Buddy Ebsen biography
Born On This Day
Buddy Ebsen was born on this day in 1908.
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Best Known For
Dancer and actor Buddy Ebsen performed on Broadway and films, but he’s best known for his role as Jed Clampett on The Beverly Hillbillies, which ran for nine seasons.Quiz
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Synopsis
Dancer and actor Buddy Ebsen was born on April 2, 1908, in
Belleville, Illinois. He initially pursued medicine, but left school for
New York City before graduating. His first role was a Broadway chorus
spot. He made films in the 1930s, but is best known for his film role in
Disney’s Davy Crockett series in the 1950s and his television roles on The Beverly Hillbillies and Barnaby Jones. He died in 2003.
Early Life
Actor and dancer Buddy Ebsen was born Christian Ludolph Ebsen, Jr., on April 2, 1908, in Belleville, Illinois. Ebsen's career in show business almost didn't happen. His father, a dancer, moved his family, when Ebsen was still young, to Florida. His father opened a dance school in Orlando, but he wanted Ebsen to study medicine. Ebsen initially started down that path, enrolling in a pre-med program at the University of Florida, but in the middle of his studies, Ebsen's family was wiped out financially.The young student quit school, feeling as though he could "make it" in showbiz. He headed to New York City to take a shot at following in his father's footsteps as a dancer. It wasn't long before the talented Ebsen found work, landing a spot in the chorus of a popular Broadway musical entitled Whoopee, which ran a remarkable 379 times.
Propelled by his new found confidence and a minor bit of name recognition, Ebsen encouraged his sister Vilma to come to New York as well, where the two of them put together a song-and-dance performance that took them across the country. The show provided even more exposure for the young dancer.
Commercial Success
Eventually Buddy and Vilma earned the notice of Hollywood, and the two landed a couple of film roles together. On his own, Ebsen found even more movie work in films like Banjo on my Knee (1936), Cole Porter's Born to Dance (1936) and the Shirley Temple vehicle, Captain January (1936).But Ebsen's most triumphant audition also proved to be his most heartbreaking. Originally cast as the Tin Man in the Wizard of Oz (1939), Ebsen was forced to pull out of the film after he became violently ill from the traces of aluminum in his make-up. Ebsen made a full recovery, as did his career. In the early 1950s, Disney cast him in the Davy Crockett series, which became wildly popular with young viewers.
Two major motion pictures based on the program, Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier and Davy Crocket and the River Pirates, soon followed. Ebsen also gave a notable performance during this period as the abandoned husband in the Audrey Hepburn classic, Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961).
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