Ebsen recorded all his songs as Tin Man, went through all the rehearsals, and started filming.

The Beverly Hillbillies is an American situation comedy originally broadcast for nine seasons on CBS from 1962 to 1971, starring Buddy Ebsen, Irene Ryan, Donna Douglas, and Max Baer, Jr.

* October 21 — Buddy Ebsen suffers from a near fatal allergic reaction to the aluminum dust used in his " Tinman " make-up on the set of The Wizard of Oz.

In an interview included on the 2005 DVD release of The Wizard of Oz, Ebsen recalled that the studio heads did not believe he was sick until someone tried to order him back to the set and was intercepted by an angry nurse.

Ebsen's recording of the Tin Man's only solo song, If I Only Had a Heart, still exists and is included on the 2-CD Deluxe Edition of the film's soundtrack, while a still photo recreation of the sequence featuring shots of Ebsen as the Tin Man was included as an extra with all VHS and DVD releases of the film since 1989.

Ebsen served as damage control officer and later as executive officer on the Coast Guard-manned Navy frigate, which recorded weather at its “ weather station ” 1, 500 miles west of Seattle, Washington.

Ebsen made his television debut on an episode of The Chevrolet Tele-Theatre in 1949.

Ebsen received wide television exposure when he played Georgie Russell, a role based on a historical person and companion to frontiersman Davy Crockett, in the wildly popular Disneyland television miniseries Davy Crockett ( 1954 – 1955 ).

Ebsen also appeared twice as " Mr. Dave ", a homeless hobo, on The Andy Griffith Show, playing opposite Ron Howard.

Not all was harmony among cast members on The Beverly Hillbillies set, especially between the politically conservative Ebsen and the more liberal Kulp.

Ebsen appeared as Barnaby Jones on two other television productions as well: a 1975 episode of Cannon, and in the 1993 film The Beverly Hillbillies.

Ebsen narrated the documentary series Disney Family Album during the 1980s on the Disney Channel and Steven Kellogg's " Paul Bunyan " on the PBS series Reading Rainbow in 1985.

In 1999, Ebsen provided a voice for an episode of the Fox Entertainment program King of the Hill ( the oldest person to ever star on the series ).

Ebsen was set to play a cameo role on the Howard Stern-produced syndicated sitcom Son of the Beach, but was forced to cancel it due to bad health.

Ebsen has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1765 Vine Street, as well as a star on the St. Louis Walk of Fame.

Ebsen died of pneumonia at Torrance Memorial Medical Center in Torrance, California, on July 6, 2003, at the age of 95.

As Ebsen entered his 90s, he continued to keep active, and there were media reports that he had begun work on his first novel about a year before his death.

In 1958, he guest starred on NBC's adventure series Northwest Passage, co-starring Buddy Ebsen.

In view of his advancing age – Ebsen was in his 60s for most of the series – Jones rarely engaged in fistfights in the climatic scene of a given episode ; instead, anticipating a violent act from an adversary Jones would draw his revolver and get the drop on the villain, or he would use self-defense tactics — e. g., slamming the door on a shotgun-toting villain, or using a judo hold to subdue the bad guy — or relied on others, like J. R., or the police, to overpower and detain the criminals.

After her stint on Barnaby Jones, Meriwether became best friends with Ebsen, keeping in touch for many years until his death on July 6, 2003.

His abilities might have been a reason why filmmaker Walt Disney chose Ebsen to be filmed dancing in front of a grid as an aid to animating Mickey Mouse's dancing in Disney's 1929 to 1939 Silly Symphonies animated short films ..

Throughout the 1950s, Ebsen performed in films, mainly Westerns.

In 1960, Ebsen appeared in episodes of the television series Rawhide and Tales of Wells Fargo, which he would reprise in episodes of both series during 1962 in the roles of different characters.

He was rushed to a hospital and had to give up the role ( ironically, Ebsen would outlive both Haley and Bolger ).

Prior to The Wizard of Oz Grapewin appeared in MGM's Broadway Melody of 1938 with both Judy Garland ( Oz's Dorothy ) and Buddy Ebsen ( Oz's original Tin Man ).

Additionally, Ebsen, Ryan, and Douglas each made a few solo recordings following the show's success, including Ryan's 1966 novelty single, " Granny's Miniskirt.

Hopper also had several acting roles during the latter part of her career, including brief cameo appearances as herself in the movie Sunset Boulevard ( 1950 ) and The Patsy ( 1964 ), as well as episodes of The Martha Raye Show, I Love Lucy, The Ford Show, Starring Tennessee Ernie Ford, and The Beverly Hillbillies, starring Buddy Ebsen.

Several weeks later he was told he had been selected over Arness and several other actors for the role, including Buddy Ebsen who eventually played Crockett's companion, George Russell.

Several famous actors made guest appearances on This Is the Life during this period, including Jack Nicholson, Buddy Ebsen, and Leonard Nimoy.

Buddy Ebsen about 1936

Ebsen married Ruth Cambridge in 1936 and had two daughters, Elizabeth and Alix.

Following the 1932 death of Florenz Ziegfeld, the Shuberts acquired the rights to the name and format of his famed Ziegfeld Follies, and they presented the 1934 and 1936 editions of the Follies featuring performers such as Fanny Brice, Bob Hope, Josephine Baker, Gypsy Rose Lee, Eve Arden, The Nicholas Brothers, and Buddy Ebsen.

Ebsen was noted for his unusual, surreal dancing and singing style ( for example, his contribution to the " Swingin ' the Jinx Away " finale of Born to Dance ).

Introduced by Shirley Temple and Buddy Ebsen in the film Captain January

Ebsen returned to television in 1973 as the title character of Barnaby Jones, which proved to be his second long-running television series.

To her dismay, Hillbillies co-star Buddy Ebsen supported Shuster and even appeared in a radio commercial in which he called Kulp " too liberal ".

( The second Abbey adaptation was Fire on the Mountain, which was a made-for-TV movie that starred Ron Howard and Buddy Ebsen ).

Ebsen partnered with actresses Eleanor Powell and Frances Langford, among others, and also danced solo.

*" Yours and Mine " ( 1937 )-sung by Eleanor Powell ( dubbed by Marjorie Lane ); danced by Eleanor Powell and George Murphy ; danced by Judy Garland and Buddy Ebsen

*" Follow in My Footsteps " ( 1937 )-sung and danced by George Murphy, Buddy Ebsen and Eleanor Powell ( dubbed by Marjorie Lane )

*" Your Broadway and My Broadway " ( 1937 )-sung by Sophie Tucker and Charles Igor Gorin, danced by George Murphy, Eleanor Powell, Buddy Ebsen and Judy Garland ; recorded by Judy Garland and chorus but cut from the film