sensation while attempting to take a school full of beatniks to task for their lazy ways. Explaining that these young folks should be doing chores, an unfamiliar term to the hipsters, Granny demonstrates the proper way to dig "taters" which beatniks mistake for a new dance.
Aside from the Clampetts' iconic custom-built truck, the vehicle seen most frequently on "The Beverly Hillbillies" was Miss Hathaway's red 1965 Dodge Coronet 500 convertible. It was eventually replaced with a 1968 model.
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In the first episode, "The Clampetts Strike Oil." Jed, wary that he may have been cheated, states that the petroleum company is going ro pay him 10 to 25 in "some new kind of dollars." Jed knew of silver dollars and paper dollars, but this was the first time he'd heard of "million dollars."