50 Fun Facts About Petticoat Junction

On which network did Petticoat Junction air from 1963 to 1970?

It was canceled in spring 1970 despite improving ratings, a precursor to the network's "rural purge".

What is the name of the hotel where Petticoat Junction is set?

Kate says her stubborn grandfather built it there because that was where the lumber fell off the train.

Who played Kate Bradley, the widowed proprietress of the hotel?

Paul Henning wrote the series for her after decades of second-banana roles with Jack Benny, Lucille Ball and Burns and Allen.

Who played Uncle Joe Carson?

He was the only actor to appear in every episode and was just three years older than the actress playing his niece.

Which of Kate's daughters is the red-haired tomboy who loves to drive the train?

She was played for all seven seasons by Linda Kaye Henning, the creator's daughter.

How many actresses played the blonde daughter Billie Jo over the show's run?

Jeannine Riley, then Gunilla Hutton, then Meredith MacRae; Sharon Tate was originally cast but never appeared.

Which future star was originally cast as Billie Jo but never appeared on the show?

A cast photo was taken with her, but producer Martin Ransohoff felt she was not ready for a central role.

Who played the brunette middle daughter Bobbie Jo from season three onward?

Pat Woodell left after two seasons to sing; the bookworm character gradually became a comic scatterbrain.

What is the name of the vintage steam train that serves the hotel?

The 1890s train runs more like a taxi service and makes unscheduled stops so the crew can fish or pick fruit for Kate's pies.

Which two towns sit at either end of the Cannonball's isolated branch line?

Each is about 25 miles from the hotel; the line was cut off from the main railroad by flood damage to a trestle.

Why is the hotel's train stop nicknamed "Petticoat Junction"?

It is technically a water stop, not a junction; the opening titles show the petticoats while the girls swim offscreen.

Who created Petticoat Junction, as well as The Beverly Hillbillies?

His wife Ruth's childhood memories of her grandmother's hotel in Eldon, Missouri, supplied the setting.

The show's hotel was based on a real hotel in which Missouri town?

The Burris Hotel, once called the Rock Island Hotel, was run by the creator's wife's grandparents beside the Rock Island tracks.

Which spin-off grew out of Petticoat Junction's success in 1965?

Both shows share Hooterville and characters like Sam Drucker, Newt Kiley and Floyd Smoot.

Who runs the general store in Hooterville that doubles as post office and newspaper?

He is also justice of the peace, county clerk, water commissioner, marshal and occasionally mayor.

Which actor played the same storekeeper on three shows at once, a TV first?

He was a regular on this show and Green Acres and guested on The Beverly Hillbillies; his last role was in Return to Green Acres in 1990.

Which railroad executive keeps trying to scrap the Cannonball?

Charles Lane played the curmudgeon in 24 episodes and said he perfected the type on I Love Lucy.

Who played the Cannonball's engineer Charley Pratt in the first four seasons?

The former Gene Autry sidekick died of leukemia in 1967 right after the fourth season wrapped.

What is Kate Bradley's cooking specialty at the hotel?

Meals seen on screen were actually cooked by property master Vince Vecchio, whom the star praised as better than anyone's mother.

Which of these was a proposed title for the show before Petticoat Junction was chosen?

Dern Tootin' and Whistle Stop were also considered.

Which crop duster joins the cast in season four and eventually marries Betty Jo?

Mike Minor played him; he had appeared two years earlier as Selma Plout's son Dan, never seen again.

Who played Dr. Janet Craig, the physician brought in as a mother figure in season six?

She came straight from three years as Maureen Robinson on Lost in Space and had earlier played the mother on Lassie.

How did the show handle Kate Bradley after her actress died in 1968?

A main character dying was nearly unheard of in a 1960s sitcom; the theme lyric changed from "run by Kate" to "run by Joe".

In which episode did Kate's actress contribute only her voice, reading a letter to Betty Jo and Steve?

Paul Henning rushed the birth of Betty Jo's baby into season six's fourth episode so Kate could still be part of it.

What cartoon character did the actress who played Kate Bradley famously voice?

She was also an uncredited voice in many Warner Bros. cartoons and played Cousin Pearl Bodine on The Beverly Hillbillies.

