Gailard Sartain (born September 18, 1946) is an American retired actor, often playing characters with roots in the South. He was a regular on the

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

variety series ''

Hee Haw ''Hee Haw'' is an American television variety show featuring country music and humor with the fictional rural "Kornfield Kounty" as the backdrop. It aired first-run on CBS from 1969 to 1971, in syndication from 1971 to 1993, and on TNN from 1 ...

''. He is also known for his roles in three of the Ernest movies and the TV series '' Hey Vern, It's Ernest!'', which ran for one season on

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

in 1988. He is also an accomplished and successful painter and illustrator.

Early years and education

Sartain was born in

Tulsa, Oklahoma Tulsa () is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 47th-most populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 census. It is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region with ...

, the son of a Tulsa fire chief. He attended

Cascia Hall Preparatory School Cascia Hall Preparatory School is an Augustinian Roman Catholic coeducational College-preparatory day school in Tulsa, Oklahoma. It is a member of the Augustinian Secondary Education Association. It is one of Tulsa's two Catholic high schools, w ...

, is a 1963 graduate of Will Rogers High School in Tulsa and was a member of the Epsilon Mu chapter of the Kappa Sigma Fraternity at the University of Tulsa, from which he graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. In 1968, Gailard moved to New York City, where he worked as an assistant to illustrator Paul Davis.

Career

Sartain's entry into entertainment was launched in Tulsa. Working originally as a cameraman at a local television station, he gained notoriety through the creation of a late night off-the-wall comedy program entitled ''The Uncanny Film Festival and Camp Meeting''. Dressed as a wizard, wearing a dark blue robe and pointed wizard's cap, Sartain hosted the program as "Dr. Mazeppa Pompazoidi". Other cast members included fellow Tulsa native

Gary Busey Gary Busey (; born 1944) is an American actor. He is best known for his portrayal of Buddy Holly in ''The Buddy Holly Story'' (1978), for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor and won the National Society of Film Critics ...

and Jim Millaway. The program was broadcast on the Tulsa CBS affiliate KOTV and later the ABC affiliate

KTUL KTUL (channel 8) is a television station in Tulsa, Oklahoma, United States, affiliated with ABC and owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group. The station's studios are located at Lookout Mountain (near South 29th West Avenue, west of Interstate 244) ...

. It featured B-movies, with skits written and performed by Sartain, Busey and company between the movie segments. Discovered by a talent scout during his stint as Mazeppa, Sartain was hired in 1972 as a regular on the television program ''

''. Sartain remained as a regular cast member of the popular show for nearly 20 seasons. He also served as a regular on other series including '' Cher'' (1975–76) and '' Shields and Yarnell'' (1978). Sartain played C.D. Parker for one episode during the pilot season of '' Walker, Texas Ranger''. He supplied the voice of a social worker in the pilot episode of the animated series ''

King of the Hill ''King of the Hill'' is an American animated sitcom created by Mike Judge and Greg Daniels for the Fox Broadcasting Company. It aired its original non-syndicated run from January 12, 1997, to September 13, 2009, and centers on the Hills, an Am ...

''. Sartain also portrayed an advisor to

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Earl Long Earl Kemp Long (August 26, 1895 – September 5, 1960) was an American politician and the 45th governor of Louisiana, serving three nonconsecutive terms. Long, known as "Uncle Earl", connected with voters through his folksy demeanor and c ...

(played by Paul Newman) in the movie '' Blaze''. Sartain has appeared in more than forty motion pictures, most notably as The Big Bopper in '' The Buddy Holly Story'', Sheriff Ray Stuckey in '' Mississippi Burning'', '' The Outsiders,'' ''

The Hollywood Knights ''The Hollywood Knights'' is a 1980 American teen comedy film written and directed by Floyd Mutrux depicting the crass and mischievous antics and practical jokes of the remaining members of a 1950s-era car club turned social fraternity in and aro ...

