Sharon Tate filmography says she starred in "Petticoat Junction" is this true? What is the name of the character Sharon Tate portrayed? Was Sharon Tate one of the main characters? What years did Sharon Tate appear in "Petticoat Junction?"



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M.R.
Mindy Roberts

Actually Mindy. Sharon was casted for the role of Billie Jo Bradley. She posed nude for playboy and since ivory was a sponsor for the show, they were concerned about the image of the show. Paul Henning thought that Ivory would pull out of sponsorship so he fired her and instantly offered the role to Jeannine Riley.

Hey,

Actually that is a rumor that has been floating around for awhile and is not true.

Sharon did not pose for Playboy until 1967. Roman Polanski took the photos as publicity for the film they made together "The Fearless Vampire Killers."

Sharon did appear in one episode of "Petticoat Junction" but she was soon after discovered by Martin Ransohoff and he advised her to take a film contract with him and opt out of the TV show. He said that he would pay for her training and make her a star. Ransohoff was affilated with Filmways, which produced "Petticoat Junction," "Mr. Ed" and "The Beverly Hillbillies." Sharon decided that she would take the contract with Ransohoff and so the show was destroyed and they retaped a new episode with Jeannine Riley. At the time they didn't keep old shows around, especially if they were not going to use them. So that is why only a few photographs exist from that episode.

Chris Simmons, who runs the Official Sharon Tate Board, found this information out when he asked a Henning family member about what ever happened to the original premiere episode.

In addition, this rumor has even been printed in books, articles and other places on the net. One place on the net suggested that Sharon didn't actually pose for Playboy but appeared in it in 1963. A friend of mine, who is also a Sharon fan, says he checked his complete set of Playboys and found no such photos of anyone looking like Sharon.

Furthermore, there are some photos out there taken by Bert Stern, of Sharon nude and the date for them says 1963, however, many have speculated that Stern just has the date wrong. However, these photos remained unpublished until recently.

It has been said that Sharon appeared on "Petticoat Junction" but also wore a black wig as she did on "The Beverly Hillbillies." I have never known anyone who actually pinpointed where she was in any episodes. Now she has easily been spotted on "Beverly Hillbillies" and on "Mr. Ed". So whether or not she appeared as an extra on "Junction" is not known but it generally says that in biographies of her.

Hope that clears things up. ;)

PS: Ransohoff did let Sharon appear on the Tv shows to give her more experience to get her ready for her big break. He wanted to keep her under wraps--under a black wig in this matter--until he thought she was ready to be announced to the world as a full fledged star. :)

In the DVD commentary by Linda Kaye Henning, she specifically tell sthe story of the nude photos before the start of Petticoat Junction.

Well Linda Kaye needs to check her info. I know for a fact that all I said is completely true. Anyone can check their old Playboys to find out. Ransohoff himself has stated what I said here and ChrisS did ask Linda's dad about it and there is simply no truth in it.

However, now that you say that, no wonder so many people often misrepresent the facts.

CC