Which relative of Jed Clampett did Kate's actress play in season one of The Beverly Hillbillies?

She reprised the role for a brief cameo in that show's sixth season.

Who sang the Petticoat Junction theme song?

He co-wrote it with Paul Henning; some budget DVDs replace it with generic bluegrass because the song is still copyrighted.

The Cannonball's motion shots were filmed on which line, based in Jamestown?

Its locomotive, Sierra No. 3, has appeared in more movies than any other engine, including Back to the Future Part III.

The full-size replica locomotive used for studio scenes was lent by a hotel in which city?

Every episode credits "Train furnished by Barbary Coast, Hoyt Hotel"; the replica survives as the Emma Sweeny.

In which season did Petticoat Junction switch from black-and-white to color?

Kate's dowdy farm-woman look was upgraded at the same time, complete with high heels.

Why did CBS renew the show for a seventh season after nearly canceling it?

A full syndication package was expected to be very profitable; the show was dropped the following spring anyway.

Which dog joined the cast as a regular in season two?

He first appeared as "Sheba" in a season-one episode; the producers liked him so much they wrote him in as Betty Jo's dog.

Who is Kate Bradley's nosy rival, introduced in the 1964–65 season?

Virginia Sale played her first; Elvia Allman took over from season three and stayed to the end.

In a season-one episode, the Bradley sisters form a Beatlesque band called what?

They wore mop-top wigs and sang "I Saw Her Standing There" with "Him" swapped in, and performed it on The Ed Sullivan Show days earlier.

Which bumbling game warden becomes Bobbie Jo's boyfriend in the final season?

Jonathan Daly played him, much to Uncle Joe's annoyance.

What is the name of Betty Jo and Steve's baby daughter?

Red-haired twins Heather and Barbara Whiter played her uncredited in season six, then Elna Hubbell in season seven.

Which episode, with Floyd Smoot planning to retire, serves as an unofficial finale?

Floyd sings "Steam, Cinders and Smoke", written by the late Smiley Burnette, and decides to stay after Hooterville writes him letters.

Which Beverly Hillbillies character comes to Hooterville in 1968 to tend Betty Jo's baby?

It was the first link between the two shows in five years; the Clampetts later spent Thanksgiving and Christmas 1968 in Hooterville.

Which Hooterville couple, owners of Arnold the Pig, debuted in season two of this show?

Doris was originally named Ruthie after Paul Henning's wife; Green Acres creator Jay Sommers wrote several season-two scripts.

Which three actors appeared in all seven seasons?

Henning missed only two episodes; Buchanan missed none.

What move by CBS in season five began the show's ratings decline?

By season six it had fallen out of the Nielsen top 30.

Which season's black-and-white episodes are now in the public domain?

Their copyrights lapsed, which is why discount DVDs abound, usually with a substitute theme tune.

Which game show staged a Petticoat Junction cast reunion against The Brady Bunch in 1983?

Frank Cady, Linda Kaye Henning, Lori Saunders, Gunilla Hutton and Meredith MacRae took part; Edgar Buchanan had died in 1979.

Which of the creator's three rural sitcoms never got a reunion movie?

Meredith MacRae and Linda Kaye Henning tried in the 1970s to mount Hello Again Hooterville: A Thanksgiving Reunion, but it never happened.

A Florida amusement park named after the show opened in 1963 in which resort town?

Its owners were friends of Edgar Buchanan; naturally it featured a steam railroad, and it ran until 1984.

Which company produced Petticoat Junction along with CBS Productions?

Filmways also made The Beverly Hillbillies and Green Acres, the other two legs of Henning's rural trio.

Pixley, at one end of the rail line, was named for a real town in which state?

Several location shots were filmed in the real Pixley; Hooterville's own location is never pinned down on either show.

Which elevation sign greets passengers arriving in Hooterville?

The station sign is a running visual gag in the Hooterville scenes on both shows.

Who replaced Floyd Smoot as the train's engineer in season six?

Byron Foulger, who had earlier played banker Mr. Guerney, took the role until illness sidelined him in the final season.

Who played Floyd Smoot, the Cannonball's fireman and conductor?

He ran the train alone after Smiley Burnette's death and returned for two final-season episodes, including "Last Train to Pixley".