'', '' Fried Green Tomatoes'', '' The Replacements'' as Offensive Assistant Coach Leo Pilachowski, '' The Big Easy'', '' The Grifters'', '' Getting Even with Dad'', '' The Patriot'', and an uncredited role in the 1994 comedy '' Wagons East'' starring

John Candy John Franklin Candy (October 31, 1950 – March 4, 1994) was a Canadian actor and comedian known mainly for his work in Hollywood films. Candy rose to fame in the 1970s as a member of the Toronto branch of the Second City and its '' SCTV'' seri ...

and Richard Lewis. Sartain also appeared in a deleted scene from the

Steve Martin Stephen Glenn Martin (born August 14, 1945) is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer, and musician. He has won five Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and was awarded an Honorary Academy Award in 2013. Additionally, he was nominate ...

comedy ''

The Jerk ''The Jerk'' is a 1979 American comedy film directed by Carl Reiner and written by Steve Martin, Carl Gottlieb, and Michael Elias (from a story by Steve Martin and Carl Gottlieb). This was Martin's first starring role in a feature film. The f ...

'' as a Texas oil millionaire who successfully begs for $1500 (in cash) to replace the cracked leather seats on his private airplane: "You know what this means? I can fly my friends to the Super Bowl like a ''man'', not like some kinda god-danged ''bum''!" Sartain also appeared in Mel McDaniel's music video for "Stand Up" in 1985. His final film role was in 2005, in

Cameron Crowe Cameron Bruce Crowe (born July 13, 1957) is an American journalist, author, writer, producer, director, actor, lyricist, and playwright. Before moving into the film industry, Crowe was a contributing editor at '' Rolling Stone'' magazine, for w ...

's '' Elizabethtown''. He is also known for his roles in three of the Ernest P. Worrell films starring

Jim Varney James Albert Varney Jr. (June 15, 1949 – February 10, 2000) was an American actor and comedian. He is best known for his broadly comedic role as Ernest P. Worrell, for which he won a Daytime Emmy Award, as well as appearing in films and n ...

(as well as the '' Hey Vern, It's Ernest!'' television series). With fellow Hey Vern co-star Bill Byrge of Nashville, the duo performed as brothers Chuck and Bobby in a series of "Me and my brother, Bobby..." pitches for local TV stations and product ads. He was replaced by a younger brother named Tom Tulip (

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

native John Cadenhead) in '' Ernest Scared Stupid''. A successful illustrator, Sartain's artistic credits range from record cover designs for such artists as Leon Russell (''Will O' the Wisp'') to illustrations for nationally published magazines.

Filmography

Film

*'' Nashville'' (1975) .... Man at Lunch Counter (uncredited) *'' The Buddy Holly Story'' (1978) .... Big Bopper *''Smokey and the Good Time Outlaws'' (1978) .... Arthur Leddy *''

'' (1979) .... Guy with Cracked Airplane Seats (uncredited) *''

'' (1980) .... Bimbeau *''

Roadie The road crew (or roadies) are the technicians or support personnel who travel with a band on tour, usually in sleeper buses, and handle every part of the concert productions except actually performing the music with the musicians. This ca ...

'' (1980) .... B.B. Muldoon *'' Hard Country'' (1981) .... Johnny Bob *'' Endangered Species'' (1982) .... Mayor *'' The Outsiders'' (1983) .... Jerry *''

Choose Me ''Choose Me'' is a 1984 American romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by Alan Rudolph, starring Geneviève Bujold, Keith Carradine, and Lesley Ann Warren. The film is a look at sex and love in 1980s Los Angeles centered around a dive ...

'' (1984) .... Mueller *'' All of Me'' (1984) .... Fulton Norris *''

Songwriter A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music ...

'' (1984) .... Mulreaux *'' Trouble in Mind'' (1985) .... Fat Adolph *'' Uphill All the Way'' (1986) .... Private *'' The Big Easy'' (1986) .... Chef Paul *'' Ernest Goes to Camp'' (1987) .... Jake (Chef #1) *''Leader of the Band'' (1987) .... Elmo De Lavallard *''

Made in Heaven ''Made in Heaven'' is the fifteenth studio album by the British rock band Queen, released on 6 November 1995 by Parlophone Records in the United Kingdom and by Hollywood Records in the United States. It was the band's first and only release s ...

