Editing Buddy Ebsen (section)

===''The Beverly Hillbillies'' (1962–1971)===
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 |quote= [[Paul Henning]] recalls his reason for choosing Ebsen to play [[Jed Clampett]]: "I had seen him on TV and I couldn't imagine anyone else doing the role," he says. "I was fortunate to have him, because he became the cornerstone of the show."
 |source=<ref>{{cite web|last=Murphy|first=Tom|title=Come Listen To A Story 'bout A Man Named... Buddy, Barnaby & Jed|date=12 February 1995|newspaper=[[Sun-Sentinel]]|url=http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1995-02-12/features/9502080292_1_ebsen-hillbillies-barnaby-jones/3|access-date=17 June 2015|archive-date=June 17, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150617234343/http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1995-02-12/features/9502080292_1_ebsen-hillbillies-barnaby-jones/3|url-status=dead}}</ref>
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[[File:Buddy Ebsen and Irene Ryan from The Beverly Hillbillies - 1970.jpg|thumb|{{center|[[Irene Ryan]] and Ebsen, 1970}}]]
Ebsen became famous as [[Jed Clampett]], an easygoing backwoods mountaineer who strikes oil and moves with his family to [[Beverly Hills, California]], in the long-running, [[wikt:fish out of water|fish-out-of-water]] CBS sitcom ''[[The Beverly Hillbillies]]''.

Although scorned by critics, ''The Beverly Hillbillies'' attracted as many as 60 million viewers between 1962 and 1971 and was several times the highest-rated series on television. The show also spawned similar Paul Henning-produced rural sitcoms such as ''[[Green Acres]]'' and ''[[Petticoat Junction]]'', which were eventually linked in crossover episode arcs. ''The Beverly Hillbillies'' was still earning good ratings when it was canceled by CBS (because programmers [[Rural purge|began shunning shows that attracted a rural audience]]). One episode, "The Giant Jack Rabbit", broadcast January 8, 1964 (season 2, episode 16) was the highest-rated half-hour on television to that time and remains{{when|date=July 2013}} the most-watched half-hour sitcom episode.<ref>{{cite web|title=The Giant Jackrabbit: What is a Beverly Hillbillies Episode Doing on the TV All Time Most Watched List?|publisher=The Retroist|url=http://www.retroist.com/2012/06/11/the-giant-jackrabbit-what-is-a-beverly-hillbillies-episode-doing-on-the-tv-all-time-most-watched-list/|access-date=17 June 2015|archive-date=June 17, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150617220230/http://www.retroist.com/2012/06/11/the-giant-jackrabbit-what-is-a-beverly-hillbillies-episode-doing-on-the-tv-all-time-most-watched-list/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Not all was harmonious among cast members on ''The Beverly Hillbillies'' set, especially between the politically conservative Ebsen and the more liberal [[Nancy Kulp]]. Donna Douglas (Elly May) said, "They had a different view, so they had some heated discussions about that. They would go at it for weeks." In 1984, Kulp unsuccessfully ran for the [[United States House of Representatives|U.S. House of Representatives]] as a Democrat from [[Pennsylvania]]. To her dismay, Ebsen supported her Republican opponent, incumbent Representative [[Bud Shuster]], going so far as to tape an ad for Shuster that labeled Kulp as "too liberal". Ebsen claimed she was exploiting her celebrity status and did not know the issues.<ref>{{cite web|last=Folkart|first=Burt A.|title=Nancy Kulp; Foil in 'Beverly Hillbillies'|date=5 February 1991|newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]] |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-02-05-mn-889-story.html|access-date=17 June 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Feudin' Hillbillies: Jed Clampett Opposes Miss Hathaway's House Bid|date=2 November 1984|newspaper=[[The Palm Beach Post]]|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1964&dat=19841102&id=jqdUAAAAIBAJ&pg=6266,1161853&hl=en|access-date=17 June 2015}}{{Dead link|date=December 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>