The final episode of The Beverly Hillbillies aired over 50 years ago, and sadly, the passing of so much time means that only one star of the classic sitcom is still alive today. Max Baer Jr., who played Jethro on The Beverly Hillbillies is 85 years old and became the last living member of the cast following the death of Donna Douglas, who played Elly May, in 2015 at age 82.
Jethro is the cousin of lead character Jed Clampett (Buddy Ebsen) on the show. He's remembered for not being the sharpest tool in the shed and for always being on the lookout for new jobs. In real life, Baer is much different from his character, though he has tried out several careers himself. Read on to find out about Baer's life today.
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He retired from acting over 30 years ago.
Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection via Getty ImagesWhen The Beverly Hillbillies premiered in 1962, Baer had already played roles on a few TV shows, including Maverick, Surfside 6, and Cheyenne. According to him, he got into acting by accident.
"I was at lunch at Warner Brothers one day. Somebody took me over there, a friend of mine," he told The Five Count (via Outsider). "They saw me on the lot, and James Garner had just left Maverick. And I resembled Jimmy a little bit because somebody from ABC saw me and thought I was him at a distance. So they asked me if I ever wanted to act and I said, ‘I don’t know. What does it pay?’ I think it was $250 a week, this was in 1960. So I said ‘Okay, I’ll try.’ And I went ahead and I did a reading for them. No screen test. I just did a reading for them and they signed me."
Baer continued to act following The Beverly Hillbillies, appearing in films he directed himself and in a few other parts. His last TV appearance was on Murder, She Wrote in 1991.
He became a producer and director.
SGranitz/WireImage via Getty ImagesDuring the 1970s, Baer wrote, directed, and produced the movie The Wild McCullochs, directed and produced Ode to Billy Joe, and wrote and produced Macon County Line. He also acted in Macon County Line and The Wild McCullochs.
In another career move, Baer got licensing rights to The Beverly Hillbillies in an attempt to make a variety of show-themed products. He was able to launch Beverly Hillbillies slot machines and tried to open a Beverly Hillbillies-themed casino, which didn't prove successful. The Los Angeles Times reported in 2002 that he also hoped to manufacture products such as baked goods and soap.
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He got married but didn't have children.
Earl Leaf/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty ImagesBaer was married to Joanne Hill from 1966 to 1971. "But I never had any kids," he told Fore, "because I don’t think I could have been the father that my father was to me." Baer's father was Max Baer, a professional boxer who was the world heavyweight champion in the 1930s.
He kept in touch with his co-stars.
Albert L. Ortega/WireImage via Getty ImagesSpeaking to RumorFix following Douglas' death, Baer shared that they had kept in touch. "I spoke to her on a semi-regular basis. We weren’t the kind of people who would text, but we would call each other when there was something to share," he said. "I’m the last man standing. All the actors, producers—everybody on the show is gone."
In a 2017 interview with Fore magazine, Baer was asked about his health. Shining a light on his perspective on life in general, he responded, "I’m gonna either live or die. I die, and it’s either heaven or hell. If it’s heaven, great. If it’s hell, I’ll be so busy shaking the hands of all my friends, I won’t worry about it.’’
He feels that playing Jethro hurt his acting career.
Los Vegas Real Estate/YouTubeSpeaking to Fore, Baer explained that because he was so well known for playing dimwitted Jethro, it was hard to get cast in other projects. "I couldn’t go into a producer’s office and say I wanted to play the part of a neurosurgeon or pilot,’’ he said. “As soon as I came on screen, people would say, there’s Jethro.’’ The article notes that even Baer's friends called him by his Beverly Hillbillies character name.
That said, he joked in a 1993 Entertainment Weekly article that, by a certain point, being Jethro isn't what halted his career dreams. "I thought I had a fat face, and I didn’t think I was ever any good, or good-looking," he told the magazine. "When they did a reunion in 1981, I wanted no part of it. But now that I’m 55 years old, it’s not like playing Jethro is what’s going to cause anyone not to hire me as a leading man.”
He knows he did his duty on Beverly Hillbillies, however. "And, in my case [with Jethro], if I have made the people laugh—and even if they can laugh at my expense—it’s okay," he told Writers' Blokke in 2020. "I don’t care. They can laugh with me or at me. It doesn’t matter … just as long as they laugh. Because if I can make them laugh, then I believe that my performance was a successful one. I can’t evaluate it as to what degree of success it was. But I can say it did what it was supposed to do."
