Jim Varney facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Jim Varney
Varney in 1994
Born	James Albert Varney Jr. (1949-06-15)June 15, 1949 Lexington, Kentucky, U.S.
Died	February 10, 2000(2000-02-10) (aged 50) White House, Tennessee, U.S.
Resting place	Lexington Cemetery
Occupation	Actor comedian
Years active	1964–2000
Spouse(s)	Jacqueline Drew ​ ​ (m. 1977; div. 1983)​ Jane Varney ​ ​ (m. 1988; div. 1991)​

James Albert Varney Jr. (born June 15, 1949 – died February 10, 2000) was a famous American actor and comedian. He was best known for playing the funny character Ernest P. Worrell. This role even won him a special award called a Daytime Emmy Award.

Jim Varney also appeared in many movies and TV commercials. He played Jed Clampett in the movie The Beverly Hillbillies (1993). He also gave his voice to Slinky Dog in the first two Toy Story movies (1995–1999). Jim Varney passed away at age 50 from lung cancer. His last two movies, Daddy and Them and Atlantis: The Lost Empire, were released after he died.

Jim Varney: Actor and Comedian

Early Life and Acting Dreams

Jim Varney was born in Lexington, Kentucky. As a child, he loved to memorize long poems and parts of books. He would use these to entertain his family and friends.

When Jim was a boy, his mother noticed he would quickly copy cartoon characters. So, she enrolled him in children's theater when he was eight years old. Jim became very interested in acting as a teenager. He won state awards in drama competitions while studying at Lafayette High School. He graduated in 1968.

At 15, he played Ebenezer Scrooge in a local play. By 17, he was performing professionally in nightclubs and coffee houses. Jim also studied Shakespeare at the Barter Theatre in Virginia. In the 1970s, he performed in an Opryland folk show. He often said his former teacher, Thelma Beeler, helped him become an actor.

When he was 24, Jim was an actor at the Pioneer Playhouse in Danville, Kentucky. This theater was next to an Old West-themed village. Before shows, the audience would tour the village, where actors played townsfolk. Jim and the other actors usually performed outdoors for small audiences. He would entertain young actors by throwing knives into trees.

Becoming Ernest P. Worrell

Before becoming famous as Ernest, Jim Varney had a strong acting career. In 1976, he was a regular on Johnny Cash and Friends. He also appeared on the talk show Fernwood 2 Night. From 1977 to 1979, Jim played Seaman "Doom & Gloom" Broom in the TV show Operation Petticoat. He was also a cast member on Pink Lady and Jeff. In 1978, Jim played Milo Skinner on the TV show Alice.

Jim also performed as a stand-up comedian. He was great at playing different characters with detailed backstories. Many of these characters later appeared in his movies and TV commercials.

Ernest's Big Screen Adventures

Jim Varney's most famous character was Ernest P. Worrell. Ernest would talk to the camera as if speaking to a friend, always using his famous phrase, "KnoWhutImean, Vern?" The first commercial with Ernest was in 1980. It advertised an event at Beech Bend Park in Kentucky.

The Ernest character became very popular across the country. He was often used by dairies to advertise milk. For example, Braum's and Purity Dairies used Ernest in their ads. Jim also created another character, Sgt. Glory, a strict drill instructor who made cows produce better milk.

Ernest also appeared in commercials for natural gas companies in places like New Orleans and St. Louis. He made ads for car dealerships and for Convenient Food Mart stores. In the 1990s, Ernest was in commercials for Blake's Lotaburger, a fast-food chain in New Mexico. In these ads, Ernest would try to get into Vern's house to see what Vern was eating.

Jim Varney's handprints, displayed at Disney

The Ernest character became so popular that he got his own short-lived TV series, Hey Vern, It's Ernest! (1988). He also starred in a series of movies in the 1980s and 1990s.

Ernest Goes to Camp (1987) made $23.5 million at the U.S. box office. This was a lot, especially since it only cost $3.5 million to make! The movie stayed in the top five at the box office for its first three weeks. A year later, Jim won a Daytime Emmy Award for his work on Hey Vern, It's Ernest!.

Other Ernest movies released in theaters included Ernest Saves Christmas (1988), Ernest Goes to Jail (1990), Ernest Scared Stupid (1991), and Ernest Rides Again (1993). After Ernest Rides Again didn't make much money, later films were released directly to video. These included Ernest Goes to School (1994), Slam Dunk Ernest (1995), Ernest Goes to Africa (1997), and Ernest in the Army (1998).

The Walt Disney World Resort's Epcot theme park even featured Ernest. The Cranium Command attraction at Epcot used Ernest as an example of a "lovable, but not the brightest person on the planet." Jim also starred as Ernest in other movies like Knowhutimean? Hey Vern, It's My Family Album and Dr. Otto and the Riddle of the Gloom Beam. These movies showed him playing many different characters and using various accents.

Other Famous Roles

Varney in the film The Expert (1995)

From 1983 to 1984, Jim Varney played Evan Earp in the TV series The Rousters. This show was about the family of Wyatt Earp, who were bounty hunters. As Evan Earp, Jim played a clever inventor who often got into funny trouble.

In 1985, Jim co-hosted HBO's New Year's Eve special with Johnny Cash. Jim also played Jed Clampett in the 1993 movie The Beverly Hillbillies. He was Rex in Wilder Napalm and Rudy James in Snowboard Academy. He also had a small role as a weapons dealer named Snake in the 1995 action film The Expert.

Jim Varney also gave his voice to Slinky Dog in Disney/Pixar's Toy Story and Toy Story 2. After his death, his friend Blake Clark took over the role for later Toy Story movies. Jim voiced "Cookie" Farnsworth in Atlantis: The Lost Empire, which came out after he died. He also voiced Cooder in The Simpsons and Walt Evergreen in Duckman. He played Prince Carlos Charmaine in Roseanne and Lothar Zogg in 3 Ninjas: High Noon at Mega Mountain.

One of Jim's last movies was Billy Bob Thornton's Daddy and Them. In this film, he played Uncle Hazel, who was arrested for murder. Jim also appeared in the Bibleman series Bibleman Jr. Volume 1 & 2 as himself. He starred in three videos, The Misadventures of Bubba, The Misadventures of Bubba II, and Bubba Goes Hunting. In these videos, he played himself and taught kids about gun safety. He used his clumsy cousin Bubba (also played by Jim) to show what not to do.

Jim Varney was also working on a screenplay about the famous Hatfield–McCoy feud before he passed away. He hoped to take on more serious acting roles, moving beyond the Ernest character.

His Personal Life

Jim Varney was married twice. First to Jacqueline Drew (1977–1983) and then to Jane Varney (1988–1991). Both marriages ended in divorce. However, he remained friends with his ex-wife Jane until his death. She even became his spokeswoman and joined him for the movie Toy Story 2 in 1999. Jim did not have any children.

In 2013, Jim Varney's nephew, Justin Lloyd, wrote a book about his uncle called The Importance of Being Ernest: The Life of Actor Jim Varney (Stuff that Vern doesn't even know). That same year, director John R. Cherry III released his own book about Jim, called Keeper of the Clown.

As of As of 2022^[update], director David Pagano and Daniel Butler (who was in Ernest Goes to Camp) are planning a documentary about Jim Varney. It will be called The Importance of Being Ernest.

Jim Varney was also a skilled mountain dulcimer player. He once played this instrument on the very last episode of The Chevy Chase Show.

Later Years and Legacy

While filming Treehouse Hostage in August 1998, Jim Varney developed a cough. He first thought it was just a cold from the chilly weather. But it got worse. After filming, he saw a doctor and was diagnosed with lung cancer.

Jim returned to Tennessee for chemotherapy. Sadly, the treatment did not work. He passed away on Thursday, February 10, 2000, at his home in White House, Tennessee. He was 50 years old. He was buried in Lexington Cemetery in Lexington, Kentucky.

Disney's Atlantis: The Lost Empire, released a year after his death, was his last voice acting role. The movie was dedicated to his memory.

Filmography

Movies

Television Shows

Video Games

See also

In Spanish: Jim Varney para niños