James Albert Varney Jr. (June 15, 1949 – February 10, 2000) was an American actor and comedian. He is best known for hisEmmy Award winning comedic role asErnest P. Worrell, originating in a series of television commercial advertising campaigns, and later growing into a film and television franchise.[1][2][3] He played Jed Clampett in the 1993The Beverly Hillbillies film adaptation, and also covered a song for the film titled "Hot Rod Lincoln".[4] He voicedSlinky Dog in the first two films of theToy Story franchise (1995–1999). He died oflung cancer on February 10, 2000, leaving two posthumous releases,Daddy and Them andAtlantis: The Lost Empire.
Varney was born inLexington, Kentucky,[5] the son of Nancy Louise (née Howard; 1913–1994), and James Albert Varney Sr. (1910–1985). As a child, he displayed the ability to memorize long poems and significant portions of the material from books, which he used to entertain family and friends. When Varney was a boy, his mother would turn on cartoons for him to watch. His mother discovered that Varney quickly began to imitate the cartoon characters, so she started him in children's theater when he was eight years old. Varney began his interest in theater as a teenager, winning state titles in drama competitions while a student atLafayette High School[6] (class of 1968) in Lexington.
At the age of 15, he portrayedEbenezer Scrooge in a local theater production; by 17, he was performing professionally innightclubs and coffee houses. In the 1970s, Varney studiedShakespeare at theBarter Theatre in Abingdon, Virginia,[7] and performed in anOpryland folk show in its first year of operation. He listed a former teacher, Thelma Beeler, as being a mentor in his becoming an actor. When he was 24, Varney was an actor at thePioneer Playhouse inDanville, Kentucky. The theater was adjacent to anOld West-themed village, and before the show, the audience would tour the village where apprentices would play townsfolk. Varney and the company usually played in the outdoor theater to audiences of only a few dozen people. He entertained the young apprentices by throwing knives into trees. He performed inBlithe Spirit,Boeing 707 and an original musical,Fire on the Mountain. He once jokingly threatened a long-haired apprentice, John Lino Ponzini, that he would take him up toHazard, Kentucky, where "you [Ponzini] wouldn't make it down Main Street without the townsfolk giving you a crewcut".[3]
Varney had an established acting career before his fame as Ernest. In 1976, Varney was a regular cast member of the television showJohnny Cash and Friends. In 1977–78, he appeared as recurring guest Virgil Simms on the talk show parodyFernwood 2 Night andAmerica 2 Night. From 1977 to 1979, Varney was cast as Seaman "Doom & Gloom" Broom in the television version ofOperation Petticoat. Just prior to his stint as Ernest, he was a cast member on the notorious television flopPink Lady and Jeff. In 1978, Varney played Milo Skinner on the TV showAlice.[8]
Varney's best-known character isErnest P. Worrell, who would address the camera as if speaking to a friend, using his trademarkedcatchphrase "Knowhutimean, Vern?" In 1980, the first commercial featuring the character advertised an appearance by theDallas Cowboys Cheerleaders atBeech Bend Park, anamusement park located nearBowling Green, Kentucky. The character was franchised for use in markets all over the country and was often used bydairies to advertise milk products. For example, the ice cream and hamburger chainBraum's ran several advertisements featuring Ernest;Purity Dairies, based in Nashville, Pine State Dairy in Raleigh, North Carolina, and Oakhurst Dairy in Maine ran commercials that were nearly identical, but with the dairy name changed.[citation needed]
For the same agency, Varney created a different character, Sgt. Glory, a humorlessdrill instructor who harangued cows of the client dairy into producing better milk. In another spot, Sgt. Glory's home was shown, which was so heavily decorated with the products of the sponsor and advertising specialty items that it was essentially devoid of any other decor. The Sgt. Glory character also appeared in an advertisement for a Southern grocery chain, Pruett's Food Town, in which he drilled the checkout clerks on proper behavior: "Bread on top. Repeat: Bread on top." He approaches one of them at the end of the commercial with a look of menace and says, "You're not smilin'." The checkout bagger gives a very nervous and forced smile.
