Return of the Beverly Hillbillies Max Baer Jr. (the original Jethro) who declined to participate. The film was produced and written by original series creator Paul Henning and was intended as a pilot for a proposed revival of the series, but this never materialized. "Return of the Beverly Hillbillies" premiered as "The CBS Tuesday Night Movie" on October 6, 1981. Following the death of Granny, Jed Clampett returned to his roots to live in a backwoods cabin in the town of Bug Tussle rather than living alone at his Beverly Hills mansion after having voluntarily divided his massive fortune between daughter Elly May and nephew
The Beverly Hillbillies three Paul Henning series overlap. The Clampett family makes several trips to Hooterville (which was first mentioned in season 1 episode 6 when Jazzbo Depew attempts to sweet talk Jethrine Bodine), Sam Drucker visits Beverly Hills, and Granny (Irene Ryan) does two guest appearances on "Petticoat Junction". In season eight (1969–70), the Clampett family visits Hooterville one last time for a two-part episode. "The Beverly Hillbillies" received poor reviews from some contemporary critics. "The New York Times" called the show "strained and unfunny"; "Variety" called it "painful to sit through". Film professor Janet Staiger writes that "the problem for these