John Robert Cherry III (October 11, 1948 – May 8, 2022) was an American film director and screenwriter, most notable for creating the character of Ernest P. Worrell, played by Jim Varney.
He was the executive vice president and co-namesake of the Nashville-based Carden and Cherry advertising agency, for which the "Ernest" character was developed. He based the character on a man who worked for his father, about whom Cherry said, that he thought he knew everything but did not know anything.[1]
Ernest was portrayed for 15 years by Jim Varney, who at the time of the character's debut was an up-and-coming stand-up comic; after a string of successful commercials and sketches, Cherry directed a television series (Hey, Vern! It's Ernest) and several movies. Cherry made three cameo appearances in his own films: in Slam Dunk Ernest as a basketball spectator, Ernest Goes to Africa as a customer, and in Ernest in the Army as Sergeant Ben Kovsky. In addition to Varney, Cherry also introduced the comic duo of Chuck and Bobby (Gailard Sartain and Bill Byrge respectively), who were integrated into the Ernest films as supporting characters.
Cherry retired the Ernest character after Varney's declining health made it impossible for him to continue in the role (Varney died in 2000). He directed two other films without Ernest: For Love or Mummy, a collaboration with Larry Harmon that sought to reintroduce the long-deceased Laurel and Hardy comic team with new actors (with Hardy portrayed by Sartain); and Pirates of the Plain, for which Cherry had intended to include Varney but could not.
Personal lifeedit
Cherry had three children from two marriages.[citation needed] His son Josh appeared in Ernest in the Army as Corporal Davis.
john, cherry, john, robert, cherry, october, 1948, 2022, american, film, director, screenwriter, most, notable, creating, character, ernest, worrell, played, varney, john, robert, cherry, iiiborn, 1948, october, 1948nashville, tennessee, diedmay, 2022, 2022, a. John Robert Cherry III October 11 1948 May 8 2022 was an American film director and screenwriter most notable for creating the character of Ernest P Worrell played by Jim Varney John Robert Cherry IIIBorn 1948 10 11 October 11 1948Nashville Tennessee U S DiedMay 8 2022 2022 05 08 aged 73 Occupation s Director screenwriter producer actorKnown forCreating Ernest P Worrell Contents 1 Career 2 Personal life 3 Death 4 Director 5 Actor 6 References 7 External linksCareer editThis section needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources in this section Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources John R Cherry III news newspapers books scholar JSTOR May 2022 Learn how and when to remove this template message A native of Nashville Tennessee Cherry attended the Ringling School of Art and Design in Sarasota Florida He was the executive vice president and co namesake of the Nashville based Carden and Cherry advertising agency for which the Ernest character was developed He based the character on a man who worked for his father about whom Cherry said that he thought he knew everything but did not know anything 1 Ernest was portrayed for 15 years by Jim Varney who at the time of the character s debut was an up and coming stand up comic after a string of successful commercials and sketches Cherry directed a television series Hey Vern It s Ernest and several movies Cherry made three cameo appearances in his own films in Slam Dunk Ernest as a basketball spectator Ernest Goes to Africa as a customer and in Ernest in the Army as Sergeant Ben Kovsky In addition to Varney Cherry also introduced the comic duo of Chuck and Bobby Gailard Sartain and Bill Byrge respectively who were integrated into the Ernest films as supporting characters Cherry retired the Ernest character after Varney s declining health made it impossible for him to continue in the role Varney died in 2000 He directed two other films without Ernest For Love or Mummy a collaboration with Larry Harmon that sought to reintroduce the long deceased Laurel and Hardy comic team with new actors with Hardy portrayed by Sartain and Pirates of the Plain for which Cherry had intended to include Varney but could not Personal life editCherry had three children from two marriages citation needed His son Josh appeared in Ernest in the Army as Corporal Davis Cherry was a Christian 2 Death editCherry died from Parkinson s disease on May 8 2022 aged 73 3 Director edit1983 Knowhutimean Hey Vern It s My Family Album 1985 Dr Otto and the Riddle of the Gloom Beam 1986 The Ernest Film Festival video 1987 Ernest Goes to Camp 1987 Hey Vern Win 10 000 video 1988 Ernest Saves Christmas 1990 Ernest Goes to Jail 1991 Ernest Scared Stupid 1993 Ernest Rides Again 1995 Slam Dunk Ernest 1997 Ernest Goes to Africa 1998 Ernest in the Army 1999 The All New Adventures of Laurel amp Hardy in For Love or Mummy 1999 Pirates of the Plain 2009 Stake Out video short 2009 Denton Wants His Mummy video short 2009 Denton Rose Paranormal Levitation Trick video short 2011 Denton Rose s Shorts video Actor edit1997 Ernest Goes to Africa as Customer 1998 Ernest in the Army as Sergeant Ben KovskyReferences edit Willman Chris Varney The Importance of Being Ernest Los Angeles Times Archived from the original on October 21 2017 Retrieved October 6 2010 John Cherry Obituary Nashville TN Dignity Memorial Retrieved November 2 2023 Dick Jeremy May 8 2022 John Cherry Creator of Jim Varney s Ernest Dies at 73 MovieWeb Retrieved May 8 2022 External links editJohn R Cherry III at IMDb nbsp Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title John R Cherry III amp oldid 1216521308, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
