Green Acres actor Tom Lester, who portrayed farmworker Eb Dawson in the American sitcom, passed away at the age of 81.
As TMZ reported, the 81-year-old star of the show died at the home of Jackie, his caregiver and fiancée, in Nashville on Monday.
According to TMZ, the actor, who was born in Laurel, Mississippi, died after suffering from complications related to Parkinson’s Disease.
Lester was best known for his appearance as Eb Dawson, a farmhand, in American sitcom Green Acres that follows a couple who moved from New York to the country to start a different kind of life.
Lester played the role of the farmworker from the year 1965 to 1971.
Besides his appearance in Green Acres, Lester also acted in shows like Knight Rider, Little House on the Prairie, and Santa Barbara. The actor also appeared in movies including Benji and Gordy. One of his latest major appearances was in the 2014 movie titled Campin’ Buddies.
According to the Laurel Leader-Call, Lester spent many years at his Jasper County farm and was later, in 1997, even named Mississippi’s ‘Wildlife Farmer of the Year.’
As a child, Lester allegedly aimed to one day make it to Hollywood and become a renowned actor, something that many didn’t believe possible.
“I told them I was going out to Hollywood to become an actor and they all said, ‘You’re crazy,’” the actor once told Faith Forward.
“You’ll never be able to do that. You’re too tall, too skinny, too ugly. You’ve got a Southern accent and you’ll never make it in the motion picture business. You don’t look like Rock Hudson.”
After forgetting about his acting dreams for years, he once again found the courage to pursue his passion after reading about actor Don Knotts who had a successful showbiz career despite not being the best-looking actor in the house.
With passion reignited, Lester eventually moved to Los Angeles and beat his competition as he landed a role in Green Acres.
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Replaced!