Do you think Green Acres is the place to be? Do you ever think that farm livin' is the life for you when compared to city life? Does Hooterville sound like the type of town you'd like to live in as opposed to New York City? Would you rather do farm chores than shop on Park Avenue? Then you'll love these facts about one of the most beloved American TV series of all time: the city-to-farm sitcom, Green Acres.
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1. People thought a terrible fate befell Arnold the Pig
According to IMDb, there was a rumor that after the last episode of the series wrapped, the cast had a luau where they roasted and ate beloved pig/character Arnold the Pig a.k.a. Arnold Ziffel. Years later, star Tom Lester admitted that he made that rumor up. He would tell it to people because he was so tired of fans asking what happened to Arnold the Pig after the show ended. (However, more than one pig played Arnold throughout the series. What happened to the first couple of pigs may be a Hollywood secret.)
2. Oliver and his wife Lisa had great chemistry for a reason
Turns out Eddie Albert and Eva Gabor, who played Oliver Wendell Douglas and Lisa Douglas, were extremely close (but platonic) friends in real life, which is why they made such a great married couple. The Douglases' chemistry on Green Acres Farm supposedly showed in the many scenes in which they would casually touch. When Gabor died in 1995, Albert was devastated and depressed.
3. CBS canceled the show because it gave them a "bad rep"
Of course, that lousy rep is all relative. CBS was tired of being known as the country network, so they ditched the Jay Sommers-produced show along with their classic sitcom cousin starring Jethro and the rest of The Beverly Hillbillies and every other TV show that had even a slightly rural rep.
4. Eb could actually farm
Actor Tom Lester was right at home playing his country character Eb Dawson. Lester grew up on a farm in rural Mississippi, where he learned how to grow and shuck corn.
5. Farming was serious business to Oliver Wendell Douglas
In nearly every scene that showed Oliver working out in the field, he's wearing a shirt, tie and vest.
6. 'Green Acres' had a unique theme song
Green Acres was the first sitcom ever to have its leading actors sing the theme song.
7. It was an older cast
Almost all the main cast members were over the age of 40 when the show premiered. Only Tom Lester (Eb Dawson) was under 30. Mary Grace Canfield (Ralph Monroe), Hank Patterson (Fred Ziffel), Sid Melton (Alf Monroe), Edde Albert (Oliver Wendell Douglas), Eleanor Audley (Mother Eunice Douglas), Pat Buttram (Mr. Haney), Frank Cady (Sam Drucker), Barbara Pepper (Doris Ziffel) and Alvy Moore (Hank Kimball) were all "over the hill," so to speak.
8. The Douglases are together even in death
Though actors Eva Gabor and Eddie Albert weren't married in real life, they were close friends. As it turns out, they're buried only feet away from each other in Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles, California.
This story originally ran on March 20, 2020.
