Updated 05-May-2020.
Mondo shtuff from around the internet, all about JIM VARNEY!
made only at TCM!
My botty best at summarizing from Wikipedia: actor and comedian was best known for his broadly comedic role as Ernest P. Worrell . he died of lung cancer in 2000 . as a child, he displayed the ability to memorize long poems and material from books Varney began his interest in theater as a teenager, winning state titles in drama competitions . by 17, he was performing professionally in nightclubs and coffee houses . Varney studied Shakespeare at the barter theatre in abing when he was 24, Varney was an actor at the Pioneer Playhouse in Danville, Kentucky . he regaled the young apprentices by throwing knives into trees . before the show, the audience would tour the village where Varney played a recurring guest on the faux late-night talk show Fernwood 2 Night . he was cast as Seaman “doom & gloom” Broom in Operation Petticoat . Var Varney was a cast member on the television flop Pink Lady and Jeff . his specialty was character comedy: he would impersonate numerous characters with elaborate backstories . in 1980, the first commercial featuring the character advertised the character was franchised for use in markets all over the country . it was often used by dairies to advertise milk products . Varney created a different character, Sgt. Glory, a drill instructor sgt. glory also appeared in ad for a southern grocery chain, Pruett’s Food Town . he also starred as Ernest in commercials that ran in the new orleans “natural gas, Vern; it’s hot, fast, and cheap,” he says in television ads . “Varney also appeared in several Braum’s Ice Cream and Dairy Stores commercials . he portrayed Ernest in a series of commercials for car dealerships across the country . he also portrayed “Auntie Nelda” in numerous commercials . Varney ran for a few years in commercials for Leadco Aluminum Siding . he also appeared as Ernest in on-air promos for local television stations . in the 1990s, Varney reprised his role as (1988) and a series of movies in the 1980s and 1990s . Ernest goes to camp grossed $23.5 million at the box office . all further films were released direct-to-video . he starred as Ernest in several smaller movies for John R. Cherry III . mill Creek Entertainment released these classic television commercials on DVD box sets . image entertainment re-released them on June 5, 2012, as part of in 1985, Varney co-hosted HBO’s new year’s Eve special . he also starred as jed Clampett in the 1993 production of The Beverly Hillbillies . Varney played a small role in the 1995 action film The Expert as a weapons dealer named Snake . he also lent his voice to Slinky Dog in Disney/Pixar’s Toy Story and Toy Varney’s final film was Billy Bob Thornton’s Daddy and them . co-stars included Kelly Preston and Andy Griffith . another final guest appearance was the Bibleman Genesis series Bibleman Jr. Volume 1 Varney starred in three videos teaching kids important safety rules about hunting and guns . he illustrated the rules with the help of his bumbling and accident-prone cousin Bubba . one of his final projects was writing Neither union resulted in children. Varney’s nephew Justin Lloyd published a biography about his uncle . in 1998, he developed a bad cough . he thought it was a cold caused by the climate Varney was diagnosed with lung cancer when filming was complete . he sought medical treatment and returned to Tennessee, where he underwent chemotherapy . but he died on february 10, 2000, at his home in white house Blake Clark has provided the voice of Slinky Dog in the toy story series . since Varney’s death, his close friend has provided voice of slinky dog .