'Beverly
Hillbillies' actress Donna Douglas dies at 81
Send a link to a friend
[January 03, 2015]
By Will Dunham and Eric
Kelsey
(Reuters) - Wholesome blonde actress Donna Douglas, who
played pretty tomboy Elly May Clampett on the hit 1960s
sitcom "The Beverly Hillbillies" and starred opposite
Elvis Presley in the 1966 film "Frankie and Johnny," has
died at age 81, her family said on Friday.
|
Douglas, a local beauty queen in her native Louisiana before
becoming an actress, died on Thursday of pancreatic cancer at a
hospital in Baton Rouge, her niece Charlene Smith said.
"The Beverly Hillbillies" ran on CBS for nine seasons - from
1962 to 1971 - and was one of the most popular shows of the
1960s, topping the ratings its first two seasons.
Douglas played the daughter of backcountry widower Jed Clampett,
portrayed by Buddy Ebsen, who becomes rich when he discovers oil
on his land, then moves his hillbilly family into a Beverly
Hills mansion to live alongside the wealthy.
Elly May was gorgeous but was happier playing with her numerous
pets including chimpanzees or "rasslin' fellas" rather than
smooching them. Rich suitors tried to woo her with little
success.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2015/Jan/03/images/ads/current/LINCOLN_theater_011411.png)
"Elly may not have kissed many fellows during the show's run,
but she sure did kiss a heap of animals," Douglas told the
Parsons Sun newspaper in Kansas in March.
Her co-stars included: Max Baer Jr. as big goofball cousin
Jethro; Irene Ryan as irascible Granny; and Raymond Bailey as
money-crazy banker Mr. Drysdale.
"Elly was a slice out of my life," Douglas added. "I was raised
a tomboy, with one older brother and all male cousins. So I grew
up swinging from vines and playing softball. I was getting ready
for Jethro long before we ever met."
[to top of second column] |
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2012/Sep/18/images/ads/current/demay_inv-lda081412.png)
Douglas guest-starred on other shows including "Love, American
Style" and "The Twilight Zone," but rejected some movie roles for
being too racy.
Her only starring film appearance was in "Frankie and Johnny," a
musical in which she played riverboat gambler Presley's girlfriend.
"She was a very giving person and a very Christian lady," her niece
said.
Her agent, Jacqueline Stander, added, "She spent most of her time
speaking to churches and other personal appearances and just
spreading joy and love. She was a country angel."
Douglas in 2011 received a settlement to resolve her lawsuit against
toymaker Mattel and CBS Consumer Products over a Barbie doll modeled
after Elly May made without her permission. She unsuccessfully sued
Disney in 1993, accusing the company of stealing her concept for the
film "Sister Act."
(Reporting by Will Dunham in Washington and Eric Kelsey in Los
Angeles; Editing by Bernard Orr)
[© 2014 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2014 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2015/Jan/03/images/ads/current/business_directory_filler.png) |