Petticoat Junction

One of the most underrated sitcoms in television history, "Petticoat Junction" is a fine example of character-driven comedy. Though it is overshadowed by the other rural comedies, "Andy Griffith," "The Beverly Hillbillies," and "Green Acres," "Petticoat Junction" had a warmth that continued throughout its 7 year run. The episodes before Bea Benaderet's untimely death are perhaps the best, but "Petticoat Junction" remains one of television's undiscovered gems.

This was one of a group of CBS rural comedies popular in the 1960's that were actually grouped together as far as having interdependent casts - "The Beverly Hillbillies" and "Green Acres" being the other two series.

The show is about life at the rural Shady Rest Hotel, owned and operated by widow Kate Bradley (Bea Benaderet). Action centers around guests at the hotel as well as Kate's three attractive daughters, Betty Jo, Bobbie Jo, and Billie Jo. The actresses portraying Billie Jo and Bobbie Jo changed over the years. In fact, season two is the last of two seasons for the first actresses to portray these roles. Betty Jo, the youngest and the tomboy, was played by Linda Henning, daughter of the series creator Paul Henning, for the entire run of the series.

The hotel is literally in the middle of nowhere, halfway between two very small towns. The actual location (state for example) is never given, and the issue of how exactly it is that Kate manages to make what seems to be quite an adequate living running a hotel that theoretically should have few if any guests is never even addressed. This is a show very much rooted in the early 60's, and the idea is escapism and fun, not realism.

Hooterville, Petticoat Junction, Homer Bedloe, some of the names of people and places in this memorable 1960s series.

Edgar Buchanan played Uncle Joe. To me, he was a reminder of the Kingfish in the old Amos 'N Andy series. Old, lazy and shiftless, Buchanan etched an unforgettable character who lived life the way it should be-a leisurely rural existence filled with scheming to improve his lot and to avoid a harder way of doing things.

Bea Benaderet was right on target as the mother of the 3 daughters operating out at the Shady Rest Hotel. What an appropriate name for a hotel out in the sticks.

Charles Lane, who died recently at age 102, was a scene stealer each time he was on. Yes, he was Homer Bedloe, always up to his neck to gain control of Shady Rest for the railroad.

A nostalgic tribute to rural life was depicted here.

This show centered around a hotel known as the junction near a small country town called Hooterville. It started very strong as veteran folks Edgar Bucanan & Bea Benedaret (Uncle Joe & Kate Bradley) ran the hotel.

Then there were the 3 Bradley girls. Bobbie-Jo, Billie-Jo & Betty-Jo. I met a lot of kids from the era of this show named after these girls. They were wholesome American teen girls who were every boys dream.

Then there was the Cannonball, the train that served the Hooterville. It was one of the charms of the show with the engineers. One of the charming holiday shows of this involved having the Cannonball all decorated for Christmas.

When Bea, the actress died in real life, they tried to bring on June Lockhart as a replacement. That was OK, but the scripts seemed to lose their comic energy. It still ran until 1970 anyway. The show had its charm.

When this show first premiered its biggest attraction were the three Bradley daughters. However, you really got to see a great comedy and the real stars were the late great Bea Benederet as Kate and the late and equally great Edgar Buchanan as Uncle Joe, who was always looking to get rich quick. The girls themselves were pretty well fleshed out characters themselves. Billie Jo was the ambitious star-struck one, Bobbie Jo was the somewhat dim bulb and Betty Jo was the tomboy. Betty Jo became the most evolved character as you saw her grow up from being a girl who was pretty much pre-occupied with sports into a beautiful young woman who eventually settled down and married the man of her dreams. Too bad Bea Benederet passed away. When that happened the wind seemed to go out of the show and within two years it was gone. Perhaps it was a precursor of things to come becuase within a year after it had gone off the air all the great rural television shows were virtually wiped out in the infamous purge of 1971.