Varney also starred as Ernest in a series of commercials that ran in theNew Orleans area (and throughout theGulf South) as a spokesman for natural gas utilities. In one, he is seen kneeling down in front of Vern's desk under a lamp hanging from the ceiling, stating, "Natural gas, Vern; it's hot, fast, and cheap. Hot, fast, cheap; kinda like your first wife, Vern, you know, the pretty one!?" Vern then knocks the lamp into Ernest's head, knocking him down. Those same television advertisements also were featured on channels in theSt. Louis area forLaclede Gas Company during the mid-1980s and in the metro Detroit area for Michigan Consolidated Gas Company. Another TV ad for Laclede Gas featured Ernest saying, "Heat pump, schmeat pump."[9]
Varney portrayed Ernest in a series of commercials forConvenient Food Mart during the 1980s. In 1982, Varney co-hosted the syndicatedPop! Goes the Country with singerTom T. Hall. The show had just had a major overhaul and ended shortly afterward. He also portrayed "Auntie Nelda" in numerous commercials; dressed in drag and appearing to be a senior citizen, the commercials gave off the tone of "Auntie Nelda" as a motherly lady encouraging one to do what was right (in this case, buy whatever product was being promoted). This character, along with the "Ernest" character, ran for a few years inMississippi andLouisiana in commercials for Leadco Aluminum Siding, before it became a regular in the Ernest films.[11] Varney also appeared as Ernest in on-air promos for local TV stations in several markets, talking about their news and weather personalities.
During the 1990s, Varney reprised his role as Ernest forBlake's Lotaburger, a fast-food chain inNew Mexico. In these commercials, Ernest typically would be trying to get into Vern's house to see what food Vern was eating. After a lengthy description of whatever tasty morsel Vern had, Ernest would get locked out but would continue to shout from outside.[12]
Jim Varney's handprints, displayed at Disney World
The character of Ernest became widely popular, and was the basis for a short-lived TV series,Hey Vern, It's Ernest! (1988) and a series of films in the 1980s and 1990s.[13][14]
From 1983 to 1984, Varney played heartthrobChad Everett's younger brother Evan Earp in the comedy-drama, high-action television seriesThe Rousters, created byStephen J. Cannell, about the descendants ofWyatt Earp, a family of bounty hunters/carnival bouncers. As Evan Earp, Varney played a con man/mechanical-inventor "genius," constantly getting himself into comedic trouble, with those around him ready to lynch him. Although the series was promising, the show failed after its first season because it was poorly slotted (four episodes every few months) against the number-one prime-time television series for the previous six years,The Love Boat.
Varney had a brief role as an incestuous, abusive father in an independent film,100 Proof, for which he received good reviews from critics. He also played a rebel in themidnight movieExisto, as well as an old mariner in a low-budget horror film,Blood, Friends, and Money. During the filming ofTreehouse Hostage, he played an escaped convict held hostage and tormented by some fifth graders in a treehouse.
One of Varney's final films wasBilly Bob Thornton'sDaddy and Them, in which he played Uncle Hazel, who had been arrested for murder. Co-stars includedKelly Preston andAndy Griffith. Another final guest appearance was theBibleman Genesis seriesBibleman Jr. Volume 1 & 2 as himself. Varney starred in three videos,The Misadventures of Bubba,The Misadventures of Bubba II, andBubba Goes Hunting, in which he played himself and taught young kids important safety rules about hunting and guns. He illustrated the rules with the help of his bumbling and accident-prone cousin Bubba (also played by Varney) and Bubba's nephew, Billy Bob. The videos were distributed as part of a membership pack from Buckmasters' Young Bucks Club.
According to an interview, one of his final projects was writing a screenplay about the legendaryHatfield–McCoy feud, stating that his grandfather hunted squirrel with the Hatfields. Varney also allegedly had been hoping to acquire more serious acting roles before his death, wanting to step outside the typecast of Ernest.
Varney was married twice, first to Jacqueline Drew (1977–1983) and then to Jane Varney (1988–1991).[17][18] Both marriages ended in divorce, although he remained friends with his ex-wife Jane until his death; she became Varney's spokeswoman and accompanied him in Pixar's 1999 filmToy Story 2. Neither marriage resulted in any children.
On December 6, 2013, Varney's nephew Justin Lloyd published a comprehensive biography about his uncle titledThe Importance of Being Ernest: The Life of Actor Jim Varney (Stuff that Vern doesn't even know).[19] The same year, director John R. Cherry III released a Varney biography calledKeeper of the Clown.[20]
As of 2022[update], director David Pagano andErnest Goes to Camp cast member Daniel Butler are planning to release a documentary about Varney called The Importance of Being Ernest.[21]
Varney was a longtimechain smoker. During the filming ofTreehouse Hostage in August 1998,[23] Varney developed a nagging cough, which he initially believed to be caused by a cold. However, as his condition worsened, Varney sought medical treatment and was diagnosed withlung cancer.[24]
In response to his illness, Varney reportedly quit smoking to continue performing.[citation needed] He returned to Tennessee, where he underwentchemotherapy.[citation needed] On November 13, 1999, he was photographed attending the premiere ofToy Story 2, which featured his final vocal performance of Slinky Dog.[25] He died less than three months later on February 10, 2000 at his home inWhite House, Tennessee, at the age of 50.[26] He was buried inLexington Cemetery in Lexington, Kentucky.[26]
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