Jim Varney
|
|
Jim_Varney.jpg
James Albert Varney Jr. (June 15, 1949 - February 10, 2000) was an American actor, who was best-known for his character Ernest P. Worrell, originally created by a Tennessee advertising agency (John Cherry Productions) in the 1980s. The character was used in numerous television commercial campaigns in the following years.
Varney had previously created a different character for the same agency, "Sgt. Glory," a humorless drill instructor who harangued cows of the client's dairy into producing better milk. In another spot, Glory's home was shown as he had a date, and was so heavily decorated with the products of the sponsor and advertising specialty items for it that it was essentially devoid of any other decor.
Varney began his interest in theater as a teenager, winning state titles in drama competitions while a student at Lafayette High School (for which he graduated from with the class of 1968) in Lexington, Kentucky. At the age of 15, he portrayed Ebeneezer Scrooge in a local children's theater production, and by 17, he was performing professionally in nightclubs and coffee houses. He listed a former teacher, Thelma Beeler, as being one of the main contributing factors in his becoming an actor.
His character Ernest P. Worrell proved so popular that it was spun off into a TV series Hey Vern, It's Ernest! and a series of movies in the 1980s and 90s. Ernest Goes to Camp earned Varney a nomination for "Worst New Star" in the 1987 Golden Raspberry Awards (he lost). Other Ernest movies included Ernest Saves Christmas and Ernest Goes to Jail. He is also known for his role as "Slinky Dog" in Toy Story.
Varney also played the part of Jed Clampett in the 1993 production of The Beverly Hillbillies. In addition to his "Ernest Goes to..." series, he starred in several smaller movies for John Cherry Productions such as Ernest P. Worrell's Family Album, Dr. Otto and the Riddle of the Gloom Beam, and Your World as I See It, all of which showcased his great facility with assuming a wide variety of characters and accents.
He had two wives: Jackie Varney (1976-1983), and Jane Varney (1988-1991).
Jim Varney died of lung cancer at about 4:45 am in his home in White House, Tennessee, as the movie Ernest the Pirate neared completion. When he discovered he had lung cancer, he reportedly threw away his cigarettes and quit smoking cold turkey. Unfortunately, his doctors told him that it was too late. According to his sister, Jim would often smoke unfiltered cigarettes.
Varney, who started smoking at age 15 (after seeing James Bond on the silver screen), once filmed an anti-smoking public service spot as Ernest. The spot involved Ernest trying to convince Vern, Ernest's unseen friend, to quit smoking, thus avoiding "The Big 'C'-Cancer. Chemotherapy City." The spot was included in a 1986 home video collection of Ernest commercials.
External links
- IMDb entry for Jim Varney (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001815/)