'' (1987) .... Sam Morrell *'' The Moderns'' (1988) .... New York Critic *'' Ernest Saves Christmas'' (1988) .... Chuck *'' Mississippi Burning'' (1988) .... Sheriff Ray Stuckey *'' Blaze'' (1989) .... LaGrange *'' Love at Large'' (1990) .... Taxi Driver *''

Ernest Goes to Jail ''Ernest Goes to Jail'' is a 1990 American comedy film directed by John Cherry and starring Jim Varney. It is the fourth film to feature the character Ernest P. Worrell. It was shot in Nashville and Tennessee State Prison. Plot Ernest P. Wo ...

'' (1991) .... Chuck *'' The Grifters'' (1990) .... Joe *'' The Chase'' (1991, TV Movie) - Hammer *''

Guilty by Suspicion ''Guilty by Suspicion'' is a 1991 American drama film about the Hollywood blacklist, McCarthyism, and the activities of the House Un-American Activities Committee. Written and directed by Irwin Winkler, it stars Robert De Niro, Annette Bening, and ...

'' (1991) .... Chairman Wood *'' Fried Green Tomatoes'' (1991) .... Ed Couch *''Death Falls'' (1991) .... Hearse Driver *'' Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot'' (1992) .... Munroe *''

Equinox A solar equinox is a moment in time when the Sun crosses the Earth's equator, which is to say, appears directly above the equator, rather than north or south of the equator. On the day of the equinox, the Sun appears to rise "due east" and se ...

'' (1992) .... Dandridge *'' Wishman'' (1992) .... Dr. Abe Rogers *'' Walker, Texas Ranger'' (1993, TV Series) .... C.D. Parker *''

The Real McCoy "The real McCoy" is an idiom and metaphor used in much of the English-speaking world to mean "the real thing" or "the genuine article", e.g. "he's the real McCoy". The phrase has been the subject of numerous false etymologies. History The phr ...

'' (1993) .... Gary Buckner *''Sandman'' (1993) .... Dave *'' Clean Slate'' (1994) .... Judge Block *'' Getting Even with Dad'' (1994) .... Carl *'' Wagons East'' (1994) .... J.P. Moreland (uncredited) *'' Speechless'' (1994) .... Lee Cutler *''Open Season'' (1995) .... George Plunkett *''

The Spitfire Grill ''The Spitfire Grill'' (also known as ''Care of the Spitfire Grill'') is a 1996 American film written and directed by Lee David Zlotoff and starring Alison Elliott, Ellen Burstyn, Marcia Gay Harden, Will Patton, Kieran Mulroney and Gailard Sa ...

'' (1996) .... Sheriff Gary Walsh *'' Murder in Mind'' (1997) .... Charlie *'' RocketMan'' (1997) .... Mr. Randall (uncredited) *'' Joe Torre: Curveballs Along the Way'' (1997, TV Movie) .... Don Zimmer *'' The Patriot'' (1998) .... Floyd Chisolm *''Existo'' (1999) .... Colette Watchuwill *'' The All New Adventures of Laurel & Hardy in For Love or Mummy'' (1999) .... Oliver Fattius Hardy *''

Pirates of Silicon Valley ''Pirates of Silicon Valley'' is a 1999 American biographical drama television film directed by Martyn Burke and starring Noah Wyle as Steve Jobs and Anthony Michael Hall as Bill Gates. Spanning the years 1971–1997 and based on Paul Freiberge ...

'' (1999, TV Movie) .... Ed Roberts *'' The Replacements'' (2000) .... Pilachowski *'' Ali'' (2001) .... Gordon Davidson *''The Round and Round'' (2002) .... Jim Stoops *'' Elizabethtown'' (2005) .... Charles Dean

References

External links

*
Official WebsiteMazeppa article by Lindsey Neal Kuykendall in This Land Press January 2011
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sartain, Gailard 1946 births American male film actors American illustrators Living people Male actors from Tulsa, Oklahoma University of Tulsa alumni Horror hosts 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors