Write to the Folks from Petticoat
Junction
In the fall of 1995, I was approached for a very special
project. A friend of mine, Bill Groves, is the managing editor of
a magazine called "Television Chronicles" which features in-depth
articles on old TV programs. Knowing that I knew Linda Henning
(Betty Jo from Petticoat Junction), he wanted me to
interview her for an upcoming issue. To my delight, she agreed. To
my astonishment, the entire project snowballed! Through the
wonderful assistance of Paul, Ruth and Linda Henning, I ended up
interviewing 18 people from the cast and crew, including most
those listed below. Those conversations (over 40 hours of tapes),
plus many photos from my personal collection, were put into the
hands of Bill Groves and another friend, Saryl Radwin. They
distilled the tapes down and wrote the most extensive article ever
on the show. Response has been tremendous!
Since the article came out in April 1996, I have continued my
research into the history of Petticoat Junction. This has led me
to over 20 more people somehow associated with the show, either in
front of the cameras or behind the scenes. Almost all of them
continue to exude that warm, friendly "Hooterville" feeling. It's
easy to see that the family atmosphere on the show extended beyond
the boundaries of the TV screen.
An exciting byproduct from the article has been the demand for
me to expand it into a book. I'm happy to say that I have already
gathered plenty of information and interviews to fill several
books and am in the midst of searching for a publisher right now.
(I am open for suggestions along that line!) More on that as
things progress.
Because I have been in contact with so many nice people from
the show, I thought I would give other fans the opportunity to
write to them. Just
e-mail your letter to me, Dave, addressed to anyone on this
list and I will gladly forward it to them for you. I'm sure they
will love hearing from you!
Paul & Ruth Henning - Paul is the creator and executive
producer of the show. Ruth is his wonderful wife.
Linda Kaye Henning - Betty Jo Bradley (Elliott) for all 7
seasons. She is the daughter of Paul & Ruth Henning [write
directly to Linda Henning - click
here for information]
Lori Saunders - Bobbie Jo Bradley from seasons 3 - 7
[write directly to Lori Sauders - click
here for information]
Meredith MacRae - Billie Jo Bradley from seasons 4 - 7
Mike Minor - Steve Elliott from seasons 4 - 7
Gunilla Hutton - Billie Jo Bradley in season 3 [write
directly to Gunilla Hutton - click
here for information]
June Lockhart - Dr. Janet Craig in seasons 6 & 7
Jonathan Daly - Orrin Pike in season 7
Frank Inn - the animal trainer who discovered and trained the
dog, Higgins, in the role of "Dog" on the show. Higgins went on to
become the famous "Benji". Frank Inn also trained all other
animals on the show as well as "The Beverly Hillbillies", "Green
Acres" and almost every other TV show during the 50's &
60's.
Barbara & Heather Whiter - the twin girls who played the
infant Kathy Jo Elliott in season 6
Elna Hubbell - Kathy Jo Elliott in season 7
Tom Lester - Eb Dawson in seasons 4 & 5 (also on "Green
Acres")
Ralph Levy - directed a large number of shows in the final few
seasons
Mark Tuttle - co-wrote most of the episodes of "The Beverly
Hillbillies" with Paul Henning plus several episodes of "Petticoat
Junction"
Buck Buchanan - Edgar Buchanan's son who was in 2 episodes and
frequently on the set. Edgar Buchanan played Uncle Joe for all 7
seasons.
Jimmy Hawkins - was an extra many times on the show and loves
talking about it
Write to TV Land and tell them that you love Petticoat
Junction!
Click here for more
information