It's ridiculous that such a young guy like Eb would never ever be seen with his parents & even more ridiculous that he keeps calling the Douglases "mom and dad" when he has a REAL mom & dad!

It's ridiculous that such a young guy like Eb would never ever be seen with his parents & even more ridiculous that he keeps calling the Douglases "mom and dad" when he has a REAL mom & dad!

Were they ever even mentioned ? Maybe they were supposed to be deceased? Eb calling The Douglas's Mom and Dad, maybe he felt as if they were like his adoptive parents! ;)

Were they ever even mentioned ? Maybe they were supposed to be deceased? Eb calling The Douglas's Mom and Dad, maybe he felt as if they were like his adoptive parents! ;)

I don't know if Eb ever directly mentioned his parents. In one episode he said he was born in Appleville, so it's possible they still lived there.

Not invalid that we don't see Eb's parents.

However; since Eb seems to have had nowhere to go besides the Douglases' barn and he's constantly trying to tag Oliver and Lisa 'Dad' and 'Mom', it's likely the Dawsons were either too destitute to even visit or help him out OR he could have been completely estranged from them (but that wouldn't be a particular funny plot point for this wacky sitcom so that's why they likely never tried to go there).

What's even odder is that there was but a single appearance of Barney's mother on "The Andy Griffith Show" -despite her evidently living in or near Mayberry (and I'll start a thread under that show).

Were they ever even mentioned ? Maybe they were supposed to be deceased? Eb calling The Douglas's Mom and Dad, maybe he felt as if they were like his adoptive parents! ;)

In the episode "Jealousy" today on MeTV Eb mentions his parents although I don't recall exactly what he said although it was NOT that they're dead.

He was looking for a new place after cute little Lori moved in & he got upset. He went to the spare room at Drucker's but it was too expensive at $3 a day! :lol:

Why didn't he just go to his parents house?? Very strange that they never adequately explained his parents during the entire series!

In the episode "Jealousy" today on MeTV Eb mentions his parents although I don't recall exactly what he said although it was NOT that they're dead.

He was looking for a new place after cute little Lori moved in & he got upset. He went to the spare room at Drucker's but it was too expensive at $3 a day! :lol:

Why didn't he just go to his parents house?? Very strange that they never adequately explained his parents during the entire series!


3 dollars a day, so that is 21 a week, 84 a month! What would 84 dollars in the 1960's be equivalent to nowadays ?

And if his parents still lived in Appleville , maybe that would be too far for Eb to live and commute to work at the Douglas's in Hooterville! ;)

3 dollars a day, so that is 21 a week, 84 a month! What would 84 dollars in the 1960's be equivalent to nowadays ?

And if his parents still lived in Appleville , maybe that would be too far for Eb to live and commute to work at the Douglas's in Hooterville! ;)

On Green Acres they mentioned Pixley, Crabwell Corners, & of course Hooterville.

When did they mention Appleville??

On Green Acres they mentioned Pixley, Crabwell Corners, & of course Hooterville.

When did they mention Appleville??


IDK?But PhoenixAcres said it in his post, ( Post 3 here) that Eb had said he was born in Appleville ! :) And PhoenixAcres knows his Green Acres pretty well! ;)

IDK?But PhoenixAcres said it in his post, ( Post 3 here) that Eb had said he was born in Appleville ! :) And PhoenixAcres knows his Green Acres pretty well! ;)

Aw thanks Bonnie :wave:

It was actually the punchline of a throwaway joke, after Oliver said something like "Where did you come from?" and Eb started to go into the details of his birth.

I actually couldn't remember what episode this line was from until I found this page, which confirms it was from the Beverly Hillbillies episode: http://www.maggiore.net/greenacres/ga55.asp

Perhaps Eb was an orphan or foster child and never really knew his parents :confused:

It's been a while since I've seen many episodes, but didn't Eb used to work for Mr. Haney when he owned the farm? Maybe Haney took Eb in and gave him a job on the farm at a young age.

It's ridiculous that such a young guy like Eb would never ever be seen with his parents & even more ridiculous that he keeps calling the Douglases "mom and dad" when he has a REAL mom & dad!

Wait a second, are you actually looking for logic and reason and some kind of realism in Green Acres!

Remember what Johnny Carson once said, "if you buy the premise, you buy the bit", when you're watching Green Acres anything can happen from the Eiffel Tower showing up in Washington DC, to snowfall in Chicago in July, to Mason Dixon Dehydrated Chicken Dinner (remember the powder goes in boiling water and a few minutes later Lisa is pulling out a chicken leg, smashed potatoes, and an apple pie). And speaking of parents, the actress who played Oliver's mother in the early episodes (Eleanor Audley) was only 5 months older Eddie Albert.

