Keeper of the Clown: My Life with Ernest

by John Cherry

In Keeper of the Clown - My Life with Ernest, ad man John Cherry tells humorous recollections of working with comedian Jim Varney to create "Ernest" television commercials and Disney movies. This memoir was written for adult readers and is not a children's book. Ernest P. Worrell became an advertising and motion picture icon by being bounced aboard a rolling 20-foot cannon, shoved off a rooftop, and shocked from a TV short. John Cherry recounts the thrill ride of taking Ernest from local TV ads to big-screen movie hits - all the while being bounced around himself by bankers, the IRS and Disney executives. In this hilarious - and mostly true - look behind the scenes, Cherry tells how he came to put actor Jim Varney in a khaki baseball cap, sell TV commercials to scores of clients, nab Barbra Streisand's manager as his own, and successfully direct Varney's unpredictable creative genius. Author John Cherry was a partner in Carden & Cherry Advertising, a small Nashville agency, in the early 80s. He stumbled onto Jim Varney, a talented comedian. Together, they fumbled their way to box office hits such as Ernest Goes to Camp, Ernest Saves Christmas, and Ernest Goes to Jail. Cherry, his co-writer Coke Sams, and the agency creative directors wrote, directed and produced ten movies, a Saturday-morning network show, a TV special, and literally thousands of Ernest commercials sold market-by-market across the country. He "We had to make commercials to pay for our movie habit." Excerpt on Jim Varney's wedding The sword came down like a guillotine. It was a clean, even slice. The wedding cake stood tall and proud. A thin mark down the side was the only evidence that hinted at its severe wound..."Let's go shoot my 44 magnum!" Jim called out.

Genres: Biography

228 pages, Paperback

First published May 20, 2013

Reviews

[J.]

Not really a biography of Jim himself, his nephew wrote one of those already and it's on my TBR, but this was a fascinating and hilarious look at the comedic minds who went into the Ernest character. Not so much known by kids now at one point in time (the 80's and early 90's) if you lived in the South or the Midwest as a kid you definitely saw his commercials, and once he got a bigger ovation than mickey mouse Disney was all for making some low budget kids movies starring the great redneck hope (and he even won an Emmy for best kids show!). Very surprised to learn that the minds behind the Ernest character then went on to create The Big Comfy Couch, but in retrospect the same strain of comedy is all over it.

[Rick Lee Lee James]

Entertaining but not really about Jim Varney. What it is about is the production company/ad agency that created Ernest. It’s worth a read if you enjoy “making of” stories about pop culture phenomenons.

[Michael]

The book is at times entertaining and at times confusing. The author states early on that parts of the book are made up. I found myself questioning if what I was reading was just nonsense filler or maybe symbolism. I didn’t dwell too long and moved on to the next chapter. The first half of the book shares some fun stories about Jim Varney. The second half focuses mainly on the production company’s struggle to finance later Ernest films. If I’d seen these (i.e. Slam Dunk Ernest, Ernest in the Army) that might have made the second half a bit more interesting. Fans of the late Jim Varney will likely enjoy this book, but also wish for a bit more information about the man who gave the world Ernest P. Worrell.

[James Azrael]

An amazing look into the world of the real Ernest, Jim Varney.

[Linda G. Rickert]

Too Much About Agency

Too much about as agency and not enough about Jim Varney. Needed to dwell on the actor/comedian and not how they created Earnest.