Actor, Comedian. Born James Albert Varney, Jr., as a young child, he demonstrated the ability to memorize long poems and lengthy portions of material from books, and then entertained family and friends. His mother discovered that he could imitate cartoon characters, and she enrolled him in children's theater when he was 8 years old. He continued his interest in theater as a teenager, winning state titles in drama competitions while a student in high school. At the age of 15, he portrayed Ebenezer Scrooge in a local theater production, and by 17, he was performing professionally in nightclubs and coffee houses. After graduating from Lafayette High School in Lexington, Kentucky, he studied Shakespeare at the Barter Theatre in Abingdon, Virginia. He performed in an Opryland folk show its first year of operation in the 1970s, and was also an actor at the Pioneer Playhouse in Danville, Kentucky. In 1976, he was a regular cast member of the television show, "Johnny Cash and Friends." The following year, he played a recurring guest on the late-night talk show "Fernwood 2 Night." From 1977 until 1979, he played Seaman "Doom & Gloom" Broom in the ABC television adaptation series "Operation Petticoat," followed in 1980 as a cast member on the NBC television variety show flop "Pink Lady and Jeff." That same year, he began doing commercials utilizing the characters 'Ernest P. Worrell,' 'Sgt. Glory,' and 'Auntie Nelda' in different parts of the U.S. From 1983 to 1984, he played Chad Everett's younger brother 'Evan Earp' in the short-lived NBC television series "The Rousters," about the descendants of Wyatt Earp. His Ernest character, however, became so popular that, in 1988, it was spun off into the CBS television children's series, "Hey Vern, It's Ernest!" followed by a series of movies in the 1980s and 1990s. "Ernest Goes to Camp" (1987) won him a nomination for "Worst New Star" at the 1987 Golden Raspberry Awards, but the movie was a huge hit. He also starred as Ernest in several smaller movies, such as "Knowhutimean? Hey Vern, It's My Family Album" (1983) and "Dr. Otto and the Riddle of the Gloom Beam" (1986), all of which showcased his great facility with assuming a wide variety of characters and accents. In 1985, he co-hosted HBO's New Year's Eve special, along with Johnny Cash and Kris Kristofferson. He appeared in over 30 films, he played the lead role of Jed Clampett in the 1993 film adaptation of "The Beverly Hillbillies." He also lent his voice to 'Slinky Dog' in the Walt Disney films "Toy Story 1" (1995) and "Toy Story 2" (1999). In 1998, after filming "Treehouse Hostage" (1999), he developed a severe cough, and was diagnosed with lung cancer. He returned to Tennessee to begin chemotherapy treatment. His final movie appearances were in Billy Bob Thornton's "Daddy and Them" and "Atlantis: The Lost Empire" (both 2001), released the year following his death at the age of 50.