Wait a second, are you actually looking for logic and reason and some kind of realism in Green Acres!

Remember what Johnny Carson once said, "if you buy the premise, you buy the bit", when you're watching Green Acres anything can happen from the Eiffel Tower showing up in Washington DC, to snowfall in Chicago in July, to Mason Dixon Dehydrated Chicken Dinner (remember the powder goes in boiling water and a few minutes later Lisa is pulling out a chicken leg, smashed potatoes, and an apple pie). And speaking of parents, the actress who played Oliver's mother in the early episodes (Eleanor Audley) was only 5 months older Eddie Albert.

Of course I know how downright SILLY this show is. In fact it's probably the SILLIEST most unrealistic sitcom out there!

But I just thought they could've shown Eb's parents at least ONCE in the 6 years of the show!

I don't consider Green Acres silly, it's an extremely important show that influenced a generation of comedians and comedy writers. Matt Groening (creator of "The Simpsons") has publicly acknowledged the influence the show had on him, Roseanne, Ben Stiller, Stephen Hillenburg (SpongeBob) just to name a few also mentioned the series as an influence. The show is a comedy showcase of sight gags, physical comedy, contemporary political parodies, there are so many things going on and jokes come so close together that you have to watch episodes multiple times to catch them all.

I think Green Acres is one the three best comedy series of the 1960's (and it's my favorite series). I think many people who dismiss the show see it as just another rural sitcom and in doing so completely miss the one overriding point to the series and all the incredible comedic elements.

I don't consider Green Acres silly, it's an extremely important show that influenced a generation of comedians and comedy writers. Matt Groening (creator of "The Simpsons") has publicly acknowledged the influence the show had on him, Roseanne, Ben Stiller, Stephen Hillenburg (SpongeBob) just to name a few also mentioned the series as an influence. The show is a comedy showcase of sight gags, physical comedy, contemporary political parodies, there are so many things going on and jokes come so close together that you have to watch episodes multiple times to catch them all.

I think Green Acres is one the three best comedy series of the 1960's (and it's my favorite series). I think many people who dismiss the show see it as just another rural sitcom and in doing so completely miss the one overriding point to the series and all the incredible comedic elements.

Well said. :) I couldn't agree more.

I was just watching "Oliver Takes Over the Phone Company" from Season 3 and Eb does mention his mom briefly when Oliver and Lisa are doing the TV interview. It seems like Eb was more normal (goofy, but normal) in Seasons 1-3 and called Oliver and Lisa "Mom and Dad" as a joke, but in the later seasons he really does act like they're his real parents.

It would have been hilarious to meet Eb's real parents and see why he turned out the way he did, but my guess is that the show already had an extensive cast of starring and recurring characters, and it may have been too costly to add more recurring characters. If I recall, that was the reason why recurring characters like Pickles Sorrell on The Dick Van Dyke Show stopped appearing on-screen.

I think it's hilarious when he calls them Mom and Dad, actually.

I was just watching "Oliver Takes Over the Phone Company" from Season 3 and Eb does mention his mom briefly when Oliver and Lisa are doing the TV interview. It seems like Eb was more normal (goofy, but normal) in Seasons 1-3 and called Oliver and Lisa "Mom and Dad" as a joke, but in the later seasons he really does act like they're his real parents.

It would have been hilarious to meet Eb's real parents and see why he turned out the way he did, but my guess is that the show already had an extensive cast of starring and recurring characters, and it may have been too costly to add more recurring characters. If I recall, that was the reason why recurring characters like Pickles Sorrell on The Dick Van Dyke Show stopped appearing on-screen.

But we never actually see Eb's mom or dad. It's a joke that such a young guy never spends ANY time with his parents!

But we never actually see Eb's mom or dad. It's a joke that such a young guy never spends ANY time with his parents!

I agree! How old was Eb supposed to be, anyway? Tom Lester was already in his mid-late 20s when Green Acres started, but I don't think Eb was that old.

I agree! How old was Eb supposed to be, anyway? Tom Lester was already in his mid-late 20s when Green Acres started, but I don't think Eb was that old.

I always assumed Eb was supposed to be 18-21 years old. I mean he dated college age girls.

Eb was in his early/mid 20s. In one episode he says he graduated high school (for the first time) in 1961, putting him at 22-23 by Fall 1965.

Tom Lester was 26 when the show started so they're approximately the same age.

Didn't Eb date a girl just out high school once??