Buddy Ebsen.

Buddy Ebsen was born Christian Ludolf Ebsen Jr. on April 2, 1908, in Belleville, Illinois to Frances and Christian Ludolph Ebsen Sr. He initially wanted to become a doctor and took premed courses at Rollins College in Winter Park, Florida, and the University of Florida, but his mother convinced him to pursue show business. In 1926, he was initiated into DeMolay, a Masonic youth organization, in Orlando. He began his career as a dancer in the late 1920s in a Broadway chorus, later forming a vaudeville act with his sister Vilma Ebsen that also appeared on Broadway.

In 1935, Buddy Ebsen and his sister Vilma went to Hollywood and were signed for MGM’s Broadway Melody of 1936 1935. While Vilma retired, Buddy starred in two more MGM musicals with Eleanor Powell: Born to Dance 1936 with Frances Langford and Broadway Melody of 1938 1937 with Judy Garland. He also danced with Shirley Temple in Captain January 1936.

MGM studio chief Louis B. Mayer offered him a seven-year contract in 1938 starting at $2,000 a week, but Ebsen turned it down. Mayer warned he would never work in Hollywood again, and Ebsen was blacklisted. He was first cast as the Scarecrow in The Wizard of Oz 1939 but swapped roles with Ray Bolger to play the Tin Man. He became severely ill from the aluminum powder in the make-up and was hospitalized, replaced by Jack Haley. His film career languished for nearly 20 years.

In 1955, Walt Disney hired Ebsen to play George Georgie Russell, Davy Crockett’s sidekick in Davy Crockett: King of the Wild Frontier, reviving his career. He then transitioned to television, starring as Jed Clampett in the hit series The Beverly Hillbillies 1962-1971 and later as the title character in Barnaby Jones 1973-1980.

Buddy Ebsen was married three times: to Ruth Margaret McCambridge from 1933 to 1945, to Nancy Craft Wolcott from 1945 to 1985, and to Dorothy Ebsen from 1985 until his death in 2003. He had seven children: Elizabeth, Susannah, Cathy, Alix Ebsen, Bonnie Ebsen, Kiersten Kiki Ebsen, and Dustin Ebsen. An outspoken Republican, he campaigned against his Beverly Hillbillies co-star Nancy Kulp in her 1984 Democratic congressional bid, creating radio ads that accused her of being too liberal. The two did not speak for years but eventually reconciled.

An avid sailor, Ebsen won the 1968 Honolulu Trans Pacific yacht race in his 35-foot catamaran Polynesian Concept. He served in the Coast Guard during World War II as executive officer on the submarine chaser USS Pocatello. In his later years, he wrote several books, including an autobiography The Other Side of Oz and a romance novel Kelly’s Quest, published when he was 93.

Buddy Ebsen is most remembered for his roles as Jed Clampett on The Beverly Hillbillies and as Barnaby Jones. His career spanned seven decades, from Broadway dancer to television star. He received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1765 Vine Street and was honored as a Disney Legend. His experience as the original Tin Man remains a well-known piece of Hollywood history; his vocals for We’re Off to See the Wizard survive in the soundtrack. Ebsen also contributed to Disney’s Audio-Animatronics: in 1951, Walt Disney filmed him dancing in front of a grid to create the Dancing Man figure, a precursor to modern animatronics.